Florida lawmakers attempting to compromise over reforms to PIP

The Florida legislature is facing a debate over to strikingly different proposals that have been made to reform the no-fault auto insurance system in the state – also known as personal injury protection (PIP) – but the top lawmakers are hoping that it will be possible to reach a compromise. One of the primary issues of this legislative session – the extensive auto insurance fraud experienced in the state – was temporarily derailed by massage therapists who had been lobbying the topic. On Tuesday, the Senate Budget Committee held off…

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Florida legislators come face to face with staged accidents

Florida continues to lead the U.S. in auto insurance fraud, a fact that state lawmakers have been working to change. Staged auto accidents are presenting the state, and its insurance industry, with significant problems. Those abusing the state’s Personal Injury Protection (PIP) system, which provides drivers with no-fault auto insurance policies, cause insurers to raise rates on coverage in an effort to recovery from losses. Thus far, Florida legislators have been divided on how to solve the problem. That is until they were shown how easy it was for drivers…

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Florida pushes ahead with reforms to personal injury protection insurance laws

The Florida Legislature is moving ahead with plans to reform the state’s mandatory personal injury protection (PIP) insurance rules. Florida lawmakers and insurance companies have been battling a rampant outbreak of fraud throughout the state. Insurers claim that the fraud stems from the state’s regulations which require all drivers to have PIP coverage. The coverage is comprised of no-fault policies, which require insurers to pay claims whether a policyholder is at fault in an accident or not. This week, the Civil Justice Subcommittee approved HB 119, the bill that will…

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Auto insurance rates to jump higher in New Jersey, according to state regulators

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners has announced that New Jersey drivers may see their rates jump higher for the first time in years. The Association notes that the increase is due to the ramping costs of the state’s personal injury protection (PIP) policies. The Association has released a report which shows that the last time auto insurance rates rose was in 2009, when PIP rates rose to $1,218. No news on how much the new rates will be has yet been released. Many states have laws that require drivers…

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Biggest maritime insurance losses in history will likely result from Costa Concordia cruise liner

According to industry experts and analysts, the ruined Costa Concordia cruise liner may become the largest maritime insurance loss in history. Early predictions are indicating that the mutual societies and insurers may find themselves losing $1 billion on the disaster in which the multistory liner which had been carrying more than 4,000 people (both crew and passengers) ran aground off the west coast of Italy, capsizing and injuring dozens of people while killing at least five. There will be two primary issues to be faced in this catastrophe which involves…

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