The Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights is the consumer group in question. The members say that one of the insurance commissioner’s top attorneys gave advice on how to avoid court costs in a court case concerning insurance rates. His intent? To help insurers get out of paying $300,000 in court fees after a legal battle over car insurance premiums. Now they want the offending attorney fired. They have a pile of emails that support their claim.

Gausewitz is a former insurance industry lobbyist who is senior counsel to Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner. He says, “The documents obtained by FTCR show that Mr. Gausewitz continues to work closely with, and on behalf of, the insurance industry, albeit in a covert fashion – conduct that is utterly incompatible with your pledge of an independent and open administration.”

Jennifer Kerns is a spokeswoman for Poizner. She says, “While Harvey’s work is admirable, he’s just plain wrong on this. The fact is, it is not uncommon for the Department of Insurance to submit statements of fact on particular issues, which is what Bill Gausewitz did in this case.”

The facts are in hot dispute, but the court ordered the industry to pay the court costs.

In this day and age, retirees have several factors that they need to consider before retiring to make sure they enjoy a financial comfortable retirement. When thinking about retirement, you should address specific risks including:

· Potential for outliving assets

· Inflation

· Rising cost of healthcare

· Declining social security benefit

The goal of retirement income planning is to create a sustainable, predictable stream of income that also has the potential to increase over time. How should you do this? Experts suggest the following:

· Review your retirement portfolio to determine whether your asset allocation (investment mix) is appropriate for your specific goals. Make adjustments if necessary.

· Maximize contributions to retirement accounts, such as a 401(k) plan and/or an IRA.

· If you’re facing a retirement savings shortfall, consider possible fall-back strategies, such as delaying retirement and/or withdrawing less money from your account(s) each year during retirement.

· Evaluate the potential role that annuities may play in your financial plans for retirement.

If you live in an earthquake prone area, do you have earthquake insurance? Are you considering it? The cost of the policy can be daunting to some, but covering the cost of damages without it can be devastating. After an earthquake shakes the state, it’s common for there to be a bit of interest in procuring a new policy.

Tim Richison is the acting chief executive officer of the California Earthquake Authority. She says, “People will call agents requesting earthquake insurance quotes. There will be a few, but there won’t be a lot of new policies sold.”

Unlike most other insurance policies, the deductible does not have to be paid up front with an earthquake insurance claim. Instead, what your deductible is subtracted from your insurance pay out after an earthquake claim.

Tully Lehman is a spokesman for the Insurance Information Network of California and says, “Let’s say your house is totally gone. You get a check for the amount of the policy limit minus the deductible.”

Rather than take a chance, some will invest in earthquake insurance to be safe. Others are willing to gamble. High deductibles for earthquake insurance are common, so benefitting from earthquake insurance would mean a great amount of damage to your home. Many don’t think the risk of a home totally destroyed by an earthquake is probable.

Amy Bach is an executive director of United Policyholders in San Francisco, a consumer group active in insurance issues. She says, “In deciding whether to buy earthquake insurance, consumers need to determine how close they live to a fault zone, along with the age and construction of their home and foundation, among other things.”

Before you decide, get a quote. It’s better to know what your options are before you make a decision.

According to Insurance.com, the average auto insurance premium is $1,868 down from $1,965 in 2006. They report that car insurance rates in 2007 were at their lowest in 3 years…falling 5.2 percent nationwide from 2006.

Recently when a lawyer in New Hampshire confessed to insurance fraud, rather than being disbarred he was instead suspended from practicing law for two years.

It may seem like an unusually light punishment for such an offense, and it is in some ways. Apparently there were mitigating circumstances in this particular case. But what message does this send? A relatively publicized case-at least in the New England area-it seems like the punishment should come with some kind of…disclaimer.

Fraud insurance claims hurt more than just the insurance companies. It’s a large part of the reason that insurance premiums are so high: providers need to pay for the false claims filed by those who want to keep their own premiums down or make a little extra money.

The New Hampshire lawyer admittedly acted selfish and lied but the “other factors” that influenced his decision were apparently understandable enough to keep him in a job. The fact that it was a one-time incident also came into play and, it must be said, that a clothing store owner, for example, would not lose his shop over the same crime.

The lawyer was also ordered suspended jail time and a fine, the usual punishment meted out in insurance fraud cases.

Each year, Kiplinger’s puts out their “Best of Everything” List. This year, they included 25 Best Web Sites. We’re proud to say that AccuQuote.com was included in that list.

There are some really good websites listed, including the best travel deals, credit cards and financial services and much more. Be sure to check out their 2007 Best of Everything list.

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Charities are enjoying a nice little sum from the insurance agencies this year. American International Group (AIG) and Maroevich, O’Shea & Coghlan (MOC) Insurance Services has promised $60,000 to the fund that aids disabled jockeys in paying for health care and living expenses.

AIG donated $30,000 at the Breeders’ Cup World Championships Kickoff Celebration and promised another $10,000

Steve Gold is the president of AIG Domestic Accident and Health. He says, “It is an honor to be involved with the horse racing industry. AIG has a major commitment to racing and insures jockeys at major racetracks all across the country. AIG understands the risk that jockeys face every time they take a mount on a racehorse, and we are proud to support the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund.”

MOC announced that they would donate $20,000. John Unick is the president of MOC’s Thoroughbred racing division. He says, “Over the past several years, I have had the great pleasure of working with numerous executives at AIG on the direction of the Thoroughbred racing industry. The horse racing industry presents many unique challenges, none more apparent than the risk a jockey faces in each and every race. We are proud to be there for them and their families when they need us most.”

I found this article from Kiplinger’s Personal Finance on car leases that I thought was very insightful. I don’t think many people realize that you can negotiate a better lease and that you can get a tax break for your lease. Interesting stuff!

It’s not just the health insurance companies who are offering incentives to clients who lose weight. Now employers who offer health insurance to their employees are also offering wellness programs in an effort to help their employees get healthier and subsequently lower the cost of health care insurance. A residual benefit is that healthier employees work harder, accomplishing more and calling in sick less often. Everyone benefits from wellness programs and the new programs are sweeping the country.

Jim Deyling is a senior vice president at Blue Cross Blue Shield in South Carolina. He says, “Some companies offer what we refer to as preventative programs, which they’ll place additional dollars in another account that will allow workers to go for their physical or women for their mammogram tests. This measure is often included, but is up to the employers’ discretion.”

Employees who don’t take advantage of the programs and end up with sub-par health may find themselves paying more out-of-pocket expenses to cover the cost of their health care.

As Deyling points out, “Plenty of studies show that smoking and being overweight cause people to have health disorders, and having unhealthy people cause higher insurance.”

Will Shrader is a chief actuary for BlueCross BlueShield. He says that, “Smokers pay 15 percent to 20 percent more for health care than nonsmokers because of the additional doctor visits, medications and other health-related consequences of smoking. Bad eating habits that lead to obesity also lead to more money traveling through the health care system. This is not just an individual problem, it’s a burden on everyone because all of this contributes to the overall rise in health care and insurance costs.”

This is one of those things that you may only do a few times in your life. And, when it happens, you always seem to forget what you should do if you have an auto accident.

So, what do you do if you’re in an accident? According to the Insurance Information Institute you’ll want to follow these steps:

Contact your insurer. Contact your insurance company as soon as possible, whether you or the other driver is at fault.