Insurance Industry Representatives To Warn Residents About Contractor Fraud 

(COLUMBUS) — On Wednesday, July 21, representatives from the Ohio Department of Insurance’s Fraud and Enforcement Division, the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) and various Ohio insurance carriers will be going door to door in Youngstown, Boardman, Hubbard and Austintown to warn residents about unscrupulous contractors. Representatives will be passing out pamphlets to educate consumers of the various fraud schemes committed by disreputable contractors. All representatives involved with the consumer outreach initiative will be wearing special identification to prove they are a member of the insurance community.

The visit is in response to reports the Department has received from the Youngstown Better Business Bureau.  In June 2009, the Youngstown area was hit by a violent storm that produced high winds and large hail.  Now that the legitimate damage has been repaired, fly by night contractors, called Storm Chasers, are trying to convince people on the outskirts of those areas that they also had damage. One consumer reported she saw a contractor banging on her neighbor’s siding with a hammer to make it appear as if damage had occurred.

“Fly by night contractors come out after storms and prey on those desperate to get their homes repaired,” said Ohio Department of Insurance Director Mary Jo Hudson.  “The Department wants to assure that consumers get the best quality from their insurance proceeds and that an insurance claim and repair situation does not lead to another disaster.  We know that there are just a few bad apples out there, but we don’t want to see them spoiling the bunch. Anyone who chooses to misinform, mislead and deceive will be disciplined to the fullest extent.”

In the wake of damaging storms, such as a hail storm or a tornado, unscrupulous contractors tend to drift state-to-state and prey on desperate people anxious to get their property repaired and lives back in order. In one instance reported, a consumer unwittingly granted Power of Attorney to their roofing contractor. The roofer then managed to negotiate the insurance transaction and pocket the consumer’s insurance proceeds without doing the work.

Director Hudson offers these tips to Ohio consumers on how to avoid becoming a victim of contractor fraud:

• Contact your insurance company to verify benefits immediately after a disaster and so they can send an adjuster to assess any potential damage you may have incurred.
•  Obtain a list of reputable contractors from your insurance carrier, the Better Business Bureau or a specialized consumer organization.
• Do not allow a contractor to inspect your property when you are not home.
• If you give a contractor permission to inspect your property, personally watch them conduct the inspection.
• Contact multiple contractors and obtain more than one estimate.
• Request references from contractors and contact the references to verify work was completed timely and to satisfaction.
• Obtain, in writing, the terms and conditions of the project.
• Avoid signing a contract until the document is reviewed fully and/or discuss the terms of the contract with a legal representative or a trusted adviser.
• Avoid signing a contract that has not been completed fully.
• Pay contractor by check or credit card, rather than in cash.
• Refrain from paying a contractor in full, or signing a completion certificate, until all work has been finished.
• Do not provide the contractor with your personal information, such as your social security number.

Ohioans who feel they are a victim of contractor fraud are encouraged to contact the Department’s Fraud and Enforcement division by calling .  Ohio insurance consumers with questions and concerns about their insurance can call the Department’s consumer hotline Free information can also be obtained at .

A well-known “social media” analyst expects insurance companies to soon decide “You are what you Tweet!” then reward or penalize your online behavior with appropriate insurance rates and terms!

The research report on Social Media by the Altimeter Group predicts that insurance companies may use social data (in the not-too-distant future) to enhance their customer database. Just as today’s companies use previous purchasing behavior, demographics, psychographics and other studies, the researchers expect companies to take advantage of the social data that customers are providing to the public, in order to make better decisions.

Rewarding good drivers with lower rates is nothing new according to the researchers. Just look at Allstate’s advertising campaign. Insurance and healthcare companies want safe and healthy customers.

Social media is simply the most modern way that people are choosing to go public with their hobbies and lifestyles. Case in point: A Canadian woman who claimed medical disability, but was soon denied after the employer and insurance company discovered Facebook pictures of her on a beach.

Are You What You Tweet or Post to Facebook?

Here are three ways companies could influence rates based on social data according to Altimeter Group findings…

1. Monitor activities: Some insurance company could monitor what members are saying, then offer suggestions on wellness, activities, and being healthy. Overtime, they can develop intelligence and eventually predictive models based upon members published information and their overall well being. With that kind of data you can expect companies to “quickly be able to size up new members based upon their existing social behaviors online in order to influence the packages and rates they’ll offer.”

2. Penalize ill-behavior: Insurance companies could monitor customers, and those that participate in a negative way online could be penalized. Example: Checking into bars four times a week consistently when it’s not your job could yield a 10% increase. Anyone who earned the “Crunked” badge (going to four places in one night, referring to binge drinking) could receive a 10% increase in fees (unless of course, you’re the Budweiser delivery person). Or, anyone posting pictures of them skydiving or any picture while driving on the freeway from the drivers seat, would yield an increase in car insurance.

3. Reward members with pro-wellness activity: Rather than punish bad behavior, insurance companies could incentivize members to participate in pro-health programs. For example, members that regularlly publish their stats to Nike Plus, a system that connects Nike Shoes, iPods, and the internet to track running stats, could benefit from a decrease in health rates. Or, people that frequently check into healthier food alternatives like Trader Joes or Whole Foods, rather than a fast food place, may have a decrease in insurance rates for the family.

Social Insurance Rates’ Could Also Be Fraught with Challenges

Altimeter Group Web strategist Jeremiah Owyang points out that “Social Insurance Rates” are all about tradeoffs, to get a benefit, you have to give up something, here’s the risks as I see them. The data may not be accurate, information might be gamed or spoofed, there could be a chilling effect on members who clam up to evade the stick.

The conclusion? Possible opt-in programs for “Social Insurance Rates.”

Owyang expects health and insurance companies to offer an opt-in method for existing wellness programs to be extended to tools like online education courses, participating in wellness programs with peers (like Nike Plus) or allowing members to submit location based checkins to the gym, healthy eating, and other pro-health activities. “We should expect that a forward-thinking insurance or wellness company offers an online incentive based program to encourage members to connect to each other, become more educated, and live a healthy lifestyle.”

The Internet has been described as the greatest library of information the world has ever known, greater than the Great Library of Alexandria in Egypt or the U.S. Library of Congress. The only problem is the way the Internet is set up. All the volumes of information aren’t organized on book shelves where we can easily find them.  They’re scattered all across the Web!

That is why search engines like Google, Yahoo, Ask, Wolfram Alpha and now Bing have become the “Table of Contents” for the Internet and the first stop for many Web surfers on the way to their “information destination.” Newcomer Bing has even decided to change its self-image from a Search Engine to a “Decision Engine.” Did you know that Bing’s new Entertainment “portal” lets you preview over 5 million songs and lyrics one time for free, plus more than 1500 TV shows and nearly 100 casual games that can be played online, without registration?

Where would we be today without search engines? Probably back in that Internet library buried in an avalanche of information without a a way of excavating it all.

When it comes to life insurance, Efinancial is the closest thing yet to an insurance search engine for finding the best rates and coverages by “querying” America’s top insurance companies and giving you back the most accurate “search results.” Depending on your parameters, Efinancial will apply its search savvy to :companies such as Transamerica Life Insurance Company, HSBC Insurance, MetLife, BannerLife, RBC Insurance, Genworth Financial, West Coast Life Insurance Company, ING, and Fidelity Life among others.

The advantages of a search engine, just like Efinancial’s search, is a huge savings in time. You find exactly what you need, quickly and efficiently, and without any pressure from  third parties who want you to sell you a “favorite” product.

To start your search for a better financial future with Efinancial security behind you, you simply enter your age, height, weight and zip code into the Efinancial “search engine.” Then let Efinancial data miners put their technology to work for you and your family!

In just a few clicks, you’ll find exactly what you’re looking for!

Anthem Blue Cross which is a subsidiary of WellPoint, INC has notified some policyholders in California, Maine, Oregon and other states that individual health insurance rates are going to increase.  This is according to the article “Individual Insurance Rates Soar in 4 States” by The Associated Press on msnbc.com.

In California the rates are to increase up to 39% by March 1.  This is going to be devastating to many individuals who are already struggling to pay bills.  In Maine they are asking for increases up to 23% this year.  Last year alone they increased rates in Maine by 32%.  In Oregon many health insurance companies were granted rate increases of 15% or more this year after about 25% increases from last year.

Health insurance quotes are much more volatile for individual policies when compared to policies under employers and other large groups.  Those types of groups often have bargaining tools and a large pool of people to spread out the risk.  This makes it tough for those who aren’t part of groups and must get individual health insurance.  These rates increases are going to hurt a lot of people financially.

Geisinger Health Plan has an extremely useful website which offers tools for their members to better their health.  Their main goal is that their members have positive and comfortable encounters as they navigate the website and use the various services available.

Some of the tools offered on the website include health librarians available to answer questions, CareCost estimator to assist with health care finances, viewing and paying bills online, patient rights and responsibilities and help for teens and young adults.

The Teen Help option is a proactive approach to keeping teens safe.  They offer hotlines for AIDS, runaways, STD’s, suicide prevention, pregnancy care, and domestic violence.  It is sponsored by the Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Task Force and supported by Geisinger Health Insurance.  You can sign up online to receive additional information on Geisinger Health Plans and their various tools and services.