Insurance

Insurance commissioner’s proposal to roll back service fee goes to court Wednesday

August 27, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The San Diego Union-Tribune</p> <p>Doug Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, says sky-high title and escrow fees, not rising home prices, have fueled interest in insurance reform. "This problem has been identified all around the country," Heller said. "Nowhere has it been addressed."</p>

Finally, fair car insurance rates

August 24, 2006  ·  Jamie Court

<p class="source">Marketplace Radio Program (American Public Media)</p> <p>California insurers are phasing out the practice of using ZIP codes as a major factor for calculating auto insurance premiums. Consumer advocate and commentator Jamie Court says it's about time.</p>

Governor Moves to Undercut Angelides

August 24, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Los Angeles Times</p> <p>"He (Arnold) is telling everyone to 'hold your breath and trust me,' " said Doug Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a Santa Monica advocacy group. "History makes me leery of believing there's any real reform contained in any of these last-minute legislative deals."</p>

CHANGE HURTS SOME DRIVERS;

August 21, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Insurance: Emphasizing Driving Records Over Zip Codes Will Cost Certain People Money, Experts Say.</h3><p class="source">The Press Enterprise (Riverside, CA)</p> <p>"If you are on the road more than the average driver, some of the savings will be less for you," said Doug Heller, executive of director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. "That is the way the rules should be." "Mileage is going to get the attention it deserves," said Mark Savage, a senior attorney at Consumers' Union in San Francisco. "Good drivers will pay less, and a good driver who drives a low number of miles will pay even less."</p>

State Farm Abandons ZIP Code Rates Plan;

August 18, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Under pressure, the auto insurer agrees to comply with new pricing criteria and also will reduce fees.</h3><p class="source">The Los Angeles Times</p> <p>State Farm's decision to comply with the new rate-setting criteria means that most other auto insurers will be forced to follow suit if they want to be competitive, predicted Harvey Rosenfield, a Santa Monica consumer activist and the attorney who wrote Proposition 103. "I'm declaring victory after a 30-year battle to make insurance rates fairer," he said. "This is a matter of marketplace competition and economics. No insurance company can afford to defy Proposition 103 any longer."</p>

Lawmakers rake in end-of-session cash

August 17, 2006  ·  Doug Heller

<p class="source">Ventura County Star</p> <p>FTCR is promoting Proposition 89 on the Nov. 7 ballot, an initiative sponsored by the California Nurses Association that would create a system of voluntary public financing for campaigns for state offices. Under its terms, candidates who agreed to foreswear private contributions could qualify for public financing of their campaigns by first raising a threshold number of $5 contributions to prove their earnestness. </p>

REBELLING AGAINST REBATES: RED TAPE, RIP-OFFS SOUR SOME STORES ON CASH-BACK OFFERS

August 13, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Charlotte Observer (North Carolina)</p> <p>Groups like the nonprofit Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights have railed against rebate programs, saying some have become rip-offs. Many store advertisements, the group says, display the sales price in large letters while showing the "after rebate" tag in small letters. Sometimes customers leave with few or no instructions on how to claim the rebate, the group says.</p>

Auto insurers take hit on judge’s ruling

August 11, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Inside Bay Area (California)</p> <p>"The decision is a very, very powerful statement in support of Commissioner Garamendi's rules," said Doug Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights. "The old system is unfair."</p>

Second insurer OKs new rule on auto rates

August 9, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Sacramento Bee</p> <p>Doug Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights in Santa Monica, called the insurance industry's claims groundless. "It's not all doom and gloom. These two companies are showing that you can sell insurance at good rates to good drivers and follow the law without the sky falling," he said.</p>

Insurance rate cuts? Here’s the lowdown;

August 9, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>New state measures would downplay ZIP Codes and focus on motorists' driving. Generally, that's good news for L.A., bad for Bishop.</h3><p class="source">The Los Angeles Times</p> <p>Garamendi said the insurance industry's ZIP Code system defies logic -- what is a high-risk ZIP Code to one company is low-risk to another. Sometimes, ZIP Code ratings specifically burden minority neighborhoods, says Doug Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a Santa Monica group that pushed hardest for the new policy.</p>

Angelides calls Schwarzenegger big-time pal of business

August 9, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The San Francisco Chronicle</p> <p>Angelides said Schwarzenegger has gone from advocating reform to becoming one the biggest abusers of the campaign finance system. "This governor has raised over $100 million in special interest money," said Angelides. "He has done what no other governor has ever done in doing the bidding of big special interests." Angelides pointed out that none of the reforms Schwarzenegger talked about during the recall campaign has been adopted. </p>

Stronger than ‘Oaks’?

August 8, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Council set to debate initiative that aims to clarify campaign contribution law</h3><p class="source">The Santa Monica Daily Press</p> <p>"What the council proposal does is rewind time to pre-November 2000, before voters approved stronger rules. That's why we have such a problem with this," said Carmen Balber, a consumer advocate for the foundation, which is calling on the City Council to adopt standards similar to those proposed by the city of Pasadena, which she claims strengthens the Oaks Initiative. </p>