Insurance

Big Premium Hikes Fuel Obamacare Debate

October 31, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>WASHINGTON -- Urging people to sign up for coverage under the Affordable Care Act, President Barack Obama said last week that while premiums might be rising, most consumers need not worry. "Premiums going up," he said, "don't necessarily translate into higher premiums for people who are getting tax credits."</p>

Tesla Again Scrambles The Self-Driving Debate

October 27, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p><i>Washington</i> — Tesla Motors Inc.’s entrance into the race to build a fully self-driving car has the potential to scramble an already contentious debate about whether autonomous vehicles should be allowed to operate alongside traditional autos on U.S. roads.</p>

How To Guard A Car From Hackers: Feds Weigh In

October 24, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>As automakers race toward a future of Web-connected and self-driving vehicles, federal regulators on Monday <a href="http://www.nhtsa.gov/staticfiles/nvs/pdf/812333_CybersecurityForModernVehicles.pdf">issued proposed guidelines</a> for guarding cars from hackers.</p> <p>Coming just days after <a href="http://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/How-your-baby-monitors-are-being-used-to-attack-10152723.php">a massive Internet attack</a> knocked several popular websites offline, the proposal reflects increasing concern among government regulators and auto industry executives alike.</p>

State Farm To Sharply Reduce California Renters’ Insurance Rates In 2017

October 21, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones announced on Oct. 19 that State Farm General Insurance Co. has agreed to reduce its Rental Dwelling Program policyholders’ rates statewide by an average of 40 percent, effective Feb. 1, 2017.</p> <p><a href="http://www.insurance.ca.gov/0400-news/0100-press-releases/2016/release118-16.cfm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">According to Jones</a>, rental property owners and small-business clients will see an estimated $101.1 million savings, with an average savings to individual policyholders of about $359 annually.</p>

Federal Self-Driving Car Policy on Right Road, But Real Safety Standards Still Needed

October 13, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p><em>Written by </em><em>John M. Simpson, director of <a href="http://www.consumerwatchdog.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Consumer Watchdog’s Privacy Project</a>. </em><em>This is one in a series of periodic guest columns by industry thought leaders. </em></p> <div class="wp-caption alignright" id="attachment_5573" style="width: 168px"><img alt="John M. Simpson headshot " class="wp-image-5573" height="205" src="https://www.trucks.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/220px-john_m_simpson_360.jpg" width="158" /> <p class="wp-caption-text">John M. Simpson (Photo: Consumer Watchdog)</p>

How Self-Driving Cars Could Become Weapons Of Terror

October 10, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Self-driving cars could be lifesavers, preventing many, if not most, of the traffic accidents that claim more than 30,000 American lives each year.</p> <div class="sync-inline-overlay"> <p>They could also make devastating weapons.</p> <p>Picture hackers employed by a hostile nation finding a way to command large numbers of cars on U.S. roads. Picture those hackers ordering the vehicles to suddenly accelerate and turn hard to the right, flipping them over, killing many passengers and clogging freeways with junked cars.</p>

Trump, Clinton Prioritize Cybersecurity, Tech Issues

October 4, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>At last week’s presidential debate, Donald Trump famously expressed concern about “somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds” hacking into computers. In a speech Monday in Virginia, he sought to clarify his views on cybersecurity, saying it would be an “immediate and top priority,” and that a Trump administration would call on the Department of Justice to create a task force “to crush this still-developing area of crime.”</p>

Attention Former Time Warner Customers: Get Ready For Your Cable Bill To Go Up

October 4, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p>Meet the new cable company. Same as the old cable company.</p> <p><br /> That was Culver City resident Jack Cohen's feeling the other day when he received his first bill from Spectrum, the newly christened brand from Charter Communications, which has gobbled up Time Warner Cable.</p> <p><br /> He told me he'd been paying Time Warner about $140 a month for TV, phone and internet service. But now that Spectrum had reared its head, his bill had shot up to $162.</p>

California Regulators Loosen Restrictions On Fully Autonomous Vehicles

October 3, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p><strong>California lawmakers passed a law to allowing pilot tests of vehicles without drivers. The next day, they also released revised draft regulations to allow for broader testing of fully autonomous cars on public streets</strong></p> <p>In the last two days of September, California transportation authorities made some noteworthy changes to their self-driving vehicle policy.</p>

Drug Companies Against Prop 61 Repeat Rent-A-Vet Strategy

September 27, 2016  ·  Jamie Court

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DOT Doesn’t Try to Provide All The Answers in Driverless Cars Guidance

September 21, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<p><b>QUESTIONS FOR OTHERS TO ANSWER: </b>The driverless car guidance DOT released Tuesday leaves a lot of room for Congress, states and automakers to shape the direction of a technology that ultimately is meant to make human drivers obsolete.

DOT’s New Driverless Car Policy Welcomed, With Caveats

September 20, 2016  ·  Mark Reback

<div class="entry-content"> <p>Lawmakers and tech groups reacted with tentative support for a broad new federal policy regulating the development and deployment of self-driving cars Tuesday. The Department of Transportation released the wide-ranging plan late Monday.</p>