Day: September 20, 2008

Windpool Hosts Reinsurers on the Coast and Gums Are a Flappin': Show Slabbers the Money!

Anita Lee’s Thursday featured news story in the Sun Herald focused on the wind pool hosting reinsurance representatives here on the coast for the second year in a row. Attendance was better this year with 8 brokers/underwriters compared to last years total of 3.

I’ve struggled with how to handle this story frankly. First off I think highly of David Treutel, who is the vice chairman of the wind pool. But there is Ronnie Musgrove law partner, USAA Attorney, Windpool attorney and about-any-way-a-lawyer-in-Mississippi-can-feed-at-the-regulatory-and-private-insurance-trough Greg Copeland. I’m sure Copeland is a fine lawyer but his incestuous relationships with the industry, industry groups and state’s insurer of last resoprt is simply not good for consumers.

At the risk of sounding jaded all the talk and quotes Anita Lee so well reported is just hot air until windpool policyholders see substantial relief (and no Mr Chaney rates are not back to pre-Katrina levels). The concrete fortress built by Scott Sundberg is a fine house for certain; it is also well out of the price range for 99.5% of the residents here. SIP construction, while highly wind resistant and more affordable that concrete, has suffered from the glacial pace of the Windpool’s fortified building program so SIP construction currently pays the same insurance rates as traditional stick built housing.

I was struck by two of the comments by the reinsurers. Continue reading “Windpool Hosts Reinsurers on the Coast and Gums Are a Flappin': Show Slabbers the Money!”

Windpool Hosts Reinsurers on the Coast and Gums Are a Flappin’: Show Slabbers the Money!

Anita Lee’s Thursday featured news story in the Sun Herald focused on the wind pool hosting reinsurance representatives here on the coast for the second year in a row. Attendance was better this year with 8 brokers/underwriters compared to last years total of 3.

I’ve struggled with how to handle this story frankly. First off I think highly of David Treutel, who is the vice chairman of the wind pool. But there is Ronnie Musgrove law partner, USAA Attorney, Windpool attorney and about-any-way-a-lawyer-in-Mississippi-can-feed-at-the-regulatory-and-private-insurance-trough Greg Copeland. I’m sure Copeland is a fine lawyer but his incestuous relationships with the industry, industry groups and state’s insurer of last resoprt is simply not good for consumers.

At the risk of sounding jaded all the talk and quotes Anita Lee so well reported is just hot air until windpool policyholders see substantial relief (and no Mr Chaney rates are not back to pre-Katrina levels). The concrete fortress built by Scott Sundberg is a fine house for certain; it is also well out of the price range for 99.5% of the residents here. SIP construction, while highly wind resistant and more affordable that concrete, has suffered from the glacial pace of the Windpool’s fortified building program so SIP construction currently pays the same insurance rates as traditional stick built housing.

I was struck by two of the comments by the reinsurers. Continue reading “Windpool Hosts Reinsurers on the Coast and Gums Are a Flappin’: Show Slabbers the Money!”