Insurance/Financial Services

Insurance regulator nominated to 3rd term
Austin American Statesman 01/11/03

The state's embattled insurance commissioner won the governor's endorsement Friday to keep his job after his current term expires at the end of the month.

Critics said Montemayor should have been more aggressive in calling lawmakers' attention to emerging problems in the insurance market. Instead, they said, he largely placated insurers and looked the other way.

Rob Schneider, senior staff attorney for the regional office of Consumers Union, was less harsh than Powers in his assessment.
"Very few commissioners have had to deal with the insurance crisis that Texas has faced," Schneider said. "It's my experience that he has learned from that experience, that he recognizes that he and the State of Texas need better tools for oversight."

Last resort insurance offered
The Dallas Morning News 01/09/03

AUSTIN - A homeowners insurance "market of last resort" plan was launched Wednesday by state Insurance Commissioner Jose Montemayor in an effort to ease the tight market for homeowners coverage.

Under the FAIR (Fair Access to Insurance Requirements) Plan, homeowners who have been rejected by at least two licensed insurers will be able to purchase a limited policy that would provide basic protection against fire, wind, hail and theft.

Consumer groups said the FAIR Plan should help many homeowners who have had trouble finding insurance, though they cautioned that coverages in the policies will be minimal.

"The coverage will be limited, so it is not a great option for consumers. But for somebody who is required to have homeowners insurance under terms of their mortgage, it is better than nothing," said Rob Schneider of Consumers Union.

"Now that we have a full-fledged homeowners insurance crisis, it is time for the state to adopt a FAIR Plan, which many other states have done," he said.

Consumer advocates wary of stores insurance offerings
The Associated Press State & Local Wire 01/07/02

You can already bank at the grocery store and trade stock at Target. Now some retailers are starting to offer auto insurance and more. It may soon get to the point where someone could handle all of their personal finance needs without leaving the strip mall.

But consumer advocates and some insurance industry executives say there is a downside to such convenience.

"Sometimes people think they are worse off than they are - they assume that they have terrible credit," said Rob Schneider of Consumers Union, a consumer support group. "If you walk in the wrong door, you are going to get a much higher rate."

Parker, Johnson counties to pay more
Fort Worth Star Telegram 12/21/02

FORT WORTH--Tarrant County residents who purchased homeowners and automobile insurance with State Farm Insurance Co. will feel it in their pocketbooks when the state's largest insurer raises its rates effective Jan. 15.

Fundamentally, we are concerned that the rates for consumers went up while State Farm's modified policies are covering less," said Rob Schneider, senior staff attorney for the Consumers Union Southwest Regional Office in Austin.

State Farm raising auto, home rates
Austin American Statesman 12/19/02

Beginning Jan. 15, it will cost more to keep insurance with a good neighbor. State Farm Insurance Co., the state's largest insurer, said Wednesday that it will be raising rates for its automobile and homeowners policies. The move will affect 3.1 million drivers and 1.6 million homeowners in the state.

One consumer advocate says State Farm's rate increase doesn't make sense. "Their rates should be going down, not up," said Rob Schneider, a senior staff attorney for the Southwest regional office of Consumers Union.

Convenient coverage
The Dallas Morning News 12/16/02

You can already bank at the grocery store and trade stock at Target. Now some retailers are starting to offer auto insurance and more. It may soon get to the point where someone could handle all of their personal finance needs without leaving the strip mall. But consumer advocates and some insurance industry executives say there is a downside to such convenience.

Consumer advocates say that when rates fluctuate so wildly, consumers are taking a big financial risk by not shopping around. And high-risk drivers targeted by the convenience store offerings, they say, often don't think they have much of a choice.

"Sometimes people think they are worse off than they are - they assume that they have terrible credit," said Rob Schneider of Consumers Union, a consumer support group. "If you walk in the wrong door, you are going to get a much higher rate."

Orlando, Fla., Hospital Offers Pay in Form of Debit Card
Knight Ridder Tribune Business News 12/04/02

Ivette Marcano has been a secretary with Florida Hospital Orlando for a year and a half. But it's only in the past few months that she has had the pleasure of receiving her pay on payday.

Since July, the hospital has offered a new electronic payment method that has been a boon to Marcano and about 50 other Florida Hospital employees who have signed up for a CashPay card.

The payroll debit card is designed for workers who do not have bank accounts, which applies to about 20 percent of the U.S. work force. These workers are unable to take advantage of traditional direct deposit arrangements, in which employers electronically wire money into employees' bank accounts.

Paper paychecks have several drawbacks, particularly for workers who don't have bank accounts in which to deposit them. Companies have the problem of delivering paychecks in a timely and convenient manner, and workers can have problems converting the checks to cash.

"I convinced some others to do it," says Marcano, making it clear it's not always an easy sell. Some of her peers are suspicious about the idea of money being whisked through cyberspace. Others, she says, "just like to feel that paper check in their hand."

Rob Schneider, a senior staff attorney with Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports, hopes employees listen to Marcano's advice. He sees payroll debit cards as "an enlightened approach" to teaching low-income workers the value of the banking system.