Pennsylvania, U.S.A. — As college students return to campus to begin the new academic year, Insurance Commissioner Mike Consedine reminds families to create a “dorm room inventory” for insurance purposes.

“Many college students head to campus hauling a costly array of personal possessions,” said Consedine. “You need to itemize what they are taking with them. Also, while homeowners insurance coverage for some valuables does travel with the student, policies may limit coverage for a student’s off-premises belongings. It is important to learn your policy’s specific coverages.”

Having an up-to-date inventory will help determine how much insurance is necessary and may also help in settling the claim if there is a loss. Expensive computer and electronic equipment may also be subject to coverage limits. If the limits seem too low, parents may consider buying a special personal property floater, or an endorsement, for these items.

The student’s possessions would be covered for the same disasters that are found in a standard homeowners policy. This would include fire, theft, vandalism and natural disasters such as a hurricane. The student would not be covered for typical college mishaps such as accidentally spilling coffee on an expensive electronic device.

Parents may want to look into stand-alone policies for desktop computers, laptops, tablets and iPads, and other electronics. These policies may provide coverage against accidental damage, liquid spills and other events not included under a standard homeowners policy.

Also, students who live in off-campus housing may not be covered by their parents’ homeowners policy and may need to purchase separate renters insurance. Parents should contact their insurance agent or company representative to see if their homeowners or renters policy extends to off-campus living situations.

Consumers with questions should visit the Insurance Department online at www.insurance.pa.gov.

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Wisconsin, U.S.A. — Connecture, the leading provider of Web-based information systems used to create health insurance marketplaces and exchanges, today announced Tim Allaway has been hired as vice president, client services. Allaway joined Connecture from McKesson Corporation where he served as vice president, payer services for the company’s RelayHealth division – a role that placed him in charge of a new business: selling software services to health insurance carriers. As vice president, operations, he also led McKesson’s electronic transaction services for the provider market.

“Leaders in the health insurance industry are facing significant changes that must be implemented in a very short period of time,” said Kevin McClain, senior vice president of operations at Connecture. “Tim’s experience is well-suited to give health plans the confidence they need to prepare for and implement the changes defined by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. His background in customer service with multi-billion dollar corporations and his focus on innovation and change management will also help Connecture to succeed in this exciting period of growth associated with healthcare reform.”

In addition to McKesson, Allaway worked for other Fortune 500 companies, serving as vice president, global customer support for S1 Corporation; vice president, operations for Equifax; and director, customer service for IBM; all in Atlanta. In his new role, he is responsible for managing Connecture’s client relationships from point-of-sale through implementation of Connecture’s InsureAdvantage – the leading platform for health insurance distribution. Allaway is based out of Connecture’s Atlanta office and reports directly to McClain.

“As health plans rush to comply with the deadlines associated with healthcare reform, I feel my experience with automated sales and distribution to small individual and group markets can help clients through the process,” said Allaway. “Because I’ve worked at much larger companies, I can serve our customers at a different level, looking beyond the sale and ongoing product maintenance to the role we can play in their long-term business strategy.”

Allaway earned his undergraduate degree in business management from Jacksonville State University and his Master of Business Administration from Auburn University, both in Alabama.

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Chicago, U.S.A. — Aon Benfield, the global reinsurance intermediary and capital adviser of Aon plc releases on August 7 the latest edition of its Global Catastrophe Recap report, which reviews the natural disaster perils that occurred worldwide during July.

Published by Impact Forecasting, the firm’s catastrophe model development center of excellence, the report reveals that flooding caused more than USD 8.3 billion in economic losses across China during July, while the worst drought in decades worsened across much of the United States. Severe weather also prompted widespread damage in parts of the U.S. and Europe.

Heavy rainfall in China spawned flooding and landslides in nearly two-dozen provinces, leading to 324 deaths, at least 475,000 homes destroyed or damaged and more than 1.66 million hectares (4.1 million acres) of cropland affected, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA). Total combined economic losses were listed at CNY53.2 billion (USD8.3 billion), while the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) noted that 47,000 claims were filed with payouts in excess of CNY1.12 billion (USD176 million).

Steve Jakubowski, President of Impact Forecasting, said: “Much of China was affected by flooding rainfall during July, including parts of Beijing experiencing its heaviest rains in 61 years. On the opposite extreme, much of the U.S. continued to face its worst drought in several decades. Both weather events have impacted crops and the agriculture industry.

To help further understand potential agriculture losses, the U.S. insurance industry has been using catastrophe models for several years. For China, Aon Benfield has responded by recently developing its Crop Reinsurance Solution (ACReS) to support this growing sector to manage its agricultural exposures.”

Additional flooding was recorded in Asia during the month, including in Japan, Indonesia and North Korea. In Japan, the most notable event occurred over five consecutive days on Kyushu as torrential rainfall prompted flooding and 870 landslides that left at least 30 people dead. Japan’s Fire and Disaster Management Agency (FDMA) reported that 16,045 homes, infrastructure and agriculture had sustained varying levels of flood inundation.

Elsewhere, the worst drought in decades deepened throughout much of the United States. At least 4,313 record high temperatures were set during the month, as the heat also left more than 100 people dead. According to the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), up to 64% of the contiguous U.S. was listed in at least a moderate drought. More than half of all U.S. counties (~1,600) were declared disaster areas. Total economic (and insured) crop losses were anticipated to reach well into the billions of dollars (USD).

Also in the U.S., a three-day stretch early in the month saw rounds of severe thunderstorms affect parts of the Midwest, Ohio Valley and the Northeast. Total economic losses were approximately USD450 million, while various insurers received more than 50,000 claims with payouts in excess of USD275 million.

Severe weather was also recorded across central and western Europe, where tornadoes, damaging winds and up to egg-sized hail occurred. In the Czech Republic, insured losses were listed at CZK247 million (USD12 million). Insurers in Slovenia recorded more than EUR4 million (USD5 million) in losses. InPoland, an EF-2 tornado left up to PLN20 million (USD5.9 million) in damage to forests. Storms in Georgialeft 22,000 homes damaged, with economic losses listed at GEL150 million (USD91 million).

Image Courtesy of  sporkmaster

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