Earthquakes hit California again but most are uninsured
The 6.1 magnitude earthquake that hit California’s Napa Valley yesterday may have an economic impact of over $1 billion according to the US Geological Survey. The quake in the early hours of Sunday was felt from San Francisco to Sacramento and even buildings that had seismic retrofits as required by LA law suffered damage. The California Earthquake Authority (CEA) estimates that despite the risk, only about 10 per cent of homeowners in the state have earthquake insurance and in parts of the Napa Valley the figure may be as low of 6 per cent. Businesses are often without quake cover and may underestimate the cost of damage and also the loss of income from being unable to operate from damaged buildings. Sheri Aguirre of the CEA says that the benefits certainly outweigh the cost: “While earthquakes are infrequent events, they are capable of producing catastrophic loss. An earthquake insurance policy provides coverage for the replacement cost of a home subject to a 10 or 15 percent deductible.”
Sony is the latest big name cyber attack victim
Entertainment giant Sony has revealed this morning (Monday) that it has been the victim of a cyber attack with a sinister twist. A hacker group targeted the company’s online music and gaming services including the PlayStation network over the weekend, flooding the services with traffic in a classic ‘denial of service’ attack. The digital threat was combined with a physical one as the hackers claimed that there was a bomb on a plane on which a Sony executive was travelling; the American Airlines plane bound for Dallas was diverted to Phoenix as a result. Read the full story.
Health insurance tax credits may hit tax refunds
If you are hoping for a tax refund and get health insurance tax credits then there’s a risk that the refund will be lower than you expected. Tax experts say that many are unaware of the connection between the two but if your income is more than you were expecting when applying for health insurance, you could be hit with hefty repayments if you didn’t flag it up promptly. H & R Block say that if income is greater than forecast now is the time to contact Healthcare.gov or your state insurance exchange. Unfortunately applying for tax credits for health insurance is also likely to change how your file your taxes; the simplified 1040EZ form may not be applicable. Read the full story.
Insurance agents say banks are damaging their business
Insurance agents in Kenya are calling for banks to be banned from providing insurance products. A new association is targeting more than 10,000 insurance agents to build a powerful voice for the challenges facing the industry in the region. The Bima Intermediaries Association of Kenya says that agents are losing up to 60 per cent of their clients to banks offering cover. Read the full story.
