What’s new: In brief (December 12, 2004)

The Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) has made some organizational changes at its insurance divisions, including merging all auto insurance related functions into the Auto Insurance Division, including dispute resolution. A new executive director function has been created to lead this division, with recruiting underway for the position, and David Draper leading the dispute resolutions branch. At the same time, the Licensing & Market Conduct and Insurance Ombudsman offices will be merged, under the leadership of executive director Grant Swanson.

Two SUVs have achieved “good” ratings on side impact crash testing by the U.S. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). The 2005 Honda CR-V with standard side airbags and 2005 Ford Escape when equipped with optional side airbags both improved results in the testing. However, most SUVs continue to be rated “marginal” or “poor” when it comes to side impact testing, the IIHS notes.

New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has turned his sights on third-party administrators with both Crawford & Co. and Gallagher Bassett Services Inc. receiving subpoenas last week. Both companies acknowledged receipt of the subpoenas and their intention to cooperate with the investigation but neither gave details as to the reason for the subpoenas except to say they are in conjunction with an investigation by the Spitzer office. The subpoena does not relate to the brokerage operations of Gallagher Bassett’s parent, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.