What Risk?

POSTED BY FROSTY TROY

Don't cry for the insurance indus­try. Despite poor-mouthing by some, the property and casualty industry raked in record profits last year.

With no major hurricane activity in 2006, coupled with premium in­creases, the property and casualty industry profit is estimated at $68.1 billion.

In medical malpractice, the na­tional 2004 and 2005 loss payments as a percentage of premiums paid by doctors were 63.3% and 52.4%.

Despite all the lies you've heard or read, in Oklahoma the losses paid out to victims for each dollar paid in by doctors were only 33.2 cents in 2004 and 13.8 cents in 2005.

The Consumer Federation of America and other consumer groups released the study on the profitability of the property/casualty insurance industry in America.

In 2004, the property and casualty insurance industry set an industry record by netting an after-tax profit of $40.5 billion.

In 2005, even considering Hurri­cane Katrina and other major hurricanes, the industry posted a profit of $48.8 billion – another new record.

The $157.4 billion in profit over the last three years equates to roughly $524 for every American, or $1,574 per household.

One of the key reasons that the in­surers can make so much money even in what would appear to be hard times is that they have found ways to lay-off risk onto the public by requir­ing victims of injury to pay more.

They have also tried to limit pay­outs by pushing so-called tort reform in Oklahoma and elsewhere to limit their payouts [but not their profits].

In 2004-2005, the profit of insur­ance companies in the state exceeded national averages by $235 million.

Kudos to Gov. Brad Henry for his veto of the so-called tort reform bill, based on nothing more than a tissue of lies.