Business Insurance Group

Lunch for $1.68 Million Without the Gecko

GEICO has been a wholly-owned subsidiary of Berkshire-Hathaway since 1996. In that time, GEICO has become the third largest auto insurer in the U.S. Personally, I like the fact that small business owners can get an online quote for commercial auto insurance from GEICO’s commercial auto division.

The CEO of Berkshire-Hathaway is Warren Buffet. Mr. Buffet is virtually worshiped in financial circles and his keen investing insight is eagerly sought out by investors. GEICO had been quiet about its association with Mr. Buffet. However, a new ad campaign pairs the famous GEICO Gecko and Mr. Buffet stating, “Warren Buffett and the gecko. They go together like pie and chips.”

Every year Warren Buffet holds an auction to benefit charity.

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Secretary Sebelius: Insurance Companies Prosper, Families Suffer.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today unveiled a new report, “Insurance Companies Prosper, Families Suffer: Our Broken Health Insurance System.” It is aimed at health insurance rate increases demanded by insurers across the United States. It also comes on the heels of Anthem of California’s quest for a 39% rate increase for individual insureds in California.

Secretary Sebelius scheduled an 11:30 a.m. news conference that was also available as a webcast.

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Happy Presidents’ Day!

Many readers are out of the office today celebrating Presidents’ Day by buying furniture or attending white sales. I write that in jest. I hope all are spending time with their families and enjoying the day.

Throughout U.S. history, presidents have often struggled with the issue of what role (if any), government should have in the insurance market. For example, this quote:

“the time is at hand this year to bring comprehensive, high quality health care within the reach of every American. I shall propose a sweeping new program that will assure comprehensive health insurance protection to millions of Americans who cannot now obtain it or afford it, with vastly improved protection against catastrophic illnesses.

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ICBC Support for the 2010 Winter Olympics

The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) is an Official Supporter of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver. Visitors from the States may be a little surprised to learn that ICBC is, effectively, the only auto insurer in British Columbia. The ICBC “is a provincial Crown corporation established in 1973 to provide universal auto insurance to B.C. motorists.” And, since then, the role of the ICBC has expanded to handle licensing and registration for the province’s vehicles.

ICBC is an Official Supporter of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

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How to Get a Franchise off the Ground

Franchising is a common investment path for entrepreneurs looking for a new start in business. Businesses have been franchising since the 1850s. Although people mostly think of the likes of McDonald’s and Burger King when it comes to franchises, there is hardly business in the world that hasn’t been franchised. With franchising, entrepreneurs pay a fee to a franchisor in order to buy into a proven business system. Investing in a franchise takes away a lot of the difficulty of starting a business from scratch.

So while many people may be interested in opening a franchise, some people are unsure how to go about actually purchasing one. Hop

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President’s Budget Plan Raises Concern

The Risk & Insurance Management Society (RIMS) issued a statement yesterday questioning and criticizing certain aspects of President Obama’s proposed budget.

Two proposed measures in the budget will directly affect the insurance industry according to RIMS. In addition, RIMS claims the two measures conflict conceptually with each other.

The first budget proposal reduces by $250 million the governments commitment to terrorism insurance. Scott Clark, RIMS secretary and director of RIMS External Affairs Committee stated, “TRIA (Terrorism Risk Insurance Act) and the federal government’s commitment to act as the ultimate backstop for terrorism insurance served to stabilize the market for policy holders,” cutting the government’s commitment will create instability in the terrorism insurance market, according to Clark.

The second source of contention is a bit more complex.

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