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Insurance losses to skyrocket with global warming.»

“Canceled insurance policies and skyrocketing rates” are a premonition of the future under a warming climate. “What we have seen in recent years in terms of insurance losses are but a harbinger of things to come,” said Tim Wagner of the Climate Change and Global Warming Task Force for the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. “Insurance is priced based on statistics and probability. What climate change has done is create ambiguity and uncertainty in the pricing scenario.”




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66 Responses to “Insurance losses to skyrocket with global warming.”

  1. ForTruth Says:

    If the insurance losses are not due to global climate change, than what it the cause?

    (thats my pre-question for the deniers)


  2. trueblue Says:

    As you all know, I live in Hell,…. I mean,… Cape Cod.

    Although we have not had a major hurricane since Bob, (1991? 1992?) -
    all homeowners on Cape Cod were dropped.

    We have the catch-all insurance. Sucks.

    Anyone want to buy a lovely home?

    1 1/2 miles or so to the beach! Scenic Cape Cod!
    C’mon!


  3. Zooey Says:

    Apparently the insurance companies are fully behind the Global Warming “Theory.”


  4. Tom Says:

    trueblue

    Yes, I am interested in your property but would like to be closer to the ocean. Give me a call in about two years when you’re on the ocean-front.


  5. Jimbo Says:

    insurance is going to skyrocket. of course the scenerio will be gouge
    the homeowner then if it’s investigated, they’ll never see a dime. of
    course the name of the game is profits and here it is again a couple
    of 100% increases comin. yeah right a investigation of gouging like
    they use to, those days are long gone… you stratch me and i’ll
    stratch you…. CORRUPT!


  6. Jimbo Says:

    #3… of course they are, anything to maximize profits


  7. trueblue Says:

    Ah-Ha!!

    You’re funny, Tom.

    (grumble…b*tch… moan… curse the Cape…)

    I sure will.

    :}


  8. Zooey Says:

    true,

    Just put pontoons on the bottom of that sucker, and when it takes float you can steer it wherever you want. :D


  9. Bluedahlia Says:

    This is such shi—! This is just an excuse for them to make more money. They are one of the big industries. DON’T WANT TO HEAR IT! Whine baby whine.


  10. katy Says:

    i had a call last week from state farm… they wanted to give me a free quote on car insurance… as i’m in the process of getting a new car, i humored the poor girl and answered a few generic questions… she said i would be getting a follow up call…

    i did say something to the effect of, “state farm… yea, you’re the latest company to drop coverage for the poor folks down south after the hurricanes… i don’t know why i’m listening to anything you have to say, but i am curious about your quote, as i’m shopping around…”

    … still haven’t heard back from them…


  11. Zooey Says:

    katy,

    **SMACK!!**


  12. shane Says:

    Of course insurance companies use everything in their powers to make more money … but insurance companies use actuaries to assess risks.

    3…2…1 until our first troll shows up telling us global warming doesn’t exist.


  13. Clyde the Ripper Says:

    “…create ambiguity and uncertainty in the pricing scenario.”

    Bushco speak for “stick it to ‘em again.

    However, the whole argument is moot since the cheap basterds never pay off as they should anyway.


  14. trueblue Says:

    Thanks, Zooey.

    I’ll probably be able to sail to some exotic land like Ohio!
    :(

    I’d rather move to your side of the country and let some sucker Republican buy my house.
    (evil laughter)


  15. Zooey Says:

    I’d rather move to your side of the country and let some sucker Republican buy my house.
    (evil laughter)
    Comment by trueblue

    Better hurry!


  16. chimpeach Says:

    Most people don’t appreciate what a fragile existence this is. If they ever stop to think about some of the things that change about the way we live when the temperatures hit extremes that we haven’t seen before, for durations that we haven’t seen before, they might really start to appreciate the seriousness of this situation. Never mind the big picture stuff, like changes in bird migrations and insects and growing seasons. Just think about the manmade stuff for a minute. Here in Minnesota, on rare occasions when temperatures get up to 100 degrees, like they did last year, asphalt starts to get gooey and concrete slabs on the highways start to tilt. If we hit 100 and stay there for several consecutive days, we could have massive road closings, causing millions of dollars in lost manhours. Add to that the cost of car repairs and the cost of electricity for cooling homes and the cost of blackouts due to the overload. Power outages mean throwing out spoiled food, no internet, probably a rise in crime and domestic abuse. I could go on and on.

    And, a few extra days of 100 degree + temps in Minnesota is just scratching the surface of what global warming means.

    Yeah, we’re not sure about the science of this thing. We should just study it for a few more decades before making any rash decisions.


  17. shane Says:

    I’d rather move to your side of the country and let some sucker Republican buy my house.
    (evil laughter)
    Comment by trueblue

    Better hurry!

    Comment by Zooey — April 4, 2007 @ 10:01 pm

    Hey I’m in the midwest, sea levels rise and we’ll all be neighbors.

    Uh, huh … Girls night out…


  18. chimpeach Says:

    With the likely effects of global warming, insurance companies will have a choice: either pay the claims and go bankrupt or stiff the customers to stay in business a little longer.


  19. trueblue Says:

    We’d raise some hell, I’d expect!

    :)


  20. chimpeach Says:

    So, how does it work here? Does somebody at TP pick one or two names every day of the people they’re going to randomly delete posts on?

    There’s neither rhyme nor reason for the number of posts that I’ve had deleted today in several different threads.

    WTF, man?!!!!!


  21. Lesly Says:

    “What climate change has done is create ambiguity and uncertainty in the pricing scenario.”

    Don’t you mean what climate change discussion has done? I thought we were on the brink of disaster, unable to turn back global warming trends if we don’t start doing something about it now.

    In any case, global warming is another excuse the insurance industry could use to jack up rates.


  22. Zep Tepi Says:

    If Global warming is caused by man then they should sue the major polluters.

    If Global warming is caused by mother nature thats just tough S–t insurance companies, that’s what you insure against, right?

    Insurance is basically a racket anyway…


  23. Zooey Says:

    We’d raise some hell, I’d expect!
    :)
    Comment by trueblue

    Shane and I would raise hell — true would be shushing us, and telling us to be nice. :-)


  24. shane Says:

    We’d raise some hell, I’d expect!

    :)

    Comment by trueblue — April 4, 2007 @ 10:08 pm

    At least in Chicago we have mostly Democrats, because I have a feeling with a couple of adult beverages Rethuglicans could get us in trouble.


  25. Zep Tepi Says:

    WTF, man?!!!!!
    Comment by chimpeach

    They also dissapear and reappear for unknown reasons.

    Nothing exists but A-toms and empty Space; everything else is just Opinion -Democritus


  26. shane Says:

    WTF, man?!!!!!

    Comment by chimpeach — April 4, 2007 @ 10:11 pm

    Really chimpeach because the trolls don’t seem to have any trouble getting posts through. We’re yours on and then deleted or did they just never get through?


  27. HijabMan Says:

    ooh i can see it now… Al Gore as the spokesperson for his own insurance company… i liiiiiike.


  28. shane Says:

    Comment by Lesly — April 4, 2007 @ 10:11 pm

    TROLL ALERT!

    And I am so not in the mood.


  29. shane Says:

    We’d raise some hell, I’d expect!
    :)
    Comment by trueblue

    Shane and I would raise hell — true would be shushing us, and telling us to be nice. :-)

    Comment by Zooey — April 4, 2007 @ 10:15 pm

    No we’ll just print out some troll shit and show it to trueblue and she’ll be tearin’ up the town … woohoo.


  30. TerrytheTurtle Says:

    TROLL ALERT!

    Nope, I don’t think so. I read that post as a post laying out a anti-corporate position - looked progressive to me.


  31. chimpeach Says:

    #25 shane

    I’ve had a couple today that someone told me they read, but I didn’t get to see before they were deleted. And I’ve had a couple others that just never showed up. One of them probably would have been at about #11 in this thread. No obscenity, no conspiracy theory, no personal attacks (as if that matters). No reason to delete it.


  32. Zooey Says:

    No we’ll just print out some troll shit and show it to trueblue and she’ll be tearin’ up the town … woohoo.
    Comment by shane

    The Best/Worst of the Mighty Hag.

    Is that an oxymoron?


  33. shane Says:

    Comment by TerrytheTurtle — April 4, 2007 @ 10:25 pm

    I hope you’re right. Because the troll shit is deep today.


  34. Jimbo Says:

    There are theories that global warming is a scam, but one thing for sure,
    the political parasites/leeches will find everyway in their power to
    politicize it to line their pockets as they always do and of course guess
    who will pay. i’ll bet you we don’t see one thin dime in all the taxes pay
    related to global warming for that purpose, it’s snake oil and it’s a scam..
    that is global warming may be true, but us paying more guess where it
    ends up = crony’s rich CORRUPT.. enough to make everyone p**e more
    up for the crony’s :)


  35. Zep Tepi Says:

    Don’t you mean what climate change discussion has done? I thought we were on the brink of disaster, unable to turn back global warming trends if we don’t start doing something about it now. -Lesly

    I doubt man can turn back the trends (we are oil gluttons after all) but he can slow them down. Katrina has surely affected insurance companies (losses)


  36. Jimbo Says:

    NOW JIMBO THE DUDE HAS SPOKEN THE TRUTH!!!!!!! :)

    AND I SHOULD BE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

    BECAUSE………. I’M SO HEAVENLY AWESOME :)


  37. shane Says:

    Comment by chimpeach — April 4, 2007 @ 10:27 pm

    That is really frustrating. Apparently that never happens to Patrick1 or howsad any of the other trolls.


  38. WaltTheMan Says:

    My combined insurance payments for house and cars in 50 years are about $180,000. Net payback has been about $7,000.
    It would be close to zero if I did not include glass comprehensive on the cars. If I had invested that money myself, it would in all likelihood be worth 3 to 4 million dollars today. The only explanations are that the industry is either inefficient, deficient or criminal.


  39. Lesly Says:

    Zep Tepi: “Katrina has surely affected insurance companies (losses).”

    We bailed out the insurance industry after 9/11, and we will probably do so again.


  40. Zep Tepi Says:

    There are theories that global warming is a scam –

    I don’t think its a scam as the Earth wobbles. The procession (wobble) of 24-26,000 years causes climate change but the added Carbon dioxide is a problem.

    I don’t think their is a bigger scam today than what Oil companies currently do.


  41. Zep Tepi Says:

    AND I SHOULD BE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
    BECAUSE………. I’M SO HEAVENLY AWESOME :)
    Comment by Jimbo

    While I won’t argue with your ego, if you became President wouldn’t you be then beholden to those who paid for your political campaign?

    And then not so awesome I’m afraid =)

    Helo Zooey I am drinking a screwdriver, care to partake? =)
    Salud!


  42. Zep Tepi Says:

    We bailed out the insurance industry after 9/11, and we will probably do so again.
    Comment by Lesly

    Today I buy used cars and carry basic liability (Texas Law), I can buy another car for what Insurance would have cost.


  43. Zooey Says:

    Helo Zooey I am drinking a screwdriver, care to partake? =)
    Salud!
    Comment by Zep Tepi

    I would love to, P3 (heh), but I’m about to start my second glass of white zinfandel. Yum….it goes right to my head. :D


  44. Zooey Says:

    Today I buy used cars and carry basic liability (Texas Law), I can buy another car for what Insurance would have cost.
    Comment by Zep Tepi

    People who buy brand new cars are nuts. I carry slightly more than liability, since I used to work for a personal injury attorney, and I know what a pain in the ass being underinsured can be. Not much more though!


  45. Raymond Funamoto Says:

    CHIMPya W. Bush and Bushland Uber Allies ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS INSURANCE PROBLEM TOO!!!!!


  46. Jimbo Says:

    dude… i don’t drink nor do any sinful acts :) and no i ain’t on no drugs
    dude… and i am perfectly normal, 100%… all i am is so cool and heavely
    awesome

    from just a ealier post paid $180,000 and got back $7000. Actually for
    me, insurance companies have taken a big hit, 3 people rammed the back
    of me because of silver paint and they didn’t look where they were going +
    a failed space heater which could have been a much bigger loss, all in it
    was around $10,000 and i think i paid the insur. co around $2800, but
    that auto insurance they really lost out on that one. guess it just happened that way even though there were no big claims, just the medical


  47. Jimbo Says:

    FORGOT TO ASK DUDE….

    AM I A TROLL OR JUST SO HEAVINGLY AWESOME, SO ULTIMATELY COOL THAT I BLOW EVERYONE AWAY :)


  48. Jimbo Says:

    #44 LISTEN DUDE… IN MY BOOK, ALL POTICIANS WHO ACT CORRUPT
    JUST JOIN THE INFESTED AND TOTALLY CORRUPT POLITICAL PARASITES/
    LEECHES. I SURE HOPE AT LEAST THERE’S STILL PEOPLE OF INTEGRITY
    STILL SERVING THE PEOPLE IN POLITICS

    NOW REGARDING ME.. FULL OF INTEGRITY/HONESTY, I SHOULD BE
    PRESIDENT DUDE, I’M JUST SO HEAVENLY AWESOME

    NOW DUDE… I’LL CHILL OUT AND TAKE A CHILL PILL DUDE


  49. Zep Tepi Says:

    I would love to, P3 (heh) -Zooey

    Why Zooey that wasn’t me =) Why I am shocked you’d think I could be so sarcastic (heh)


  50. Zep Tepi Says:

    People who buy brand new cars are nuts. -Zooey

    Not to mention depreciation of said vehicle.


  51. Zep Tepi Says:

    I SURE HOPE AT LEAST THERE’S STILL PEOPLE OF INTEGRITY
    STILL SERVING THE PEOPLE IN POLITICS -Jimbo

    At the lower levels it’s possible, but at the higher levels I have many doubts.


  52. Zooey Says:

    Why Zooey that wasn’t me =) Why I am shocked you’d think I could be so sarcastic (heh)
    Comment by Zep Tepi

    I’m just so suspicious in general. :P

    New cars are such a racket. Drive onto the highway, and lose 20% — at least. I can never sell my car. Who would love my bumperstickers as much as I do?


  53. Saywho Says:

    Ironic…
    There are only 2 issues that are the Yin and Yang of human survival. Energy & Global Warming are one and Population Overshoot is the other.
    Insurance teaches us that, “On a long enough timeline everyone’s chances of survival is ZERO.”
    Here is some food for thought…
    http://www.newcolonist.com/ghawar.html


  54. shane Says:

    chimpeach

    I was asking because often in the middle of typing my internet disconnects and I lose everything. Of course everything lost is brilliant. Only my boring posts get through.

    zooey

    I was posting about our girls night out when the waters get high enough. Anyway, any “moron” goes with viral venom.


  55. Zep Tepi Says:

    I’m just so suspicious in general. :P
    Okay, I admit, it was me.
    (I was feeling sarcastic, pretty good eh? =)

    New cars are such a racket. Drive onto the highway, and lose 20% — at least. I can never sell my car. Who would love my bumperstickers as much as I do?
    Comment by Zooey

    I probably would like your stickers as much as you do. Funny thing about bumper stickers here in Texas, I haven’t seen a pro-Bush sticker in quite a while.


  56. Zep Tepi Says:

    I was asking because often in the middle of typing my internet disconnects and I lose everything. -Shane

    Are you on AOL? They have a bad habit of closing your browser when the connection is broken. You can use a browser on top of AOL such as the Firefox (free @ mozilla.org) browser. I use AOL but hate their bloated software so I use the AOL Dialer (no AOl Browser loads up) and the Firefox browser. =)


  57. Zooey Says:

    Okay, I admit, it was me.
    (I was feeling sarcastic, pretty good eh? =)

    I can always spot you, Zep. Yes, it was excellent. :D

    I probably would like your stickers as much as you do. Funny thing about bumper stickers here in Texas, I haven’t seen a pro-Bush sticker in quite a while.
    Comment by Zep Tepi

    I still see them here, but they are not as plentiful as they used to be. :) My newest bumpersticker: Can’t Sleep. Clowns Will Eat Me.

    I love it. :)


  58. Zooey Says:

    I was posting about our girls night out when the waters get high enough. Anyway, any “moron” goes with viral venom.
    Comment by shane

    You ain’t kidding.

    I love Firefox. No stupid pop-ups, and tabbed browsing…for idiots.


  59. JPark Says:

    #29 Wrong, Terry. He is a denier.


  60. Zep Tepi Says:

    I love Firefox. No stupid pop-ups, and tabbed browsing…for idiots.
    Comment by Zooey

    Compared to internet explorer it’s a small program and not nearly as invasive as IE. (not to mention IE patches)


  61. Zooey Says:

    Compared to internet explorer it’s a small program and not nearly as invasive as IE. (not to mention IE patches)
    Comment by Zep Tepi

    All I know is, I don’t have to think about my Firefox, so it must be good. :D


  62. Brad Arnold Says:

    Some of these comments are depressing. A good share of the people appear to be in denial. The relationship between global warming and risk is where people have to put their money where their mouths are: dismissing the “theory” of global warming is easy, but gambling money that larger storms or rising sea levels don’t happen is another thing altogether.

    What I find particularly ironic is those Republicans in souther coastal states voting for the government to take over risk from insurance companies to lower rates. I thought they were for less government. Those states that cover storm damage will get burned rather quickly: I hear it will be another active hurricane year.


  63. RAL Says:

    Lord Monckton: Why is Gore Scared to Debate Him?
    UPDATE: EIR is investigating why (and which) powerful forces throughout Europe, behind such media organs as Germany’s Bildzeitung and Frankfurther Allgemeine Zeitung, Britain’s Channel 4, and numerous publications in Denmark, are so powerfully attacking Gore and his climate change hoax. More will be forthcoming as the investigation progresses.

    For a second time, Lord Monckton of Brenchley has challenged sophist Gore to a debate on man-made climate change, in an ad featured in the April 3rd Washington Post. Moncton’s first challenge was issued March 14th of this year, but was left unanswered by the self-proclaimed “Goracle”. The ad will soon be featured in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal as well.

    In November 2006, Lord Monckton issued a 40-page research paper on the fraud of global warming, titled “Apocalypse Cancelled”. In it, Monckton says: “Last week Gordon Brown and his chief economist both said global warming was the worst market failure ever. That loaded sound-bite suggests the climate change scare is less about saving the planet than, in Jacques Chirac’s chilling phrase, creating world government.”

    Lord Monckton also said that the environmentalist’s “precautionary principle” is killing people. He gives the example of the banning of DDT, noting that just this year, after 30 million people died of malaria; the World Health Organization has agreed to use DDT for indoor spraying. Lord Monckton also calls for the UK to start building–not merely designing, or having a ten-year planning inquiry about) 12 nuclear power stations.

    In 2005, the House of Lords started an inquiry into the science of global warming and the role of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and held hearings taking statements from scientists against global warming, like Dr. Paul Reiter and Richard Lindzen of MIT. The House of Lords also took testimony from Sir John Houghton.

    In July of 2005, the House of Lords issued its report, called “The Economics of Climate Change”. News of this report, however, was overshadowed by the July 7 London subway bombings. The report was to be released and covered by in the media prior to the Gleneagles Scotland G-8 meeting, and was to influence the debate of the G-8. Of particular note in the House of Lords report is that it called for the IPCC to be shut down because it was a vehicle for a set policy without looking at the science, didn’t listen to dissenting voices, and its process for selecting scientists for the panel was politically driven. It is of note that the House of Lords report is not mentioned by the IPCC or the Stern Review.

    In August 2005, in response to the House of Lords Report, Gordon Brown went to his chief economist, Sir Nick Stern (who was the Chief Economist of the World Bank from 2000-2003), and told him to produce a report on the economic effects of climate change.

    In October 2006, the Stern Review was released to much media hype and fanfare, but the report got little attention until the IPCC released their Summary for Policymakers in February.

    There is only one reason why Gore will not answer Monckton: because he knows global warming is a massive swindle!

    For too long the media has been dominated by the lies of the environmentalist lobby. Now science and truth are fighting back.


  64. RAL Says:

    http://meteo.lcd.lu/ globalwarming/ Monckton/ apocalypse_cancelled.pdf

    I know this is hard to accept, but us “liberals” are going to have to do some serious soul searching over this issue. The (uncensored) science just does not back up the claims of Al Gore and others in the global warming lobby.

    For once, President Bush is right, hate him as much as we do.

    Global warming is about global government, not any real concern about environmental issues.


  65. Art Says:

    Just ask anyone who is trying to rebuild in New Orleans how hard it is to get insurance. Annual premiums of over $5,000 for a small house of under 2000 sq ft. is not unusual. It makes it difficult for a lot of people to afford to rebuild. It is a crisis that can kill the coastal cities.


  66. Patrick1 Says:

    A religion that makes your home owners insurance go up…pretty funny.



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