Mercury Insurance News

66% of Motorists Say They Use a Cellphone While Driving

More than one-in-six drivers say they use their cellphone while driving, a new survey shows. Mercury Insurance polled 1,000 drivers who were asked to rate their driving skills and then answer a variety of questions on distracted road habits. The …

Insurers, Consumer Groups Telling Different Stories About Smoke Damage Claims

Insurers and consumer advocates are conveying conflicting messages as both try to focus public attention on smoke damage claims. Mercury Insurance issued a press release Friday warning that an unidentified California public adjuster has been duping homeowners into submitting fraudulent …

Business News: Gradient AI, Betterview, Flyreel and Snapsheet

Gradient AI Teams Up With Origami and Sapiens Gradient AI has formed partnerships with Origami Risk and Sapiens to make Gradient’s claims and policy modeling and predictive modeling available on the Origami’s risk management and Sapiens’ workers’ compensation platforms. Gradient, …

Claims People: American Club, Arch and Mercury

American Club Manager Appoints Claims Director, COO Shipowners Claims Bureau, which manages maritime insurer American Club, announced the appointment of a new claims director and operating officer at its New York office. The company appointed Mary (Molly) McCafferty as senior …

Business News: LexisNexis, Mercury, Clearcover and Snapsheet, Tower and myMatrixx

LexisNexis Gives Thumbs Up to Water Leak Detectors A study by analytics provider LexisNexis Risk Solutions found that in-line water shutoff systems correlate with a decrease in water claims by 96 percent, confirming the value of smart home technology to …

Animal House: Squirrel Wrecks Home, Insurance Won’t Fix it

ATLANTA — An Atlanta couple said they came home from a winter vacation to find their house had been ransacked by an unusual suspect: a squirrel. Kari and Dustin Drees bought their first home last month in Atlanta’s affluent Buckhead …

Calif. Appellate Court Affirms $1 Million Bad Faith Judgment Against Geico

GEICO General Insurance Co. refused an offer to settle Michael Mazik’s underinsured motorist claim for $50,000. Instead, the claim will cost the insurer more than $1.3 million. On Friday, a panel of the California 2nd District Court of Appeal affirmed …

Mercury Insurance SIU Celebrates 40 Years of Crime Fighting

Mercury Insurance’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU), founded in 1978, is the company’s secret weapon against fraudulent insurance claims, which cost the average U.S. family $700 per year in increased premiums. The goal of the unit, which consists of 40 seasoned …

ALE Fraud on the Rise

California insurers handling first party property claims are seeing an increase in additional living expense (ALE) fraud, according to Pete Galassi, director at Mercury Insurance. Claims Journal spoke with Galassi during the Combined Claims Conference, held recently in Orange County, …

Mercury Names Safest, Most Affordable Cars for Teens to Insure

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) 5-Star Safety Ratings Program provides consumers with information about the crash protection and rollover safety of new vehicles, with more stars equaling safer cars. Mercury Insurance recently analyzed vehicles that received five stars …