Life Insurance

Insurance was created to spread the risk of a community among all its members. We pooled our money so that if a fire destroyed a neighbor's house, we all pitched in.

Instead of the catastrophic loss costing one neighbor $100,000, a thousand neighbors paid $100. Likewise, if a parent of dependent children died in an automobile collision, the insurance pool would make sure those children were cared for financially.

Insurance companies are using our premium dollars to build new buildings, give huge bonuses, pay lobbyists to influence our lawmakers and mount expensive advertising campaigns.

We have read the stories of the difficulty homeowners had in trying to get coverage for the loss of their homes in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

Don't believe the hype. Quite simply, the current legislation before the Minnesota lawmakers requires that an insurance company act in good faith when it pays claims. If it does not, it is penalized. Minnesota is one of only four states that does not require insurer "good faith" when dealing with their customers.

Also, there is no "two lawsuits" legislation pending. Currently, when an injured person brings a claim in Minnesota, he or she must do it against the insured person who caused the damage.

Insurance companies don't want juries to know that the injured party wants to recover, not from that person's pocketbook, but their insurance policy.

The new legislation for a direct action against the insurer recognizes that juries will be fair to all parties when they know the truth — the claim is really for insurance proceeds.

When we sit on a jury, we are smart enough to decide what to pay with our insurance money. Quit wasting our premium dollars on advertising, lobbyists and corporate bonuses!

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