Declarations

Settlement Scramble

“A lot of people appear to be making a last minute decision. It’s like tax day… there is going to be a lot of last minute wrangling.”

—Paul Napoli, a leader of the legal team representing most of the thousands of Sept. 11 responders who faced a Nov. 15 deadline to join an $815 million legal settlement over injuries they sustained in the cleanup and aftermath of the attacks. More than 90 percent of those eligible had already agreed to the deal, but 95 percent are required before the settlement can be official.

Deer Strikes

“Approximately 80 percent of wildlife vehicle collisions involve deer, and the month of November is a distinctly risky time for deer-related crashes.”

—Robert L. Pratter, acting insurance commissioner in Pennsylvania, which ranks third in the nation for deer collisions. Nationwide, deer strikes annually kill 150 drivers and passengers and cause tens of thousands of injuries.

Fed Payback

“In the fourth quarter, we want to exit the Federal Reserve debt.”

—Robert Benmosche, CEO of AIG, priming investors for what is expected to be a $4.7 billion charge on the insurer’s balance sheet for paying back its bailout money to the Fed. AIG recently reported a $2.4 billion, third quarter loss due to restructuring charges as it trimmed its balance sheet and began efforts to repay those debts.

Lobbying with Dollars

“While the dust is still settling on campaign 2010, and our victory rate could actually increase as a few close races are tabulated, one thing is certain – just as the election was historic for our country, it was also historic for InsurPac.”

—Robert Rusbuldt, Big “I” president and CEO, commenting on the number of contributions to its political action committee, InsurPac, in the just-finished election cycle. More than 5,000 independent agents contributed to InsurPac, which handed out $1.7 million to federal congressional candidates.