November 2009
Volume 4, Issue 9 President’s Notes
Last week I attended a seminar and I heard a speaker say that all information on a computer is
retrievable. “Everything done or generated by a computer, even deletions…. leaves an electronic
trail with varying degrees of detailed information about what has been done, when and by
whom…” When programs such as WORD, WordPerfect, Excel spreadsheets and ordinary email
were developed, they were deliberately designed to retain forever each document that was
created. And not just the final document, but all the drafts were saved too. I thought this was
an urban myth. But it is not, and there is a word for this: METADATA.
The facts are always available: “when and by whom a document was created, modified, accessed
or deleted, comments made by a reviewer, (even if...deleted) tracked changes (whether
SOCIETY OF CHARTERED PROPERTY CASUALTY UNDERWRITERS
“accepted” or “rejected”) , identification of the formulas tried and those actually used in creating
spreadsheet calculations, the date, camera type and serial number of the digital camera used to
create a digital photograph, or the identification of recipients of emails, including what was
received , when and from whom, and the metadata contained in any email attachments.”
Consider the many memos and emails sent daily, often after revisions, deletions, or
amendments, which were not intended for reading by anyone other than the author.
Arizona Chapter
Each draft still exists!
Hitting the DELETE button won’t actually delete anything; dumping the TRASH won’t help either.
Chaptergram
Unfortunately, “… even deletions or attempts to scrub a hard drive, leave(s) an electronic trail
…” . Never sending information electronically again is one option, but not practical.
Another option is to scan the document and then email it. Any metadata tied to the document
is not part of the scanning process. Faxing accomplishes the same result. There are programs
such as “iScrub” which apparently will “scrub” /remove metadata from electronic files before
they are transmitted by email.
If this is information that you already know, please excuse my redundancy. If, however,
metadata is a new and ominous concept, I suggest you look into it further. Ask your IT staff and
then your legal staff. This essay is intended to simply highlight the issue. Just remember: there
are no secrets within our computers.
I want to acknowledge and thank Alan Lipton of Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP for sending me his
essay “Risk Management and Metadata”. He sent it in a PDF file which eliminates some of the
metadata, (but not all).
Diana S. Dean-Spurgeon CPCU, ASLI, CPIW
President, AZ Chapter of CPCU
Inside this issue:
President’s Notes 1
Meetings & Events:
Legislation & Regulation 2 I-DAY is Wednesday
Good Works 3 November 18th
National Convention Photos 4 2009
Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs
Special I-Day contributors 5
Resort 11111 N. 7th St.
2009-2010 Meeting Schedule 6 Phoenix, AZ
Directors and Officers 7
Legislation & Regulation
Recession's Effects to Suppress Insurance Rates in 2010:
Business Insurance
According to Advisen Ltd.'s "Planning for 2010: The Recession Will Keep Commercial Insurance Premiums Under
Pressure" report, insurance buyers can expect another year of competitive pricing in the insurance market, with the
economic recession holding rates low in 2010. Advisen Ltd. Executive Vice President Dave Bradford said, "Because of
the economic slowdown, there is less to insure, and written premiums are taking a beating as a result. Factor in soft
market pricing and 2010 looks like it will be another tough year for carriers and brokers." Premiums have fallen since
2004 in some lines due to excess capacity, with general liability and commercial directors and officers' liability expected
to decline further before hitting bottom.
P/C Insurers Report Surge in Suspicious Claims
Property/casualty insurance companies report that the number of claims suspected of possible fraud has jumped 13
percent for the first half of this year compared to last year's first six months.
A review of suspicious insurance claims referred to the National Insurance Crime Bureau during the first half of 2009
shows increases in nearly all referral categories. The bureau said suspicious car fires are up 20 percent, suspicious auto
glass claims up 76 percent and questionable product liability claims up 90 percent.
A total of 41,619 "questionable claims" were referred to NICB in the first half of 2009 compared with 36,743 received
during the same period in 2008. These are claims that NICB member insurance companies refer to NICB for closer
investigation based on one or more indicators of fraud.
Property referral reasons showed an overall increase of 20 percent in the first half of 2009. Hail damage accounted for
the largest increase in property referrals, with a 135 percent rise. Fire/arson referrals accounted for the smallest increase
with 8 percent. Casualty referrals showed an overall increase of 15 percent in the first half of 2009. The largest
increase was seen in slips and falls, with a 47 percent rise.
Commercial referrals showed an overall increase of 19 percent. The largest increase in commercial referrals was seen
in product liability, with a 90 percent rise. Construction/Farm/ Heavy Equipment (not theft) referrals showed the next
largest increase with 89 percent. Cargo theft, false/inflated business interruption, vehicle theft and farm loss referrals
all decreased.
Duplicate billing accounted for the largest increase in workers' compensation referrals with a 100 percent rise.
Workers' compensation referrals showed an overall increase of 2 percent.
Vehicle referral reasons shot up 21 percent overall, with the largest increase of 76 percent seen in auto glass fraud.
"While there has been modest improvement within a few categories of referrals, the overall number of questionable
claims for the first half of 2009 is 13 percent higher than it was at this time last year," said Joe Wehrle, NICB
President and Chief Executive Officer.
St. Mary’s Food Bank
CANNED FOOD DRIVE FOR I-DAY
This year at I-Day we ask that everyone bring at least 1 can of food for a donation to the St. Mary’s
Food Bank. St. Mary’s Food Bank is the second largest food bank in the country and provides food
to 500 partner agencies in Arizona.
We have chosen to collect cans of food to give to St. Mary’s which serves 13 of Arizona’s 15 coun-
ties. Last year the Food Bank distributed over 65 million pounds of food to families and individuals
and provided enough food for over 300,000 meals every day.
Please bring a can of food and help us help those who are less fortunate!
Thank you
Lisa O’Brien, CPCU
In Memorandum
Patricia Hawley, CPCU (1978) died Oct 14, 2009 from complications of ovarian cancer. She had a long
career in the property insurance industry prior to her retirement from the Insurance Services Office.
Her son, James Hawley sent an email saying that Pat had asked that her CPCU family be notified.
His contact information is: hawleylock@gmail.com
Photos taken at the National Convention in Denver
2009
Three 2009 designees from Arizona:
Jenny Hester, John Williams and
Paula Bergsten.
Arizona Chapter Vice President David Gutman
and Past President Rick Jones.
From left to right: Diana Dean-Spurgeon, (Arizona
Chapter President), Jenny Hester, John Williams,
Paula Bergsten and David Gutman.
I – Day Sponsors
PREMIER SPONSORS:
SCF Arizona
Nautilus Insurance Group
Surplus Line Association of Arizona
Scottsdale Insurance Company
State Farm Insurance
Executive Sponsors:
AZ Fire and Water Restoration Inc.
Catlin Specialty Insurance Company
Printed Materials Sponsor
Corvel Corporation
Seminar Sponsor
State Auto Insurance company
The AZ Chapter is pleased to announce a special December
meeting to take place in the evening hours. Additional details
will be emailed out to our membership.
Luncheon Information:
SOCIETY OF CHARTERED From September through May, we hold a monthly
PROPERTY CASUALTY luncheon at the Chaparral Suites in Scottsdale.
U N D E R WR I T E R S
The meeting starts at 12:00 noon and ends about
1:00 pm. There is an informative speaker for each
meeting. The luncheon is held on the third
Wednesday of the month.
Chaptergram Information:
Editor: Kevin Epel, CPCU
kevin-epel@lycos.com
The new CPCU. Ensuring your
success in a changing market. Article Deadline: The 20th of each month.
Schedule of regular luncheon meetings for the 2009-2010 year:
All of these dates are on a Wednesday.
SPECIAL NOTE: The first meeting is on the 4th Wednesday and all others are on the 3rd
Wednesday of each month.
Sept. 23, 2009
Oct. 21, 2009
Dec. 2009 — Evening event 5-7pm. Details to follow shortly.
Jan. 20, 2010
Feb. 17, 2010
Mar. 17, 2010
Apr. 21, 2010
May 19, 2010
These will all be held at Chaparral Suites Resort , located at the corner of Scottsdale Rd.
and Chaparral.
The meetings begin at noon. Doors open at 11:30am.
2010 Board Position Name Work Home/Cell Email Address
Phone Phone
President Diana Dean- 480-948- deanspurgeon@cox.net
Spurgeon 8647
Vice President David Gutman 480-941- 623-692- david.gutman@cox.net
3212 9492
Secretary Tom Gutierrez 480-991- 480-215- tagutierrez@metlife.com
0553 x20 1726
Treasurer Lisa Ronzo 480-365- 623-587- ronzol@scottsdaleins.com
3455 5759
Past President Rich Pineda 602-955- 602-615- rich@deanshomer.com
6622 0407
Good Works Lisa O’Brien 480-293- 480-688- Lisa.a.obrien.a936@statefarm.com
7765 3981
Chaptergram Kevin Epel 602-670- kevin-epel@lycos.com
7844
Continuing Education Sandy Masters 480-895- 480-338- sandramasters@cox.net
0060 1819
Membership Martin Beavers 480-948- 602-329- martinb@azcalinsurance.com
8008 3246
I-Day Danette Key 480-293- 480-962- yayakey@yahoo.com
6868 9040
Candidate Development Lamont Boyd 602-485- 602-315- lamontboyd@fifo.com
9858 7649
Education Chris Behymer 480-905- 602-809- cgbehymer@aol.com
5059 0160
Webmaster Mike Magick 623-376- mmagick@cox.net
6563
Regulation & Legislation Marlese Polson 480-367- 602-677- mpolson@nautilus-ins.com
5384 0757
Scholarship Deidre Smith 480-293- 602-714- deidre.smith.c0e4@statefarm.com
8445 0894
New Designees Stephanie Charvat 480-293- 480-390- Stephaie.k.charvat.cpho@
7640 0650 statefarm.com
Research OPEN
Visibility Tim Goeller 623-476- 614-425- tim.goeller@stateauto.com
0758 6726
Accountant Dave Stack 480-650- stackdg@gmail.com
5451