Michigan Auto Insurance Reform – Order of Priority

 

Fighting Against The Legislation Changing The Insurance Law 
That Became Effective July 2020
"The new law does not provide the savings equal to the reduction of coverage"
said  30 Year Independent Agent, Ronald Dwyer to the media.

Michigan’s new auto insurance reform law took effect on July 2, 2020, bringing a number of changes to the current no-fault insurance system. An important change involves Order-of-Priority (OOP), which determines the insurer or entity primarily responsible for payment of personal injury protection (PIP) benefits resulting from a motor vehicle accident in Michigan or another state.

Under the old priority, an uninsured occupant injured in someone else’s car or a pedestrian who was injured would seek benefits from the owner/operator of the vehicle involved. This is no longer how these injuries will be covered.

Under the new law, an injured person collects PIP benefits in this order:

Drivers or Passengers of Private Vehicles:

1. Injured person’s own policy
2. Policy insuring any relative resident in the same household
3. Michigan Assigned Claims Plan (MACP)

Employer Provided Vehicles:

1. Insurer of the employer provided vehicle
2. Injured person’s own policy
3. Policy insuring any relative resident in the same household
4. MACP

Motorcyclists:
(Applies to operators or passengers of motorcycles.)

1. Insurer of the owner or registrant of the motor vehicle involved
2. Insurer of the operator of the motor vehicle involved
3. Insurer of the motorcycle operator
4. Insurer of the motorcycle owner
5. MACP

Non-occupants (pedestrians and bicyclists):

1. Insured person’s own policy
2. Policy insuring any relative resident in the same household
3. MACP

Operators of Vehicles for Hire (Including Uber/Lyft)

For Order-of-Priority information regarding operators and passengers of vehicles for hire, please contact your auto insurance agent.

Operators of Vehicles for Hire (Including Uber/Lyft)

Historically, OOP for a Michigan no-fault accident claim has been a bit confusing. Unfortunately, the confusion continues with the new law. While our goal is to provide you with a basic overview of the changes to OOP, the above information may not cover all possible scenarios. That’s why it’s a good idea to talk with your insurance agent if you have questions regarding any aspect of auto insurance reform.

The new insurance laws took effect July 2, 2020. Reading and understanding these materials will help you determine the best option for you and your family. You’ll also find helpful Michigan Auto Insurance Reform Law information by visiting Michigan.gov/autoinsurance. 

Michigan auto insurance law does not guarantee drivers savings, says official

Motorists have been hopeful that the much-needed changes would make a difference, but it’s not assured.

Drivers have been waiting for a new Michigan auto insurance law to help control high and rising premiums in the state. However, according to one official, motorists should not consider the savings to be guaranteed.

The personal injury protection (PIP) system has made Michigan rates the highest in the country.

The new Michigan auto insurance law does not provide any new assurances that the extra costs from additional required liability coverage would be offset by the decreases in the PIP component of motorist premiums. This, according to a leading insurance industry exec as quoted by the Detroit Free Press.

“We sure hope that they don’t wash each other out,” said Insurance Alliance of Michigan executive director, Tricia Kinley. “We simply don’t know how the premiums will shake out.”

That said, Kinley’s appraisal of the new law is in direct opposition to Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s assurances. Before the auto insurance bill was signed on May 30, 2019. Whitmer said she would give her signature to legislation only if it guaranteed that Michigan motorists would enjoy savings as a result.


There is considerable controversy in the state regarding the Michigan auto insurance law.

A spokesperson for Whitmer, Tiffany Brown, said that: “insurance executives are attempting to scare Michiganders,” on the heels of “historic legislation” negotiated by the governor. “We will continue to use the full power of this administration, along with the Department of Insurance and Financial Services, to ensure that insurance companies are enforcing a law that protects consumers, while holding big insurance companies accountable.”

Trial attorneys have expressed their discontent with Kinley’s unwillingness to acknowledge upcoming savings to motorists in the state. The attorneys said that insurance companies will enjoy cost reductions associated with fewer medical claims. Therefore, they say that Kinley should be willing to acknowledge that this savings would be notably greater than any costs associated with liability claims.

Penn State Law insurance law expert Christopher French said he anticipates that the Michigan auto insurance law will bring two increases. The first will be the liability insurance portion of motorist premiums. The second will be in private health insurance costs, which are not a direct part of the law, Michigan Auto Insurance Law - Driver - Steering Wheelbut will be affected by it indirectly. However, French also pointed out that he predicted overall savings in car insurance premiums because health insurance will take on more of the medical costs.

Signs that an online romance is actually a catfishing fraud

The FBI says that in 2018, more than 18,000 people fell victim to catfishing scams, with estimated losses exceeding $362 million.

Romance is not completely dead, but the days of wining and dining a potential love interest have given way to kissy-face emojis, lurid emails and sexting.

Nearly half of Americans age 18 to 29 now use dating sites and apps to search for their next crush, according to the Pew Research Center, and roughly one in 10 are in committed relationships with people they met that way. Online daters say it’s an easy and fast way to meet someone with similar interests.

The sheer volume of people looking for love online means the captive audience for catfishing has never been so crowded. These deceptive digital crooks lure in would-be romantics using fake identities with the intention of tricking or defrauding them. The FBI says that in 2018, more than 18,000 people fell victim to catfishing scams, with estimated losses exceeding $362 million.

What are the most common online romantic scams?

According to the FTC’s 2019 Consumer Sentinel Network Data Book, romance scams increased by roughly 50% from 2017 to 2019, reaching a record total of 25,147 reported romance scams last year. Scarily, the median reported loss to romance scams is seven times higher than for other frauds. Ultimately, like other fraudsters, romance scammers’ end goal is purely to profit from their victims. Below are some of the most common tactics to look out for so you don’t fall prey to these romantic swindlers this Valentine’s Day:

• They’re coming on really strong. You, of course, want your online dating endeavors to be successful, but could it be this easy? You’ve barely engaged with this person, and he’s already declaring his undying love for you. It’s difficult not to get wrapped up in it, and he even wants to meet this week. Unfortunately, he cancels last minute because something tragic has come up; his mother is in the hospital and the family needs money ASAP. He pops the question (but it’s the one you were hoping he wouldn’t ask): “Could you please wire money so that my mother can get the care she deserves?” This is a classic tale of romance scamming, and yet millions have fallen for it — and will continue to.

• They sound like a robot. (Hint: It’s because it is!) If their responses aren’t matching up to what you said, or they’re spamming you with messages directing you to another site, report the profile immediately — and definitely don’t click on any links they’ve sent. These other sites will either try to trick you into entering your personal information, including payment data, or they’ll install malware on your computer, which will then harvest your sensitive information. The good news is that these “bots” are fairly easy to spot: their profile pictures tend to be low quality and are pulled straight from Google. Also, most times their profile pictures aren’t even of the same person — a clear red flag!

• It seems too good to be true. She looks like a model; her profile bio seems to describe the perfect catch, and, lo and behold, she wants you! The nonstop flattery feels nice, and for a person that’s been lonely for a long time, it’s difficult not to indulge. But then propositions for gifts are made — or worse, credit card information. Unfortunately, there are plenty of people who give in because they don’t want this newfound “relationship” to end.

 Let’s face it: almost everyone wants to find love, and today’s digital age has made it easier than ever to do so. As with most things, scammers have found ways to get in on the fun — or rather, take advantage of it. When people are lonely or feeling hurt from a past relationship that didn’t pan out, it’s a bit easier to overlook warning signs (no matter how glaring they may be). Unlike other scams, the reward is potentially a lifetime of happiness if their suitor is indeed the real deal — and most people want to believe that more than anything. Some scammers even home in people that are recently divorced or who are in a particularly vulnerable situation (i.e., just got out of an abusive relationship). They can learn this information via social media if you don’t have your account set to private and you’re prone to sharing this type of information on your profile. This is just another reason to ensure you’re not publicly oversharing on social networking sites; otherwise, you’re making fraudsters jobs all the easier as they can learn tidbits about you which will help them curate the perfect “pick-up.”

Outside of trusting your gut when your intuition tells you something is off (even if you can’t put your finger on it), there are some other telltale warning signs that should never be ignored.

• Her profile pictures all look like they’re from professional photoshoots, and she can’t provide a single candid.

• He’s canceled in-person plans last minute — over and over again.

• She says she’s local but seems to have no knowledge of the area.

• And despite growing up here, her messages contain more than just typos — there’s definitely a language disconnect.

• He wants to keep your conversation strictly on the phone and refuses to use Skype or FaceTime, despite saying he wants to see you.

If you can check off just one of these red flags, that doesn’t necessarily mean you should sound the alarms, but proceed with extreme caution and do your due diligence. Below are some additional tips to keep in mind as you navigate the sometimes scary world of online dating, which can help keep your heart (and money) out of the hands of scammers.

• Stick with using larger, established dating websites, which have safeguards in place to catch and block fraudulent profiles.

• If your love interest is asking for personal information that seems too sensitive, say no — and this especially goes for credit card information.

• If you have an identity protection plan in place, see if they have any kind of scam assistance service, like Generali Global Assistance. These types of services will do all the research for you to let you know if the person vying for your attention is legitimate or not.

Ultimately, if you keep your financial information to yourself — as you should do in any budding relationship — you’ll stay scam-free on Valentine’s Day.

Helicopter Sikorsky crashes north of Los Angeles | Kobe Bryant

FAA Recording Of The Last Minutes Of Kobe Bryant's Fateful Flight

The cause of the helicopter crash that killed retired Los Angeles Lakers basketball player Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter and seven other people, remains unknown. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the crash, which occurred on a foggy Sunday morning in a hilly area in west Los Angeles.

Could there be a lawsuit?

Our colleagues at The Recorder reached out to former U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General Mary Schiavo, a partner at Motley Rice, whose firm brought a lawsuit over a crash of the U.S. Army’s Black Hawk helicopter, a Sikorsky similar to the one that was taking Bryant and the other passengers to his daughter’s basketball game.


What follows is an excerpt from that conversation.


What can you tell us about this helicopter?


This one was a 1991 helicopter, so it’s got some years on it. To me, it was interesting it was circling downtown Los Angeles at a very low altitude. To me that says fog, or some kind of problem. Then they headed to Calabasas. Then they turned left and headed to a wooded non-populated area. Those [movements] might suggest you’re having mechanical [problems], or they were desperately trying to get out of the fog.


When you look at maintenance records, what it was used for in the meantime, what was the reason they went “visual flight rules,” instead of IFR [instrument flight rules]? In the Black Hawk Sikorsky case, there were everything from problems with the rotor, the rotor pitch failed, one problem was the seat came loose.

What about the pilot?



It’s looking bad at this point for the piloting, but we don’t know yet. But taking off in limited visibility on a visual flight rule plan, that call will be questioned by the NTSB. Why didn’t they go instrument flight rules, which means air traffic control? So here, the second avenue of examination will be the pilot’s performance and whether this is pilot error, which brings us to the third thing lawyers will look at: What is this holding company?



…So which holding company is it?



This aircraft was titled, or owned, by a company called Island Express. Island Express is [based] south of Los Angeles in Orange County, and runs visual tours, air tours. They take people out over Catalina Island. They have a few dozen employees, and they were looking for more employees when this happened… They took their website down.

They have a number of pilots and do tours. Some media reports said this was Kobe Bryant’s helicopter, but the registration does not say that. It says it belongs to Island Express. That will bring us into the legal conundrum of:


Were the pilots also Island Express pilots?

What kind of coverage does Island Express have? and

Were there any special circumstances? Did Kobe or anyone on that plane put pressure on the pilot?

They’ll be looking at what kind of flight control Island Express had on this flight. It looks like they owned it, it looks like it’s their pilot, so why weren’t they more careful? Does Mr. Bryant’s estate have any financial interest in this Island Express, or did he turn over ownership of his helicopter to maintain it?


What do you make of the air traffic controller’s conversation with the pilot?


I’ve only heard snippets of air traffic control. The U.S. government runs air traffic controls. They said they were going to follow the aircraft on radar. But then they said, “No, you’re way too low.” They said, “We can’t climb any higher because we’re in the clouds.” They were really low for LA. That’s a little surprising. So they said, “We can’t provide you flight forwarding anymore. We can’t watch you on radar; you’re too low.” What we need to hear is the next few sentences. What came next? Did they give them any more instruction?


Why is that important?


That’s really important because it is possible air traffic control made a mistake. If that’s the case, the U.S. of America foots the bill.


…We don’t know what the FAA told them next. If they said climb to 2,000 feet and turn left, and there was a mountain in their path, the government is liable. If the next thing is you are not legal, you are in the clouds, you are flying VFR without visual reference, you have to get out of there, you are flying illegally, it’s on the pilot. Those next sentences could be billion-dollar words.

Is there any circumstance here in which there might not be a lawsuit?



I don’t see it.



This article has been edited for length and brevity.

The original version of this story was published on The Recorder

Scammers are upping their game, trading fishy phone calls for believable text messages

Scammers are upping their game, trading fishy phone calls for believable text messages masquerading as shipping and delivery confirmation messages from companies like FedEx according to web security firm How-To Geek.

While fake text messages are nothing new in the realm of scamming, more people have reported receiving text messages written to look like package delivery confirmations. How-To Geek opened one such message to see what they could find, but warned others not to repeat the practice. They instead advise blocking the sender.


Following the link, How-To Geek reported being taken to a fake Amazon listing and being asked to take a customer satisfaction survey. For their efforts, the fake listing offered a reward for completing the survey; an "expensive" product for free.

The "free" reward still required a credit card (as well as an address) to pay for shipping. The process also involved signing up for a 14-day trial to the company selling the too-good-to-be-true products.

After the trial, the company charges the listed card a whopping $98.85 every month, and will send a new supply of whatever reward was claimed from the survey.

It is never safe to click on an unknown link, and you should never click one you suspect coming from a spammer. If clicked, it is all the more important to not enter personal information or banking information to a site you aren't certain of.

Below are text messages: one legitimate, one fake. The differences are nearly imperceptible.

Notice this one does not have a true domain name nor does it start with https://

This one is legit because it starts with https://
 and if you research narvar.com you will find it to be a legitimate website