Heartland Institute to Florida Insurance Commissioner: “Regulators should not be management consultants” Following The Heartland Institute’s release of Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) emails, the state’s insurance commissioner, Kevin McCarty, wrote to Heartland defending his agency’s actions in the weeks leading up to the insolvency of the Northern Capital Group of companies. Christian R. [...]

Here is a new article by Paul Misener, VP at Amazon, that takes a second look view of the Net Neutrality issue.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    Statement Regarding the Announcement of 37 States to Investigate Google’s Street View Snooping                                                   Washington, DC (July 22, 2010) – The following is a statement by Steve Pociask, president of the American Consumer Institute: “Today, 37 state Attorneys General spanning the country announced they were joining forces to launch a [...]

37 State Attorney Generals are investigating Google in connection with its Street View, suggesting the possibility that, without permission, Google collected private and personal information on American consumers.  In a letter announcing the investigation, the Connecticut Attorney General asks some probing question about how Google collected its information and provides insight into the direction of the investigation.  Among several issues, the investigation is looking into whether Google collected personal consumer [...]

A Supreme Court of Michigan’s recent decision on insurance regulation is a big victory for consumers.  The state had tried to prevent insurance companies from charging consumers based on risk.  That policy would have led to higher premiums for good car drivers by giving risky drivers lower rates.  Besides the unfairness of such a cross-subsidy, the net [...]

  American Consumer Institute Analysis: Relying On Undercapitalized Insurers during Hurricane Season Puts Florida Homeowners at Extreme Risk   Washington, DC (July 1, 2010) – A ConsumerGram written by FSU professor and ACI expert Dr. Patricia Born details how regulatory efforts to keep Florida’s homeowner insurance rates artificially low has resulted in undercapitalized companies, which [...]

The Importance of Being Capitalized By Patricia Born  Efforts to encourage insurers to enter the Florida homeowners market do not appear to be meeting their objectives. The attractiveness of coverage offered by private insurers is putting consumers at an even greater risk as the premiums collected and available capital will likely prove insufficient for paying claims. [...]