How the report was conducted

According to the AAJ’s recent report entitled, The Ten Worst Insurance Companies in America – How They Raise Premiums, Deny Claims and Refuse Insurance to Those Who Need It Most, researchers investigated thousands of court documents, as well as records from the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and state insurance departments. They also looked at news reports and testimony from the insurers’ former agents and adjusters. The report provides conclusions about the insurance industry as a whole, lists the ten worst insurers and explains why they made the list. To view the report, go to: http://www.justice.org/docs/TenWorstInsuranceCompanies.pdf.

Conclusions about the industry

The AAJ came to the following conclusions about the insurance industry as a whole:

• Companies consistently put profits over policyholders. The report concludes that many insurance companies may “talk the talk”, but don’t “walk the walk.” They may advertise that your “in good hands”, are “like a good neighbor” or “provide the strength to be there”, but fall short when it comes to actually serving their customers.
• Companies continually deny, delay and defend. Insurance companies make more money when they pay out fewer claims. Obvious? Yes. Ethical? No. The industry as a whole routinely denies, delays and defends claims – all in the name of the “bottom line.”
• Profits and salaries are skyrocketing. The property/casualty and life insurance industries average $30B in profits every year. In fact, the U.S. insurance industry as a whole receives premiums of over $1 trillion (with a “T”) every year and has assets of $3.8 trillion.

  The Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the ten insurers in the report averaged an annual salary of nearly $9 million in 2007.

Who made the list?

These ten companies were named the worst insurers in America for denying claims, raising premiums, refusing insurance to those who need it most and many other reasons:

1. Allstate
2. Unum
3. AIG
4. State Farm
5. Conseco
6. WellPoint
7. Farmers
8. United Health
9. Torchmark
10. Liberty Mutual

To learn more about what each of the above insurers did to earn a place on the list, click on the names above.

Insurance companies play by their own rules

It’s no secret that insurance companies often play by their own rules – especially when those rules specifically save the company money. A video has been posted on YouTube entitled “Insurance Company Rules.” It takes a satirical look at what would happen if the general public also used those rules. The video was a collaborative effort between Health Care for America Now (HCAN) and the Public Service Administration (PSA).