Commissioner Stewart helps Baby Boomers and Gen Xers navigate empty nest reversal

 DOVER, DE — Nearly half of adults in their 40s and 50s have a parent age 65 or older and are either raising a young child or financially supporting an adult child.¹ These baby boomers and members of Generation X are feeling the pressure of empty nest reversal from boomerangs – adult children returning home to live – and live-in elders – seniors trading their current home for a loved one’s spare bedroom. In addition to negotiating cooking and cleaning responsibilities, Delaware Insurance Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart encourages families to make sure everyone understands how a change in address might affect insurance needs.

“American households are experiencing a dramatic shift. Whether it’s aging parents moving in with their grown children or young adults moving back in with mom and dad — today’s households come in all shapes and sizes,” said Stewart. “As family dynamics evolve, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and I urge consumers to understand the insurance implications of their unique living arrangements.”

Aging Relatives 

For seniors, moving in with an adult child can be uncomfortable. Before the first box is packed, parent and child need to talk about finances, including insurance.

Consider the following questions:

• Are you current on health, auto and life insurance premium payments?
• Are you covered by Medicare?
• Is long-term care insurance something we should look into?
• What are your end-of-life wishes?

This level of detail will help both parties decide what changes, if any, need to be made to existing coverage. Most importantly, seek to make your loved one feel cared about, not cared for. 

Boomerang Kids 

For the first time in more than 130 years, adults 18-34 years old are more likely to be living with their parents than in any other scenario — including living with a spouse or partner, other family or friends, or alone.² Experts say hosting an adult child can cost between $8,000 and $18,000 per year.³

Before welcoming an adult child back home, set clear expectations:

• How will health insurance be covered? Who will pay for what?
• Will we combine auto policies? How will driving records affect premiums?
• What belongings are you bringing? Will expensive items such as electronics or sporting equipment increase homeowner’s insurance premiums?

To avoid misunderstandings, the NAIC developed the Welcome Home contract. In addition to outlining basic rules of adult co-habitation, the document places under signature key insurance-related agreements between adult child and parent.

For insurance tips to help modern households of all shapes and sizes including baby boomers, same-sex couples, single parents, millennials and more, visit InsureUonline.org. Delawareans interested in state-specific insurance information can contact the Department of Insurance at 1-800-282-8611 or visit http://www.delawareinsurance.gov/.

Sources

¹ Pew Research Center

² Pew Research Center

³ The Wall Street Journal

#  #  #

Commissioner Stewart Hails Director Kinion for Winning “Advocate of the Year” Honors

DOVER, DE –Insurance Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart announced today that her captive insurance director, Steve Kinion, was recently selected as the 2016 Captive Insurance Industry Advocate of the Year.  Captive Review magazine recognized Kinion as its inaugural recipient for the award.  Over the past two years, Captive Review has also named Kinion as one of the top five influential people in captive insurance in the magazine’s annual Captive Power 50 rankings.

“When I brought Steve on board as my captive director in 2009, I knew that he had a unique set of skills to help me build and maintain a premier captive insurance program,” said Stewart. “Since then, captive insurance has provided tremendous value for Delaware.”

In August, the University of Delaware released an economic impact study which shows that the Department of Insurance’s captive insurance program contributes nearly $360 million to Delaware’s annual gross domestic product.  The study also found that the captive program directly and indirectly supports 2,537 Delaware jobs, creates almost $109 million in additional income, and generates over $5 million for the state in tax revenue. “I was glad to receive this third-party confirmation that our captive program is having a significant positive effect on Delaware’s economy,” said Stewart.

“I was also proud that captive insurance revenues provided the funding this year for programs that train Delaware’s future doctors and dentists,” Stewart added.  One of five states without an in-state medical or dental school, Delaware annually pays for 25 medical and 5 dental slots with medical and dental schools in Philadelphia so that state residents have the opportunity to become doctors and dentists and return to Delaware to establish their practices. Surplus revenue generated by the captive insurance program was used to fund the Delaware Institute for Medical Education and Research, known as DIMER, and the Delaware Institute for Dental Education and Research, or DIDER, which reserve positions for Delaware students at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, and the Temple University Kornberg School of Dentistry.

For more information about the Department’s Bureau of Captive & Financial Insurance Products, visit http://captive.delawareinsurance.gov/ or call 302.577.5281.

###

UD Report: Captive Insurance Program Boosts Delaware’s GDP, Jobs, Incomes, Tax Revenue

Commissioner Stewart Celebrates Captive Bureau’s Economic Impact

DOVER, DE –Insurance Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart today announced the release of a University of Delaware economic impact study which shows that the Department of Insurance’s captive insurance program contributes nearly $360 million to Delaware’s annual gross domestic product. The captive program also directly and indirectly supports 2,537 Delaware jobs, creates almost $109 million in additional income, and generates over $5 million for the state in tax revenue, the report shows.

The study, The Economic Contributions of the Captive Insurance Industry to the Delaware Economy, was conducted on behalf of the DOI by the University of Delaware’s Alfred Lerner College of Business & Economics’ Center for Applied Business & Economic Research (CABER), which has produced similar economic impact studies for the Firefly Music Festival and Delaware’s horseracing industry.

CABER surveyed 1081captive insurance companies doing business in Delaware and used data from businesses providing services to those companies. The report breaks out the program’s economic impact per $1,000 spent by the DOI for the captive industry. For every $1,000 spent, 1.95 jobs are created, $83,574 in income is generated, and $4,301 in taxes are collected. Captive program spending supports 950 jobs in finance and investment industry, 447 jobs in legal, accounting and professional support, and 209 retail jobs. The complete report may be found at http://captive.delawareinsurance.gov/docs/pdfs/captive-industry-impact-on-de-econ-caber-report-201608.pdf

“I instituted the Bureau of Captive and Financial Insurance Products in 2009 and I’ve watched it grow ever since,” said Commissioner Stewart. “Thanks to my captive director, Steve Kinion, and my topnotch captive staff, we are consistently one of the top captive domiciles in the US and in the world. But until now, I don’t think many people were aware of exactly what we contribute to Delaware’s economy. The CABER report rewards my faith in captives as a revenue generator for our state.”

Captive insurance entities are owned by the companies that they insure, and are generally formed by businesses who wish to better manage the cost and administration of their insurance coverage. DOI’s captive bureau is self-sustaining and currently contributes an annual surplus in tax and fee revenue of over $3 million to the Delaware general fund.

###
For more information please contact Jerry Grant at 302-577-5259
captive.delawareinsurance.gov
www.delawareinsurance.gov

Dover, DE-Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart fined the following companies a total of $114,500 during the second quarter of 2016 for violations of state insurance laws and regulations:

Name                                                                       Fine                                           Date
Bankers Life & Casualty Company                   $55,500.00                             4/27/2016
National Health Insurance Company               $25,000.00                             5/11/2016
USAA                                                                $34,000.00                             5/24/2016

The fines result from a market conduct examination of each company’s practices performed by the Delaware Department of Insurance. Details of the companies’ particular violations may be found in the Stipulation and Consent Order entered into by the parties and listed under “Consent Decrees” in the Enforcement Actions & Fines section of the Department website:
http://www.delawareinsurance.gov/departments/documents/enforcement/actions.shtml.
Click on the PDF link in the right-hand column to read each consent decree in its entirety. The market conduct examination report which provides the basis for the fines can be accessed by clicking on the company’s name in the left-hand column.
For more information, call the Department at 1-800-282-8611.
###

For more information please contact Jerry Grant at 302-674-7303

Delaware Department of Insurance | www.delawareinsurance.gov | Main Office Phone: 302-674-7300

Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart Announces New Search Service

Dover, DE – Do you believe your deceased loved one has a life insurance policy that you cannot find? The Delaware Department of Insurance can help you try to locate it.

Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart today announced that the Department now provides Delaware residents and their families with a free search service that can help locate missing life insurance policies or annuity contracts left behind by loved ones who have passed away.

“I’m happy that the Department has set up this new service to help Delawareans locate lost insurance policies that were purchased in our state,’ said Commissioner Stewart. “Our search will enable eligible persons to contact every life and annuity insurer licensed in Delaware in order to look for a lost policy or contract. I’m always fighting for consumers and this new service should help many of them find the benefits to which they are entitled.”

The service works like this: An executor, beneficiary or legal representative of a deceased resident or former resident of Delaware may file a search request with the Department of Insurance. To submit a request, print out the Missing Life Insurance/Annuity Search Request Form on the DOI website at

http://www.delawareinsurance.gov/services/missingpolicy.shtml.

The form should be filled out, then signed before a Notary Public. Be sure to attach a copy of the decedent’s certified death certificate. Then place the documents in an envelope marked “Confidential” and mail it to the address printed on the form.

Please note that the Department of Insurance does not guarantee that every requested policy will be found. Upon receipt of the request form, the Department will send the search request and any attachments to all Delaware-licensed life insurance companies for review. An insurance company must process a policy and/or contract if they have information about a life insurance policy or annuity contract on the deceased person’s life. The insurance company will contact the requestor directly if money is to be paid to them.

Call the Consumers Division at 1-800-282-8611 if you need additional information.

###