Miscellaneous

• Jury to Begin Deliberations in Unfair Settlement Practices Lawsuit Against Allstate

  Staff Writer | October 09, 2007 9:50 PM | 0 CommentsPhoenix, AZ

  A Kentucky jury will begin deliberations Wednesday deciding whether Allstate Insurance Company violated the Kentucky Unfair Settlement Practices Act by systematically lowering valuation of minor injury claims and bullying claimants into accepting artificially low settlements. The Plaintiffs alleged that Allstate systematically undervalued claims relying upon a consultant who, according to the...

• The Number of Uninsured Continues to Rise

  Staff Writer | September 17, 2007 3:04 PM | 0 CommentsPhoenix, AZ

  According to a recent article in the physician publication American Medical News, the number of Americans without health insurance has increased to forty-seven million people last year. By comparison, approximately thirty-eight million four hundred thousand Americans had no health insurance insurance in 2000. The American Medical News suggests that one of the reasons for such a large increase...

• Presidential Candidate Romney Victim of Laptop Theft

  Staff Writer | September 11, 2007 9:00 AM | 0 CommentsPhoenix, AZ

  Those who do not learn the lessons of history are bound to repeat them. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has apparently learned some of the lessons from recent high profile laptop thefts involving government agencies such as the Veterans Administration and private business such as Stevens Hospital in Washington. Over the weekend, burglars broke into Candidate Romney's campaign...

• Major Data Breach at Monster.com Exposes 1.3 Million Personal Records

  Staff Writer | September 02, 2007 12:00 PM | 0 CommentsPhoenix, AZ

  This past week, Monster.com disclosed that thieves hacked into and stole confidential information about several hundred thousand job seekers posted in 1.3 million records.According to a Fox news report,The information, which included first and last names, e-mail and home addresses and phone numbers, was then used to send "phishing" e-mails to members, apparently from Monster.com, encouraging...

• Are On-Line Pharmacies Trafficking Narcotic Drugs?

  Staff Writer | August 29, 2007 6:22 PM | 0 CommentsPhoenix, AZ

  Perhaps you have seen stories or received spam e-mail messages from on-line pharmacies offering instant access to prescription drugs at low cost. You want a percocet or vicodin but your family doctor did not prescribe it for you? No worries. Just log onto your spam-friendly Internet pharmacy, fill out a brief questionnaire, pay for your medication with a credit card and in no time, you will...

• Insurers Profits Rising Based on Bad Business Practices?

  Staff Writer | August 10, 2007 9:00 PM | 0 CommentsPhoenix, AZ

  A recent article in the on-line publication Bloomberg suggests that anti-consumer insurance industry practices have led to a stark increase in insurance profits in recent years. According to Bloomberg, consumers have been bearing the burden of bad-faith insurance industry practices:Insurers often pay 30-60 percent of the cost of rebuilding a damaged home -- even when carriers assure homeowners...

• Medical Plane Crash in New Mexico Kills 5

  Jenny Albano | August 06, 2007 1:27 PM | 0 CommentsPhoenix, AZ

  A medical plane crashed on the night of August 5 and all 5 passengers, including a women and her young daughter, were killed in the accident.Those deceased include 15 month-old Lilly Smith and her mother Tracy Smith, a 56 year-old pilot, a 44 year-old male nurse, and a 40 year-old paramedic. The names of the three staff members have not been released so authorities could contact next of kin.The...

• TV News Helicopter Collision Kills All 4 On Board

  Jenny Albano | July 30, 2007 7:48 AM | 1 CommentPhoenix, AZ

  On July 28, two TV news helicopters crashed into each other while trying to follow a police chase in Phoenix, Arizona. The helicopters collided over Steele Indian School Park around 12:40 P.M. and crashed into the lawn in front of a boarded-up church. The choppers were engulfed in flames and all four people in the two helicopters died.Killed on board the KTVK chopper were pilot Scott Bowerbank...

• Inside Aquafina Bottles You Will Find Tap Water

  Staff Writer | July 27, 2007 9:21 PM | 0 CommentsPhoenix, AZ

  In case you are wondering exactly where the bottled water comes from that makes up Aquafina water, today you have an answer. No, the water does not come from a spring somewhere high in the mountains of some exotic location. Instead, according to an article in today's Arizona Republic, the source for water found inside the Aquafina water bottle is the same source as our regular tap water. ...

• Automobile Theft Can Lead to Identity Theft

  Staff Writer | July 22, 2007 8:00 AM | 1 CommentPhoenix, AZ

  Arizona leads the nation in reported cases of identity theft. According to the Arizona Republic, metropolitan Phoenix also ranks fourth in the nation in reported cases of automobile theft as well. Considering these statistics together raises some concerns for drivers in Phoenix who leave various personal documents inside their cars. The Republic cautions that based on identity and auto theft...