by Naomi Seligman
It has been quite a year for Mercury Insurance. It is hard to know how Mercury Insurance execs will spend their New Year’s eve celebrating all the money they have made off of California motorists. Maybe they will attend a bash in LA? Or book a quiet dinner at one of LA’s finest restaurants? Or possibly take a quick trip to wine country?
What we can tell you for sure is how Mercury spent 2009:
- Mercury started the year with a bang by laying off 363 employees.
- Authored legislation intended to violate the mandates of voter-approved Proposition 103. The bill would prevent refunds being ordered by the Insurance Commissioner or a court when insurers are found to have illegally overcharged customers. Look for it in Sacramento in the new year.
- Sponsored an initiative that would allow Mercury and every other insurer to penalize Californians who want car insurance but have had a lapse in coverage anytime in the past five years. The penalty, which could increase rates 40-74%, would be imposed whether or not the person was driving when they didn’t have insurance.
Help make sure that California drivers are not paying millions more to insurers next year. Please visit stopthesurcharge.org in 2010 for new information on how to keep Mercury and its execs in check..
In the meanwhile, have a Happy and Healthy New Year!
Tags: Blog
