Happy Wednesday! It's officially spring, and although we've been dealing with some rain this week, the forecast is looking up. In this week's Big I Buzz we are discussing an upcoming E&O Risk Management class, how credit can affect auto premiums and the top states for alcohol consumption. 

E&O Risk Management: Less Risk. More Reward. 

Join us from 9 a.m. to noon on April 13 for a live virtual E&O course full of storytelling, statistics and E&O risk mitigation tips. This course is open to everyone and has been approved for 3 WI CE credits. These credits can not be awarded if this course was completed within the last two years. The course qualifies for 10% premium credit for Swiss Re E&O policyholders. Covered topics include: agency defenses to E&O claims (documentation, consistent procedures and exposures checklists), E&O claim statistics, E&O exposures when using social media and understanding standard of care and duty to advise. The webinar will be conducted via Zoom and everyone within an agency is encouraged to attend. Register for this course here. 

Poor Credit Can Affect Auto Premiums More Than Accidents

A new study from The Zebra has found that a bad credit score can affect your auto insurance premium more than having a  hit-and-run on your record. "Even drivers with squeaky-clean records can see their rates double if their credits tank."

There are a few states that have banned insurance companies from using credit scores to price or deny insurance policies and those are California, Hawaii, Massachusetts and Michigan. However, there are further bans being considered on using credit rating for insurance. According to NU Property Casualty 360, "For drivers with poor credit, The Zebra recommends the following tips to save as much as possible: 

• If you believe you're paying too much, don't be afraid to shop around for carriers. Some may be more willing to work with customers with less-than-ideal credit scores than others. 

• Make small improvements to your credit where you can.

• Take advantage of any discounts (for staying accident free, taking defensive driving courses, etc.) your carrier offers to lower your premium. 

• Even customers with decent credit should work to improve it in order to take advantage of even more savings. 

You can read more about this study here. 

10 U.S. States with the Highest Alcohol Consumption

World Population Review has ranked the top states for alcohol consumption. Compared to the rest of the world, the U.S. ranks 25th globally for alcohol consumption, with the average American drinking about 2.35 gallons of alcohol per year. Here's their findings for the top 10 states: 

10. South Dakota

9. Colorado

8. Wisconsin

7. Idaho

6. Vermont

5. Montana

4. North Dakota

3. Nevada

2. Delaware

1. New Hampshire

Wisconsin ranked #8 but reported quite a bit more alcohol-impaired driving fatalities than some of the other states higher on the list - reporting 183 fatalities just in 2019. DUI arrests were also high, with Wisconsin reporting 23,934 DUI arrests in 2019. 

Read more about the study here. 

For more news, check out the Action News section of our weekly e-newsletter, Big I Buzz. If you aren’t subscribed, click here to add your email to our emailing list.