Alabama State Troopers begin entering electronic crash reports

Posted by Ginny MacDonald — Birmingham News June 08, 2009 5:44 AM

Alabama state troopers have launched a new electronic crash report system that speeds up the turnaround time for getting a crash report.

The system, called eCrash shortens motorists’ wait times for copies of wreck reports from state troopers. In one instance, a motorist retrieved his wreck report in five hours, said Birmingham State Trooper Sgt. Steve Bryant.

That’s good news for motorists involved in crashes because insurance companies typically need the reports to process auto damage claims.

“It’s a better way to submit crash reports and to do it in a more timely manner,” said eCrash project manager Sgt. Chris Brown, who has spent the past two years setting up the system. He noted that the state had been criticized in the past by federal agencies for failing to release crash reports in a timely fashion.

State officials have complained for years that they could not file final crash reports from the year before with federal agencies until the following April or May because of missing data from cities and counties.

Federal transportation officials are trying to standardize wreck reports across the nation.

“Some cities and municipalities have electronic capabilities, but our system is designed to handle every crash report written in the entire state,” Brown said. Alabama’s wreck report form had not been updated since 1999.

http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2009/06/alabama_state_troopers_have_la.html

http://www.al.com/news/press-register/metro.ssf?/base/news/124272451749570.xml&coll=3

WASHINGTON — Across the country, federal flood insurance policyholders ponied up more than $3 billion in premiums to protect their homes and businesses in the last fiscal year. Less than half of that money was set aside to pay claims for actual flood losses, according to government figures.

Instead, the Federal Emergency Management Agency spent almost $1.5 billion to cover overhead in two areas: interest on the program’s debt to the federal treasury, and compensation to the insurance companies that largely run the program day to day. Other costs included taxes and grants.

About $1.4 billion went for claims, reserves and adjustment expenses, according to figures supplied by FEMA at the Press-Register’s request.

Three and a half years after Hurricane Katrina swamped the program with claims, the numbers offer a snapshot of its continuing struggle to recover.

Created in 1968 because private insurers were reluctant to cover water damage, the initiative, formally known as the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) was generally self-supporting for much of its history. Now, it is considered effectively bankrupt.

As Hurricane Ike and other recent storms have spawned more losses, the program’s borrowing from the treasury has crossed the $19 billion mark. Last month, President Barack Obama’s administration urged Congress to forgive that debt or face the possibility that interest payments will eventually consume every dime in premium revenue.

So far, lawmakers have deadlocked on the specifics of a remedy. The flood program formally expired last fall, and Congress has since approved only a stopgap measure to keep it going through this September.

http://www.al.com/news/press-register/metro.ssf?/base/news/124272451749570.xml&coll=3

NRMA Insurance is calling on car manufacturers to improve bumper bar design after testing revealed poor-performing bumpers can contribute to higher smash repair costs.

The NRMA Insurance testing program, the first of its kind in the southern hemisphere, puts the spotlight on bumper performance in a simulated 10km/h collision – the most common type of road crash.

The test was used on nine of Australia’s top selling small vehicles and revealed inconsistent repair costs ranging from around $1000 to more than $7000.

NRMA Insurance Head of Research Robert McDonald said the cars’ bumper designs had a big impact on the amount of damage caused in low speed collisions.

“The test results show a vast difference in repair prices across the range of vehicles tested, as a poorly designed bumper can slide under other bumpers on impact, causing more damage to both vehicles,” Mr McDonald said.

“We are certainly urging consumers to consider repair costs when looking for a new car as repair costs can have a significant impact on the insurance premium they will pay,” he said.

Of the vehicle’s tested, the Honda Civic was the most expensive to repair, costing an estimated $7,386 or 31.4 per cent of its purchase price.

“The Suzuki Swift also registered a disappointing result, with damage after a low speed crash costing $5,547.15 or 34.7 per cent of its purchase price.” Mr McDonald said.

“We are however really pleased with the performance of the Toyota Corolla, as the repair cost of this vehicle after a low speed collision, was just $1,019 or 4.4 per cent as a percentage of its purchase price,” Mr McDonald said.

This year’s results also discredit the argument that pedestrian-friendly bumpers don’t protect the vehicle from damage.

“Both the Toyota Corolla and the Honda Civic scored similar leg protection results in the EURO NCAP pedestrian safety program, yet the repair costs of these vehicles differ dramatically,” according to Mr McDonald.

“This proves that manufacturers can design vehicles that can perform well in both pedestrian safety and vehicle protection.”

The NRMA Insurance low speed crash test program was designed in conjunction with research centres in six other countries to assist car manufacturers improve vehicle design, and to help keep the cost of collision repairs affordable.

“The new crash apparatus uses a ‘roller coaster’ type device to simulate a 10km/h collision, allowing us to accurately compare the costs of repairs.

“The first round of testing has initially looked at some of the best selling small cars in Australia. We will be working with car manufacturers over the next 12 months to expand the program,” Mr McDonald said.

While design enhancements may largely go unnoticed by vehicle owners, they can have a sizeable impact on the cost of insurance.

“We encourage motorists to consider the cost of repairing a vehicle before they make their purchase, as a bargain in the showroom may not be such a good deal when taking the cost of insurance and repairs into account,” added Mr McDonald.

The NRMA Insurance testing program, the first of its kind in the southern hemisphere, puts the spotlight on bumper performance in a simulated 10km/h collision – the most common type of road crash.

The test was used on nine of Australia’s top selling small vehicles and revealed inconsistent repair costs ranging from around $1000 to more than $7000.

NRMA Insurance Head of Research Robert McDonald said the cars’ bumper designs had a big impact on the amount of damage caused in low speed collisions.

“The test results show a vast difference in repair prices across the range of vehicles tested, as a poorly designed bumper can slide under other bumpers on impact, causing more damage to both vehicles,” Mr McDonald said.

“We are certainly urging consumers to consider repair costs when looking for a new car as repair costs can have a significant impact on the insurance premium they will pay,” he said.

Of the vehicle’s tested, the Honda Civic was the most expensive to repair, costing an estimated $7,386 or 31.4 per cent of its purchase price.

“The Suzuki Swift also registered a disappointing result, with damage after a low speed crash costing $5,547.15 or 34.7 per cent of its purchase price.” Mr McDonald said.

“We are however really pleased with the performance of the Toyota Corolla, as the repair cost of this vehicle after a low speed collision, was just $1,019 or 4.4 per cent as a percentage of its purchase price,” Mr McDonald said.

This year’s results also discredit the argument that pedestrian-friendly bumpers don’t protect the vehicle from damage.

“Both the Toyota Corolla and the Honda Civic scored similar leg protection results in the EURO NCAP pedestrian safety program, yet the repair costs of these vehicles differ dramatically,” according to Mr McDonald.

“This proves that manufacturers can design vehicles that can perform well in both pedestrian safety and vehicle protection.”

The NRMA Insurance low speed crash test program was designed in conjunction with research centres in six other countries to assist car manufacturers improve vehicle design, and to help keep the cost of collision repairs affordable.

“The new crash apparatus uses a ‘roller coaster’ type device to simulate a 10km/h collision, allowing us to accurately compare the costs of repairs.

“The first round of testing has initially looked at some of the best selling small cars in Australia. We will be working with car manufacturers over the next 12 months to expand the program,” Mr McDonald said.

While design enhancements may largely go unnoticed by vehicle owners, they can have a sizeable impact on the cost of insurance.

“We encourage motorists to consider the cost of repairing a vehicle before they make their purchase, as a bargain in the showroom may not be such a good deal when taking the cost of insurance and repairs into account,” added Mr McDonald.