Insurance Vs History
Exploring all the ways that Insurance changed History...or failed to. https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com/
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Insurance vs The Station Nightclub Fire
04/22/2024
Insurance vs The Station Nightclub Fire
Insurance vs the Station Nightclub Fire Without giving my age away entirely, I will admit…I’m a child of the 80s. I’ve been lucky enough to have seen several of my favorite 80s artists perform their greatest hits. It never crossed my mind that something could go wrong during a concert and I might be in danger. But on February 2, 2003, more than 400 people who also loved the 1980s attended a concert at the Station Nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island. But that night, something went wrong. A fire broke out at the concert, resulting in 100 deaths and 230 injuries. When bad things like this happen—insurance should respond. That’s what it’s there to do. But what if the people responsible don’t have enough insurance to compensate those affected by the disaster? Well, then things get complicated. This is a story about how small decisions can result in tragedy; how fire spreads faster than you imagine; and how the people who are responsible are sometimes not the people who are held accountable. Selected Sources and Links: · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · Sources with Paywall: · Liability Policies Getting Lost in 'Deep Pockets'. Hazeltine, Rick. San Diego Business Journal; San Diego Vol. 6, Iss. 33, Mar 17, 1986 · How to raid deep pockets — the Chicago way. Choslovsky, William. Chicago Tribune Tribune Publishing Company, LLC. Oct 27, 2017 · Cappelletti, Marco, 'Deep Pockets', Justifying Strict Liability: A Comparative Analysis in Legal Reasoning. Oxford, 2022 · Great White was carrying $1 million in insurance; five lawsuits filed. Fitzpatrick, Edward. Knight Ridder Tribune News Service; Washington. 03 July 2003 · Rhode Island Nightclub Lessors Sue for Insurance Coverage. Ebbert, Stephanie. Knight Ridder Tribune Business News; Washington. 24 Apr 2003 · Lessons learned from the station fire. and Aug. 2013 (Vol. 49, Issue 8)Publisher: American Association for Justice Books: · · Documentaries/Television: · 48 Hours: Season 34, episode 5 “Thursday Night” · · Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Email: Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs The Atlantic Slave Trade
11/13/2023
Insurance vs The Atlantic Slave Trade
Three years ago, when I started thinking about making a podcast about insurance and history, I had only one topic in mind: slavery. It took three years of reading and researching before I was ready to share it with you, but this episode represents part one of a three-part series about insurance and slavery—an overview of the Atlantic Slave trade and how insurance contributed to and supported that trade. It’s a tough topic, but an important one, for insurance professionals and history buffs alike. This is a story about how capitalism developed in Europe and the Americas, about colonialism, the cost of labor, transcontinental marine shipping of kidnapped human beings, and how insurance supported all these things. And how underwriters decide what to insure, and how to insure it. Selected Sources and Links: Sources with Paywall: Inherent Vice: Marine Insurance, slave ship rebellion and the law, Anita Rupprecht, Race and Class, 2016, Volume 57 p 31-44 Measuring the unmeasured hazards of the Atlantic slave trade: documents relating to the British trade, Joseph E. Inikori, Revue française d'histoire d'outre-mer, tome 83, n°312, 3e trimestre 1996. pp. 53-92. Slavery, Insurance and the Law, Michael Lobban, The Journal of Legal History, 2007, Vol 28, p 319-328 The Zong in the Context of the 18th Century Slave Trade, Jane Webster, The Journal of Legal History, Vol. 28, No. 3, December 2007, pp. 285–298 Commercial Risk and Capital Formation in Early America: Virginia Merchants and the Rise of American Marine Insurance, 1750-1815 Author(s): A. Glenn Crothers Source: The Business History Review, Winter, 2004, Vol. 78, No. 4 (Winter, 2004), pp. 607-633 Dead or Alive: Racial Finance and the Corpse-Value of the African American Slave Body, Bride A. , J Hist Sociol. 2020;33:99–115. Insuring the Transatlantic Slave Trade, Pearson, R., & Richardson, D., The Journal of Economic History, 79(2), 417-446 Books: Armstrong, T. “Slavery Insurance and Sacrifice in the Black Atlantic.” In Sea Changes: Historicising the Ocean, edited by Bernard Klein and Gesa Mackenthun. New York/London: Routledge, 2004. Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Email: Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs Enron
09/18/2023
Insurance vs Enron
For the first episode of Season 3, I’m talking about Enron and the company’s spectacular rise and even more spectacular fall. It’s a story about how creativity can sometimes mean stupidity, how culture impacts a company’s survival, how hiring decisions matter, how ideas mutate, and how companies that put stock price and profits above all else can easily be the architects of their own demise. And--how blind people can be about a lot of things if what they are doing is making money. Who was responsible for Enron? What were the major causes of its bankruptcy? Who spoke up, and who listened (or didn’t?) And what insurance responds when half of your executives are being criminally charged, and the shareholders and creditors are suing everyone they can think of? Join me to find out! Selected Sources and Links: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Enron: The Good, The Bad, The Lessons, Lori Zulaf, Peter Grierson, International Business & Economics Research Journal, Volume 1, Number 11 10. Enron: A Financial Reporting Failure, Anthony H. Catanach Jr. & Shelley Rhoades-Catanach, Vol 48, Villanova Law Review, 2003 11. The Other Enron Story, Toni Mack, Forbes, October 14, 2002 12. Is Enron Overpriced? Bethany McLean, Fortune, March 5, 2001 13. Monster Mess, Bethany McLean, Fortune, February 4, 2002 14. Hidden Risks, Toni Mack, Forbes, May 24, 1993 15. Why Enron Went Bust, Bethany McLean, Fortune, December 24, 2001 Sources with Paywall: 1. 2. Books: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Music Credits: · Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Email: Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs Gawker and Hulk Hogan
06/26/2023
Insurance vs Gawker and Hulk Hogan
How can insurance save a company from bankruptcy? How does litigation funding work? Why did a lawsuit about a famous wrestler’s sex tape become a warning to journalists everywhere about the power of Silicon Valley? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In this episode, I talk about a case called Bollea v Gawker, which involved Hulk Hogan’s sex tape, and Gawker, one of the first big online news organizations. It also involved tech mogul Peter Theil and a vendetta that resulted in Gawker’s demise. This is the story of how insurance could have saved Gawker, but didn’t—and the very real issues brought up by the trial, namely, the issue of litigation funding, bad deposition preparation, hubris, the rising power of Silicon Valley, and how much privacy public figures are entitled to today. What’s covered by insurance? Where did Gawker go wrong regarding insurance coverage? What does their bankruptcy mean for journalism today? Join me to find out! Selected Sources and Links: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. “Hulk Hogan and the Demise of Gawker Media: wrestling with the problems of celebrity voyeurism, newsworthiness, and tabloidization, Andrew K Antoniou and Dimitris Akrivos, Journal of Media Law 2016, Volume 8, No. 2, 153-172 13. “Eat Your Vitamins and Say Your Prayers: Bollea v Gawker, Revenge Litigation Funding, and the Fate of the Fourth Estate” Nicole K. Chipi, University of Miami Law Review, Vol 72: 269 14. The Gawker Stalker, Jason Zengerle, GQ, Vol 86, Issue 12 15. The Evolution of Mr. Theil, The Economist, Vol 419, Issue 8992 16. Vigilante Justice: The Implications of Revenge Suits for Third-Party Litigation Funding, Ann-Marie Elvin, The Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics, Vol 30:719 17. “Sex, Videos, and Insurance: How Gawker Could Have Avoided Financial Responsibility For the $140 Million Hulk Hogan Sex Tape Verdict” Christopher C. French, Southern California Law Review, 6.20.16 Sources with Paywall: 1. 2. Books: 1. 2. Music Credits: · Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Email: Twitter: @insurancevshist Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs King Hammurabi of Babylon
03/20/2023
Insurance vs King Hammurabi of Babylon
Was King Hammurabi’s Code the first written mention of insurance? How did insurance come to be, after all? And how does history change over time? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In this episode, I talk about King Hammurabi’s Code, often considered to be the first legal code ever written and the first written mention of insurance. But is that really the case? Join me to find out! Selected Sources and Links: 1. 2. 3. Sea Loans at Ugarit, Jonathan Ziskind, Journal of the American Oriental Society, Jan-Mar 1974, Vol 94, No 1., pp 134-137 4. The Ugartic Text 2106: 10-18: A Bottomry Loan? , Journal of the American Oriental Society, Oct-Dec, 1975, Vol 95, No 4., pp 612-619 5. 6. Books: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Music Credits: · Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Email: Twitter: @insurancevshist Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs The Mystery of Helen Brach and Horse Insurance Fraud
02/20/2023
Insurance vs The Mystery of Helen Brach and Horse Insurance Fraud
Insurance vs The Mystery of Helen Brach and Horse Insurance Fraud How did the disappearance of a candy heiress result in the discovery of an insurance fraud ring? And were people hiring someone to murder their horses? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In this episode, I tackle the true crime story of Helen Brach, and how the investigation into her disappearance revealed an organized insurance fraud ring involving expensive horses, changes in the US tax law, and terrible people. Fair warning: I use one swear word. Selected Sources and Links: 1. 2. 3. Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times: Various articles from 1977 forward; both papers covered the entire thing extensively Books: 1. Music Credits: · Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Email: Twitter: @insurancevshist Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs The NRA
01/16/2023
Insurance vs The NRA
How has the NRA impacted insurance? And why are insurers being asked to regulate the gun industry? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In this episode, I try and tackle the NRA’s impact on the insurance industry, as well as discuss a new wrinkle in the discussion of gun safety: asking the insurance industry to take a regulatory role. Sources and Links: Note: This is only a selection. There was a LOT here, and I read a lot of stuff from “both sides of the aisle” so to speak. I tried to include articles with the most facts and not as many opinions or with more insurance explanations. The books were the best of what I read; the book by Adam Winkler was probably the most opinion neutral. Books: Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Email: Twitter: @insurancevshist Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs The Movies: Double Indemnity
12/15/2022
Insurance vs The Movies: Double Indemnity
Is Double Indemnity the best insurance movie ever? Is double indemnity even a real thing? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In this episode, I discuss the movie Double Indemnity starring Fred McMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, and Edward G Robinson, and the concept of double indemnity in the insurance industry. Sources and Links: Limitation of Risk in Double Indemnity Clause, Columbia Law Review, Vol 31, No 8 (Dec 1931), pp. 1368-1369 Interpretation of “Accidental Means” in Double Indemnity Clause, Michigan Law Review, Vol 50, No 6 (April 1952), pp. 942-944 Books: Movies: Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Twitter: @insurancevshist Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs Tontines! Tontines! Tontines!
11/15/2022
Insurance vs Tontines! Tontines! Tontines!
Murder. Intrigue. And a financial product that bets on the death of people you don’t know. Tontines! Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In this episode, I dig into the rise and fall of the tontine, a unique life insurance product that includes a mortality lottery. How did a financial product build bridges and real estate, fund wars, and even contribute to the French revolution? I'm talking Kings, Insurance Barons, and estimating who would live longest. What could be more exciting? Sources and Links: Books: Milevsky has a nice history of tontines in here, and then a discussion of the math and how he thinks a tontine could work. If you’re an actuary, you probably will understand the math, but laypeople likely will not. The book that prompted the interest in tontines in Japan. Articles: (behind a paywall, sorry) Short overview of using tontines for smaller public works projects or private projects Article by Moshe Milevsky if you don’t want to read the book Well, I wouldn’t go exactly that far, but okay, Washington Post, hit that clickbait. by Robert M. Jennings, Donald F. Swanson and Andrew P. Trout by Roger L. Ransom and Richard Sutch Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Twitter: @insurancevshist Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs Eliot Spitzer
10/15/2022
Insurance vs Eliot Spitzer
When a secretive industry meets an ambitious attorney general, what happens next? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In this episode, I discuss Eliot Spitzer’s attempt to reform the insurance industry: specifically, the 2004 investigation into the big three insurance brokers and contingent commissions. Sources and Links: Written in late 2004. A good overview. Books: This is a more general book that covers his entire life up until about 2010 and goes into a lot of detail about the sex scandal. The author did sit down with Spitzer and there is a documentary based on the book as well (Client 9). There is not very much about the insurance investigation but it’s a good overview of his life. This book was written before he became governor, and is an excellent breakdown of the investigations he launched when he was Attorney General, including the insurance investigation. Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me: Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Twitter: @insurancevshist Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook:
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Insurance vs The Gambling Act of 1774
09/14/2022
Insurance vs The Gambling Act of 1774
Insurance vs The Gambling Act of 1774 Why can’t you take out a life insurance policy on anyone you want? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In my seventh episode, I talk about the early development of life insurance in England, and how policies were often a lot closer to gambling than to insurance. Join me as I investigate some of the crazy things you could do with a life insurance policy in the 18th century and how the Gambling Act changed everything. Website: https://insurancevshistory.libsyn.com Contact me! Twitter: @insurancevshist Instagram: @ insurancevshistory Facebook: Email: [email protected] Links: A License to Bet: Life insurance and the Gambling Act in the British Courts A well-written, great explanation of SLS and the risks associated with them. In particular, well worth the case study read where a bank allows a company to secure loans using life insurance policies they purchased as third-party transactions. I didn’t get a chance to read this but it’s on my to-do list. Law Journal Articles (sorry, no links): Emigration, Fraud, Humanitarianism, and the Founding of Londonderry, South Carolina, 1763-1765, Robert A. Selig, Eighteenth-Century Studies, Autumn 1989, volume 23, No 1 pp 1-23 Books: A great starting point to understand the entire picture of the culture of betting and life insurance in England. Written in 1853, this book is archived online. From 1948, archived online Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds:
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Insurance vs Larry Silverstein and the World Trade Center Collapse on 9.11
06/14/2022
Insurance vs Larry Silverstein and the World Trade Center Collapse on 9.11
Insurance vs Larry Silverstein and the World Trade Center Collapse on 9.11 What happens when a terrorist attack becomes a highly litigated claim? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In my sixth episode, I take a deep dive into the legal wrangling around the property policy covering the World Trade Center. This is a wild ride! Links: Really outstanding summary of the various lawsuits and coverage issues surrounding whether or not the WTC attack was one occurrence or two. Do yourself a favor and limit your searches for Larry Silverstein to this article. The amount of horrible antisemitic and conspiracy theory websites that come up with a google search of his name is not worth sorting through. Definitely an opinion piece, but with some good history. Law Journal Articles (sorry, no links): Ten Years after 9/11: Property Insurance Lessons Learned, Scott G. Johnson, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Law Journal Spring Summer 2011, Vol 46, No 3 /4 pp 658-733: Outstanding overview of all the property issues and cases brought in court, including Business Interruption, Salvage, and Tenants in the WTC building. THE INSURANCE AFTERMATH OF SEPTEMBER 11: MYRIAD CLAIMS, MULTIPLE LINES, ARGUMENTS OVER OCCURRENCE COUNTING, WAR RISK EXCLUSIONS, THE FUTURE OF TERRORISM COVERAGE, AND NEW ISSUES OF GOVERNMENT ROLE Jeffrey W. Stempel, Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Law Journal Spring 2002, Vol. 37, No 3 pp 817-882: Overview of issues including War Exclusion, but as it was less than a year after 9.11, you have to read it knowing a lot of his assertions wouldn’t hold true. As WTC trial proceeds, jurors demand clarification; Michael Ha National Underwriter Property and Casualty Risk and Benefits Management Vol 108, Issue 7: Michael Ha wrote a lot of articles on this trial. I haven’t cited all of them here, but I used a lot of them in this research. Broker didn’t inform insurers of form switch, Douglas McLeod, Business Insurance, Vol 38, no 9, March 2004: another reporter who wrote a lot of articles that I used. WTC Case shows importance of documenting negotiations, Akos Swierkiewicz, Business Insurance, June 21 2004 Articles that would require a subscription: This is soooo funny. Books: Hire These People: My audio editor, and AMAZING Voice Over Actor—who did all the VO for this episode: Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me:
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Insurance vs Asbestos and the Names at Lloyds
05/16/2022
Insurance vs Asbestos and the Names at Lloyds
How did Asbestos almost bring down Lloyds of London? Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In my fifth (and supersized!) episode, I discuss the various reasons why Asbestos and the insurance crisis surrounding Asbestos liability claims in the 1980s nearly brought down the entire Lloyds marketplace. Join me for a deeper dive into General Liability Insurance, an explanation of the Asbestos crisis, and Names at Lloyds! Links: Law Journal Articles (sorry, no links): Assessing the Coverage Carnage: Asbestos Liability and Insurance after Three Decades of Dispute By Jeffrey W. Stempel, 2005. 12 Conn. Ins. L.J. 349 (2005-2006) Asbestos Litigation Reform By Janet Brierton, Associate Legislative Attorney, Feb 17, 2004 OLR Research Report Books: Hire These People: My audio editor, and AMAZING Voice Over Actor—who did all the VO for this episode: Music Credits: Boulangerie by Jeremy Sherman, courtesy of NeoSounds: Contact Me:
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Insurance vs The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake
01/03/2022
Insurance vs The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake
Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In my fourth episode, I investigate how insurance saved San Francisco after the Great earthquake—or the Great Fire, depending on who you ask--almost destroyed the city entirely. Join me to learn about mitigating risk through policy wording, the concept of “directly or indirectly”, and why building a city by creating land from the bay was a terrible idea.
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Insurance vs The Titanic
10/29/2021
Insurance vs The Titanic
Welcome to the Insurance vs History Podcast! In my third episode, I investigate the insurance claims resulting from the sinking of the RMS Titanic, and the issues that arose as a result. Join me for a discussion of crazy 1850s laws, Lloyds of London, the invention of the wireless telegraph and conspiracy theories!
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Insurance vs Coffee
10/01/2021
Insurance vs Coffee
Welcome to the Insurance Vs History Podcast! In my second episode, I discover that Coffee had a huge influence on the development of the modern insurance industry. Join me for a discussion of Coffee, Lloyds of London, and early Marine insurance.
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Insurance Vs Gangs of New York
07/13/2021
Insurance Vs Gangs of New York
Welcome to the Insurance Vs History Podcast! In my first episode, a recent re-watch of the movie Gangs of New York inspires me to ask if insurance inadvertently encouraged gang activity in 19th century New York. In investigating this question I dive into a discussion of the history of firefighting, 19th century fire insurance in England and the United States, and how insurance evolved as a result.
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