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Judge rules homeowner can probe State Farm claims practices

Tony Ramos — Sun, 31 Aug 2025 18:48:11 +0000

Policyholders critical of State Farm General’s response to January’s firestorms won a court victory this week when a judge ruled a Pacific Palisades homeowner can probe the insurer’s claims handling practices during a rate hearing.

In doing so, Administrative Law Judge Karl Fredric Seligman denied a motion by the Department of Insurance to move an inquiry into the insurer’s claims practices by Merritt Farren, whose home burned down, to a separate hearing after the rate increase is first considered.

“The outcome could easily result in chaos and challenges … on numerous grounds that would only operate to cause delay,” the judge wrote of the department’s motion in his Wednesday ruling.

State Farm is seeking to raise its homeowner rates 11% after receiving an emergency 17% hike in May from Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, who adopted a decision by Seligman at the time that the insurer deserved the hike given its weak financial position even prior to the fires. State Farm also is seeking increases in other lines of property insurance.

The insurer said this week it has received more than 13,000 claims and paid over $4.5 billion to policyholders. State Farm has said it expects claims payments to top $7 billion from the Jan. 7 fires, but losses under $700 million due to reinsurance agreements with its parent company. State Farm contends an “overwhelming majority” of its local policyholders are satisfied with its services.

However, policyholders led by the Eaton Fire Survivors Network have demanded there should be no rate hike until hundreds of complaints over alleged payment delays, underpayments and claims denials are looked into and resolved — a position also voiced by area legislators at a news conference this week.

Also opposing the increase is Los Angeles advocacy group Consumer Watchdog, which says State Farm’s possible total increase, including the 17% hike it already has received, would cost consumers $1.2 billion.

Farren, 64, a former attorney for Disney and Amazon, was granted permission in July to participate in the rate hearing under a provision of Proposition 103, which regulates the industry and allows for public participation in rate hearings.

He said he was thankful for the judge’s ruling this week, as well as a second decision that gave him time to seek documents from State Farm through the discovery process.

He said any rate increases should be tied to the actual value homeowners receive from their policies, which crucially should include how their claims are handled. “I think it’s completely common sense and that it just really shouldn’t be done any other way,” Farren said.

State Farm spokesperson Bob Devereux, in a statement said, “We thank the judge for the ruling on this matter, and we are looking forward to moving the rate hearing process forward toward conclusion later this year.”

The Department of Insurance also said it looked forward to the rate hearing, which has been delayed and is now set for December.

In court filings, the department has argued that combining the two issues — the proposed rate increase and allegations the company has mishandled claims — could slow review of the rate request, which State Farm has said is critical to stabilize its finances.

The company’s financial strength has been downgraded by ratings agencies, including S&P Global this month. However, the agency said it benefited from its strategic importance to its highly rated Bloomington, Ill., parent company.

The department also maintained that state law calls for handling claims issues through separate proceedings, including a market conduct exam of State Farm General’s practices that Lara announced in June. It said a separate hearing would allow those findings when they are released to be considered with Farren’s own probe of the issue.

Farren said that while he lost his Mount Holyoke Drive home where he lived with this two sons, his request to look into claims practices wasn’t driven by his personal experience with State Farm — which he deemed likely “better than most’’ — but from what he heard from other policyholders.

In particular, he said he wants to look into the insurer’s practices regarding payments for personal property losses and how it calculates building-cost estimates for reconstruction, as well as how it has handled claims for smoke-damaged houses. The insurer has been accused of being “stingy” in handling such claims.

Farren said he has heard of situations in which State Farm has advanced payments for personal property coverage and then after receiving an itemized list of losses, has sought to offset what it has deemed overpayments from future payouts.

Meanwhile, Palisades homeowners have received reconstruction cost estimates under $400 a square foot from State Farm, he alleged, when other insurers are issuing estimates of $800 to $1,200 per square foot.

After the hearing, Joy Chen, chief executive of the Eaton Fire Survivors community group, issued an email to its more than 7,000 members, criticizing Lara for the department’s legal position, saying Seligman had “sided with fairness.”

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Facebook bans researchers looking into its practices, sparking criticism

Tony Ramos — Sat, 26 Jul 2025 21:47:20 +0000

Facebook banned a group of New York University researchers from the platform who were looking into its practices. The social media site said they violated its terms of service, but critics argue the platform is trying to sideline the review. CBSN tech reporter Dan Patterson joins CBSN AM to discuss.

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UCLA practices with ‘a little bit of noise’ at entertainment-infused ‘Friday Night Lights’ – Press Enterprise

Tony Ramos — Sat, 19 Apr 2025 06:33:45 +0000

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UCLA wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer runs with the ball during the team’s Friday Night Lights spring practice on Friday, April 18, 2025, at Drake Stadium. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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LOS ANGELES — The ninth UCLA spring football practice brought the second iteration of Friday Night Lights, a glammed-up open practice designed to appeal to recruits, alumni and donors.

All of the above were packed into Drake Stadium on Friday night, whether they were on the sidelines or sitting in the stands. Players had to focus with the distractions of live music performance and a comedy host in the background – as well as the outside noise of former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava reportedly transferring to UCLA.

“If you can’t perform because there’s a little bit of noise, that’s probably not a good thing,” head coach DeShaun Foster told reporters prior to Friday Night Lights.

Appalachian State transfer QB Joey Aguilar continued to take first-team repetitions in front of a crowd that included roughly 250 recruits and even signed autographs as the night was winding down.

The offense had expanded its playbook during 11-on-11 and 7-on-7 drills since the last open practice. Aguilar connected with tight end Peter Bario for a 15-yard pass on one of his first throws of the evening and later delivered 30- and 20-yard passes to Mikey Matthews, a transfer from Cal.

“We talk to Joey just like every other quarterback that’s in that room and discuss what’s going on or what’s not going on and how he’s practicing,” Foster said. “I like where Joey’s at right now, and hopefully he can keep progressing as spring goes.”

The UCLA running game also steadily picked up momentum. Anthony Frias II and Jalen Berger comprised an experimental two-back set and Frias broke loose for a 50-yard touchdown run.

Quarterback Luke Duncan practiced with the second-team offense, which is consistent with what’s been seen for most of spring practice. Receiver Kwazi Gilmer stretched the field but got the most attention on Friday night when he was involved in a shoving match with defensive back Croix Stewart.

Practice periods overlapped with a musical performance from Los Angeles-based rapper 310babii. Frankie Quiñones, known for his character, Creeper – an enthusiastic, “cholo” fitness instructor – periodically hosted interviews with notable alumni like Baron Davis and Eric Hendricks.

His go-to question: “What’s your favorite food?” His sign-off: “That’s what’s up.”

The over-the-top entertainment aligned with the showiness and exposure that Foster says Los Angeles can offer to student-athletes who want to make a name for themselves.

“In L.A., you can really capitalize on name, image, and likeness,” Foster said. “Not NIL – name image and likeness. You know what I’m saying? It’s just letting them know what the landscape here is in L.A. and how you can really capitalize on if you become a big-time player.”

The Bruins layered on the star power with a Friday Night Lights pre-show fronted by “All The Smoke” podcast host Matt Barnes and broadcast host Cari Champion, who are both UCLA alumni. Former UCLA tight end and current Chicago Bear Mercedes Lewis was interviewed as part of the show.

“Growing up in L.A., I always think there’s stars,” Champion said. “If you want to be a part of that environment, you should be in big markets. This is one of them. UCLA has such a rich history in sports. It’s literally legendary in sports. So, to me, that’s a valuable choice.”

Canada sues Google over alleged anticompetitive practices in online ads

Tony Ramos — Fri, 29 Nov 2024 03:48:27 +0000

TORONTO — Canada’s antitrust watchdog said Thursday it is suing Google over alleged anticompetitive conduct in the tech giant’s online advertising business and wants the company to sell off two of its ad tech services and pay a penalty.

The Competition Bureau said that such action is necessary because an investigation into Google found that the company “unlawfully” tied together its ad tech tools to maintain its dominant market position.

The matter is now headed for the Competition Tribunal, a quasi-judicial body that hears cases brought forward by the competition commissioner about non-compliance with the Competition Act.

The bureau is asking the tribunal to order Google to sell its publisher ad server, DoubleClick for Publishers, and its ad exchange, AdX. It estimates Google holds a market share of 90% in publisher ad servers, 70% in advertiser networks, 60% in demand-side platforms and 50% in ad exchanges.

This dominance, the bureau said, has discouraged competition from rivals, inhibited innovation, inflated advertising costs and reduced publisher revenues.

“Google has abused its dominant position in online advertising in Canada by engaging in conduct that locks market participants into using its own ad tech tools, excluding competitors, and distorting the competitive process,” Matthew Boswell, Commissioner of Competition, said in a statement.

Google, however, maintains the online advertising market is a highly competitive sector.

Dan Taylor, Google’s vice president of global ads, said in a statement that the bureau’s complaint “ignores the intense competition where ad buyers and sellers have plenty of choice.”

The statement added that Google intends to defend itself against the allegation.

U.S. regulators want a federal judge to break up Google to prevent the company from continuing to squash competition through its dominant search engine after a court found it had maintained an abusive monopoly over the past decade.

The proposed breakup, floated in a 23-page document filed this month by the U.S. Department of Justice, calls for sweeping punishments that would include a sale of Google’s industry-leading Chrome web browser and impose restrictions to prevent Android from favoring its own search engine.

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