A federal judge dismissed an antitrust lawsuit Louisiana's former attorney general filed against some of the nation's largest insurance companies after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The suit, filed in 2007 by former Attorney General Charles Foti Jr., accused Allstate Insurance Company, State Farm Fire and Casualty Company and other insurers of conspiring to shortchange policyholders after the hurricanes struck the Gulf Coast in 2005. The companies asked U.S. District Judge Jay Zainey in New Orleans to throw out the case, which Attorney General James 'Buddy' Caldwell inherited from Foti. Zainey said he agreed with insurers that the suit failed to present evidence of a conspiracy among competing companies. Also named as defendants in the suit were Lafayette Insurance Company, USAA Casualty Insurance Company, Farmers Insurance Exchange, Inc., Standard Fire Insurance Co, The, Xactware Solutions, Inc., Marshall & Swift / Boeckh, LLC and McKinsey & Company Inc.

The Farmers Insurance Group of Companies(R) has selected 360Value(TM) to estimate reconstruction costs for its high-value home program. Developed by a team from Xactware Solutions Inc. and AIR Worldwide Corporation, 360Value is a web-based reconstruction-cost estimator that provides easy-to-calculate reconstruction-cost estimates for residential, commercial, and agricultural properties. In addition to general attributes common to all homes, 360Value lets users add specific details about each room and options found almost exclusively in high-value homes, such as built-in home theaters, refrigerated wine cellars, motorized drapes, and more. 360Value also accounts for high-end features and finishes, including imported marble countertops, steam showers, and cedar-lined closets. As a component-based reconstruction-cost estimator, 360Value accounts for material and labor costs associated with rebuilding high-value properties. The individual unit costs are highly localized and extensively researched by a dedicated team of construction experts. 360Value also gives Farmers the ability to estimate current construction pricing when offering to renew existing policies.

Crawford & Company has announced that the company has integrated CMS2, its proprietary claims management system, with Xactware Solutions Inc.'s industry-leading property estimation solutions. Crawford is always striving to improve its processes and service delivery. The integration of CMS2 with Xactware's assignment network and estimation tools demonstrates company strength of working together with key business partners.