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\ ^K^P^UNDEALER-FR^YyMJ^IL^ r . , rjfnfe' ^ Htrt find Th«p« In BuaitoM Insurance Complaint Ratios New Business Serves Photo Enthusiasts Heads Pioneers Photo Forum, Inc., a new photography store at 810 N. Front street (Rt. 31) opened its doors several weeks ago. Grand opening was held July 11 to allow local photo en­ thusiasts to become acquainted with the store and its owners, Mike Erickson and Jeanne Miller. Offering photo processing and retailing in film cameras and darkroom supplies, the firm hopes to fill the needs of both amateur and professional. Erickson is a native of McHenry with sue years of free lance photography experience, three years of schooling and three years of retailing experience. His partner, Jeanne Miller, has four years of photo experience with an art and photograpphy major from McHenry County college. New Restaurant On Elm Has Varied Menu i 1=3 George Karas is manager of the Village Squire, McHenry, which opened recently at 4512 W. Elm street, just west of the Market Place. This is the third and latest addition to the Village Squire family of restaurants. The others are in Dundee and Crystal Lake. The restaurant features a versatile menu highlighting Greek dishes. The Kishwaukee Life Member club of the Telephone Pioneers of America has elected a McHenry resident, Mrs. Dorothea J. Zimny, president for 1981-82. Mrs. Zimny is pictured here receiving the symbolic gavel from Illinois Bell Vice President-Personnel Ray Humke at the Pioneer assembly recently held at the Sheraton O'Hare hotel in rosemont. The Telephone Pioneers of America is the world's largest voluntary association of industrial employees, having over 548,000 members. JOHN F. LAMPE Available to Practice In: •PERSONAL INJURY/TRIALS •BUSINESS/CORPORATIONS •ZONING •WILLS/PROBATE •DIVORCE •REAL ESTATE •WORKERS COMP. Now Serving You From 2 Locations WONDER LAKE McHENIKY 7165 Barnard Mill Rd. 3424 W. Elm (By Appt. Only) Suite 27 344-3252 Open: M-F 8am-5pm Sat 9am-Noon Others by Appt. YOUR MOST BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPING EVER... % uu NOW AT IT BEGINS owerw rAUGUST NURSERY CLEARANCE--, TWO WEEKS ONLYI EVERY TREE, SHRUB, & EVERGREEN, PR^-DUG, IN FLOWERWOOD'S SALE LOT IS ON SALE NOW AT SAVINGS UP TO 1/2 OFF... REG. SALE $0-10 * 5.00 $10-15 * 7.50 *15-25 * 12.50 *26-40 * 20.00 *41-70 * 35.00 *71-130 1 65.00 *131-200 *100.00 *201-300 *150.00 OVER 200 VARIETIES TO CHOOSE FROM SALE BEGINS THURSDAY, JULY 30 PRICES GOOD THROUGH WEDNESDAY, AUG. 12 1M% PULL YIAI ouARANTII FOR THI PURCHASE PRICK SHADE TREES - Maple - Oak - Linden - Ash • Locust - Birch - and more. EVERGREENS - Scotch Pine - Arborvitae - Japanese Yew - Blue Spruce • Juniper • and more. SHRUBS - Red Barberry • Spirea • Viburnum - Burning Bush - Privet - Honeysuckle - Quince - and many more. 815-459-6200 owerwee Rts. 14 A 176 - Crystal Lake, Illinois Moa.-Wed. 9-4; Than. A Fri. 9-8; Sat. 9-5; Sun. 10-5 J insurance academicians rather than from the public," O'Connor said. "Many insurers claimed that the statistics were biased in favor of companies that write a low number of policies, but charge higher premiums. By basing the ratios on policy counts, we have attempted to address that criticism in a more equitable manner." Ite 1980 ratios have been calculated for those com­ panies that had 10 or more complaints filed against them. A complaint is defined as written correspondence which primarily expresses a grievance. The definition was developed several years ago by the National Association of Insurance commissioners. For automobile insurance, the ratios are based on the number of complaints per 1,000 policies in force; for homeowners, on the number of complaints per 10,000 policies in force. "These figures should be easier for the consumer to make use of," O'Connor stated. "In essence they mean that z company with 300 complaints and 200,000 auto policies in force has a complaint ratio of 1.50 • if, . | . a . complaints for every 1,000 Illinois Unemployment I / Another company with 450 complaints and the same number of auto policies would have a higher ratio of * The Illinois Department of Insurance has taken a new approach to its annual release of consumer com­ plaint ratios. Since automobile insurance ratios were first published in 1977 (1978 for home owners), the ratios have been based on the amount of direct premiums written in Illinois by each company. This year, for the first time, the ratios are calculated on the number of policies in force. "The complaints-premium volume ratios served their purpose," stated Insurana Director Philip R. O'Connor, "but they may have bee. ' more useful to the insurance industry than to the general public. "Insurance companies are thoroughly attuned to the meaning of premium volume and the amount of business being written by themselves and their competitors. The consumer, on the other hand, may have a more difficult time relating to the sometimes staggering dollars that premiums represent," the director noted "Interestingly, however, most of the criticism about the premium volume ratios came from the industry and Rate Slightly Higher 2.25 complaints for every 1,000 policies in force. The fewer complaints per policies, the' lower the ratio." As in previous years, the Department of Insurance has not made the subjective determination as to whether or not any of the complaints were justified. "The com­ plaint ratios are offered solely to give consumers an additional tool for selecting an insurer or evaluating their present companies," O'Connor said. "There are many other factors to consider and the Depart­ ment of Insurance does not intend the ratios to be a 'hit parade' of the best or worst companies in the state," he cautioned. "We have purposely avoided drawing any con­ clusions from these num­ bers," stated the insurance director. "We have presented them to the public as objectively as possible. If any consumer has questions about a particular com­ pany's ratio or ranking, we will be happy to answer them on an individual basis." The Department of In­ surance will release its 1980 complaint ratios for life, accident and health in­ surance within the next several days. The deportment is located at 320 W. Washington street, Springfield, 111. 62767. The Illinois unemployment rate increased by two-tenths percentage points in May to 8.7 percent, while the U.S. rate rose by three-tenths percentage points during the same period to 7.6 percent. April unemployment figures for Illinois counties, the latest available, show the rate in 32 counties was below the U.S. April figure of 7.3 percent. Menard county had an April unemployment rate of 4.5, the lowest in the state, according to the June Illinois Economic Data Sheets released by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, and a total of 13 counties had April rates of six percent or below. Those counties in­ cluded Carroll (5.5); Champaign (5.4); DeKalb (6.0); Douglas (5.7); Ed­ wards (5.0); Hancock (6.0); Iroquois (5.8); Kendall (5:7); Marshall (5.8); Mc- Donough (5.6); McLean (5.9); and Woodford (5.7). The overall Illinois rate for April was 8.5 percent. April unemployment rates in the state's major population centers were as follows: Bloomington (5.9); Champaign (5.4); Chicago (7.8); Quad Cities (Illinois portion) (7.7); Decatur (11.2); Peoria (8.4); Rock- ford (9.3); Springfield (6.3); and Metro-East (9.9). Illinois contracts for future construction were up by 17 percent in April compared to one-year ago, while the increase nationally for the same period was 30 percent. Illinois retail sales in February, the latest month for which figures are available, were up by 5.6 percent compared to one year ago, while U.S. retail sales were up by 5.2 percent. | Real Estate Facts | •FAVORITE WAITRESS* Joyce Dornbush of McHenry was top vote getter in the "favorite waitress" contest conducted at the Old Courthouse Inn, Woodstock. Ms. Dornbush has been a waitress for 23 years. The contest was held in con­ junction with the world premiere of "Ladies In Waiting" at the Opera House, a musical about waitresses. < *A LAWYER'S ROLE IS TO ^ SOLVE PROBLEMS •LET ME SOLVE YOURS CO tt . ^No /a n fi ATTORNEY AT LAW S u i t e B ^ 4306 B C r y s t a l L a k e R d Whispering Point Center I McHenry 344-1630 By Yvonne Beer, Executive Officer, McHenry County Board of Realtors Many questions relating to the housing market have come up in recent months. In this week's column the McHenry County Board of Realtors responds to some of the queries: Question: Do home im­ provements pay for them­ selves? Answer: For the most part, they do. Steps to make your home energy-efficient will lower utility bills and can increase the resale value as much as 9 percent. Energy-efficient homes sell faster as well. But the value of your home, including the improvements, should not exceed the general value of homes in the area. For example, if you have a $60,000 house in an area of $70,000 homes, you should limit your improvements to around $10,000. Question: We keep hearing about a housing shortage. Just how short are we? Answer: Going by past trends and current demand, many' experts believe we'll need about 21 million more housing units over the next 10 years, or an average of 2.1 million a year. In the last two years, we have fallen more than a million units behind. This demand is just one of the reasons why prices of existing homes will continue to rise. "Question: What do you recommend for a person with limited resources trying to buy his first home? the Answer: There are many variables, and each prospective homebuyer has to be evaluated on a personal level. Generally speaking, many young people get then- start in a condominium, townhouse, modular home, or manufactured home. Some bargains can be found in old homes in need of repair and "sweat equity." Some unrelated singles (mingles) pool their resources to buy a home. If you can handle payments for principle interest, but can't handle the down payment, you might consider a per­ sonal loan. Many young people find help with their parents, or even an em­ ployer. The best thing to do is sit'down 'With a local Realtor and discuss the possibilities. Question: With interest rates hovering near record levels, how long must we wait before a home becomes affordable? Answer: Stop waiting! While interest rates are expected to begin a modest decline this summer and continue into next year, the price of housing will con­ tinue to increase. Putting off the purchase of a new home now means you'll probably have to invest a larger sum later, and it means losing the equity that you would have earned by investing earlier. In other words, there's no advantage to delaying your move. If you have any questions relating to real estate, send them to the McHenry County Board of Realtors at 666 Russel Court, P.O. Box 192, Woodstock, 111., 60098. John H, Dix Is Promoted 1 lv John H. Dix has been promoted to sales engineer - Industrial division at The Timken company's Dallas district office. Dix graduated from McHenry high school in 1975. He then received 'a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering from the University of Illinois in 1979. A native of McHenry, he began his career at the Timken company's general offices in Canton. Ohio, in 1980 as an associate sales engineer - Industrial division, the position he held prior to his promotion. Dix and his wife will be moving from Canton to the Dallas area in the near future. Skate-a-Thon For A\D Aug. J The Just For Fun Roller rink, McHenry, in con­ junction with ERA-RDG Realty, also in McHenry, will be sponsoring their annual Skate-a-thon for Muscular Dystrophy Saturday, Aug. 1. This event, held for the past seven years, has raised over $11,000 for the children and adults stricken with Muscle disease. Aug. 1st will be the eighth annual Skate-a-tbon for the Just For Fun Roller rink and they hope to extSeed the $15,000 mark to help Jerry's Kids. Any interested par­ ticipants, or merchants, can call 385-9394 or 3854449. VOLUNTEERS HONORED Volunteer employee ad­ visors for the Kemper Group-sponsored Junior Achievement (JA) and Exploring youth programs were honored recently at a reception at the company's Long Grove headquarters. JA advisors honored in­ cluded Andy Zadany of Mc­ Henry. Exploring advisors honored included Harold Rail and Mark Stephenson of McHenry. TRANSPORTATION EARNINGS The Chicago and North Western u. Transposition company reported first half 1961 earnings rose to a record $31,060,000, or |6.68 per share, compared with 1980 first half earnings of $11,498,000, or $2.59 per share. Results for 1981 reflect an extraordinary gain of $4,275,000, or 92 cents per share, incurred in the second quarter, resulting from reacquisition of general mortgage bonds. Total operating revenues were $511,047,000 in the first six months of 1981, com­ pared with total operating revenues of $431,444,000 in the comparable year-earlier period. Questions of general interest will be answered in later columns. However the McHenry County board cannot quarantee an in­ dividual response to all questions. 'Villaee^otttre of Jlcl>enri> A GOOD PLACE TO BE' AUGUST SPECIALS LUNCHEON $2" 6000 FAST LUNCH M0N - THURS FRI: FISH FRY (ALL YOU CARE TO EAT) $3.95 SAT: NEW YORK STRIP STEAK DINNER $7.95 SUN: FRIED CHICKEN (ALL YOU CARE TO EAT) $3.75 MON: GYRO PLATE SPECIAL $3.95 TUES: BAKED HAM IN PITA $3.75 WED: JUMBO SHRIMP DINNER $4.95 THURS: B-B-Q RIBS AND CHICKEN $5.50 ENTERTAINMENT TUES-SUN 8:30pm - closing Villtja Sqairt 12$ Mfashinften St. W Dundee 312-421-4481 flw VMfljo Squire tf MeHomy 4512 W. RT. 120 McHENRY 385-0900 VM«)« Squire Nertii 4I1S N. W Highway (Rt.. 14) Ciyital Lake •15-455-4110 BUDGET BUYS Financing Available 73 Gremblin •699 72Mawick 799 7t Firebird Formula 400.... *1499 75 Monte Carlo '1199 75 Buid Century Wagon.... *1199 71 Chevy Impala '499 76 Buick 225 '1999 74 Corvette T-Bar SEE 77 Chevy V*-ton Pickup, Air. *3999 MECUM . IN MARENGO Rt. 20 West 801W. Grant 815/568-8011 81 V