Global Briefing: Jan. 28, 2002

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Does kiwi leave you conflicted? Do you dig the flavor but detest the tartness? Is its hirsute surface just a little off-putting? Well, take heart. A sweet, hairless relative of the original, named Zespri Gold for its bright yellow interior, will soon become available year-round at a store near you. Designed to please Asian palates, this quaint kiwi is catching on also in North America, where 1,750 tons of the fruit were sold last year. Zespri International, the New Zealand firm that developed it, expects a record volume of the fruit in stores this June. Next up: unscented Durian fruit?

Payback Time for Airlines?

Call it the revenge of the stranded and bleary-eyed. Under a law proposed by the European Commission earlier this month, passengers bumped off overbooked flights will be entitled to at least $670 in compensation--five times as much as today's victims receive. Anyone bumped from flights of 2,190 miles or more will be entitled to a whopping $1,340. Arguing that the practice helps control costs and allows more flexibility in their reservations systems, many airlines purposely sell more seats than are available to account for passengers who simply don't turn up. The Commission estimates that some 250,000 passengers were left to while away the hours at European airports in 1999 because their flights had been intentionally overbooked. Predictably, industry officials are livid. They contend the Commission had agreed to forgo such damages as a gesture of support in the wake of the September terrorist attacks in the U.S. The airlines will have an opportunity to officially argue their case before the ruling becomes law. Still, the issue in Brussels is likely to spread to Washington, where it will fuel the ongoing battle for more accountability among all airlines.

LAID OFF? GET HEALTH INSURANCE ONLINE

Since 1986, the most popular way for the recently unemployed to stay insured has been through COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act). The government-mandated program keeps any former employee's corporate health-insurance plan active for 18 months. Now the Internet enables comparison shopping for health insurance, and there are cheaper alternatives to COBRA. Websites like eHealthInsurance.com allow an evaluation of various health plans in any given ZIP code. Gary Lauer, eHealthInsurance's chief executive, says a family of four can usually find an online deal that's better than COBRA's average $600 per month premium, although prices vary by state. "Most people don't realize that it's so easy to compare," he says. But with the national unemployment rate at 5.8%, more folks may start.

BASIC HEALTH Monthly premium for a typical family of four with a $500 deductible

Miami $570 Chicago $422 Washington $415 Los Angeles $407 Seattle $342 Phoenix $276 Denver $243 San Francisco $131

Source: eHealthInsurance