Insurance firm HIH is insolvent, state says

A state court ruled that HIH America Insurance Co. of Hawaii is insolvent, state Insurance Commissioner Wayne Metcalf said yesterday.

The ruling will not affect injured workers' claims or medical payments. All claims are being transferred to Hawaii Insurance Guaranty Association, Metcalf said.

State insurance regulators seized HIH in March 2001 after two of the company's California affiliates became insolvent and saddled HIH Hawaii with their debt. Those companies were seized by California regulators.

HIH was the state's fourth-largest provider of workers' compensation coverage.

"The downfall of the California companies and not the Hawaii market was a cause of HIH's problems," Metcalf said.

Metcalf said policyholders with questions about HIH can call Hawaii Insurance Guaranty at 532-1473 or the state Insurance Division at 528-1222.

Cayetano to sign gas price cap law today

Gov. Ben Cayetano is expected to sign a controversial law today that will make Hawaii the first state in the nation to regulate gas prices.

The law will not take effect until 2004, the result of last-minute bargaining at the state Legislature to keep the measure alive. The major oil companies have opposed the new law, saying it will be harmful to their business, and the firms are expected to continue their fight to repeal the legislation.

The law allows the state Public Utilities Commission to set maximum caps on wholesale and retail prices of gasoline, using a formula based on average spot market prices from the West Coast.

Dave & Buster's Inc. to be taken private

DALLAS >> Dave & Buster's Inc., which opened its first Hawaii eatery in Kakaako last year, said yesterday it had agreed to be taken private by a management-led investment group for about $255 million, including the assumption of debt.

The operator of restaurant and entertainment complexes said a group that includes its founders, certain executives, Bahrain-based leveraged-buyout company Investcorp SA and international investors will launch a $12-a-share cash tender offer for all Dave & Buster's shares.

UBS Warburg and Deutsche Bank are serving as financial advisers to Investcorp and are providing the debt financing for the acquisition.

Earlier yesterday, Dave & Buster's reported first quarter pro forma earnings of 25 cents a diluted share, compared with $3.1 million, or 24 cents a share, last year. Revenue rose to $97.2 million from $88.2 million.

Computer giants closing during holiday week

PALO ALTO, Calif. >> Still facing hard times, computing giants Hewlett-Packard Co. and Sun Microsystems Inc. will close shop during the week of Independence Day and require employees to go without pay or use up vacation time.

Shutting down from June 30 through July 6 in the United States will contribute to "operational savings," HP spokeswoman Judy Radlinsky said, though she would not elaborate. Palo Alto-based HP has 74,000 U.S. employees and 150,000 overall.

HP executives decided on the plan after getting "good feedback" from former employees of Compaq Computer Corp. about its closure during the holiday last year, Radlinsky said. HP acquired Compaq on May 3. Sun is instituting a similar plan that same week, spokeswoman Diane Carlini said. The Santa Clara-based company, which has 32,000 employees in the United States and 39,000 overall, also closed over the Fourth of July week last year.

In other news ...

Ford Motor Co. has recalled thousands of minivans to check for a missing sealant that could cause a short circuit and lead to fire. The recall affects 413,042 Windstars from the 2000 and 2001 model years in the United States.