Latest Agencies Headlines

Music and Producer Development

Dec 20 2010 // How to Set the Tune for Sales Success in an Agency Great music combines so many elements. When terrific lyrics are combined with an awesome arrangement, the result is powerful. And sometimes if you separate the two, the...

Reader’s Choice

Dec 20 2010 // Never lose sight of what the reader wants. That has been the motto for Insurance Journal throughout its 85-year history of publishing news and information for our most important customers — independent agents and...

Independent Agency Population Holds Steady as Start-Ups Keep Pace with Mergers

Dec 20 2010 // The total number of independent agencies in the country remains stable at around 37,500 as start-ups have kept pace with agency mergers and closings, according to a new study of agencies. There are today as many agencies...

How an E&O Claim Could Affect Agency Employee’s Career

Dec 20 2010 // Survey Finds Agencies Take a Second Look at Hiring Employees With Past E&O Histories Today’s soft insurance market, reduced commissions and a tough economy for agency owners and their clients might be adding to...

People

Dec 20 2010 // Insurance broker Marsh appointed Peter Mavraganis as U.S. leader of its renewable energy practice. Mavraganis, based in New York, will oversee Marsh’s support for its clients in renewable energy development,...

Lessons Learned and Looking Ahead at Lloyd’s

Dec 20 2010 // December is often a time of reflection on what we’ve achieved, where we’ve stumbled and what lessons we will take forward into the New Year. When Lloyd’s published its three-year strategy earlier this...

Dec 19 2010 // One way that agency owners can keep their employees happy in today’s tough times is by making their compensation more accountable to agency growth. Al Diamond, president of the Agency Consulting Group, says in...

Illinois Agents Call for Quick Action on Workers’ Compensation Reform

Dec 17 2010 // Independent insurance agents in Illinois are urging state lawmakers to pass workers’ compensation reforms in early January, before a new General Assembly will be sworn in. “The facts are alarming,” stated...

Arthur J. Gallagher Buys Ohio Benefits Broker Herbruck, Alder

Dec 17 2010 // Illinois-based global insurance broker Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. reports it has acquired Herbruck, Alder & Co., an employee benefit brokerage located in Cleveland, Ohio. Terms of the transaction were not...

Arthur J. Gallagher Buys Wholesale Broker Continental, Marmorstein

Dec 17 2010 // Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. said it has acquired wholesale insurance broker Continental Excess & Surplus, Inc., trading as Continental/Marmorstein & Malone, located in Paramus, New Jersey and its affiliate, All...

BrokersLink Appoints Bitner Latin America COO

Dec 16 2010 // BrokersLink, an independent insurance broker alliance, has appointed Paul Bitner as Latin America chief operating officer as it seeks to expand its presence in the region. Bitner joins BrokersLink from Aon where he was a...

Texas Independent Agent Named Trusted Choice Hometown Hero

Dec 15 2010 // The Independent Insurance Agents of Texas (IIAT) has named Steve Barksdale, vice president at Bancorp South Insurance Services Inc., in Athens, Texas, as its newest Trusted Choice Hometown Hero. The Hometown Hero program...

Northeast Florida Agents Group Inducts New Directors

Dec 15 2010 // The Independent Insurance Agents of Northeast Florida (IIANF) inducted its 2010-2011 board of directors recently. The IIANF board consists of Brad Arrowsmith with The Holmes Organisation; Michael Beach with The Della Porta...

Chartis Expands Education, Training Options to Private Client Group

Dec 14 2010 // Chartis has expanded its Private Client Group University (“PCG-U”), a continuing education and training program designed for insurance and other financial services professionals who advise high net worth...

Arkansas Warns Agents, Insurers About Certificates of Insurance

Dec 13 2010 // The Arkansas Department of Insurance is reminding insurance agents and insurers to take care when providing Certificates of Insurance to policyholders. The department said there have been recent instances in which...

Insurer, Agent Help Rebuild West Virginia Fire Station

Dec 13 2010 // Sissonville Volunteer Fire Department is getting $10,000 from State Farm Insurance to help replace a fire station and three fire trucks destroyed in a blaze. The insurance company announced Friday it would donate the money...

Merger, Acquisition Activity Heats Up

Dec 10 2010 // Merger and acquisition (M&A) activity between July and September was robust making the third quarter the most active with 61 deals versus 36 last year. Deal volume for the first nine months is up 28 percent from the...

Charges Added for Former New Jersey School Superintendent and Broker

Dec 10 2010 // The government has added more charges in the bribery case against a former New Jersey school superintendent and an insurance broker. In a superseding indictment announced this week, Michael Ritacco and Francis Gartland...

IMA Insurance Broker Launches Benefits Practice

Dec 7 2010 // To best help clients navigate the changing benefits landscape and a post-health care reform world, retail insurance broker IMA Inc. has created a benefits practice, IMA Benefits. IMA Benefits will be the new home of the...

Independent Agency Population Holds Steady as Start-Ups Keep Pace with Mergers

Dec 7 2010 // The total number of independent agencies in the country remains stable at around 37,500 as start-ups have kept pace with agency mergers and closings, according to a new study of agencies. There are today as many agencies...