Latest Agencies Headlines

Brooke Corp. Troubles Continue as Stock is Sold

Nov 2 2008 // Kansas Franchise Group Faces Lawsuits in Multiple States Amid the flurry of lawsuits leveled by franchisees, now an Illinois company connected to a bank involved in the lawsuit of the parent company of Brooke Corp. has...

Declarations

Nov 2 2008 // Formaldehyde Concerns “Only mobile homes and only park models that fell below (the state’s formaldehyde threshold) and validated through that testing were provided to the state of Iowa.” —Assistant...

People

Nov 2 2008 // Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina named Kelley L. Erstine chief executive officer. Erstine assumed the association’s CEO responsibilities Oct. 15 and replaces Bob Bird upon his retirement after 25 years...

Opportunity Management

Nov 2 2008 // As the impact of the global economic crisis takes hold, a quarter of large U.S. employers say they expect to make layoffs in the next 12 months. However, most companies are focusing on increased employee communication and...

Kentucky Weathering AIG and Ike Hurricanes

Nov 2 2008 // Sharon P. Clark, a 17-year veteran of Kentucky state government, was appointed commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Insurance (DOI) in June. Clark’s experience includes five years as director of the Consumer...

Alabama, Mississippi Agencies Among 6 Named Top Performers by Big ‘I’

Nov 2 2008 // Reagan Consulting and the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (Big “I”) announced the Best Practices Agencies for 2008-2009. A total of 189 agencies from around the country maintained their...

Nov 2 2008 // Tom Hughston, executive vice president of North Texas-based Roach Howard Smith & Barton (RHSB), has been named to the board of directors of The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers, a trade association...

Joe and Jo, Intrepid Agents

Nov 2 2008 // First there was GI Joe, then Joe the plumber. Now, though, there’s Insurance Agent Joe, or Josephine (Jo), if you prefer. Participating in the exclusive 2008 Insurance Journal Agency E&O Survey, Joe and Jo had a...

Bright Spots and Challenges Go Hand in Hand in Louisiana

Nov 2 2008 // Despite the challenges faced by the state of Louisiana since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita wrought their havoc in 2005, there are bright spots in the state’s property casualty insurance industry, says Louisiana...

Aon Selling Auto Insurance Broker in California to Mercury General

Nov 2 2008 // Mercury Casualty Co., the largest insurance subsidiary of Los Angeles-based Mercury General Corp., agreed to buy Auto Insurance Specialists Inc. from Aon Corp. AIS is an independent broker and producer of automobile...

Avoiding Errors in Your Agency’s E&O

Nov 2 2008 // Is the Savings Worth Sacrificing Your Business? There have been significant changes in the insurance marketplace recently, as prices are down and carrier competition is fierce. Independent insurance agents may be shopping...

Nov 2 2008 // Pete Garvey, current president of Integro Ltd., assumed the additional responsibility of CEO for the insurance broker, succeeding Roger Egan, who has left the company. Garvey has served as president of Integro since 2005....

Oregon Insurance Division Administrator Kipper Steps Down

Nov 2 2008 // Oregon’s Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS) announced that Scott Kipper, administrator of the Insurance Division, left his position on Oct. 31, 2008, to pursue other interests. Yet before he left,...

Binders: A Short Primer

Nov 2 2008 // Understanding the Limits of Oral and Written Binders Insurance Code Section 382.5(a) defines a binder as a “writing” that “temporarily obligates the insurer to provide … insurance coverage pending...

Joe and Jo, Intrepid Agents

Nov 2 2008 // First there was GI Joe, then Joe the plumber. Now, though, there’s Insurance Agent Joe, or Josephine (Jo), if you prefer. Participating in the exclusive 2008 Insurance Journal Agency E&O Survey, Joe and Jo had a...

AIG Crisis Highlights the Need for Insurance Professionalism

Nov 2 2008 // Are You an Insurance Professional or an Insurance Hack? Editor’s Note: The following commentary was originally published on InsuranceJournal.com. The Letter to the Editor, on page N41, is in response to this...

Agents Joe and Jo on AIG and E&O

Nov 2 2008 // The federal government’s recent bail out of American International Group Inc. (AIG) via a $122 billion-plus loan to keep the company afloat set the insurance industry on edge. AIG’s insurance entities are...

More Lawsuits, Firmer Prices on the Horizon for Executive Liability

Nov 2 2008 // Property Premiums Fall Sharply; P/C Insurers Post Q3 Losses; Some Sell Stock to Raise Cash for Surplus Woes More lawsuits and firmer rates for directors and officers liability coverage are almost certainly ahead as a...

The Battle to Preserve Agency/Broker Value

Nov 2 2008 // As economic stagnation and current rate pressure weakens performance and as supply starts to outstrip demand for acquisitions, agencies and brokers must be prepared for deteriorating valuations. As the next few years will...

A Winning E&O Defensive Strategy

Nov 2 2008 // How Agents Block Claims In sports, the best offense is a great defense, right? When it comes to preventing errors and omissions claims defensive measures are also the best offense in protecting an insurance agency....