Latest Agencies Headlines

Pennsylvania Bans Lenders from Requiring Excess Home Insurance

Jul 8 2008 // Pennsylvania homeowners may be entitled to a reduction in their homeowners’ insurance premiums, thanks to The Mortgage Property Insurance Coverage Act that Gov. Rendell signed into law on July 4. The law, which was...

E&S Broker TAPCO Expands to Serve Delaware, New Jersey Retail Agents

Jul 8 2008 // TAPCO Underwriters, Inc., a Burlington, North Carolina-based excess and surplus lines managing general agency, is now offering its products and proprietary quoting and binding process to retail agents in Delaware and New...

Bunker Hill, Shel-Ray Underwriters Founders Retiring; Agencies to Merge

Jul 8 2008 // Ray L. Thomas and Sheldon I. Oster, founders of Houston-based Bunker Hill Insurance Agency Inc. and Shel-Ray Underwriters Inc., are retiring. L. Byron Way, currently executive vice president of Bunker Hill, has been named...

Insential Appoints VP/Brokers in Northeast, Southeast, Midwest

Jul 8 2008 // North Texas-based national wholesale insurance brokerage Insential Inc. has named new vice president/brokers for its operations in the Northeast, Southeast and Midwest regions. Angela Needham was appointed vice...

NSM Adds New Agents, Accountants Professional Liability Programs

Jul 7 2008 // NSM Insurance Group, based in Conshohocken, Pa., has acquired a new specialty underwriting group focused on professional liability coverage targeting property and casualty insurance agencies. This new group will include...

Contingent Commissions Legal, N.Y. Court Rules

Jul 7 2008 // In a twist to a scandal that has rocked the insurance industry over the last several years, a New York appeals court has ruled that contingent commissions paid out by Boston-based Liberty Mutual Group Inc. are not...

A Candle Burnes at Both Ends

Jul 7 2008 // Free-market advocates and some agents applauded last year when Massachusetts Insurance Commissioner Nonnie S. Burnes quickly moved to deregulate the Bay State’s backwards-but-long-established system of personal auto...

People

Jul 7 2008 // The National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) has announced the promotion of Mike Becker to director of federal affairs. Since joining PIA, Becker has managed the day-to-day responsibilities associated...

When In Rome, Do As the Romans

Jul 7 2008 // Hint: Learn Before You Go The ancient expression “When in Rome, do as the Romans do” is used to warn friends and colleagues to respect and adapt to the culture of places that they visit. In the insurance...

Winning as a Strategist

Jul 7 2008 // Thinking Strategically Can Lead to Insurance Sales Success Want to be a better insurance agent or broker? Then consider your strategy. Today’s sales professionals must be at the top of their game to win sales through...

Yes, You Are in a ‘Flood Zone!’

Jul 7 2008 // The Importance of Understanding Flood Zones “I don’t need flood insurance.” “I’m not in a ‘flood zone.'” Or, “I don’t need flood insurance because my mortgage company...

Iowa Agents in Flooded Areas Meet the Challenges

Jul 7 2008 // Well Thought Out Disaster Plans Make the Difference Midwest agents with offices located in flooded areas are facing the challenge of “staying afloat,” so to speak, during the devastation of what some have...

Winning as a Strategist

Jul 7 2008 // Thinking Strategically Can Lead to Insurance Sales Success Want to be a better insurance agent or broker? Then consider your strategy. Today’s sales professionals must be at the top of their game to win sales through...

Flood Damage Not Limited to Flood Zones

Jul 7 2008 // By Removing Some of the Mystery in Flood Insurance, Agents Can Put Clients More at Ease “I don’t need flood insurance; I’m not in a ‘flood zone.'” Or, “I don’t need flood insurance...

The Spitzer Error

Jul 7 2008 // Liberty Mutual downplayed its recent victory when the New York Supreme Court declared that contingent commission agreements are not illegal. “Contingent commission agreements between brokers and insurers are not...

Court Rules Contingent Commissions Legal

Jul 7 2008 // In a twist to a scandal that has rocked the insurance industry over the last several years, a New York appeals court has ruled that contingent commissions paid out by Boston-based Liberty Mutual Group Inc. are not...

Jul 7 2008 // People McQueary Henry Bowles Troy LLP (MHBT) added Jim Anderson as senior vice president in the Dallas-based firm’s property/casualty group. Anderson will oversee the production and account management of...

IIAT Names Award Winners, Elects New Officers

Jul 7 2008 // Beginning Sept. 1, 2008, Garry Kaufman, president of Galveston Insurance Associates, Galveston, Texas, will lead the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas (IIAT) as president. Kaufman was elected at IIAT’s 111th...

Find a Silver Lining in the Soft Market

Jul 7 2008 // Strategies From ‘Best Practices’ Agencies Searching for ways to survive and thrive in the soft market cycle? Cultivate untapped customer markets; proactively service renewals; use technology for efficiency and...

Yes, You Are in a ‘Flood Zone!’

Jul 7 2008 // The Importance of Understanding Flood Zones “I don’t need flood insurance.” “I’m not in a ‘flood zone.'” Or, “I don’t need flood insurance because my mortgage company...