Latest Agencies Headlines

All the headlines from our Agencies Topic Page, ordered by recency.

‘Best Practices’ Agencies Continue to Build Value: Big ‘I Study

Nov 9 2015 // Most “Best Practices” independent insurance agencies have been able to either grow or maintain the value of their businesses while focusing on staff development and technology, according to the latest report by...

CITA Insurance Services Launches Insurance Agents E&O Program

Nov 6 2015 // CITA Insurance Services, a division of Brown & Brown Program Insurance Services Inc., has released a new Insurance Agents Errors & Omissions program. CITA’s new Agents E&O program features vanishing and...

Independent Agency Profitability, Organic Growth Dipped in Q3: Reagan Consulting

Nov 6 2015 // Independent insurance agents and brokers posted median organic growth of 4.4 percent for the third quarter of 2015, compared with 6.0 percent in the third quarter of 2014, as measured by the Reagan Consulting Organic...

KeyCorp Aims to Leverage First Niagara’s Insurance Brokerage Business in N.Y.

Nov 5 2015 // Financial services company KeyCorp, which recently announced its plan to acquire First Niagara Financial Group in Buffalo, New York, said the company would leverage and grow First Niagara’s insurance brokerage...

EPIC Brings on Garcia as Broker in California

Nov 5 2015 // EPIC Insurance Brokers and Consultants has named Daniel Garcia a property/casualty insurance broker/producer in the firm’s Petaluma, Calif. office. Garcia will report locally to Mike Ryan, the North Bay managing...

Property Specialist Otis Sanders II Joins Breckenridge Insurance Services as Vice President, Broker

Nov 5 2015 // Atlanta, GA, November 5, 2015 — Breckenridge Insurance Services, a leading specialty wholesale commercial brokerage firm, is pleased to announce Otis Sanders II has joined the organization as vice president, broker....

MarketScout Hires McGee as Workers’ Compensation Broker in Philadelphia

Nov 4 2015 // MarketScout, a national electronic insurance exchange and specialty MGA based in Dallas, has hired John McGee as broker in the Workers’ Compensation Brokerage division. He is based in Philadelphia. In his new role,...

The Case for Independent Agency Optimism

Nov 4 2015 // Over the past few years, dire predictions about the independent agent’s future have gotten a lot of attention. With consumers increasingly adopting the latest technology-driven shopping and buying behaviors, some...

Do’s and Don’ts of E&O Suits

Nov 3 2015 // Ask any agent who has suffered through an errors and omissions (E&O) suit and they will provide sage-like insight into the professional and even personal trials created by such an ordeal. Years ago I met an agent who,...

Arthur J. Gallagher Buys Canada Broker Christie-Phoenix & Its Affiliate, Discovery

Nov 3 2015 // Arthur J. Gallagher, the international broking division of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. outside of the United States, has extended its investment in Canada with the acquisition of retail insurance broker Christie-Phoenix...

Agent, Cyber-Educate Yourself – and Your Clients

Nov 2 2015 // A recent report showing that cyber insurance premiums will grow globally from $2 billion annually to more than $20 billion over the next 10 years reinforces what most in the insurance industry already know: cyber risks are...

Odyssey Partners Completes Acquisition of Broker Integro

Nov 2 2015 // New York private equity firm Odyssey Investment Partners has completed its acquisition of specialty insurance brokerage Integro Ltd. Financial details of the investment were not disclosed. Integro said its management team...

Pay Attention to Smartphone Security

Nov 2 2015 // Digital security concerns related to the safety of computer systems and use of the Internet are a much discussed topic in this Tech Talk column. But what about the security of smartphones? Now the go-to communications...

Mississippi Insurance Agent Pleads Guilty to Stealing $33K in Premiums

Nov 2 2015 // A former insurance agent in Jackson County, Mississippi’s St. Martin community has pleaded guilty after pocketing more than $33,000 in customers’ money. The Sun-Herald reports that 38-year-old Chad Michael...

Industry Chasing Mobile Consumers with Ads, Apps, Self-Service Options

Nov 2 2015 // Carriers are spending big on advertising, and agencies are working to become increasingly more sophisticated and reach out to more and more people. In the world of insurance, that’s just doing business as usual. But...

Time Is Right to Review Agency E&O Limits

Nov 2 2015 // Fewer independent agencies are facing increased premiums for their agency errors and omissions (E&O) coverage and some experts say that is one reason they should consider upping coverage limits at their next...

‘Misfit’ Doctors, Lawyers: Find a Friend in E&S Market

Nov 2 2015 // Doctors and lawyers are taking up more space in the surplus lines professional liability (PL) markets, with growth and consolidation in the healthcare industry and real estate concerns among the legal field fostering...

South Carolina-Based Marine Insurance Agencies Merge to Form New Company

Oct 30 2015 // Maritime Insurance, LLC and Port City Holdings, LLC dba KSA Marine Insurance, both of Charleston, S.C., have joined to create a new entity, Maritime Insurance International. The new company combines the agencies’...

Partners Insurance Hires McDonald as Broker in Massachusetts

Oct 30 2015 // Bernard J. McDonald V Partners Insurance Group LLC has hired Bernard J. McDonald V as a licensed broker and producer. McDonald is responsible for developing new business and creating customer relationships. He provides and...

Insurance Agents & Brokers in Penn. Announces Newly Elected Directors

Oct 29 2015 // The fall marks a new administrative year for Insurance Agents & Brokers Service Group in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and its partnership of agents’ associations in Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania. The...