Latest Agencies Headlines
All the headlines from our Agencies Topic Page, ordered by recency.
News Currents
Apr 17 2006 // Safeco considering internet-based auto insurance sales Seattle-based property and casualty insurer Safeco is considering direct marketing its automobile insurance business over the Internet to reach additional consumers...
L.A. Broker Arrested for Allegedly Pocketing $381,000 in Premiums
Apr 14 2006 // A former Los Angeles insurance broker has been arrested for allegedly pocketing $381,966 in liability insurance premiums from clients. The California Department of Insurance arrested Bernard Warschaw, 78, on an extradition...
Superior Access Responds to Allegations by Calif. Commissioner
Apr 13 2006 // On April 8th 2006, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) announced that it has begun legal proceedings against The Hartford Insurance Group, alleging that the company charged illegal fees. The CDI contends that...
R.I.’s Beacon Mutual Hit for Cozy Culture Favoring Insiders, Big Accounts and Elite Agents
Apr 13 2006 // Rhode Island’s largest workers compensation carrier, Beacon Mutual Insurance Co., has engaged in a pattern of favoritism benefiting select clients and agents; won and retained employer accounts by cheating on pricing...
GE Insurance Solutions Talks About Landing a Program Carrier
Apr 12 2006 // If you’re an agent or broker trying to land a program carrier, it’s one thing to have an in-force program with lots of history and experience data, but how do you market yourself to a carrier if you’re...
Head of Progressive’s Drive Brand Resigns, Effective in May
Apr 9 2006 // The man behind the wheel of Progressive Insurance’s independent agency brand, Drive Insurance, has resigned. The Progressive Corporation in Mayfield, Ohio announced on April 7th that it had accepted the resignation...
Liberty Int’l. Opens Hong Kong Office
Apr 7 2006 // Liberty International Underwriters, a division of Liberty Mutual Group, has opened a North Asia Regional Office in Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. “The explosive growth of specialty insurance in Asia is underscored by...
Heffernan Insurance Merges with Advanced Insurance of Orange, Calif.
Apr 7 2006 // Heffernan Insurance Brokers, an insurance brokerage based in Walnut Creek, Calif., is merging with Advanced Insurance of Orange, Calif. The new Heffernan Insurance Brokers office will be led by current Advanced Insurance...
Scotland-based Giles Insurance Brokers Open 1st U.S. Office in Chicago
Apr 7 2006 // Giles Insurance Brokers, Scotland’s largest independent insurance broker, announced the opening of its first American office in the Chicago area. According to its written statement, Giles US Insurance Brokers, based...
Two Men Arrested in January Death of Mass. Insurance Agent
Apr 6 2006 // When the body of Edward Schiller was found slumped behind the wheel of his Nissan Maxima in a parking garage in Newton, Mass. early on the morning of Jan. 13, authorities said they believed the 39-year-old insurance agent...
Thousands of Claims Anticipated After Tenn., Ky. Tornado
Apr 6 2006 // The cleanup is underway in the aftermath of a large F-3 to F-4 tornado that tore a swath of death and destruction on Sunday evening through northern Tennessee and southern Kentucky, leaving 18 people dead and hundreds...
N.Y. Agents Relieved as Lawmakers Delete ‘Draconian’ Fines
Apr 5 2006 // Insurance agents have succeeded in removing from the New York State budget a provision to hike fines against insurance professionals. The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of New York, Inc., praised the Assembly...
PIA of La. Goes to Washington
Apr 5 2006 // The Professional Insurance Agents of Louisiana (PIA) reported that several of the association’s members are set to meet with members of Congress in Washington, D.C. on April 6, 2006. Jared “Butsy” Martin,...
NASD Fines AIG Affiliate American General Securities $1.1 Million
Apr 5 2006 // NASD, the securities industry’s private sector regulator, has fined American General Securities, Inc. (AGSI), a member company of American International Group, Inc. (AIG) located in Houston, more than $1.1 million in...
Illinois-based Arthur J. Gallagher Acquires Sobieski & Bradley, Inc.
Apr 5 2006 // Chicago-based Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. announced the acquisition of Sobieski & Bradley, Inc. of Salt Lake City, Utah. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Formed in 1987, Sobieski & Bradley, Inc. is...
Senators Introduce Optional Federal Charter Legislation
Apr 5 2006 // Citing bipartisan support to revamp the insurance industry regulatory system, two U.S. senators today unveiled legislation that would allow life and property/casualty insurers to choose federal rather than state regulation...
Tower Group Pens Reinsurance, Pooling, Expense Pact with CastlePoint
Apr 5 2006 // Tower Group, Inc. in New York has entered into a strategic relationship with CastlePoint Holdings, Ltd.,a Bermuda-based holding company that it has sponsored. The move gives Tower reinsurance backing, additional...
N.H. Agents Plan Education Conference; Commissioner to Speak
Apr 4 2006 // The Professional Insurance Agents of New Hampshire Inc.’s 2006 Annual Conference will be held Wednesday, May 24, 2006, at the Marriott Courtyard and Grappone Conference Center, Concord, N.H. More than 100 insurance...
Insurance Journal Reports on How Zurich Pacts Affect Agents; Promise of Mid-Sized D&O Market
Apr 4 2006 // Independent agents representing Zurich Insurance in the U.S. will have to disclose their income before binding any commercial lines policies for Zurich and some Zurich agents may be denied contingency compensation under...
Rating Agencies React to Fairfax 10-K Filing; Part 1 – A.M. Best Affirms Ratings; Off Watch
Apr 4 2006 // The rating agencies have taken different actions on Fairfax Financial Holdings and its subsidiaries, including Odyssey Re Holdings in which Fairfax has an 80 percent stake, following the Group’s filing of its Form...
