Latest Agencies Headlines
All the headlines from our Agencies Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Willis Abolishes Contingency Pacts; Sees Opportunity in New ‘Level Playing’ Field Among Insurance Brokers
Oct 21 2004 // Willis Group Holdings announced it is abolishing controversial contingency agreements with insurance carriers immediately in North America and as soon as possible in the rest of the world where it operates. Joseph Plumeri,...
Former Ore. Agent Pleads Guilty to Corpse Abuse in Indian Grave Robbing
Oct 21 2004 // Former insurance agent Jack Harelson pleaded guilty Tuesday to abusing the mummified corpses of two Indian children that police found in his garden, where he had hidden them after digging up their ancient graves in the...
Evaluating Overcharges: Should Your Company Pursue Claims Against Brokers and Carriers’
Oct 20 2004 // Editor’s note: This is a commentary piece submitted by David E. Wood of the law firm Wood & Bender. The recent suit by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer alleging price-fixing and deceptive practices by...
Garamendi Unveils Proposal to Protect Consumers from Undisclosed Commissions
Oct 20 2004 // Calling secret broker commissions a “serious problem that betrays the public’s trust,” California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi announced new regulations on Oct. 20 to require agents and brokers...
Q3 Commercial P/C Premiums Continue Fall
Oct 20 2004 // Commercial property/casualty insurance premiums continued to decline significantly during the third quarter of this year, with two-thirds of all large and medium accounts experiencing drops of up to 20 percent and an...
Spitzer Invites Health Insurer into Expanding Broker Compensation Probe
Oct 19 2004 // After going after a number of big property/casualty and life insurers, New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer appears to have UnumProvident Corporation on his radar screen too. UnumProvident Corporation (NYSE: UNM) today...
WFG Capital Advisors: Agency Consolidation Gaining Momentum; Outlook Remains Cloudy
Oct 19 2004 // WFG Capital Advisors, an investment banking firm specializing in the insurance industry, announced on Tuesday that agency consolidation will likely achieve record results for 2004 but the outlook for 2005 remains...
Impact of Spitzer Broker Fraud Charges Felt at Marsh and Beyond
Oct 18 2004 // New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer’s filing last Thursday of charges against giant insurance broker Marsh for alleged commercial account steering and bid rigging has already had significant impact on Marsh and...
Lloyd’s Says Slip Quality Continues to Improve
Oct 18 2004 // Iain Saville, Lloyd’s Head of Business Process Reform, announced a further improvement in slip quality, but urged the market not to let up in its drive to improve the quality of slips as it enters the renewal...
IIABL to Hold First Annual Management Conference
Oct 15 2004 // The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of Louisiana will hold its 1st Annual Management Conference Oct. 28-29, 2004, at the Marriott in Baton Rouge, La.. The conference will feature an exhibit hall, opportunities...
AIG’s Greenberg Expects More Transparency, Not Material Impact from Brokerage Charges
Oct 15 2004 // AIG Chairman Maurice Greenberg today said he does not think the charges brought by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer against giant insurance broker Marsh McLennan will hurt his company’s business but that they...
Marsh Halts All Controversial Brokerage Agreements
Oct 15 2004 // Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (MMC) announced today that Marsh Inc., its risk and insurance services subsidiary, will immediately suspend its practice of market services agreements (MSA) with insurance...
Big ‘I’ Condemns Illegal Bid-Rigging, Steering
Oct 15 2004 // The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (the Big “I”), has condemned bid-rigging and steering, and called for disclosure by brokers of placement service agreements. In response to the news of...
Iowa Agent Removed from Industry
Oct 15 2004 // The Iowa Insurance Division’s investigation of allegations of improper and illegal activities by an insurance agent resulted in the revocation of his license earlier this month. Dennis Stephens, of Lake Mills, Iowa,...
Colo. Agent Beginning Second Season as Ski Pass Insurer
Oct 14 2004 // Local businessman Ron Iverson is beginning his second season of offering insurance against the price of a season ski pass in case of injury or illness. “There’s nothing else like it,” said Iverson, an...
New York AG Sues Marsh Over Contingent Commissions, Cites Insurers Over Alleged Bid-Rigging
Oct 14 2004 // New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer on Oct. 14 sued Marsh & McLennan Companies, the nation’s biggest insurance brokerage firm, alleging that it steered clients to insurers with whom it had lucrative...
Mass. Agents Face Battle Over Commission Bid
Oct 12 2004 // The Mass. Attorney General has recommended that agents’ auto insurance commissions be frozen at $114 per vehicle until further proof of agencies’ actual expenses is made available. The AG is pressing for...
Newsome Installed as President of IIA San Antonio
Oct 12 2004 // Dennis Newsome of Barnard-Donegan Insurance Agency Inc. was recently installed as the 83rd president of the Independent Insurance Agents of San Antonio (IIASA). In addition, IIASA announced that Greg Stevens of Texas...
Evans, Ewan & Brady Honored as a Central Insurance Companies Blue Streak Agency
Oct 12 2004 // Combined Agents of America LLC (CAA) reported that one of its member agencies, Evans, Ewan & Brady Insurance Agency Inc. of Georgetown, Texas, has been appointed a Blue Streak representative for the Central Insurance...
IIANC Names Meshaw Company Pro of the Year; Kenley Garners Education Award
Oct 12 2004 // The Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina (IIANC) recently announced that Dewey Meshaw has been named as IIANC’s Company Professional of the Year. Selected annually, this award recognizes an insurance...
