Latest Carriers Headlines
All the headlines from our Carriers Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Future of Bond Insurance at Risk
Dec 27 2007 // The biggest casualty of the crisis surrounding bond insurers may well be the insurers themselves. Issuers and bond buyers alike may find it easier now to dispense with insurance, experts say, given that the finances of...
Bond Insurer ACA Financial Submits to Maryland Regulatory Control
Dec 27 2007 // In more fallout from the troubled credit market, ACA Capital Holdings Inc. has agreed to let the Maryland Insurance Administration and Commissioner Ralph S. Tyler assume control of much of its bond insurance division, ACA...
P/C Insurers’ Net Income, Surplus Rose But Profitability Dropped
Dec 27 2007 // The U.S. property/casualty insurance industry’s net income after taxes rose 7.1 percent to $49.4 billion through nine-months 2007 from $46.1 billion through nine-months 2006. Fueled by the industry’s net...
Good Agency-Carrier Relationships Travel a Two-Way Street
Dec 23 2007 // Carriers and agencies both face challenges in maintaining quality relationships Agents might think they have their hands full trying to attract and retain quality employees, but they are not alone. Insurance carriers face...
Scathing Audit: Calif. Workers’ Comp Insurer Needs Significant Reforms
Dec 23 2007 // California’s State Compensation Insurance Fund “has weak corporate governance, inadequate internal controls in various areas and a general inability to plan for the long-term,” according to an operational...
Md. Insurer to Return $100 Million to Doctors, State
Dec 23 2007 // A major medical liability insurer will return nearly $100 million to the state of Maryland and local doctors, in a deal announced by state officials. Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and Insurance Commissioner Ralph S....
N.Y. Worker’s Comp Reform Hits New Snafu Over Trust Fund
Dec 23 2007 // A state-run pool system to pay workers with permanent partial disabilities could erode the savings promised by New York’s landmark workers compensation reform, insurers warn, although some insiders say that those...
Make the Most of the Mexico-bound
Dec 23 2007 // Auto coverage essential; homeowners a growing market Recent snow and rain at many people’s doorsteps signal that it’s the high season for snowbirds to flock south for the winter. And those driving beyond the...
From Med Mal Caps to RICO Violations, No Headline Shortage in 2007
Dec 23 2007 // Severe summer storms that ransacked the Midwest, a court ruling that could negatively impact the medical malpractice insurance market in Illinois and RICO allegations in Minnesota were just a few of the news stories that...
Natural Disasters, Fires, Floods, Fair Conduct Fueled Insurance Industry Discussions in 2007
Dec 23 2007 // While 2007 was surprisingly calm year for hurricanes, that doesn’t mean Mother Nature didn’t have a tantrum or two. In the past year, the West faced its share of disasters, with freezes, floods and fires making...
The Road to Texas Supreme Court’s Heart: Through the Fifth Circuit
Dec 23 2007 // 2007 was a year in transition for Texas insurance law Omar Bradley often said, “Set your course by the stars and not by the light of every passing ship.” In 2007, the Texas Supreme Court failed to heed this...
Weather blows through top stories of 2007
Dec 23 2007 // Weather, directly or indirectly, was a driving force in the insurance markets for the South Central states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas in 2007. With the exception of Arkansas, throughout the year the South...
Mass. Auto Insurers Under Pressure to Lower Rates
Dec 23 2007 // Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley says the state’s new managed competition auto insurance system is not lowering average rates for 2008 below what they would have been under the old system where the state...
2007: Climate Change Dominates Debate While Soft Market Hits Entire P/C Market
Dec 23 2007 // The debate over climate change captured the world’s attention, including the insurance industry’s, in 2007, while major hurricanes spared the United States’ coastline. The soft market took hold of...
Survey of Analysts Projects Healthy Underwriting Profits
Dec 23 2007 // I.I.I.’s Earlybird Forecast predicts negative premium growth but continued profitability in 2008 Next year may go down on record as one of the best insurance industry underwriting performances in the past 80 years,...
Fitch Says UK Non-Life Insurers are ‘Well-Positioned in Challenging Market’
Dec 21 2007 // Fitch Ratings has issued a report indicating that it is maintaining a stable outlook on the UK non-life insurance sector, “as insurers remain on the path of underwriting discipline in the face of more challenging...
Mich. Insurer Fined for Failing to Make Sure Agents Were Licensed, Appointed
Dec 21 2007 // A Michigan-based insurer has been fined $230,000 by the Conneticut Department of Insurance for failing to make sure agents were licensed and appointed to sell policies in the state. Foremost Insurance Co., which...
Fla. Gov. Asks Lawyers to Review Suing Property Insurers over Rates
Dec 21 2007 // Gov. Charlie Crist said Wednesday he wants three trial lawyers to review documents for a possible class-action lawsuit against property insurers, alleging that the industry hasn’t passed on savings to consumers as...
Mass. Accepts 8 Auto Insurers’ Rates; Reviews of Others Continuing
Dec 21 2007 // The 2008 rates for eight auto insurers in Massachusetts have been cleared by state insurance officials, while those of at least 11 others remain subject to further review. Insurance Commissioner Nonnie Burnes has given the...
S&P Announces Rating Actions on Bond Insurers; Teleconference Today
Dec 20 2007 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has announced various ratings actions (see list below) on six financial guaranty insurance companies. “The rating actions were prompted by worsening expectations for the...