Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Oklahoma Gun Range Sued for Refusing Muslim Man Service
Feb 19 2016 // A U.S. Army reservist from Tulsa asked to leave a gun range in eastern Oklahoma after identifying himself as a Muslim sued the owners Wednesday, the latest in a series of cases across the nation alleging anti-Islamic...
Unlicensed Georgia Agent Arrested for Stealing Premiums From Florida Seniors
Feb 19 2016 // The Florida Division of Insurance Fraud (DIF), which operates under the direction of Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, announced the arrest of William David Rodeffer III of Folkston, Ga. Rodeffer allegedly accepted...
Florida State Troopers Report 186 Deaths from Hit-and-Run Crashes in 2015
Feb 19 2016 // State troopers say 186 people died in hit-and-run crashes in Florida last year. According to statistics released Monday by the Florida Highway Patrol, more than half the fatalities last year were pedestrians. Officials say...
Ex-Freedom President Gets 1 Month in Prison for West Virginia Chemical Spill
Feb 18 2016 // An executive who appeared unsympathetic when he spoke to the public after a chemical spill sullied tap water for 300,000 people in West Virginia was sentenced to one month in federal prison Wednesday. Ex-Freedom Industries...
Tornadoes Batter Multiple Southeast States
Feb 18 2016 // Weather service experts are assessing damage from storms that caused problems in several Southeast states. At least six south Alabama counties suffered damage from storms on Monday. The Johnsonville Volunteer Fire...
Florida-Based Anchor Insurance Appoints Wortman as President, Pawlowski as COO
Feb 18 2016 // Anchor Insurance appointed John Wortman as its new president and Kevin Pawlowski as its chief operating officer, effective February 9, 2016. John Wortman Wortman most recently served on Florida’s Citizens Insurance...
Kentucky Commish Green Lights Aetna-Humana Acquisition, Florida Approves Deal
Feb 18 2016 // Louisville, Ky.-based Humana has been approved for takeover by Aetna by Kentucky regulators, according to a statement from the Kentucky Department of Insurance Commissioner Brian Maynard. The order approving the request...
FEMA Responds to Florida’s Flood Rate Request, Sort Of
Feb 17 2016 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has responded to Florida’s request to review the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) rates but it may not be as forthcoming and helpful as Florida officials had...
Florida Reaches 20 Reported Cases of Zika Virus
Feb 16 2016 // Health officials say 20 cases of the Zika virus have been reported in Florida. The Florida Department of Health announced the new total Friday afternoon. Seven cases were reported in Miami-Dade County, and three each were...
Takata Engineer Pleads 5th Amendment in Florida Air Bag Lawsuit
Feb 16 2016 // A Takata Corp. engineer involved in testing the company’s air bags invoked his constitutional right against self-incrimination in declining to testify in a lawsuit brought by a woman left paralyzed in a 2014...
The Villages Insurance Expands Into Florida’s Lake County
Feb 16 2016 // The Villages Insurance has expanded into Lake County, Fla. The Villages Insurance Lake County Division will extend its offerings already available to the residents of The Villages community including the services of its...
Citizens Launches ‘Call Citizens First’ Campaign to Combat Florida Abuse
Feb 12 2016 // Citizens Property Insurance Corp. has launched a multi-faceted education campaign in an attempt to improve customer claims handling while taking steps to combat what it has called a disturbing increase of fraud and abuse...
P/C Retail, Wholesale Agency 2015 M&A Highlights by Region, State
Feb 10 2016 // When agency consultants at Reagan Consulting hosted more than 150 industry leaders at a workshop on agent/broker mergers and acquisitions (M&A) recently, the mood was upbeat, since brokers are enjoying their best...
Florida Completes $1.2B Revenue Bond Sale
Feb 9 2016 // Florida completed a $1.2 billion in revenue bond sale on Feb. 8 issued by the State Board of Administration Finance Corporation, formerly known as the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund (FHCF). The fund is designed to help...
Florida Fights Back Against Assignment of Benefits Abuse
Feb 8 2016 // Florida insurers, consumer and insurance advocates, as well as regulators, are hoping 2016 may finally be the year that legislators address the misuse of assignment of benefits (AOB) for water loss claims that they say has...
Ghost of 2008 Crash Still Haunts Real Estate E&O
Feb 8 2016 // The ghost of the 2008 financial collapse still haunts the liability insurance market for real estate professionals and some are worried the business may be headed for a replay of that crisis. While it is still recovering...
People – Southeast
Feb 8 2016 // The Florida Surplus Line Service Office (FSLSO) has promoted Bryan Young to assistant director of Agent Services. Coming into his 10th year of service at FSLSO, Young stepped into the role effective Jan. 1. During his...
Jury Awards $23M to Unarmed Man Shot by Florida Cop
Feb 5 2016 // A federal jury awarded $23.1 million on Wednesday to a 22-year-old black man who was unarmed when he was shot and paralyzed by a sheriff’s deputy, but Florida lawmakers will have to approve any award above...
Florida Declares Emergency After at Least 9 Reported Cases of Zika Virus
Feb 5 2016 // Florida Gov. Rick Scott declared a health emergency in four counties Wednesday after at least nine cases of the mosquito-borne Zika illness were detected in Florida. Health officials believe all of the cases are from...
Academy of Insurance Partners with PIA of Florida to Offer Online Insurance Training
Feb 4 2016 // Tallahassee, FL – February 4, 2016 — The insurance marketplace is ever changing and continued training is the rule of the day. The high cost of off-site training can be prohibitive for a lot of agencies. Today, that...
