Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Bermuda Monetary Authority Concludes Pact with Florida Insurance Regulator
Sep 25 2009 // The Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (FLOIR). The bulletin noted that it “is the latest in a number of such agreements...
Fugate Brings Florida Ideas to FEMA
Sep 24 2009 // Craig Fugate brought three lessons with him when he took over the Federal Emergency Management Agency: Always be ready for disasters, make sure people take responsibility for themselves and get the message out...
Newest Florida Carrier, Prepared Insurance, Targets ‘Older’ Homes
Sep 23 2009 // Florida has given the go-ahead to a new homeowners insurance company that plans to focus on what it says is the underserved market of homes built before 2002. Prepared Insurance Co., headquartered in Tampa, intends to use...
The Coverage Conundrum in Chinese Drywall Claims
Sep 21 2009 // The Latest Mass Tort Unless you live in Florida or Louisiana, or regularly read the Insurance Journal, you may only now be hearing about the latest mass tort craze: Chinese-Manufactured Drywall (often simply referred to as...
Florida’s Newly-Formed Ascendant to Rescue First Commercial Policies
Sep 21 2009 // The new company will use independent agents and brokers for sales. Florida officials announced that a new Miami-based insurance company will pick up the insurance for about 15,000 of the policyholders now with First...
Florida’s Newly-Formed Ascendant to Rescue First Commercial Policies
Sep 21 2009 // The new company will use independent agents and brokers for sales. Florida officials announced that a new Miami-based insurance company will pick up the insurance for about 15,000 of the policyholders now with First...
A.M. Best: New Regulations, Market Conditions and Financial Crisis Wreak Havoc on Workers’ Comp Line
Sep 21 2009 // Challenging market conditions, the financial crisis and the recession drove profitability downward for the U.S. workers’ compensation market in 2008. Changing regulatory conditions and reforms have also impacted the...
Insurers Join Call for Review of Florida’s Insurance Mitigation Discounts
Sep 17 2009 // The arbitrary assignment of premium discounts for certain mitigation features without regard to insurance companies’ base rates or premium calculations for existing business has proven to be the downfall of the...
Potential Hurricane Insurance Losses Added to Florida’s Long-Range Deficit Projections
Sep 17 2009 // A House-Senate budget panel has added the state’s risk of incurring billions of dollars in possible hurricane insurance losses to Florida’s long-range financial outlook. The new changes could dwarf potential...
It Was No Katrina But Some in Coastal America Remember Ivan’s Terror
Sep 17 2009 // People who lived through Hurricane Ivan can’t forget the haunting images left by one of the strongest storms ever recorded: condo towers collapsed in roiling surf, splintered homes or flat slabs, fragments of...
Pitts Named Florida Workers’ Compensation Judge by Gov. Crist
Sep 17 2009 // Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has appointed Neal P. Pitts of Orlando as judge of Compensation Claims, succeeding Ivy Cream Harris in the Jacksonville district. Pitts, 55, has been a sole practitioner since 1987 and from 1983...
Another New Florida Home Insurer, Sawgrass Mutual, Open for Business
Sep 14 2009 // Sawgrass Mutual Insurance Co. is now selling residential property insurance coverage to Florida homeowners through independent agents. The company was launched last month with $10 million in initial capitalization. CEO...
Florida in Better, Not Perfect, Insurance Shape Should Major Hurricane Hit
Sep 7 2009 // Florida property insurers are warning that a major hurricane is likely this season given the state’s history of storms. At the same time, the industry says, the state-backed catastrophe reinsurance fund, the Florida...
People
Sep 7 2009 // CNA Financial Corp. named Bob Lindemann as president and chief operating officer of CNA’s Commercial Lines operations. In this role, Lindemann will be responsible for CNA’s $3.5 billion commercial...
State Farm Scrapping Some Florida Homeowners’ Discounts
Sep 7 2009 // State Farm Florida has been given the green light to eliminate some homeowners insurance discounts but the insurer must continue to offer discounts for storm mitigation steps unless it supports that change with more...
Florida Agents Say Home Mitigation Effort Is Riddled with Fraud, Inefficiencies and Errors
Sep 7 2009 // Florida’s efforts to encourage homeowners to harden their homes to better withstand big storms by giving them insurance premium discounts is not getting the job done, according to a report from insurance agents in...
Florida, Georgia Insurer First Commercial to Be Liquidated
Sep 7 2009 // Miami-based First Commercial Insurance Co. and its subsidiary have been declared insolvent and ordered liquidated about six weeks after being placed under state control. All policies written by FCIC and its subsidiary,...
New Insurer Ascendant to Rescue First Commercial Insureds, Jobs in Florida
Sep 4 2009 // Florida officials announced that a new Miami-based insurance company will pick up the insurance for about 15,000 of the policyholders now with bankrupt First Commercial Insurance Co., which is in liquidation. Florida CFO...
Some State-Run Property Insurance Plans in Precarious Financial Situation
Sep 4 2009 // As the 2009 Atlantic hurricane season enters its peak period, the finances of a number of residual market property plans in hurricane-exposed states are on shaky ground. The credit crunch and prolonged economic downturn...
Coastal Home Owners Face Huge Losses from Rising Seas
Sep 3 2009 // Australians Lesley and Doug McGrath have for decades battled ocean swells that have eaten away at the backyard of their multi-million dollar Sydney home. They bought an old beach shack on Collaroy Beach in 1976 and...
