Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Fla. Releases Medical Malpractice Report, Favorable Trend Continues
Oct 3 2007 // A recent state-sponsored report showed a continuing trend of recovery for the Florida medical malpractice industry – an industry that experienced double-digit rate increases and lack of availability prior to the 2003...
State Farm Reduces Fla. Rates Again, Saves Policyholders $23 Million
Oct 3 2007 // State Farm Insurance implemented an additional 2 percent rate reduction for Florida policyholders, according to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. The rate reduction comes on the heels of a 7 percent State Farm...
Florida’s John Handel Appoints President
Oct 1 2007 // Florida Excess & Surplus Lines wholesaler John Handel & Associates Inc., appointed Lorna W. Palmer as president and chief executive officer. After a 10-year stint with a Massachusetts Agency, Palmer joined St....
Fla. Gov. Expands Special Session to Include No-Fault
Oct 1 2007 // In a Florida Special Legislative Session originally called to focus on the 2007-08 budget, Gov. Charlie Crist expanded the call to include renewing Florida’s Motor Vehicle No-Fault Law, known as personal injury...
Speaker Asks Gov. to Add No-Fault to Florida Special Session
Sep 30 2007 // Florida House of Representatives Speaker Marco Rubio asked Gov. Charlie Crist to add auto insurance and property tax relief to the Legislature’s special session on budget-cutting next week after Senate President Ken...
The Offshore Tax Debate – Déjà vu – All over Again
Sep 28 2007 // At least that’s how Yogi Berra might describe it. On Sept. 25 William R. Berkley, chairman and CEO of the company of the same name, gave a detailed indictment before the Senate Finance Committee of the iniquities...
Insurers Outline Consequences of No-Fault Law Expiration in Florida
Sep 27 2007 // For the vast majority of policyholders, nothing will change on Oct. 1. Policyholders will still maintain the insurance coverage they had in place on Sept. 30 for the duration of their contract. Auto insurance policies are...
Fla. Agents Warn Consumers State-Backed Citizens Not Always Wise
Sep 27 2007 // Florida’s insurance agents are advising consumers seeking coverage from Citizens Property Insurance Corp. to proceed cautiously, especially for those making comparisons with the private market. Coverage in the state...
Fla. Insurance Commissioner Supports National Catastrophe Plan
Sep 25 2007 // Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty touted the need for a comprehensive national plan, and a national catastrophe fund at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) Southeast Zone meeting in...
Reinsurance was easier to find and cheaper in 2007
Sep 24 2007 // What a difference a year makes. Florida insurers had to look high and low for reinsurance in 2006, and pay dearly if they could find it.In 2007, it was a different story. According to Jack Mangiante, senior vice president...
Cincinnati Insurance Says it’s Under Investigation in Florida
Sep 24 2007 // Cincinnati Financial Corp. told shareholders that two property insurance companies it controls are under investigation by Florida officials looking into whether insurers are complying with a new law requiring rate...
Catastrophes: There is no free lunch
Sep 24 2007 // Any study that implies consumers and taxpayers have thousands of years to realize savings is immediately suspect. Since the devastating hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005, some Florida politicians and a few insurers have...
The summer summit
Sep 24 2007 // As Brian Kern reports in this issue, times are tough for the property insurance industry in Florida these days, particularly in Tallahassee. “I feel like when talking to public officials these days that I really have...
Agents must tell Fla. citizens of pros and cons of Citizens
Sep 24 2007 // As Florida insurance agents adjust to serious competition from the public sector, the Florida Association of Independent Agents has established a new staff position to act as a liaison between agents and state-backed...
Florida’s private insurers try to be heard amid political storm
Sep 24 2007 // Florida’s property insurance industry is in the middle of the hurricane season — the political hurricane season. The state’s politicians promised homeowners their insurance premiums would go down after...
Declarations
Sep 24 2007 // Alabama ceiling “It’s horrible. Rates have gone through the ceiling.” — Fort Morgan, Ala., builder Greg Miller who said he paid $22,000 in coverage on four condo units before Katrina and now pays...
A small private Fla. insurer faces Citizens and the ‘perfect storm’
Sep 24 2007 // From “Happy Days” to “The Perfect Storm” is how one Florida insurance executive describes her state’s defining years between 2003 and 2007 — and she isn’t talking just about the...
Reinsurance was easier to find and cheaper in 2007
Sep 24 2007 // What a difference a year makes. Florida insurers had to look high and low for reinsurance in 2006, and pay dearly if they could find it. In 2007, it was a different story. According to Jack Mangiante, senior vice president...
Figures
Sep 24 2007 // $10.3 million The verdict handed down by a Florida jury in agreeing with a widow that an emergency room doctor’s negligence caused her husband’s premature death. Nadine Raphael said Dr. James Shecter did not...
Agents must tell Fla. citizens of pros and cons of Citizens
Sep 24 2007 // As Florida insurance agents adjust to serious competition from the public sector, the Florida Association of Independent Agents has established a new staff position to act as a liaison between agents and state-backed...
