Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Gallagher Wants Independent Review of State Farm’s Rate Request
Aug 19 2005 // Citing concern that insurance companies are using the 2004 hurricanes to unfairly raise rates, Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher has called for an independent review of a rate increase on homeowners...
Fla. Officials Park Auto Fraud Ring
Aug 18 2005 // Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher on Thursday announced the arrests of 10 people in a staged accident ring that involved 15 different medical clinics fraudulently billing auto insurers more than a...
Fla. 2004 Hurricane Recovery Passes $5.6 Billion Mark
Aug 18 2005 // One year after Hurricane Charley made landfall as the first of four major hurricanes to strike Florida, federal and state disaster assistance totals more than $5.6 billion, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s...
Nationwide of Florida to Drop 25,000 to 30,000 Homeowners Policies
Aug 16 2005 // Florida’s fourth-largest homeowners insurer, Nationwide Insurance of Florida, has announced that it will drop from 25,000 to 30,000 homeowners policies as part of a strategy to “reduce its overall...
Fla. Medical Examiners Justify 135 of 306 Funerals Paid for by FEMA
Aug 12 2005 // Florida Medical Examiners meeting in Key Biscayne, Fla. maintain their autopsies and investigations show that no more than 135 deaths in Florida were hurricane-related, while FEMA the Federal Emergency Management Agency...
Only One Policyholder Turned Out For Allstate Floridian Public Hearing
Aug 11 2005 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation reserved a high school auditorium for five hours so that homeowners could voice their opinion on Allstate Floridian Insurance Company’s request to increase rates by 30...
CPCU September Meeting: Bob Ricker to Discuss Citizens Future
Aug 11 2005 // Bob Ricker, president of Citizens Property Insurance Corp. will be the featured speakers during the Sept. 12 meeting of the Florida Suncoast Chapter of the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters Society. Carol Everhart,...
Gallagher, Crist Withdraw Proposed Rule to Give Insurance Companies Higher Profits
Aug 10 2005 // A proposed rule that would have explicitly given insurance companies the option to seek higher profits, scheduled to be approved Tuesday by the Florida Cabinet, was withdrawn on Tuesday by Tom Gallagher, Florida’s...
Fla. Medical Examiners to Discuss FEMA’s Non-Hurricane Funeral Payments
Aug 10 2005 // The Florida Medical Examiners Commission will meet Thursday on Key Biscayne, Fla. to discuss findings indicating that the Federal Emergency Management Agency paid hurricane funeral claims in Florida amounting to $1.3...
Two Studies Reveal Increase in Motorcycle Deaths Due to Repeal of Florida Helmet Law
Aug 9 2005 // Motorcycle fatalities have risen sharply in Florida since the state repealed its mandatory helmet law, according to two studies, one by the government and the other by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The...
Society of Insurance Research Agenda: Natural Catastrophes, Legislative, Political Issues
Aug 9 2005 // Insurance implications of natural catastrophes, key legislative and political issues confronting insurers and how emerging technologies will affect the insurance business, will be discussed during Oct. 16 to 19 Society of...
Fla. Homeowners Rates to Rise by 6.8 Percent Again This Summer
Aug 8 2005 // Florida homeowners can expect to receive a 6.8 percent increase in their insurance rates to pay for Citizens Property Insurance Corporation’s deficit, according to Bob Hartwig, chief economist at the Insurance...
Two Floridians Join Citizen’s Property Insurance Board of Governors
Aug 5 2005 // John D. Collins and Julio G. Rebull, Jr. have been appointed by Tom Gallagher, Florida CFO to the board of governors of Citizens Property Insurance Corp., Florida’s insurer of last resort. Collins is founder and...
Indiana-Based Insurance Scammers Get Fla. Prison Time
Aug 5 2005 // The operators of an Indiana-based insurance company that left 7,200 people with unpaid medical claims in one of the costliest, most extensive fraud schemes in Florida were sentenced to prison Wednesday, Florida officials...
Florida CFO Gallagher Questions Allstate Rate Request
Aug 5 2005 // Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher said that an independent review of Allstate Floridian Insurance Company’s request for higher rates shows deficiencies and raises troubling questions about the...
UPCIC Says No Increase Needed in ’06
Aug 5 2005 // Florida-based Universal Property and Casualty Insurance Company (“UPCIC”), a subsidiary of Universal Insurance Holdings Inc., announced that it will not seek a rate increase on its homeowners’ insurance...
TRG Insurance Operators Sentenced to Jail; Authorities Seek $3M Restitution
Aug 4 2005 // Attorney General Charlie Crist has announced that two individuals have received prison sentences for their roles in an insurance scam. William Paul Crouse and Carmelo Zanfei – the principals of TRG Marketing, LLC...
Agent Arrested for Defrauding, Faking S. Fla. Seniors’ Policies
Aug 4 2005 // An insurance agent who targeted victims between the ages of 72 and 86 and fed on their fears about aging has been arrested for defrauding at least nine South Florida senior citizens by offering them a quote for one level...
$1.3M Arthur J. Gallagher Refund Motivates Fla. AG to Continue Brokerage Investigation
Aug 3 2005 // The Florida Attorney General’s Office is investigating why Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. sent a $1.3 million refund check to the City of Gainesville, Fla. to reimburse the city for overcharges that took place over...
PIA of Fla. Plans September ‘Hurricane Lessons,’ Legislative Summary
Aug 1 2005 // The Professional Insurance Agents of Florida have scheduled four meetings in September during which it will presented morning “Hurricane Lessons” and an afternoon summary of Florida insurance regulations and...
