Latest Florida Headlines
All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.
AAMGA Ethics Workshop Topic: Insurance Industry Pressures
May 2 2005 // “Ethics in the Wholesale Insurance Marketplace” workshops concluded on Saturday afternoon with a round-table discussion, led by Ernest Csiszar, president of the Property and Casualty Insurance Association of...
FEMA Director Defends Agency; Critics Claim Payments Slow, Exaggerated Death Benefits
Apr 29 2005 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency is being criticized in Florida for being too slow to pay counties for hurricane claims and too aggressive in paying benefits for people who died during last year’s hurricanes;...
Key Issues Remain Unsolved As Fla. Passes HB 1937
Apr 29 2005 // House Bill 1937 passed with a vote of 96-20 on Thursday, despite opposition about exemptions on paying policy limits. One of the key issues still under consideration is a legislative remedy for a 2004 Florida court...
Fla. DOI Sets June 1 Hearing for Sirius Intl. Case
Apr 29 2005 // A June 1 hearing date has been set for a reinsurance unit of Bermuda-based White Mountains to meet with Florida regulators following allegations the unit was selling insurance in the state without a license. According to...
S. Fla. Forecaster Suggests Link Between Hurricane Behavior, May Rainfall
Apr 28 2005 // A link between the behavior of hurricanes and the amount of rain that falls in South Florida in May has been suggested by Jim Lushine, a meteorologist and weather forecaster at the National Weather Service in...
King’s Bay Licensed for Business in Sunshine State
Apr 28 2005 // Bruce Howson, president and CEO of Intendant Holding Corporation (“IHC”), announced that the Florida Department of Financial Services has issued a license to operate to IHC’s reinsurance brokerage...
Florida’s Soto Nominated as Big ‘I’ President Elect; Iowa’s Fulwider Named Next VP
Apr 27 2005 // The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America’s (the Big “I”) National Board has nominated Alex Soto as the association’s president-elect and has elected Robert Fulwider as the...
EQECAT Issues U.S Hurricane Model Challenge
Apr 26 2005 // Richard Clinton, president of Oakland Calif.-based EQECAT, a leading authority on extreme-risk modeling, announced an initiative aimed at comparing its models of the 2004 hurricane events for Florida exposure against the...
Fla. House Debating HB 1937 on Tuesday; AIA Supports Legislative ‘Fix’
Apr 26 2005 // As the Florida Legislature moves into its final two weeks, one of the key issues still under consideration is a legislative remedy for a 2004 Florida court decision requiring insurers to pay policy limits for homes with...
AssuranceAmerica Corp. Reports Wholesale Sub Now Writing Fla. Policies
Apr 26 2005 // Atlanta-based AssuranceAmerica Corp. announced its Managing General Agency (MGA) was approved to write auto coverages in Florida and is now actively putting Florida auto insurance policies on its books. In announcing its...
Fla. Insurance Commissioner McCarty Issues Subpoenas to 17 Reinsurers
Apr 25 2005 // Florida insurance regulators are probing the dealings of 17 reinsurers selling finite risk policies. Florida’s Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty said that he has issued investigative subpoenas to the reinsurers...
Simulated Exercises Teach Homeowners How to Prepare for Hurricanes
Apr 22 2005 // Widespread hurricanes have blown through several Florida cities during the past several days, and Hurricane Armando, a simulated hurricane, is expected to hit Tallahassee April 23. Florida American Red Cross and Emergency...
Fla. ‘Sales Tax Holiday’ Proposed to Encourage Hurricane Preparations
Apr 21 2005 // With the beginning of the hurricane season six weeks away, Florida residents are scurrying to be ready to batten-down-the-hatches: Florida legislators are about to pass a “sales tax holiday” to enable consumers...
Fla. Homeowners Have Money, But Contractors, Roofers Unavailable to Make Repairs
Apr 19 2005 // April 18 was the deadline for insurers to finish processing and paying off 1.69 million hurricane damage claims across Florida, but they still have nine days to go before they have to tell the state how many claims remain...
Volatile Underwriting Cycle is Back with a Vengeance, Advises Economist
Apr 18 2005 // The property/casualty insurance industry’s frequently volatile underwriting cycle is back with a vengeance and will have no mercy this time around, advises a top industry economist. The property/casualty financial...
The Legislature Devours the Pie
Apr 18 2005 // Everyone seems to want a piece of the insurance industry pie! As this issue went to press, Senate Bill 1488, which would create a single Florida-wide territory map and eliminate individual rate territories based on...
People & Places
Apr 18 2005 // Jack Crawford Three appointments have been announced by the board of directors of the Main Street America Group in Jacksonville, Fla.: Jack Crawford, assistant vice president; Bill Garvey assistant secretary; and Steve...
Territory Map Plan Struck From Fla. House Bill; Senate Passed It
Apr 18 2005 // A proposal that would create a single Florida-wide territory map and eliminate individual rate territories based on predicted hurricane risks and expected loss models was removed from House legislation, but was approved on...
SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS DOCTORS’ DEADLINE TO FILE NO-FAULT AUTO CLAIMS
Apr 18 2005 // A State Farm customer and his doctor, who challenged a 30-day deadline for doctors to file claims on a patient’s no-fault auto policy, have lost their claim in the Florida Supreme Court. They challenged the deadline,...
Fla. Wraps Up Workers’ Comp Compliance Sweep
Apr 15 2005 // Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher on Friday announced the completion of a sweep of construction sites across areas of Florida to verify that employers are complying with state workers’...
