Latest Florida Headlines

All the headlines from our Florida Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Fla. Roofing Company Owners Face Fraud, Racketeering Charges

Sep 3 2002 // Father and son owners of a Bay County, Fla. roofing company were hit with charges of racketeering and workers compensation fraud stemming from schemes the two allegedly used to avoid more than $1.5 million in premiums for...

Vesta’s Outlook Negative

Sep 2 2002 // Fitch Ratings affirmed “BBB-” insurer financial strength ratings of Vesta Insurance Group’s insurance subsidiaries. A “BBB-” rating was assigned to Florida Select Insurance Company (Florida...

Vesta Affirmed

Sep 2 2002 // Fitch Ratings affirmed “BBB-” insurer financial strength ratings of Vesta Insurance Group’s insurance subsidiaries. A “BBB-” rating was assigned to Florida Select Insurance Company (Florida...

Gov. Bush Creates Medical Liability Task Force

Aug 30 2002 // Florida Governor Jeb Bush announced the creation of the Select Task Force on Healthcare Professional Liability Insurance to address the impact of skyrocketing liability insurance premiums on healthcare in Florida. The task...

Contractors Protest at Florida Workers’ Comp Commission Meeting

Aug 26 2002 // Florida contractors mounted a protest at a meeting with the Governor’s Commission on Workers’ Compensation, insisting that a new law requiring all workers to be covered by workers’ comp on commercial...

Groups Urge Regulatory Constraint at Fla. Mold Hearings

Aug 21 2002 // Both the American Insurance Association (AIA) and the Alliance of American Insurers urged Florida policyholders, insurers, and regulators to take a rational approach to mold issues at a recent hearing held by the...

Miami Hurricane Damage Could Cost $80B

Aug 19 2002 // A direct hit on downtown Miami by the most powerful type of hurricane could cause $80 billion in damage, far exceeding that of Hurricane Andrew, the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history, an insurance industry group...

Groups Ask Congress for New Mold Research; Florida Looks West

Aug 19 2002 // Saying that new concerns exist about the potential of health problems related to mold, a congressional subcommittee held hearings recently in Washington, D.C., on “Mold: A Growing Problem.” Submitting testimony...

NAPSLO Interns At Work in Summer

Aug 19 2002 // The National Association of Professional Surplus Lines Offices (NAPSLO) announced that eight college student are participating in its 2002 Summer Internship Program. The interns spend five weeks during the summer working...

Prompt Solution to Mold Issue is urged at Fla. Hearing

Aug 16 2002 // The National Association of Independent Insurers is urging the Florida Department of Insurance to take prompt action in order to prevent the mold issue from spiraling out of control and creating crisis conditions in the...

I.I.I. Says 10 Years Later, Business Still Ill-Prepared for Hurricane

Aug 15 2002 // Mitigation efforts to reduce property damage, death, injuries and economic loss from the next Hurricane Andrew have been effective where applied, but their use has been spotty and in some cases their benefit diminished by...

Vesta Declares Cash Dividend, Receives Negative Outlook from Fitch

Aug 9 2002 // Alabama-based Vesta Insurance Group, a holding company for various insurance and financial service firms, announced its board of directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.025 per share for the period ending...

N.A.P.T. Chief Officer Pleads Guilty to Fla. Fraud

Aug 7 2002 // The chief organizer of a Pennsylvania organization that reportedly sold bogus health insurance to thousands of Floridians has pleaded guilty to two felony counts of communications fraud, Florida Treasurer and Insurance...

New Florida Insurer of Last Resort Now in Operation

Aug 6 2002 // Florida Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner Tom Gallagher announced that Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (Citizens) has taken over as the state’s insurer of last resort for consumers unable to obtain...

As Group Ask Congress for New Mold Research, Florida’s Eyes Turn West

Aug 5 2002 // Saying that new concerns exist about the potential of health problems related to mold, a congressional subcommittee held hearings recently in Washington, D.C., on “Mold: A Growing Problem.” Submitting testimony...

Presidion Solutions Renews Workers’ Comp Program

Aug 2 2002 // Presidion Solutions, Inc., a privately held Professional Employer Organization (PEO), has renewed its workers’ compensation insurance program with Florida- based First Commercial Mutual Insurance Company. First...

Florida Commissioner Unopposed in Fall CFO Election

Jul 29 2002 // Florida Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner Tom Gallagher will run unopposed this fall in his bid for the state’s CFO position, after Attorney General Bob Butterworth, his expected opponent, decided to run instead...

Auto Theft Charges Brought Against Pair of Fla. Men

Jul 19 2002 // The Florida Office of Statewide Prosecution has charged Ramy Vaserman and Joseph Korinek with five counts each of grand theft after the two allegedly bought 31 cars at auto auctions using bad checks. An investigation by...

Fla. Commissioner Appoints Board of Governors for Citizens P&C Corporation

Jul 2 2002 // Florida Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner Tom Gallagher announced the appointment of seven individuals who will serve as the Board of Governors for Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (Citizens). Citizens will serve...

American Physicians Assurance Leaving Fla. Med-Mal Market

Jun 26 2002 // American Physicians Assurance Corporation (APA), a subsidiary of East Lansing, Mich.-based American Physicians Capital Inc., has filed notice with the Florida Department of Insurance that it plans to cease writing medical...