Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Reinvention in Insurance: Is it Possible?
May 18 2009 // Despite what you may think, the insurance industry has not changed much in the past century. The insurance industry was regulated in 1945 with the passage of the McCarran-Ferguson Act that allows insurance to be regulated...
Home Defect Bill Divides Nevada Lawmakers
May 18 2009 // Nevada senators and sssembly members are battling over a construction defect bill that has turned into one of the most contentious issues of the 2009 Nevada Legislature, now in its final weeks. Senators voted 19-1 in...
P/C Insurance Agents Battle Public Health Care Reform Option
May 18 2009 // Lobbyists for property/casualty insurance agents have elevated health care reform to the top of their political agenda. P/C agents have addressed health insurance legislation in the past but the issue has taken on new...
No Resolution on Credit Scores
May 18 2009 // The use of credit scores by insurance companies in rating methodologies continues to be unresolved in several Midwest states, as evidenced by ongoing court battles and legislative actions aimed at tweaking existing...
Indiana Lawmakers Eliminate Policy Re-rate Mandate
May 18 2009 // The Indiana General Assembly has removed a provision in Indiana law requiring insurance companies to re-rate an insurance policy at least once every three years based on current credit information. The decision to re-run...
Florida Restores Cap on Workers’ Compensation Attorneys’ Fees
May 18 2009 // Florida has passed legislation to restore a cap on attorneys’ fees in workers’ compensation cases, a measure backed by the state’s insurance regulator. The bill (HB 903) effectively overturns a Florida...
Mennonites Seek Auto Insurance Law Exemption
May 18 2009 // The small community of Mennonites that multiplied along a web of dirt roads in rural southeast Georgia has steadily grown the same way it does just about everything: Quietly. The community’s 100 or so members have...
Florida Approves Bill to Raise Property Insurance Rates
May 18 2009 // Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has said he would sign legislation passed at the eed of the legslative session that increases property insurance rates by 10 percent on more than 1 million customers of the state-backed Citizens...
Amid Obstacles, Opportunities Exist
May 18 2009 // In today’s environment, the value of personal relationships, soar. Nobody fosters these better than insurance agents. You don’t need to get too deep into conversation these days to find out people are afraid....
Outside the Beltway-Big ‘I’ CEO on Carrier Relations, AIG and Agent Grassroots
May 18 2009 // Bob Rusbuldt, president and CEO of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (Big “I”), sat down with Insurance Journal‘s Andrew Simpson at the association’s recent legislative...
Inside the Beltway-Federal Regulation Threat Remains Priority
May 18 2009 // Health care reform hasn’t completely overwhelmed federal regulation as a concern in Washington, at least for insurance agents. They believe that given all of the current financial turmoil, some type of financial...
Capital, Capital, or Where Did All the Money Go?
May 18 2009 // At least the global depression has focused people’s minds on some important issues. The Group of 20 (G20) meeting in London acknowledged the need for more capital to shore-up the world’s financial system...
Inside the Beltway-Why Health Care Reform Matters to P/C Agents
May 18 2009 // P/C Agents Join Fight Against Competing Government Health Plan Property/casualty insurance agents have elevated health care reform to the top of their political agenda; the matter is now just a notch below the perennial...
Max Capital Wins Court Ruling Dismissing Validus Expedition Request
May 15 2009 // The Bermuda-based Max Capital Group Ltd. Has won a skirmish in its fight with Validus Holdings over the acquisition of IPC Re when the Bermuda Supreme Court dismissed the application by Validus to expedite its suit against...
Validus Responds to Court Ruling; Asks for ‘Scheme of Arrangement’
May 15 2009 // Validus Holdings has issued a statement in response to the decision by the Supreme Court of Bermuda not to expedite its lawsuit against IPC Holdings, Ltd. IPC Limited and Max Capital Group Ltd. (See related article...
Texas House OKs Injured Worker Bill
May 15 2009 // Despite the protests of insurance and business interests, the Texas House has passed legislation that would make it easier for certain injured workers to sue property owners for negligence. House Bill 1657 by Reps. Eiland,...
Wisconsin Lawmakers Looking at ‘Pre-existing Conditions’ in Policies
May 15 2009 // Wisconsin lawmakers are considering legislation to prevent insurance companies from denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. Federal law prevents public programs such as BadgerCare and employer-sponsored...
Judge Tosses Most Supermarket Data Breach Claims
May 14 2009 // Only those customers who weren’t reimbursed for fraudulent charges may sue the Hannaford Bros. supermarket chain over a data breach that exposed 4.2 million credit and debit card numbers to computer hackers, a...
Missouri Lawmakers Revise Fire Marshal Inspection Rule
May 14 2009 // Legislation easing the burden on the Missouri fire marshal to conduct fire safety inspections at long-term care facilities won final approval. The measure partially revises a law enacted after a November 2006 fire killed...
Florida Agents, Consumer Advocate Agree: Insurance Rates Must Go Up
May 14 2009 // With the start of the hurricane season just a few weeks away, a leading Florida consumer advocate joined independent agents at a press conference today to warn that property insurance rates need to be raised if insurers...
