Latest Texas Headlines
All the headlines from our Texas Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Fire Fatalities Confirmed at North Texas Homeless Shelter
Jan 6 2009 // Fire ripped through a small-town homeless shelter in the Northeast Texas town of Paris early in the morning of Jan. 5, killing multiple people and forcing dozens to be relocated, the town’s fire chief said. Paris...
2008: Top Stories of the Year
Jan 5 2009 // 2008 can be described as a year like no other in the property/casualty insurance world. This year we saw the near death of the world’s largest and most successful insurance company, AIG. The soft market continued to...
Texas’ Workers’ Comp Discount Rate Set at 3.95%
Dec 29 2008 // The Texas Department of Insurance Division of Workers’ Compensation reported that the workers’ compensation interest/discount rate for Jan. 1, 2009, through March 31, 2009, will be 3.95 percent. The...
Former Mississippi Commissioner Featured at Texas Agents Event
Dec 23 2008 // The nation’s longest serving insurance commissioner, former Mississippi Insurance Commissioner George Dale, will share his unique post-Katrina insights on the regulatory challenges in the aftermath of large-scale...
Watkins Group to Market Cincinnati Insurance Business Policies in Texas
Dec 23 2008 // Cincinnati Financial Corporation’s property casualty insurance subsidiary, the Cincinnati Insurance Company, has appointed Watkins Insurance Group, with locations in Austin and Marble Falls, Texas, as the first...
Other Agency/Brokerage Transactions in 2008
Dec 21 2008 // Transactions involving agencies and brokerages other than the Brown & Brown, Arthur J. Gallagher and Hub International (see below) deals in the months announced or completed: January California: R.E. Chaix &...
2008 Quotes to Remember… and Forget
Dec 21 2008 // “You always find out who’s been swimming naked when the tide goes out. We found out that Wall Street has been kind of a nudist beach.” —Warren Buffett on the credit crisis “As a strong supporter...
The Busiest Agency Buyers in 2008
Dec 21 2008 // Brown & Brown December: Stewart & Tunno Insurance Agency Inc., Portland, Ore. November: Small Business Unit of Conner Strong, Cherry Hill, N.J.; Agency Associates Inc., Zionsville; Health Insurance Exchange,...
Top Regional Stories of 2008
Dec 21 2008 // West California Passed Agent-Broker Law The most notable bill affecting California agents was AB 2956, which clarifies the duties of an insurance agent versus a broker. Prior to the new law, confusion existed within the...
Coleman Named Director and Limited Partner at Texas Wasatch Group
Dec 18 2008 // Texas auto and home insurance broker, Texas Wasatch Insurance/TWG Insurance, has promoted Cleveland Coleman to director. He also was named a limited partner of the firm. The promotion reflects the ongoing success of the...
Texas Agent Group Revising Essentials Training Program
Dec 18 2008 // The Independent Insurance Agents of Texas is updating its training program designed to provide agents with a foundation in commercial and personal lines insurance. Beginning in January, IIAT is taking the best elements of...
TWFG Offers to Replace Coverage for Customers of Failed Texas Insurer
Dec 16 2008 // The Woodlands Financial Group (TWFG) announced that TWFG will offer replacement coverage for the homeowners business of Austin Indemnity Lloyds Insurance Company, effective Jan. 29, 2009. TWFG General Agency, a subsidiary...
Hallmark Financial Services E&S Carrier Expands Into Texas, Louisiana
Dec 16 2008 // Hallmark Financial Services Inc. (Hallmark), based in Fort Worth, Texas, reported its subsidiary TGA Insurance Managers Inc. (TGA) will start issuing excess and surplus lines policies through its affiliate Hallmark...
3 Months After Ike: 730K Claims Filed; 2,300-Plus Complaints Received
Dec 16 2008 // By Dec. 13, 2008, the three-month mark since Hurricane Ike’s landfall on Galveston Island, more than 730,000 insurance claims had been filed, a number that will continue to climb in the year ahead, the Texas...
FEMA Extends Deadline to Ask For Hurricane Help in Texas
Dec 15 2008 // The Federal Emergency Management Agency is giving Texas victims of Hurricane Ike an extra 29 days to ask for financial help. FEMA extended the application deadline for homeowners, renters and business owners to Jan....
Texas Regulators to Liquidate Austin Indemnity Lloyds
Dec 15 2008 // The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) announced it has filed a petition for the liquidation of Austin Indemnity Lloyds Insurance Company (Austin Indemnity). The company sold homeowners and personal auto coverage in...
Texas AG: GAB Robins Among Firms Settling ID Theft Charges
Dec 12 2008 // GAB Robins, a firm that provides risk management and claims services to the insurance industry, is one of three firms cited by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott for failure to protect customers’ identities,...
Texas Windstorm Insurance Association: 63% of Ike Claims Closed
Dec 11 2008 // Texas’ insurer of last resort for wind and hail coverage along the coast reports that 63 percent of claims from Hurricane Ike have been closed and that more than $519 million has been paid to policyholders so...
CAA Expanding to Oklahoma, Kansas
Dec 10 2008 // Austin, Texas-based Combined Agents of America LLC (CAA) announced plans to expand outside of Texas with potential new members from Oklahoma and Kansas. “With 4 new members so far in 2008 and the potential of more in...
Grob Joins Texas Wasatch Group as President and COO
Dec 10 2008 // Texas Wasatch Insurance/TWG Insurance announced that Jay Grob has joined the company as president and chief operating officer. A former senior partner of Bain & Company, Grob brings a wealth of experience to...
