Articles by William Rabb

Rabb is Southeast Editor for Insurance Journal. He is a long-time newspaper man in the Deep South; also covered workers' comp insurance issues for a trade publication for a few years.

Florida Appeals Court Upsets Applecart on Workers’ Comp Statute of Limitations

A recent decision and concurring opinion by a Florida appeals court may have upset years of practice and could raise costs for workers’ compensation insurers. Some claims that carriers were once ready to close out of due to the statute …

‘Epidemic’ of Hidden Cams? SC Workers’ Comp Lawyer Sued After Arrest for Videos

Two months after his law license was suspended and he was charged with illicitly filming renters at his beach property, a South Carolina workers’ compensation attorney now faces a civil lawsuit by one of the alleged victims. The lawyer for …

With Waters and Mandates Rising, HoneyQuote Adds Flood Insurance Price Tool

As more policyholders with Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance are statutorily required to purchase flood insurance, another insurance rate-quoting service has gotten in on the act. Officials with HoneyQuote.com announced Monday that the firm has started offering flood insurance quotes from …

FEMA Maps Lead to Development in Flood-Risk Areas, NC State Study Shows

A study by researchers at North Carolina State University supports what some critics of federal flood maps have said for years: That lines drawn on a map give a false sense of security from flooding and have led to increased …

Collateral Agreement Didn’t Mention Tort Claims, Cutting SUNZ Out of BP Funds

If insurance carriers want dibs on a company’s assets as premium security or collateral, they had better specify that those assets include potential tort-claim settlements, a federal appeals court said Wednesday. In a case that involved a Florida staffing company, …

More SE States Pushing Funding, Discounts for Stronger Roofs as Storms Increase

A residual property insurer and regulators in two Southeastern states are emphasizing roof integrity, more signs that mitigation and prevention are increasingly recognized as ways to reduce insured losses as storms escalate in frequency and severity. “The goal is to …

Did Florida Appeals Court Put the Final Nail in the AOB Coffin? Maybe

Almost five years after Florida lawmakers clamped restrictions on assignment-of-benefits agreements and two years after they effectively outlawed AOBs altogether, state appeals courts may have finally put an end to one creative way that had been used in attempts to …

Uber Not Liable: Driver Was Not Logged in at Time of Accident, Florida Court Says

A Florida man may have been an occasional driver for Uber, the ride-hailing company, but he was not working at the time that he struck and killed his former girlfriend, and Uber is not liable for the wrongful death, a …

BTW Settles Whistleblower Suit on Overbilling of Federal Workers’ Comp Program

BTW Solutions bills itself as a drug wholesaler and billing service – and as a way for physicians to maximize profits on workers’ compensation and personal-injury-protection patients through the use of topical creams and durable medical equipment. The Benton, Arkansas-based …

Security First, Amelia Underwriters Offering New Products in Warming Florida Market

Two Florida-based insurance companies are expanding their product lines, another sign that insurers are making more – if limited – moves into a warming market in the state. Amelia Underwriters, a wholesale and surplus lines broker based in Fernandina Beach, …