Latest Agencies Headlines

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

How Agents Prepared and Fared as Gustav Hit Gulf States

Sep 22 2008 // On the morning of Sept. 1, Gustav’s eye made landfall on the Louisiana coast just shy of Category 3 status. Experts estimate Gustav caused about $8 billion to $10 billion in insured damage.On Aug. 29 as Hurricane...

People

Sep 22 2008 // Jacksonville, Florida-based Harden & Associates, an insurance brokerage company, promoted Dustin Theilacker to chief information officer.As CIO, Theilacker will continue to provide technology vision and leadership for...

Agents Weigh in on Gustav

Sep 22 2008 // In response to e-mailed inquiries from Insurance Journal, a number of Louisiana-based insurance operations reported they had prepared for Hurricane Gustav. Some had evacuated; most had recovery plans in place.Thomas J....

Why Agents Need to Know If Their Clients Blog

Sep 22 2008 // Blog-related personal injury suits have produced judgments ranging between $7,500 and $11.3 million.A Dade County, Florida real estate developer in January 2008 filed a $25 million lawsuit against a real estate blogger...

IIAT Disaster Response Team Heads to Coast

Sep 22 2008 // In the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas initiated its catastrophe response plan to offer assistance to member agencies that have been severely affected by the massive storm.The plan...

Hope is Not an Agency Plan

Sep 22 2008 // Despite current market conditions, as I travel from state to state, I find the goal of almost every independent agent is to grow personal lines business. The basis of this organic growth strategy is adding new clients or...

Hope is Not an Agency Plan

Sep 22 2008 // Despite current market conditions, as I travel from state to state, I find the goal of almost every independent agent is to grow personal lines business. The basis of this organic growth strategy is adding new clients or...

People

Sep 22 2008 // Swiss Re appointed Walter A. Bell chairman of Swiss Re America Holding Corp. He will provide supervisory governance of the Americas businesses and also will oversee and direct regulatory and public affairs for all of Swiss...

Hope is Not an Agency Plan

Sep 22 2008 // Despite current market conditions, as I travel from state to state, I find the goal of almost every independent agent is to grow personal lines business. The basis of this organic growth strategy is adding new clients or...

Hope is Not an Agency Plan

Sep 22 2008 // Despite current market conditions, as I travel from state to state, I find the goal of almost every independent agent is to grow personal lines business. The basis of this organic growth strategy is adding new clients or...

The Road to a Paper-Free Environment Goes Beyond Technology

Sep 22 2008 // On the side of a Utah highway, the client had been pulled over by a state trooper at a traffic stop. It was a frustrating experience, made even more so when the officer politely asked: “Why was there no insurance...

Credit Rating Agencies’ Cuts on AIG Signal Downgrades Ahead

Sep 21 2008 // Credit rating agencies, criticized for moving too slowly in cutting ratings on Wall Street firms and the complex instruments they devised, are now accused of acting too quickly.As the credit crisis enters a new phase, the...

Funeral Held for Insurance Agent, California Bans Train Operators from Texting

Sep 19 2008 // The first memorial service for a victim of the Sept. 12, 2008, Metrolink train collision was held in Simi Valley, Calif.Howard Pompel, 69, an insurance agent and father of three from Moorpark, Calif., was among the 25...

Program Broker NSM Insurance Appoints McKernan President

Sep 19 2008 // NSM Insurance Group has appointed Bill McKernan as president of the national insurance program administrator and brokerage company headquartered in Conshohocken, Pa. Geof McKernan will continue in his role as chief...

Heffernan Insurance Brokers Appoint Maciorowski Vice President in Missouri

Sep 16 2008 // Heffernan Insurance Brokers today announced the appointment of Greg Maciorowski as vice president in its Midwest practice group, based in Missouri.In this role, Greg will be charged with new business development for...

For Independent Agents, Carriers’ Claims Service is Top Performance Measure

Sep 15 2008 // Independent insurance agents want their property/casualty insurance carriers to provide quality claims service above all else, according to an exclusive survey of agents’ attitudes about the insurers their agencies...

NYMAGIC Builds Surplus Lines Brokerage Network

Sep 15 2008 // NYMAGIC, Inc. reported that its MMO Agencies unit has begun to write new business through 10 offices of surplus lines agents in Florida, New York, New Jersey and Kentucky, and that it expects to add offices of surplus...

Texas Agents Group Gears up Disaster Response Team

Sep 15 2008 // In the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas has initiated its catastrophe response plan to offer assistance to member agencies that have been severely adversely affected by the massive...

Bank Insurance Brokerage Earnings Break Highest Mid-Year Level

Sep 15 2008 // Mid-year earnings from bank insurance brokerage hit their highest level ever in the first half of 2008.Bank insurance brokerage earnings in the first six months of 2008 were $2.12 billion, up 6.4 percent from $1.99 billion...

Willis to Keep HRH’s Glencairn as Third Party Wholesaler

Sep 12 2008 // Willis Group Holdings has announced that ” Glencairn, Hilb Rogal & Hobbs’ London-based operation,” will form the “cornerstone” of a “new third-party wholesale brokerage...