Insurance Journal’s Andy Simpson interviews Jeff Grady, president/CEO, Florida Association of Insurance Agents, on Florida’s troubled and politicized property insurance market, the Citizens’ takeout program, reinsurance requirements, MGAs, how SB2044 will help and what more needs to be done to fix the system. Grady discusses how important the market is to independent agents and isn’t [...]
Reinsurance for that 1-in-100 year storm. That’s a criterion that the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has used for years in assessing property insurers’ reinsurance programs. It’s also a standard that some rating agencies use. But Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has decided to take a fresh look. He wants to look not just vertically [...]
In Florida it’s not uncommon for an insurance holding company to have an affiliated managing general agency to which it pays fees. Those fees have come in for some criticism lately by some who think that insurance companies that say they are losing money are actually funneling profits to their MGAs. State officials have looked [...]
Federal healthcare reforms call for major group health insurers to be held to an 85% loss ratio while insurers in the small and individual markets would have to achieve 80%. The government has some flexibility in setting the final ratios. Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty is among those who thinks the ratio needs to be [...]
Florida insurance leaders rate the recently passed property insurance legislation (SB2044) and how they expect it to help carriers, agents and consumers. Insurance Journal’s Andy Simpson interviews Jeff Grady, president/CEO, Florida Association of Insurance Agents; Kevin McCarty, insurance commissioner; James Graganella, president/CEO, Southern Fidelity and Capitol Preferred; and Jay Newman, chairman, one-year old Sawgrass Mutual.
Florida has not deregulated homeowners insurance rates as some wanted and the Office of Insurance Regulation has been busy handling insurer rates filings—more than 1,300 since last April. Since January, close to 400 requests have been filed, with about 225 of all different types and sizes approved. Insurance Journal’s Andy Simpson asked Florida Insurance Commissioner [...]
Later this year, tax cuts passed by the Bush administration are set to expire, likely meaning tax increases for many insurance agency owners. Combined with a looming increase in estate taxes in 2011, agents are increasingly worried about what will happen come the end of this year. Charles Symington, senior vice president of government affairs [...]
On Feb. 28, the National Flood Insurance Program lapsed for several days because Congress failed to pass reauthorization. That was just the latest issue for this program that is becoming a major concern for independent agents. Their worries: insufficient coverage, insufficient limits and insufficient leadership in Washington when it comes to this key program. In [...]
After 30 years at Chubb Corp, Thomas Motamed joined CNA Financial in January, 2009 as chairman and CEO. In this interview with Insurance Journal’s Andrew Simpson, Motamed talks about the changes he has made at CNA and what he sees down the road.
Recent property/casualty insurer financials showed improvement but Thomas Motamed, CNA Financial’s CEO and chairman, isn’t jumping for joy yet. Investment income is down and underwriting results aren’t improving, he says in this interview with Insurance Journal’s Andrew Simpson. That means companies like his have to stress pricing and underwriting discipline even though the economy continues [...]
The ongoing debate over health care reform in Congress is not just a concern to health insurers. Property/casualty insurers, too, are watching for any spillover effects from provisions that have been considered, according to Dr. Robert Hartwig, president and economist at the Insurance Information Institute.
The exposure of various states’ residual markets for property insurance has grown from $55 billion to nearly $700 billion in the last two decades. Dr. Robert Hartwig, president and economist of the Insurance Information Institute, discusses how this has become a serious problem, particularly in Florida, for both public officials and private industry.
When Democrats took control of Congress, an era of tort reforms ended, according to Dr. Robert Hartwig, president and economist at the Insurance Information Institute. In this interview with Insurance Journal’s Andrew Simpson, Hartwig warns that as a result of current politics favoring trial attorneys, another tort crisis is on the horizon.
The recession has taken its toll on many traditional businesses. But the good news is that, as these businesses recover along with the economy, there will also be opportunity for insurers to address the needs of some new growth industries over the next decade, according to Dr. Robert Hartwig, economist with the Insurance Information Institute. [...]
Property/casualty insurers’ investment income has been down and it isn’t going up any time soon, according to Dr. Robert Hartwig, president and economist for the Insurance Information Institute in this interview with Insurance Journal’s Andrew Simpson. How will insurers perform and price products in this environment and will regulators take note? Hartwig also discusses the [...]
The alternative energy market has many complicated angles to it, including solar warranties, which are essential to solar manufacturers as well as to the development and funding of solar projects.
According to Mike McMullen, president of PowerGuard Specialty Insurance Services, banks are hesitant to lend against some larger solar projects because of the severe credit [...]
Engle Martin & Associates is an independent adjusting firm providing claims services to the insurance industry. In this interview with Claims Journal, Susan Froman, Engle Martin’s Director of Sales, discusses the growth of the company and providing service to their clients when they need it most.
Too often agency principals find themselves facing a forced sale as a result of not having a proper perpetuation plan. In this podcast, MarshBerry president John Wepler discusses the many difficult and “uncomfortable” decisions required of an owner seeking to properly–and profitably–perpetuate the firm. Listen to this frank conversation as John offers some good news: [...]
The Internet makes it easier to get into business but it also makes it easier to steal others’ ideas. The Web is also expanding the notion of what materials, images and designs need to be protected. Intellectual property attorney David Branfman advises agents on questions to ask clients about intellectual property exposures and warns about [...]
Moving companies face a number of exposures in their daily operations, including workers compensation, cargo, fleet and general liability. Priority Moving in San Diego, Calif. is no exception. A Wheaton Van Lines agent, Priority Moving has created a series of internal procedures, reinforced by a strong employee screening process and training program. Analytics software [...]
Stroz Friedberg is a consulting firm that does computer forensics, mobile phone forensics, electronic discovery and cyber crime response, operating at the intersection of law, technology and behavioral sciences. David Garrett, managing director of Stroz Friedberg’s San Francisco office, explains why clients may or may not have cyber risk insurance, whether those that have the [...]
Corporate Helicopters is a San Diego business focusing on charter, tours, aerial filming and helicopter sales. In this episode of Watching the Risks, Corporate Helicopters president Ivor Shier explains how looking through the lens of risk analysis from the formative years to the present has led to a safer company.
To Alan Kaufman, chairman, president and CEO of Burns & Wilcox, the way to achieve growth in a soft market is simple: Write more business. Kaufman, whose privately owned company is one of the largest insurance wholesalers in North America, says one way to do that is by seeking out pockets of business that standard [...]
The U.S. Department of Transportation recently extended for two years the cross-border trucking demonstration project, a reciprocal agreement that allows up to 100 Mexico-domiciled motor carriers to operate beyond the U.S. border commercial zones, and the same number of U.S. carriers to operate in Mexico. In an exclusive interview with Insurance Journal’s Ken St. Onge, [...]
Agency Management Done Right is an audio podcast hosted by Mitch Dunford exploring various aspects of agency management.
The topic of the fourth episode is business travel, and Mitch is joined by Michael Lyons, VP of the National Business Travel Association (NBTA). Topics of conversation include the swine flu and its impact on business travel, airline [...]
Overlooking fires in San Diego County