Daily Headlines: Thursday, February 17, 2011

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February 17, 2011 News By Region  National  International  East  Midwest  Southeast  South Central  West Video Today's Headlines National Regulators Face Senate Panel Over Dodd-Frank Regulations Today Republicans will escalate their push to delay and defund the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reforms on Thursday as top regulators appear before the ... Monitor Liability Offers Social Media Endorsement for EPL Monitor Liability Managers, LLC has introduced  a new social media endorsement for its employment practices liability (EPL) insurance ... Big ‘I’ Promotes McPhillips to Senior Lobbyist Role Jennifer McPhillips has been promoted to senior director of federal government affairs for the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers ... Allstate Sues JPMorgan Over Mortgage Securities Losses Allstate Corp. sued JPMorgan Chase & Co. on Wednesday to recover losses after the bank allegedly misrepresented the risks on more than ... Best Sees No Effect on QBE’s Ratings from Balboa Deal A.M. Best Co. has commented that the financial strength rating of 'A' (Excellent) and issuer credit ratings of "a" of the New York-based ... Ratings Roundup: Westchester Fire, Middle Georgia A.M. Best Co. has withdrawn the financial strength rating (FSR) of 'A+' (Superior) and issuer credit rating (ICR) of "aa-" of New ... Restaurant Market Starting to Heat Up Again It is no secret that the restaurant industry has been in a slump the last few years. As families have cut back on eating out, restaurants... More National News East Nine New York Families Sue Gas Driller, Say Wells Tainted Nine New York homeowners have filed a lawsuit against a Denver-based natural gas driller and its subcontractors, claiming the companies ... New Jersey Man Pleads Guilty in Car-Fire Fraud A New Jersey man has pleaded guilty to torching is aunt's car so she could collect insurance money and pay him out of the proceeds ... Brown & Brown Acquires Two Massachusetts Agencies Brown & Brown has acquired United Benefit Services and Beverly T. Gottlieb & Associates, two metro-Boston agencies specializing in ... Renaissance Alliance Hires Schackner Massachusetts-based Renaissance Alliance Insurance Services has named Robert R. Schackner director of Competitive Edge Services. He will ... New York Drivers Will Get Points for Talking on Cell Phones Beginning tomorrow, New York drivers who are caught talking on their cell phones without a headset will gain two points on their driving ... Assurant Appoints Colberg New York-based specialty insurer Assurant appointed Alan Colberg to the newly created position of executive vice president of marketing and ... More East News How to Develop Program Business for Your Agency Information-packed 3-part training series starts today! Insurance Journal Academy of Insurance offers you a blueprint to guide you through building a successful program. All sessions will be recorded so you can catch up on anything you miss. Register Today | More Info Midwest Cedar Rapids Seeks $200 Million in State Flood Aid Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is seeking $200 million in long-term state financial aid to help pay the costs of a $375 million flood-control project ... United Fire Sees Higher Net Income but Premium Decrease in 2010 United Fire & Casualty Co., headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, reported an increase in net income for the fourth quarter and full ... Minnesota Commissioner Appoints 4 to Leadership Team Minnesota Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman has announced the newest members of his leadership team. Rothman tapped attorney and ... MJ Insurance Adds Hanson and Shields Indianapolis, Ind.-based MJ Insurance, one of the largest privately-held insurance agencies in the U.S., has added Sarah Hanson as claims ... More Midwest News Southeast North Carolina Lawmakers Debate Medical Malpractice Award Cap North Carolina lawmakers have begun what promises to be a long fight over medical malpractice laws as insurance and medical services ... Unpaid Workers’ Compensation Shuts West Virginia Fire Department A volunteer fire department must stop answering calls because it failed to pay workers' compensation premiums for its members. Marshall ... Mississippi Gov. Barbour Says BP Oil Spill Was Preventable Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said that the Gulf Coast oil spill occurred because the companies involved deviated from industry standards, ... Workers’ Compensation Research Group Defends Work in North Carolina A non-profit workers' compensation research organization that maintains its work is independent of the industry and objective has found ... Mississippi Municipal Insurer Takes Aim at Taser Weapons in Training A company that administers an insurance program for county workers injured on the job is discouraging the use of Taser shock weapons in ... Mississippi Senate Passes Proof of Auto Insurance Bill The Mississippi Senate has passed a bill requiring motorists to show proof they have purchased liability insurance before receiving a car ... More Southeast News South Central Arkansas Legislature Bans Cell Phones in School, Work Zones The Arkansas Legislature has given final approval to a ban on drivers using hand-held cell phones in school and work zones. The House has ... Texas Insurer Group Releases Motorists' Accident Brochure The Insurance Council of Texas (ICT) has released its newest brochure, "Holy Fender Bender! What Do We Do Next?" which provides simple, ... All Web Leads Acquires InsuranceLeads.com Austin, Texas-based All Web Leads Inc., an online sales lead generation company supplying the U.S. insurance industry, has acquired ... Combined Agents of America Partners with Allied Insurance Combined Agents of America LLC (CAA) announced a partnership with two new companies, Allied Insurance and Allied General Agency ... Texas Workers’ Comp January Enforcements Include Fines Up to $68K Final disciplinary actions taken by the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers' Compensation (TDI-DWC) for January 2011 include ... More South Central News West Washington Considers Pay-As-You-Drive Insurance Washington is considering a proposal that would allow drivers' insurance rates to be based primarily on the number of miles driven per ... Shoen Appointed President of Repwest Insurance Reno, Nev.-based AMERCO announced that Sam Shoen has been appointed president of its subsidiary Repwest Insurance Co., a property and ... Lemanowicz Receives Insurance Women Association Award The Insurance Women of North San Diego County has announced that its past president Regina Lemanowicz is the recipient of the Region VIII ... Washington To Process Producer Licenses Online The Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner has adopted new online insurance licensing rules that affect licensed agents, brokers ... Some Oregon Legislators Want to Relax Helmet Law Twenty Oregon legislators want to relax the state's motorcycle helmet law, so only drivers younger than 21 would be required to wear a ... More West News International Australia Weather Bureau Forecasts Reduced Risk from La Nina The La Nina weather pattern, which recently brought record floods and cyclones to Australia, is weakening, but there is a small risk that ... Study Finds Auto Insurance and Services Add Profits for Car Makers, Dealers Sales by car manufacturers and dealers of additional services to car buyers may mean the difference between profit and loss. A new study ... Spencer to Replace Spiller as Argo International’s Non-Exec. Chairman Argo Group International Holdings announced from its London headquarters that John Spencer will take over as non-executive chairman of Argo ... Ecuador Court Orders Chevron to Pay $8.6 Billon; Company to Appeal A court in Ecuador's Amazon told Chevron Corp Monday to pay $8.6 billion in environmental damages, but the U.S. oil company vowed to fight ... Mercer Report Concludes ‘Trillions of Dollars at Stake’ from Climate Change According to research released by Mercer and a group of leading global investors representing around $2 trillion in assets under ... Arch Capital Posts $227.7 Q4 Net Income; $816.7 Million Full Year Bermuda-based Arch Capital Group reported net income available to common shareholders for the 2010 fourth quarter of $227.7 million, or ... Danish Warship Frees Ship Hijacked by Pirates NATO says that a Danish warship has freed a hijacked fishing vessel and arrested 16 suspected Somali pirates. Sunday's press release says ... Lloyd’s CEO in China Talks on Expansion A bulletin on the Lloyd's web site notes that CEO Richard Ward "met with representatives from the China Insurance Regulatory Commission ... Validus Group Posts $102.7 Million Q4 Net Income; $402.6 Million FY As has been the case with many of its peers, Bermuda-based Validus Holdings didn't escape the loss events of 2010 unscathed, as both fourth ... More International News Insurance Journal Blogs More Blogs Join the Insurance Journal Network Insurance Journal TV Will Deficit Debate Affect Flood Insurance? Taxes? Following the November elections, Congress and the White House, as well as states, have... Watch Now How November Elections Changed Insurance Power in Washington The November elections brought change to Washington as Republicans took control of the House... Watch Now Watch more videos at InsuranceJournal.tv New Discussions in the Forums A facility maintenance account question Posted: Thu Feb 17 -- I think your worried about the wrong things... If the person damages a server, it might be worth $500-$50,000, probably more like $1500. The... mica.cooper Which carrier is best for hotels? Posted: Wed Feb 16 -- We are trying to write more hotel/motel business and would like to know the best carriers from someone who has directly worked with them.... cwallace Career Advice Posted: Wed Feb 16 -- Well let me first applaud you in the fact that you have some idea of what you want to do when you are done with school. Most people do not.... bjwestner Agency Management System Posted: Wed Feb 16 -- Anyone with experience with QQevolution? We are considering that one and hawksoft. Any thoughts? glennen Are Insurance Agencies Looking to Merger? Posted: Tue Feb 15 -- I have heard and read about this issue but didn't get any solid proof. Lets see, might someone will clarify whether insurance agencies are... Everett I'm Considering Opening an Independent Insurance Agency Posted: Tue Feb 15 -- Hi NewinSD, Let us know your location so we will guide you accordingly. Different countries have different strategies, terms and conditions. Everett Go to Forums Subscriber Tools Send this to a friend Subscribe Unsubscribe Submit News Contact Us Current Issue 2011 Market Fact Book and Buyer's Guide; (including all 2010 Surveys in one convenient place!) 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