Daily Headlines: Friday, January 20, 2012

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January 20, 2012 News By Region  National  International  East  Midwest  Southeast  South Central  West Video Today's Headlines National Veteran Gambled and Won in Starting Own Agency A recent study from the Small Business Administration suggests there is a strong correlation between self-employment and past military ... Senate, House Scuttle Online Piracy Bills Senate and House leaders have put their online piracy bills on the back burner after a week of heavy lobbying by technology industry ... Consumer Group Publishes ‘Insiders’ Advice’ on Filing Auto Claims The Consumer Federation of America, a Washington, D.C.-based group whose insurance division is directed by consumer advocate J. Robert ... Munich Re Creates New Coverage for Photovoltaic Manufacturers Munich Re has launched a new product to complement its performance guarantee cover for photovoltaic manufacturers. The product covers the ... Insurers Say Flexibility Needed to Keep Up with Green Tech Risks It's almost impossible to go a day without hearing something about green technology. It's on the news and on television commercials and... More National News East Lawsuit Filed Over 2008 Outbreak at Six Flags New York Water Park Some of the more than 600 people who fell ill while visiting an upstate New York indoor water park are part of a class-action lawsuit filed ... Virginia Mom of Boy Left on Bus Sues School Officials for $500K Richmond school officials are being sued by the mother of a 4-year-old autistic boy who was left on a bus. Nyheim Butler's lawsuit accuses ... Insurers Say More Pet Owners Turn to Pet Insurance Two years ago, Charles Smith's beloved Great Dane, Buzz, came down with what his veterinarian thought was bloat, a digestive-tract disorder ... Philly Dentist, Daughter Charged With $5M Medical Billing Fraud Authorities in Philadelphia say a city dentist and his daughter have been charged with submitting almost $5 million in fraudulent medical ... Starr Companies Hires AIG Exec to Lead Defense Base Act Coverages Starr Companies has appointed Shane McCaffrey as profit center manager in charge of Defense Base Act and foreign casualty insurance for ... More East News Midwest Ohio Property Insurance Rates Expected to Rise After Storms Ohio's relatively low rates for property insurance are expected to rise in 2012 due to the damaging storms of recent years. An insurance ... Minnesota Medical Mistakes Up, But Fewer Cases of Harm Serious mistakes in Minnesota hospitals rose slightly in 2011, but they led to fewer serious injuries and deaths than the year before, ... Durocher Promoted to Director of Business Development at Scobie Group Jamie Durocher has been promoted to director of business development for Eau Claire, Wis.-based wholesale insurance firm, Scobie Group. ... Columbus Insurance Market Opens Additional Location The Columbus Insurance Market has opened a new agency location in Columbus, Ohio. This new location will serve the Columbus metropolitan ... More Midwest News Southeast Arthur J. Gallagher Acquires South Carolina’s Riley & Associates Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. said it has acquired Riley & Associates Inc. in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. Terms of the transaction ... Brown & Brown Promotes Strianese to Regional President Insurance agency Brown & Brown Inc. as promoted Anthony Strianese to the position of regional president. Strianese, who has served as ... More Southeast News South Central Texas Ranks Low in Study of Building Codes; Louisiana Fares Better That Texas ranked among the bottom three states in a recently released analysis of residential building codes in the 18 hurricane-prone ... Johnson & Johnson Settles Texas Lawsuit for $158M A lawsuit in which Texas accused Johnson & Johnson of plundering the state Medicaid program by overstating the safety of an expensive ... Texas-Based CAA Sees Nearly 20% Premium Growth in Q3 2011 Combined Agents of America LLC (CAA), headquartered in Austin, Texas, reported 19.5 percent growth in written property/casualty premiums in ... More South Central News West Ice Storm Adds to Weather Woes in Pacific Northwest A deadly ice storm swept across the Pacific Northwest on Thursday, adding to the misery of residents struggling with power outages and ... Auto Insurance Discount Act Qualifies For 2012 Ballot The Secretary of State has verified the 2012 Automobile Insurance Discount Act will qualify for the November ballot. The initiative had the ... Cal/OSHA Issues $256K in Citations to Warehouse Operators Cal/OSHA has issued $256,445 in fines to two companies in Chino, Calif. for over 60 safety violations discovered during warehouse ... USDA Giving Arizona $5.2 Million in Disaster Funds Arizona is set to get $5.2 million in disaster aid from the Department of Agriculture. USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the award as ... California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones: Year One Poll Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones marked his first full year in office this week by looking back on his and the California Department of ... Jones: California Workers' Comp Filings Show Companies Using Advisory Rates A majority of companies are using California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones' approved advisory pure premium rates in their rate ... More West News International Fitch: Bermuda Insurance Market Resilient as Pricing Firms Following near-record global catastrophe losses in 2011, Bermuda-domiciled reinsurers are positioned to benefit from an improved ... Carlyle Cuts Stake in China Pacific Insurance Group U.S. private equity fund Carlyle Group has sold 18 million shares in China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co. Ltd (CPIC), taking its holding ... Financial Stability Tops List of Insurers’ Concerns: Geneva Association A newly published study from insurance think tank the Geneva Association analyzes the principle concerns facing the industry in 2012.  The ... Concordia Disaster Could Cost Insurers $1 Billion The capsizing of the Costa Concordia could not have come at a worse time for the cruise industry — right at the start of the peak booking ... List of Insured Loss Estimates from Thailand Floods Last year's flooding in Thailand is shaping up to be one of the worst natural disasters in human history, with insured losses alone ... 2011 Piracy Attacks Totaled 439; 275 off Somalia: ICC/IMB Report According to the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) International Maritime Bureau's (IMB) global piracy report attacks in East and ... Gorman Joins DUAL Ireland Team as Financial Lines Underwriter Specialist underwriting agency DUAL Ireland has expanded its Dublin-based team with the appointment of Martha Gorman as Development ... More International News Sponsored Content Agents & Brokers: Take IJ's 2012 Agency Salary Survey Today and Receive an Advance Copy of the Story and the Survey Results! More Sponsored Content Join the Insurance Journal Network Insurance Journal TV How Insurance Distribution Is Changing Retail and wholesale brokers face the challenge —and opportunity— of redefining their... Watch Now Vertafore: Intelligence in Technology Insurance technology leader Vertafore serves 15,000 agencies, 1,000 carriers and about 750... Watch Now Watch more videos at InsuranceJournal.tv New Discussions in the Forums Farmers - your opinion Posted: Fri Jan 20 -- I am a little late to the dance here, I guess. DM, I note you said, 2 things I would bring up is the University & contract... ugottabkidding Start up Agency Advice Posted: Thu Jan 19 -- I've been trying to run through the information on these clusters, so much out there and lots of out of date information on the forums when... gregm21 The transition from underwriter to producer... Posted: Thu Jan 19 -- Chi804, is you decide to transition to a producer and need assistance with the licensing give ILSA a call. Insurance Licensing Services of... kstarling ILSA SOCAL Brush Posted: Wed Jan 18 -- Anyone know of standard carriers that wil write in CA Brush line? Travelers, Hartford, Fidelity have all said no. Value is $1.1. I know... JAM Workers comp for janitorial services Posted: Wed Jan 18 -- You can try First Comp-Markel if they have less than 20k payroll. If over 20k Tower has some decent rates for 9008 new venture guys. EricCBIAIns Study tips for the California Life Agent Exam Posted: Tue Jan 17 -- How? hawnbiz My CPCU journey - almost finished..... Posted: Tue Jan 17 -- Thanks KD, I may consider submitting my story when the time comes. I have an update - I'm now just one class away from being done. I took... bjwestner Tracking Producer Comission Posted: Tue Jan 17 -- JAM, If tracking these commissions is close to a full-time job, then as Island Girl Agent mentioned, it is time to look at an agency... JasonBHBCo Go to Forums Reader Comments Murderer, Fake FBI Agent, Amateur Arsonist Enter Insurance Fraud Hall of Shame Posted: Tue Jan 17 -- Some of these are unbelievable for their stupidity. I can't believe the one on the $163 Million scam of Medicare and they get only 3 years... Amazed 2-Year Term for Texting Driver in Fatal Oregon Crash Posted: Fri Jan 13 -- Another reason our legal system sucks. Getting busted with weed draws a longer sentence. This jackass showed total disregard for life when... Jester Judge Allows Suit Alleging GE Misled Investors Posted: Fri Jan 13 -- Why am I not surprised about this? Jeffrey Immelt is the poster child for corporate corruption. GE Capital received a lot of TARP funds when... Amazed Florida Workers' Compensation Rate Hike Irks Businesses Posted: Tue Jan 17 -- If you own a business in Florida, you realize that workers comp is very hard to buy. When there is a legitimate reason for an increase that... earlybird South Carolina Jury Awards $1M to Teens in 'Choking Game' Claim Posted: Tue Jan 17 -- Were you there when this happened? Maybe you should give the benefit of the doubt to the people involved in this case who witnessed it,... 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