Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Daily Headlines: Wednesday, May 23, 2012

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Insurance Journal Daily Headlines
May 23, 2012
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Today's Headlines

National

U.S. SEC Dealt Blow in Financial Crisis Case

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was dealt a setback in its cases tied to the financial collapse when a federal judge dismissed ...

Facebook, Banks Sued Over Pre-IPO Analyst Calls

Facebook Inc. and banks including Morgan Stanley were sued by the social networking leader's shareholders, who claimed the defendants hid ...

General Ledger Accounting for P/C Agencies

In current practice insurance premium accounting is based on general ledger (GL) accounting. It is used by all agency management software ...

FDIC Sues Big Banks Over Mortgage Securities

The government has sued several big banks over toxic mortgage securities they issued that were bought by two small Illinois banks which ...

Willis Launches Insurance Program for Equipment Rental Industry

Willis Programs of New Hampshire, Inc., a unit of Willis Group Holdings, has introduced a customized insurance product for rental yards and ...

From MyNewMarkets.com Home Insurance Rates Rose 19% Nationwide in 2011: Report

Homeowners insurance premiums went up 19 percent on average nationwide, according to a report from an online insurance...
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East

Insurers Paid $200M to Victims of June 1, 2011 Massachusetts Tornadoes

Massachusetts officials said that insurers so far paid out $200 million in claims related to devastating tornadoes in western and central ...

FBI: 10 More Charged in N.Y. Long Island Rail Road Pensions Case

The FBI said it has arrested 10 more people as part of its months-long investigation into allegations that hundreds of Long Island Rail ...

University of Pennsylvania Launches New Risk and Insurance Program

The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania said this week it has established a new Wharton/Penn Risk and Insurance Program ...

Penn. Pain Management Doc Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Insurers

A Pittsburgh-area doctor who specialized in pain management faces a lengthy federal prison sentence after pleading guilty to prescribing ...

Vermont Companies Get Workplace Safety Awards

The state of Vermont is honoring several companies for their commitment to safety in the workplace. The Ben & Jerry's plant in St. Albans ...
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Midwest

Jury Awards Brothers $700K in Wisconsin Diocese Molestation Case

An Outagamie County, Wis., jury has awarded two brothers $700,000 in a fraud trial against the Catholic Diocese of Green Bay. The civil ...

Ratings Affirmed for Atain Specialty Insurance and Subsidiary

A.M. Best Co. has upgraded the issuer credit ratings (ICR) to "a+" from "a" and affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of A ...

Illiniois Agency Owner to Lead National Surety Bond Producer Group

Carl E. Dohn, Jr., president of Dohn & Maher Associates, a Palatine, Ill., insurance agency, has been installed as the president of the ...

Wisconsin's United Heartland Honored as a Top 100 Workplace

United Heartland, a national workers' compensation insurance company based in New Berlin, Wis., announced it has been selected as one of ...

SIAA Adds Another Master Agency in Michigan Marketplace

SIAA Inc., a national alliance of insurance agencies, has signed its 51st master agency, Michigan Agency Partners of Jackson, Mich. The ...
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Southeast

Mississippi Catholic Groups Sue Over Birth Control Rule

Ten Catholic groups in Mississippi are suing the Obama administration over a mandate that most employers provide birth control coverage as ...

Assurant Specialty to Hire Up to 100 Workers in Gwinnett County, Ga.

Assurant Specialty Property, a provider of insurance services, said this week it is hiring as many as 100 new employees at its customer ...
South Central

Ratings of Dallas National Insurance Downgraded, Under Review

A.M. Best Co. has downgraded the financial strength rating to B-(Fair) from B (Fair) and issuer credit rating to "bb-" from "bb" of ...

Celebration Believed to Have Led to Louisiana Tech Frat House Blaze

Fire investigators in Ruston believe a weekend fire that gutted a Louisiana Tech University fraternity house originated in the fireplace ...

Texas Judge Rules State Parole Officials Can Be Held Liable

A federal judge in Texas has ordered that state parole officials can be held personally liable by inmates suing over restrictive ...

Officials: 3 Dead in Explosion Old Arkansas Oil Well

Officials say three workers are dead following an explosion at an abandoned oil well near El Dorado in southern Arkansas. Union County ...

Ex-Workers Accused in Thibodaux, Louisiana, Restaurant Fire

Two former employees are accused of torching a Western Sizzlin restaurant in Thibodaux, La., early on May 21. Police say 18-year-old ...
West

Colorado Immigrant Advocates Plan Driver’s License Push

Immigrant advocates in Colorado want public support for allowing illegal immigrants to seek licenses to drive. The activists say they will ...

Thoits Expands Employee Benefits With Culligan

San Jose, Calif.-based Thoits Insurance Service Inc. added Derek Culligan as vice president of employee benefits. In his new role he is ...

Kauai, Maui to Get $400K For Storm Cleanup Efforts

Officials say Maui and Kauai will get a combined $400,000 to clean up damage from heavy storms that hit Hawaii in March. The money will ...

Burgers Joins United Valley Insurance Services

Fresno, Calif.-based United Valley Insurance Services named Melissa Burgers to their marketing team as a marketing representative. Burgers ...

More Than Dozen Animals Killed In NM Hospital Fire

More than a dozen animals perished in a fire at a New Mexico veterinary clinic. KOB-TV reports authorities say a fire started Monday ...

SpaceX Insured For ‘Maximum Possible Loss’

SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon 9 rocket carrying a Dragon spacecraft to orbit on Tuesday as part of a mission that would make it ...

'Key Figure' in Organized Auto Insurance Fraud Ring Nabbed

Teddy Marks, 41, of Morgan Hill, Calif., who the California Department of Insurance is calling a "key figure" in an organized auto ...
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International

AIA Calls for More International Market Access for U.S. Insurers

The American Insurance Association has issued a statement, which points out several instances of a "disconnect between the continued ...

Xchanging Expands to U.S. Market

London-based  Xchanging, a business process outsourcing company, has plans to expand its insurance offering to the North American market. ...
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Sponsored Content

How High-Tech Use by Young Agents Is Changing the Way the Insurance Industry Operates

San Diego, CA, 05/23/12 - Tech-savvy young independent insurance agents are changing how the property/casualty insurance industry operates, ...

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New Discussions in the Forums

Brokerage and investment firm
Posted: Tue May 22 -- Are you asking what the process is to register as an insurance agent/broker, and also as an investment (i.e. securities broker/dealer)? Your... Big Dog
What are your thoughts on the insurance industry
Posted: Tue May 22 -- Policy holders buy insurance to transfer the risk onto another entity - so, you pay a flat fee that is roughly the average of what... neilamcotts
New GA getting appointments
Posted: Mon May 21 -- Hi Nick, We are in California. It would be a huge help if you had any further info about this venture, specifically the capital... paulbennings
Calling all experienced MGAs...is this a fair deal?
Posted: Mon May 21 -- I have an opportunity to enter into a marketing agreement with an established independent agency. I am going to list as follows the... youngun58
SEO and buying back links
Posted: Mon May 21 -- I wouldn't recommend it. First off you don't know where they are going to put your link at and you may not approve. Google doesn't give that... johnsharp
Farmers vs. Independent
Posted: Sat May 19 -- I left Allstate and went Independent. The contract with Allstate is similar to Farmers. Farmers actually approached me after I sold my book... johnsharp

Reader Comments

Ohio's New 'Vicious Dog' Liability Law Becomes Effective May 22
Posted: Tue May 22 -- Common sense, perhaps... Unfortunately, the majority of dogs that attack are owned by individual who lack common sense! Max
How Young Insurance Agents Are Changing the Industry
Posted: Fri May 18 -- Marketing concepts change over time because we are always thinking of new ways to gain a client. Right now, we have a mass of technology:... SteveB
California Woman Gets Life For Murder Of Millionaire Lover
Posted: Mon May 21 -- Why did this take eighteen years? Blondie2
EEOC Updates Best Practices for Using Criminal Records in Hiring
Posted: Thu May 17 -- So...you can't not hire a criminal, because they might sue you. You hire the criminal, they steal from you and you can't fire them because... lynninms
Consumer-Directed Health Plans Show Mixed Results
Posted: Wed May 16 -- OTTAWA–Danny Williams' decision to head south for heart surgery has sparked a furious debate on both sides of the border. The premier of... Captain Planet

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