Daily Headlines: Wednesday, July 25, 2012

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July 25, 2012 News By Region  National  International  East  Midwest  Southeast  South Central  West Video Today's Headlines National Oil Firms, Regulators Miss Major Accident Indicators: Gulf Spill Report Transocean and BP, trade associations, and U.S. regulators largely judged the safety of offshore facilities by focusing on routine personal ... Apple Claims $2.5 Billion Damages in Samsung Patent Case Apple Inc. claims it is entitled to $2.525 billion of damages in its high-stakes battle against Samsung Electronics Co over patents for ... While Debate Over Safety Valve Goes On, Gas Explosions Continue: AP The bulldozer was clearing land outside a day care center in Hapeville, Ga., when it broke open a buried 1-inch pipeline. The escaping gas ... W.R. Berkley Q2 Profit Rose 32%; Average Renewal Rate Hike Was 6% W.R. Berkley Corp. reported $108.8 million for its second-quarter net profit, a 32.4 percent increase compared to the same period one year ... Great American Opens Public Sector Alternative Risk Division Great American Insurance Group has launched its Public Sector Alternative Risk Division. This Division will offer coverages in the ... HomeAway Launches Vacation Rental Properties Insurance Product HomeAway, Inc., an online marketplace for vacation rentals, is now offering HomeAway Assure, a CBIZ Insurance Program product that is ... Lexington Announces Law, Ordinance Upgrade Coverage Enhancement Lexington Insurance Company has introduced Law and Ordinance Upgrade, a new enhancement that is available to Lexington's higher education, ... New Program Provides Extra Flooding Services for High-Value Homeowners Powered by InsuranceJournal.tv A new flood coverage suite from Privilege Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange, or PURE, now offers another... More National News East N.J.-Based NIP Group Promotes Jantzen to Programs Division President Woodbridge, N.J.-based broker NIP Group has promoted Donna Jantzen to the position of president of its programs division, a growing ... Liberty Mutual Executive Joins The Navigators Group in Rye Brook, N.Y. Rye Brook, N.Y.-based specialty insurer The Navigators Group appointed Mark Yunque as chief actuary and senior vice president of Navigators ... General Star’s Real Estate Appraiser E&O Program Now Available in N.Y. General Star Management professional liability coverage for real estate appraisers has been approved and is now available in New York on an ... Virginia Seeking Storm Assistance From FEMA Virginia is seeking federal disaster assistance for the estimated $27.5 million spent by the state and local governments to respond to late ... Northern United Agents Alliance Launches New Agency in Massachusetts The Northern United Agents Alliance (NUAA), an independent agency partnership based in New Hampshire, has teamed up with a group ... More East News Midwest Indiana Physician Who Hid in Europe Pleads Guilty to Fraud A former northwestern Indiana nose surgeon who was once the subject of an international dragnet before being captured on an Italian ... Indiana Supreme Court: Son Can Sue Dad Over Accident Injuries The state Supreme Court has ruled that an Indiana man can sue his father for leg injuries he suffered when his father drove into him. An ... Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Launches Private Insurance Exchange Itasca, Ill,-based Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. announced that its employee benefit consulting operation, Gallagher Benefit Services Inc. ... Former Topeka, Kansas, Deputy Fire Chief Files Discrimination Lawsuit A former Topeka deputy fire chief is seeking more than $1.3 million in a federal discrimination lawsuit filed against Topeka and a ... Report: 10,000 Construction Jobs Lost in Wisconsin A new report says Wisconsin lost more than 10,000 construction jobs in the last year. The Associated General Contractors of America says ... More Midwest News Southeast How Georgia Trucking Companies Escape Safety Scrutiny: Report Trucking companies in Georgia that run afoul of safety rules can simply shut down and reopen with a name change. The barriers to starting a ... West Virginia Court to Hear Mine Inspectors’ Liability Case in October The West Virginia Supreme Court has set an October argument date to consider the issue of whether Mine Safety and Health Administration ... Keystone Names Garruto Vice President in Georgia Keystone Insurers Group has named Kaye Garruto as its new Georgia state vice president. A 22-year veteran of the insurance industry, ... Carron Joins Willis North America Yacht Practice in Florida Willis North America has appointed Rob Carron as an account executive with Willis North America Yacht Practice in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The ... More Southeast News South Central DPS: Tire Likely Cause of Deadly Texas Truck Crash State authorities believe that a pickup truck's front right tire came apart, likely causing the vehicle to veer off a rural highway and ... Man’s Gun Fires in Dallas Walmart; 4, Including 2 Children, Slightly Hurt Investigators say a man and three bystanders have been slightly hurt when his gun accidentally fired at a Walmart store in Dallas. Police ... Police: Woman Killed in Arkansas Workplace Shooting A woman is accused of fatally shooting a co-worker on July 23 at an Arkansas plant after the two apparently had an earlier altercation, ... Louisiana Citizens Pays $104M Award Over Slow Storm Claims Louisiana's property insurer of last resort has paid a $104 million judgment in a case involving more than 18,500 policyholders who sued ... More South Central News West Ernst & Young's Tony Anderson to Be Honored By City Of Hope City of Hope's National Insurance Industry Council will honor Anthony "Tony" Anderson, retired vice chairman and Midwest managing ... CK Names Karber Southwest Regional Underwriting Manager San Jose, Calif.-based CK Specialty Insurance Associates Inc., a surplus lines broker and managing general agent, named Roger Karber its ... Wells Fargo Names Volkel Head of Bay Area Operations Wells Fargo Insurance named Bob Volkel to lead its Bay Area operations. Volkel will lead the insurance brokerage and consulting sales and ... Heffernan, VentureLoop Launch Professional Employer Organization Walnut Creek, Calif.-based Heffernan Insurance Brokers is partnering with VentureLoop to launch VentureLoop HR, a professional employer ... Insurance Associates Launches F&W Insurance Company Boulder, Colo.-based Insurance Associates Inc. announced it opened a newly formed company, F&W Insurance. F&W Insurance was ... More West News International Insurance is Key as Investment Frontiers Open, Says World Bank Exec Political risk insurance against conflict or breach of contract has become a key factor for investors seeking higher returns in developing ... Typhoon Vicente Hits Hong Kong, but Only Minor Damage Reported: AIR According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Typhoon Vicente, the 8th named storm to form in the Northwest Pacific this year, ... ING in Restructuring Talks with EC, Dutch Government Dutch bank and insurer ING, forced to sell assets in return for receiving state aid during the financial crisis, said on Tuesday it was in ... Earnings Report: ACE Limited Selected earnings highlights from Swiss based ACE Limited for the second quarter and the first half of 2012 are as follows: ... Dsouza Joins Argo Group in Dubai as Casualty, Professional Lines Underwriter Argo Group International Holdings, Ltd. announced that Jason Dsouza has joined Argo Re (DIFC) Ltd. in Dubai as a casualty and professional ... More International News Sponsored Content WEBCETERA® Integrates Editable ACORD® forms within EZLynx® Flower Mound, TX, 07/25/12 – WEBCETERA®, the leading provider of insurance industry software solutions and creator of EZLynx®, today ... Insurance Journal now available on the iPhone - Download it free today! More Sponsored Content Insurance Journal Blogs Of Hurricanes, Insurance, Mitigation and Carbon Taxes I'm in New Orleans at a conference on Preparing the Gulf Coast for Extreme Weather. Its lead sponsor is a reinsurer, the Institute for ... More Blogs Join the Insurance Journal Network Insurance Journal TV New PURE Program Provides Extra Flooding Services for High-Value Homeowners A new flood coverage suite from Privilege Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange, or PURE, now... Watch Now Agency Capitalizes on Obamacare Shawn Pynes, principal with Barney & Barney, discusses the benefits business following... Watch Now Watch more videos at InsuranceJournal.tv New Discussions in the Forums Reservation of Rights HELP Posted: Wed Jul 25 -- Basic INS-101 all agents should know: An ambiguous provision in an insurance policy is construed most favorably to the insured and strictly... OldIndyAgent Insurance aggregators/Groups for personal lines Posted: Tue Jul 24 -- what's the company name andy? nominal monthly sounds great, would like to see list of personal lines p&c carriers, you can provide... surestart12345 AMS360 for accounting? Posted: Tue Jul 24 -- How do you calculate the EARNED commission that can be (legally) transferred to the Operating Account? insstudent Agent no legal duty to inform on cancellations? Posted: Tue Jul 24 -- Earlybird is precisely correct. Not chasing down your revenue-creating premium is the thin-end of the wedge. Why wouldn't an agency remind... Erik M. Olsen, CIC Commercial Auto Coverage for Golf Carts Florida Posted: Mon Jul 23 -- no, Colony will not COMMCOV Personal Lines - Renewal Letters? E&O Prevention Posted: Mon Jul 23 -- Do you know the particular court case name for a proper citation? surestart12345 Insurance Noodle vs. Superior Access vs. Agent Secure Posted: Mon Jul 23 -- There is another great alternative out there but you have to qualify. What state are you in? And what is your experience level. JAM carriers for multistate trucking/warehousing work comp Posted: Fri Jul 20 -- There are a couple different PEO options available to cover this type of risk with varying levels of deductibles. Could also help with the... Chad Filley work comp carriers for nursing home Posted: Fri Jul 20 -- I deal with several PEO's that will offer comp for this type of risk and can offer various levels of deductibles as well. Give me a call to... Chad Filley Go to Forums Reader Comments State Farm: Sandusky's Homeowners Policy Doesn't Cover His Legal Bills Posted: Mon Jul 23 -- So Sandusky wants the insurance companies to pay his defense costs...REALLY? Put him in Jail and throw away the Key....or better yet, just... Longtime Broker Ex-School Nurse in Texas Gets 10 Years for Fire Posted: Mon Jul 23 -- I'm betting her next evaluation will include something like "Doesn't accept constructive criticism very well" Markey CEO Group Warns Washington to Avoid Impending 'Fiscal Cliff' Politics Posted: Fri Jul 20 -- I agree Sargent. A good example of incompetence is one I am familiar with. One of my customers owns a Commercial Office property. An... Agent $31M Jury Award For Unsafe Calif. Highway Posted: Mon Jul 23 -- The title of this article is a bit misleading. The jury found CalTrans 15% liable and placed 85% liability on the driver who made the left... Lisa Florida Citizens' Chief Sets 500K Policy Depopulation Target Posted: Thu Jul 19 -- I'll help. There would be plenty for the both of us. 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