NFP Acquires Louisiana’s Southern Insurance Agency
NFP, an Aon company and property and casualty broker, benefits consultant, wealth manager and retirement plan advisor, announced the acquisition of Southern Insurance Agency LLC (SIA), a commercial property and casualty broker located in New Orleans. Louis Faust, founder and …
Global Q2 Commercial Insurance Rates Remain Flat, Ending 7 Years of Price Hikes: Marsh
Global commercial insurance rates remained flat during the second quarter of 2024 (down from a 1% increase in Q1 2024), according to Marsh’s Global Insurance Market Index. The findings mark the first time in nearly seven years – since the …
Florida-based Brown & Brown Posts Strong Profit for Q2
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Florida-based Brown & Brown Inc. (BRO), one of the largest U.S. insurance brokerages, this week reported second-quarter net income of $257 million, up from $190 million for the second quarter of last year. On a …
Canadian Wildfires Threaten Oil Output, Prompt Evacuations
Wildfires in Canada’s energy-producing Alberta province are threatening almost 10% of the region’s oil production and forcing the evacuation of one of the country’s largest national parks during the peak summer tourist season. Hot weather has contributed to a wildfire …
Deadly Typhoon Gaemi Floods Philippines, Shuts Taiwan
Typhoon Gaemi claimed the lives of at least four people and forced the evacuation of hundreds of thousands in the Philippines, where parts of Manila are flooded even as the storm moves towards Taiwan. Packing sustained winds of up to …
WR Berkley CEO: Losses From Tech Outage Expected to Be ‘Manageable’
W.R. Berkley CEO W. Robert Berkley, Jr. said the company does not see last week’s global network systems outage “being a material loss to the organization.” “I would be surprised if we didn’t have any loss activity, but we certainly …
J.D. Power: Auto Insurance Shopping Hits New High, Could Drop With Rate Adequacy
The national auto insurance shopping and quoting rate reached a new high between April and June, but many insurers appear to have achieved or are approaching rate adequacy, “which should lead to less rate activity and perhaps less shopping in …
Hackers Leak Documents From Pentagon IT Services Provider Leidos
Hackers have leaked internal documents stolen from Leidos Holdings Inc., one of the largest IT services providers to the US government, according to a person familiar with the matter. Leidos recently learned of the issue and believes the documents were …
US Judge Will Not Block FTC Ban on Worker ‘Noncompete’ Agreements
A federal judge on Tuesday rejected a bid by a tree-trimming company to block a U.S. Federal Trade Commission rule from taking effect that would ban agreements commonly signed by workers not to join their employers’ rivals or launch competing …
Morgan & Morgan Vows to Fight Proposed Class Action on ‘Botched’ Injury Claims
Morgan & Morgan calls itself the nation’s largest injury law firm, with offices in most states. But perhaps the Orlando-founded firm has grown too big, too quickly, suggests a proposed class-action lawsuit that claims the firm has botched hundreds of …
Applied Systems Acquires Insurance AI Platform Planck
Insurance software firm Applied Systems reports that it has acquired Planck, a leading artificial intelligence (AI) company for the insurance industry. Planck provides an AI-based data platform for commercial insurance. It works with US insurance companies, helping them streamline the …
Vermont Farmers Take Stock After Losing Crops to Flooding Two Years in a Row
Exactly one year to the date of last year’s severe flooding in Vermont, Joe’s Brook Farm was flooded again by the remnants of Hurricane Beryl. This time it was worse. Workers were able to harvest some of the produce before …
USAA Renter’s Insurance Policyholder Charged with Multiple Counts of Fraud
Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown reports that a grand Jury for Prince George’s County has handed down two indictments charging an Upper Marlboro woman with insurance fraud. According to Brown, Rhonda Keisha Powell, also known as Rhonda Keisha Jackson, …
Hot, Inland California Cities Face The Steepest Water Cuts With New Conservation Mandate
Facing a future of shortages, California is entering a new phase of water conservation: Cities and towns must meet new mandates ramping down use over the next 15 years — and some will be hit harder than others. Approved two …
People Moves: Donegal Promotes Landis; MEMIC Promotes Foote
Donegal Insurance Group, headquartered in Marietta, Pennsylvania, promoted Caleb Landis to assistant vice president of commercial lines systems development. Landis will be based out of Donegal’s home office in Marietta. Landis succeeds Barb Doyle, who will retire in September as …
Pilot Dies in Crash After Releasing Skydivers Near Niagara Falls
Officials released the name of a pilot who died in a skydiving flight after her passengers jumped from the aircraft near the Niagara Falls. Melanie Georger, 26, was the only person on board when the single-engine Cessna crashed Saturday, the …
Chubb Q2 Net Income Up 24% to $2.2B
Chubb said second quarter net income was up more than 24% to about $2.2 billion despite higher catastrophe losses than a year ago. Catastrophe losses for the second quarter were $580 million, pretax, compared to $400 million last year during …
How California’s Homeowners Insurance Crisis Is Affecting Brokers
A growing homeowners insurance crisis for Californians is straining brokers who must work harder to get increasingly expensive and more frequently unavailable coverage for their clients, a crisis many of them blame on regulations and wildfires. Wildfires have made the …
People Moves: AXA’s Rodriguez Forero Named CEO of Newly Formed DUAL LatAm
DUAL Group announced the appointment of Marilena Rodriguez Forero as CEO for the newly established region, DUAL Latin America, effective Aug. 1, 2024. Rodriguez Forero will be a member of DUAL’s Group Executive Committee, reporting to Richard Clapham, CEO, DUAL …
Property Code Enforcement a Sore Spot in Some South Dakota Communities
FAITH, S.D. (AP) — A few months ago, the city council in this ranching town in remote northwestern South Dakota decided to join dozens of other communities across the state and hire an outside contractor to enforce property codes. But …