It Figures
2,000 Nearly 2,000 storm victims had been rescued in Galveston, Texas, in the course of nearly 500 missions as of Sept. 14, the day after Hurricane Ike struck the island and much of the rest of the Texas coast with …
Disaster Fatigue
After President George W. Bush surveyed the damage along the Texas Gulf Coast just days after Hurricane Ike rammed its way onto Galveston Island, he urged Americans not to succumb to “disaster fatigue” and to continue giving money to hurricane …
Agents Weigh in on Gustav
In response to e-mailed inquiries from Insurance Journal, a number of Louisiana-based insurance operations reported they had prepared for Hurricane Gustav. Some had evacuated; most had recovery plans in place. Thomas J. McMahon, Jr., president of New Orleans-based Eustis Insurance …
Business Moves
Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Wm. W. George & Associates Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has acquired Dallas-based retail insurance broker Wm. W. George & Associates Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Established in 1972, Wm. W. George …
Damage Costs Mount From Gustav
As Hurricane Ike loomed in the Gulf of Mexico, insurers and officials in Gulf Coast states were still tallying damage costs from Hurricane Gustav, which swept into Louisiana on Sept. 1. Switzerland-based global reinsurer, Swiss Reinsurance Co. predicted that Gustav …
Blogs Can Get Insurance Clients ‘SLAPP’ed
A Dade County, Florida real estate developer in January 2008 filed a $25 million lawsuit against a real estate blogger alleging, among other charges, defamation of character based on the blogger’s opinion published solely on his blog (MiamiCondo Investments). Hollo …
Northern Oklahoma Assesses Damage from TD Lowell
Almost forgotten in the drama of Hurricane Ike playing out on the Gulf Coast was the damage wrought in Oklahoma by the remnants of Tropical Depression Lowell. Severe flooding was reported after heavy rains inundated northwestern and north-central Oklahoma communities …
Early Estimates of Ike Damage: $6B to $18B
The Real Numbers Won’t be Known for Weeks Estimates of insured damage from Hurricane Ike vary widely — from $8 billion to $16 billion, according to several catastrophe risk modeling firms, but Texas Insurance Commissioner Mike Geeslin has pointed out …
Business Moves
CRC Insurance, Southern Risk CRC Insurance Services Inc., the wholesale insurance subsidiary of BB&T Corp., has completed a purchase of Southern Risk Operations LLC. Sumter, S.C.-based Southern Risk is an excess and surplus (E&S) insurance broker that specializes in high-risk …
Why Agents Need to Know If Their Clients Blog
Getting ‘SLAPP’ed: Individuals Blog at Their Own Risk; Exposure of Business Clients Depends on Policy Endorsements Blog-related personal injury suits have produced judgments ranging between $7,500 and $11.3 million. A Dade County, Florida real estate developer in January 2008 filed …
