Newsbriefs

ARIZONA VEHICLE REPAIR BILL DIES IN COMMITTEE

An Arizona House Bill that would have made it more difficult for insurers to provide consumers information about automobile and glass repair facilities has died in the Senate Rules Committee, according to Kelly Campbell, western regional manager for the Property …

RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE MODEL OF NEW ORLEANS LEVEE POINTS TO LAYER OF CLAY

Preliminary findings suggest that during Hurricane Katrina, the 17th Street Canal levee in New Orleans may have slid on a layer of weak clay beneath the peat that underlies the earthen structure. Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., …

LIBERTY INTERNATIONAL UNDERWRITERS, LOS ANGELES

Responding to the increasing influx of business from the Southwest and Southern California, in particular, Boston-based Liberty International Underwriters, a division of Liberty Mutual Group, has opened a Los Angeles office. This is LIU’s second office in California and its …

AGENTS HAIL PASSAGE OF TAX LEGISLATION

The Senate has passed a conference report on the bill, the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act, last month on the heels of House passage a day earlier. The tax-cut bill, supported by independent insurance agents and brokers, will extend …

CHARTERED PROPERTY CASUALTY UNDERWRITERS TO SHARE TIPS ON BEING SUCCESSFUL

On Tuesday June 13, the Los Angeles Chapter of the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters will host a meeting featuring motivational speaker Betsey Brewer, senior vice president of The Rule Co., speaking on “Supersize Your Borders.” Brewer is the CPCU Society’s …

POST SPITZER, MERGER ACTIVITY PICKING UP, SAYS MYSTIC CAPITAL

Last year wasn’t the busiest year for mergers and acquisitions in the insurance agency and brokerage field, but as concerns over various probes of the insurance industry fade, activity is picking up. Kevin Donoghue, of Mystic Capital Advisors Group, who …

MERCURY POSTS LOWER Q1

Los Angeles-based Mercury General Corp. reported slightly lower net income for the first quarter of 2006 TITLE: –TITLE: $58.6 million, or $1.07 per share (diluted), compared with $60.4 million, or $1.10 per share (diluted), in Q1 2005. It noted the …

WHAT TO INCLUDE IN A DISASTER CONTINGENCY PLAN

While you may not be able to avoid Mother Nature, having a contingency plan can help a company to mitigate loss. A contingency plan should include steps before a loss occurs, emphasized Mel Bangs, director of risk management for Omni …

HOUSE OF LORDS ASBESTOS DECISION LIMITS DAMAGE LIABILITY

The U.K.’s House of Lords handed down judgments on May 3 in three major cases involving employers and their insurers’ liability for damages to workers and their families resulting from asbestos related diseases. The decision in the case of Barker …

ASSOCIATION GAINS EXCLUSIVE LICENSE FOR LONDON MARKET TEST

The American Association of Managing General Agents announced that it has an exclusive license with the Chartered Insurance Institute to offer the Lloyd’s of London Market Insurance Test. Passing the test is required for all brokers doing business in London.

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