Parting Shots

Pride in the Independent Agency System

Over the past five years the insurance industry has endured the entry of banks into the field; faced heinous attacks that throttled the industry and economy; dealt with the good and the bad that comes with a hard market; and …

Broker Fee Scandal Highlights Need for Market-Conduct Reform

With the latest insurance-industry market conduct problem, consumers once again see not only the failure of state insurance regulation to protect them but the refusal of state insurance regulators to take responsibility for their failure. The latest actions by state …

Action Needed to Address State-Based Insurance Regulation

With the latest insurance industry market conduct problem, consumers once again see not only the failure of state insurance regulation to protect them but the refusal of state insurance regulators to take responsibility for their failure. The latest actions by …

Hurricane Spitzer to Take London by Storm

QUOTE:This will impact every underwriter in Lloyd’s and most in London, given the distribution chain they inhabit. There’s still some sense of disbelief here in London at the moment. Hurricane Spitzer seems to have struck New York full on, but …

Action Needed to Address State-Based Insurance Regulation

With the latest insurance industry market conduct problem, consumers once again see not only the failure of state insurance regulation to protect them but the refusal of state insurance regulators to take responsibility for their failure. The latest actions by …

Few Bad Actors Unfairly Tarnish Reputation of Industry

By now, you probably are aware that insurance broker Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc. and Marsh Inc. (collectively Marsh) were sued in New York on Oct. 14 based on allegations of engaging in certain illegal business practices, specifically “bid rigging,” …

The Feds are Endangering Future of Crop Insurance

Ten years ago, the Federal Multi-Peril Crop Insurance Program covered fewer than 100 million acres of U.S. farmland. That number has more than doubled since 1994, and today it is close to 220 million acres. This is significant compared to …

Big ‘I’ Takes Proactive Approach to Issues in the Spitzer Investigation

By now, you probably are aware that insurance broker Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc. and Marsh Inc. (collectively Marsh) were sued in New York on Oct. 14 based on allegations of engaging in certain illegal business practices, specifically “bid rigging,” …

Unfair Trade Practices Unfair to Insurance Agents

Here is a tale of two sellers. A realtor sold a home in a quiet neighborhood to a nice family. Shortly after settling in, the new homeowners begin to discover certain defects in the property, which had not been disclosed …

Big “I” Takes Proactive Approach to Issues in the Spitzer Investigation

By now, you probably are aware that insurance broker Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc. and Marsh Inc. (collectively Marsh) were sued in New York on Oct. 14 based on allegations of engaging in certain illegal business practices, specifically “bid rigging,” …

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