Arkansas News

Court Orders Mississippi Lawyer Scruggs to Kentucky Federal Prison

Famed Mississippi anti-tobacco lawyer Richard “Dickie” Scruggs is ordered to report to a federal prison in Ashland, Ky., in August to start serving his five-year sentence for attempting to bribe a Mississippi judge. Documents filed July 23 in federal court …

Swett & Crawford Names Spivey Marketing Manager for Risk Reducers

Wholesale insurance brokerage firm Swett & Crawford in Atlanta has appointed Rick Spivey as marketing manager for Risk Reducers, a workers’ compensation unit acquired by Swett & Crawford in January. Risk Reducers writes workers’ compensation and specialized property and casualty …

Mutual Assurance Acquires Tennessee-based Pittman & Associates

Mutual Assurance Administrators Inc. (MAA) of Oklahoma City has acquired Pittman & Associates Inc. (P&A) of Tennessee. Mutual Assurance Administrators Inc. is a third-party administrator specializing in management of employer sponsored benefit programs. Founded in 1975, MAA offers claims administration …

Midwest States High on List for Numbers of Tornadoes

While a rural area to the northeast of Denver, Colo., tops the nation when it comes to metropolitan areas most prone to tornadoes, Texas leads the states in the average total number of tornadoes per year in the continental United …

Tornado Threats Loom Large as Flood Waters Recede

Much has been written in the last six weeks about the 2008 Midwest Flood. Many are saying the devastation will rival the Great Flood of 1993, and that the crop damage will affect the food supply of this country. While …

People

Indiana Insurance, a Liberty Mutual Agency Markets regional company, appointed Jessica M. Frankovich as Inland Marine underwriting manager. Frankovich will be based in Indiana Insurance’s Illinois regional office and will manage and grow the company’s Inland Marine book of business. …

U.S. P/C Insurers’ Catastrophe Losses for Q2 Double to $6 Billion; Average Claim $5K

U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay homeowners and businesses an estimated $6.025 billion for second quarter property losses resulting from a total of 16 catastrophes in 27 states, which is nearly double the number of catastrophes in the first …

N.H. Modifies Producer, Adjuster Licensing Law, Fees

New Hampshire officials announced changes in licensing fees for insurance producers and adjusters that include a single $210 application and license fee for initial producer licensing replacing what used to be two separate fees. The producer licensing renewal fee remains …

Organizations Launch Arkansas Agritourism Effort

A new state effort is getting under way to encourage consumers to do business with Arkansas farmers and to bring more growers into the agritourism industry. The Arkansas Agritourism Initiative is designed to help consumers find local vendors as well …

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 (MiamiCondoInvestments). Hollo v. …