Illinois News

Bank Insurance Brokerage 1Q Earnings Hit Second-Highest Level Ever

Quarterly earnings from bank insurance brokerage hit their second-highest level in first quarter 2008. Bank insurance brokerage earnings in the first three months of 2008 were $1.078 billion, up 8.6 percent from $993.3 million in the first quarter of 2007 …

U.S. Midwest Floods Show Impact of Global Warming, Say Conservationists

Floods like those that inundated the U.S. Midwest are supposed to occur once every 500 years but this is the second since 1993, suggesting flawed forecasts that do not take global warming into account, conservation experts said on Tuesday. “Although …

S&P: Affirms QBE’s Ratings; Praetorian Upgraded to Core Status

Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has affirmed its insurer financial strength and counterparty credit ratings on holding company QBE Insurance Group Ltd. (currently rated ‘A-‘) and QBE’s core operating entities (all rated A+). The rating outlooks on the holding company …

U.S. Agriculture Chief Cites Obstacles to Aid to Farmers Hurt by Flooding

The U.S. agriculture secretary says he is concerned that legal hurdles prevented much immediate federal help for Midwestern farmers faced with serious setbacks because of flooding. “I think everybody is frustrated because there’s never enough you can do,” Ed Schafer …

Insurers Welcome Rhode Island Supreme Court Lead Paint Decision

The property/casualty insurance industry is applauding a recent Rhode Island court ruling on lead paint for confirming that a state’s product liability, not public nuisance, law should govern in such cases. In its landmark ruling, the Rhode Island Supreme Court …

America’s Safest Drivers Travel the Roads in America’s Heartland

Residents in Sioux Falls, S.D., continued to top the chart as the safest drivers in the U.S., according to the fourth annual Allstate America’s Best Drivers Report. The average driver in Sioux Falls experiences an auto collision every 14.6 years. …

Experts Predict Flooded Midwest Will Lose Billions

Floodwaters receding into the Mississippi River and its tributaries will suck billions of dollars out of the Midwest’s economy, though experts have not agreed on whether the damage will be as devastating as the 1993 flooding. The impact on U.S. …

Midwest Flood Losses Sink In as Mississippi River Water Levels Recede

Farmhouses appear to float on lakes, and farmers use boats to get to their barns. Businesses are shuttered as flooded roadways cut off customers. Rail lines, factories, river locks are shut down. Homeowners, who watched and waited and prayed, have …

Mo. Gov. Blunt Asks Insurance Companies to Give Grace Period to Flood Victims

Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt and the Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions and Professional Registration (DIFP) called on insurance companies to provide maximum consideration to flood victims in the coming days. Missouri joins Illinois, Iowa and Indiana in asking insurers to …

Texas Workers’ Comp Division Assesses More Than $81K in Penalties

Administrative penalties for April and May 2008 assessed by the Texas Department of Insurance Division of Workers’ Compensation (TDI-DWC) totaled $81,667. The disciplinary actions taken by Commissioner of Workers’ Compensation Albert Betts were for violations of the Texas Workers’ Compensation …