Southeast News

NFP Acquires Michelsen Benefits in North Carolina

New York-based insurance brokerage and consultant NFP has expanded its corporate benefits practice with the acquisition of Charlotte, N.C.-based Michelsen Benefits Group Inc., or The Michelsen Group (TMG). The transaction closed November 1, 2014. TMG specializes in consulting services to …

Florida Broker AmPro to Open Tampa Office, Hires Smid as Senior Broker

Florida-based American Professional Liability Underwriters, Inc. (AmPro) has added Gary Smid as a senior broker to its new office opening in Tampa. Smid has more than 18 years of insurance underwriting experience, including eight plus years as a professional liability …

West Virginia Judge Dismisses Parts Suit Against Body Shop, Liberty Mutual

A Kanawha County, W. Va., judge has dismissed a lawsuit that accused a St. Albans body shop owner of illegally installing junkyard parts on new vehicles. Former Attorney General Darrell McGraw filed the lawsuit in 2011 against Greg Chandler’s Frame …

Family of Georgia Girl Attacked by Dog Awarded $36 Million

Prosecutors in DeKalb County, Ga., say the family of a girl who was critically injured in a dog attack has been awarded more than $36 million. County Solicitor’s Spokeswoman Terrie Clark said in a statement that a jury awarded the …

3 Executives Charged in West Virginia Chemical Spill Plead Not Guilty

Three executives charged in last January’s West Virginia chemical spill have pleaded not guilty in federal court. The pleas came a day after an FBI affidavit was unsealed, saying Freedom Industries knew about critical flaws at its Charleston plant more …

Florida Approves Removal of 93,500 Policies from Citizens

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has approved the removal of up to 93,000 personal residential policies and 500 commercial residential polices from Citizens Property Insurance Corp. as part of the state’s ongoing effort to reduce the number of policies …

Tennessee Environmental Agency Sues TVA Over Coal Ash at Gallatin Plant

The Tennessee state agency charged with protecting the environment is suing the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) over its coal-burning power plant in Gallatin. The lawsuit, filed January 7 by the Tennessee Dept. of Environment and Conservation (TDEC), claims unlined storage …

Florida’s Citizens Settled Almost 70% of Sinkhole Claims in 2014

Citizens Property Insurance Corp. has reached settlement agreements with more than 1,650 Florida homeowners to end litigation on sinkhole repair cases that was delaying critical repairs to their properties. As of Dec. 15, 2014, Citizens had reached agreements with 1,669 …

North Carolina Insurers Request Mobile Home Rate Changes

The North Carolina Rate Bureau has filed for mobile homeowners insurance rate changes with the North Carolina Department of Insurance (NCDOI). The N.C. Rate Bureau has requested an average statewide decrease of 0.8 percent for the MH(C) form and an …

Report: West Virginia Chemical Spill Company Aware of Defects

A West Virginia attorney general report says the company behind last January’s chemical spill knew of its facility’s defects for years. The report by Attorney General Patrick Morrisey office says that a 2010 manager’s report said “a potential catastrophic failure” …