Capitol to Courthouse Headliners: Monday, July 12
Jul 12, 2010
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Blog: Allstate subsidiary – Florida’s sixth largest insurer – proposes 33 percent rate hike
Regulators will weigh a 33 percent average statewide rate hike request for Castle Key Insurance – a subsidiary of Allstate – this month. The Allstate Floridian Insurance companies changed their names to Castle Key last year.
The Wall Street Journal: Storms to Test Florida’s Insurers
Florida home construction won’t be the only thing tested if a big hurricane strikes the state this year. Florida’s homeowners-insurance market will be tested, too.
Florida homeowners hit with higher property insurance premiums
Warren Kurtzman was elated when Gov. Charlie Crist vetoed legislation last month that would have made it easier for insurers to raise property insurance premiums.
Tampa sinkhole forces a dozen families to flee their homes
The hole, near the USF campus, swallowed a car
Nearly a dozen families evacuated their homes this morning after a sinkhole opened in their condominium complex’s parking lot, near the University of South Florida campus.
Drywall class action targets Banner Supply
Two South Florida law firms have filed a class action lawsuit against Miami-based Banner Supply Co., the supply company that distributed tons of defective Chinese drywall.
State Representative Aubuchon’s company to fix bad drywall
State rep’s clients not necessarily glad
Gary Aubuchon is planning to make good on a promise he made a year ago to fix the six homes his company built with defective Chinese drywall.
Can Lee insurers survive storm?
New companies cover many properties
One in six Lee County properties is insured by a company in the business for four years or less, leading consumers and industry experts to question whether the fledgling companies can stand up to claims if a storm hits this hurricane season.
Editorial: Florida in sad minority of text bans
OUR POSITION: Florida is now among the last remaining holdouts of states without driving while texting laws. Nothing to be proud of.
Dixon-Hughes expands to Jacksonville medical clients
The public accounting firm Dixon Hughes PLLC has expanded its professional service offerings in Jacksonville to health care providers, according to a press release from the company.
Editorial: Don’t let Tampa’s WellCare off lightly for fraud
Wellcare Health Plans Inc. is not fully paying for its sins. The Tampa-based insurer has been accused of bilking taxpayers of hundreds of millions of dollars by using fraudulent practices that were integral to the company’s profit-making.
JPMorgan taps former Sen. Martinez to lead Florida operations
Former U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez joined JPMorgan Chase & Co. to chair its operations in Florida, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.
Blog: Feinberg to meet with Crist and locals Monday in Pensacola
Kenneth Feinberg, the Obama administration’s oil spill claims czar, has scheduled a meeting in Pensacola on Monday to listen to locals and talk about how the $20 billion set aside for the claims process will be spent. Gov. Charlie Crist is planning to attend.
Special session on drilling could tackle other issues
When the Legislature adjourned at the end of April, there was already talk of a special session.
- Blog: Sink feeds legislators suggestions for expanding special session agenda
- Blog: Will House trade new Amend. 7 for drilling ban?
- Special session immigration vote sought
- Special session on drilling poses hard choice for GOP lawmakers from the coast
- Editorial: Crist’s worthwhile gamble on drilling ban
- Editorial: Crist waited too long to call Special Session
- UF expert doubts constitutional drilling ban will make it to voters
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA: Redistricting Challenges May Be Headed to Supreme Court
A Leon County judge Monday denied a motion by state officials to dismiss a lawsuit by two Florida members of Congress seeking to throw out a pair of constitutional amendments intended to guide how the state draws new political boundaries in 2012.
Florida, Nation on Track to Double Exports in Five Years
Business advocate says Florida needs to push less regulation, more incentives
The federal government is touting progress made on the president’s goal to double national exports in the next five years, and a prominent Florida business advocate says that the state could be following suit if it makes the right choices.
Authorities make arrests in Palm Beach County housing fraud sweep
Authorities will hold a news conference this morning to announce the arrests of people on charges stemming from a housing fraud probe.
Florida’s election day becomes election month as absentee voting surges
Legions of pajama-clad voters could decide Florida’s ballot long before the August primary.
White House isn’t backing Crist, party chief says
Among the great unanswered questions this year is whether Charlie Crist would caucus with the Democrats or Republicans if he makes it to the Senate.
GOP candidates for governor agree to debates
The Republican candidates for governor have agreed to two debates early next month.
Louisiana Governor Signs Ban on Chinese Drywall Cancellations
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal has agreed to ban insurance companies from dropping coverage of homeowners who have found corrosive Chinese drywall in their homes.
The Wall Street Journal: Aon to Pay $4.9 Billion for Hewitt Associates
Insurance broker Aon Corp. agreed to buy human-resource consulting and outsourcing company Hewitt Associates Inc. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about $4.9 billion.
Munich Re Provides $96M Cat Bond for Massachusetts Fair Plan
Reinsurer Munich Re said it has provided the Massachusetts Property Insurance Underwriting Association a $96 million catastrophe bond issuance that transfers hurricane risk in Massachusetts to the capital markets.
Builders sue EPA over lead paint rule
Builders are challenging a new federal rule that requires contractors be certified in lead-safe practices if renovating pre-1978 homes.
Marsh Tool Gives Clients Real Time Insurance Purchasing, Pricing Trends
Insurance broker Marsh has unveiled a real-time, on-demand industry benchmark reporting service available to its clients and prospects.
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