Most Popular Agencies Headlines This Year
The most viewed headlines from our Agencies Topic Page over the last year.
#1 Agent’s Failure to Disclose Dog Comes Back to Bite Homeowner
Jul 12 2023 // A Connecticut homeowner who is being sued by a woman who alleges his dog bit her in the face is not entitled to insurance coverage because his home insurance application, which was completed by his insurance agent,...
#2 Update: Pickleball Explosion in Florida Creating New Hits and Misses for Insurers, Agents
Dec 5 2022 // If the insurance industry hasn’t noticed, the sport known as pickleball is exploding across the country, especially in Florida, where more than 15 indoor clubs, replete with air conditioning, cafes, locker rooms,...
#3 Talk With Fox’s Jesse Watters Leads to Big I CEO Rusbuldt’s ‘Disappointing’ Early Exit
Jun 29 2023 // Bob Rusbuldt — set to retire in about two months as chief executive of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (The Big I) — was relinquished of his duties after an interview he conducted with Fox News...
#4 Florida Insurance Agent Who Used $5M in Premiums for Safari, Condos Gets 14 Years
Mar 23 2023 // More than 18 months after he pleaded guilty to absconding with almost $5 million in premiums, a Florida insurance agent has been sentenced to 14 years in prison. John M. Thomas, 52, the former owner of Thomas Insurance...
#5 Florida Insurance Agent Convicted in $6M Ponzi Scheme That Defrauded Investors
May 16 2023 // A federal jury has found a Sarasota insurance agent and financial consultant guilty of defrauding elderly Floridians out of $6 million, money that the victims believed was going to fund a life insurance startup known as...
#6 Florida Insurance Agent Charged with Absconding with $41,000 in Premiums
Nov 8 2022 // When a big property owner in Naples, Florida, recently tried to refinance some loans, the owner was surprised to discover that 31 properties had no insurance – despite having paid thousands of dollars in premiums. Late...
#7 ‘Synthetic’ Agents? Lemonade Says Finance Deal Limits Cash Burn
Jul 5 2023 // Late last week, Lemonade announced a financial agreement to borrow 80% of the costs it incurs to acquire insurance customers from a venture firm. The insurtech carrier revealed the deal in a media statement and several...
#8 Carolina Agent, Missouri Attorneys Indicted on Tax, Insurance Fraud Charges
Nov 17 2022 // Two Missouri tax attorneys and a North Carolina insurance agent have been indicted for helping clients set up fraudulent tax shelters, file false tax returns and to defraud an insurance carrier, federal prosecutors...
#9 Auto-Owners, Erie, Cincinnati, Hartford, Hanover Tops in Agents’ Satisfaction: J.D. Power
Oct 4 2022 // Despite near constant disruption from the twin forces of digital transformation and economic uncertainty, independent insurance agents have never been more satisfied with their carrier partners. According to the J.D. Power...
#10 After Ian Swamped His Office and Home, Florida Insurance Agent Picking Up the Pieces
Oct 6 2022 // John Gardner this week found himself in a position no insurance agent would like to be in: no office to work in, no electrical service and no internet, but with hundreds of policyholders clamoring to file claims. And...
#11 Special Report: America’s Best Independent Insurance Agencies to Work For
Nov 21 2022 // The votes are in for the 2022 Best Independent Insurance Agency to Work For survey by Insurance Journal. Employees in 2022 highlighted the importance of competitive salaries, employee benefits, training and education,...
#12 Alabama Insurance Agent Charged with $600,000 in Fraud, Elder Exploitation
Mar 1 2023 // Authorities have charged an Alabama insurance agent, who formerly worked for Alfa Insurance, with more than $600,000 in fraud, theft and exploitation of the elderly. Bret Chappell, 43, of Warrior, Alabama, was arrested...
#13 Insurance Broker Acrisure Interviews Banks for 2024 IPO
Jun 19 2023 // Acrisure LLC, a large, closely-held insurance broker, is interviewing banks to go public next year, people with knowledge of the matter said, in a sign that equity markets may be opening up to new listings from strong...
#14 TikTok, Transit Agencies Face Wrongful Death Suit Over New York Teenager’s Death
Mar 23 2023 // Chinese company ByteDance and its popular social media platform TikTok are facing a wrongful death suit in New York over the 2022 death of a teenager. The suit alleges that TikTok sent thousands of unsolicited suicidal...
#15 MOVEit Cyber Attack Hits UK Printing Firm Used by Insurers, Brokers and Banks
Jun 15 2023 // A UK printing firm that sends mail for clients ranging from major health-insurance providers to multinational banks was a victim of the extensive MOVEit cyberattack. Adare SEC confirmed to Bloomberg News on Monday that it...
#16 Carolina Insurance Agent Charged with Backdating Auto Policy After Crash
Aug 16 2023 // A North Carolina insurance agent has been charged with fraud after allegedly backdating an auto policy, to show that a friend was covered at the time of an accident. The North Carolina Department of Insurance reported this...
#17 Thousands of New Independent Agencies Opened During the Pandemic: Study
Oct 13 2022 // The number of independent insurance agencies has increased and business conditions for agencies remain favorable, according to the 2022 Agency Universe Study. While the majority of agencies experienced increased revenue,...
#18 Broker Sues Over Unethical ‘Raid’ of 38 Staff in UK Poaching Row
May 11 2023 // Marsh & McLennan Cos.’s reinsurance broker sued a London rival, saying it secretly planned an unethical “raid” of 38 people across Europe, in the latest lawsuit to pore over clandestine staff poaching...
#19 Congratulations Top 100 Agencies
Aug 7 2023 // This year marks the 19th annual publication of Insurance Journal’s Top 100 Independent Agencies special report. One significant trend — the vast majority of firms (84 firms) in the Top 100 saw notable increases...
#20 Freddie Mac Accepts KBRA Ratings, Giving Fla. Agents, Mortgagees More Options
Feb 2 2023 // Freddie Mac, one of two mortgage-buying companies that buttress the U.S. home-lending market, has agreed to accept the Kroll Bond Rating Agency as a rating firm for homeowners’ insurance companies. “We have...
