INSURANCE NEWS
$1.5B Dike Repair Finally Done at Florida’s Okeechobee, Protecting Thousands of Home
After 18 years, a $1.5 billion project was officially completed to repair the sprawling dike around Florida’s Lake Okeechobee that protects thousands of people from potentially catastrophic flooding during hurricanes. The Herbert Hoover Dike project overseen by the U.S. Army …
Report on Mass Shootings Urges Workplace Violence Prevention Plans
As the nation reels from a week of high-profile shootings, a new report on mass attacks calls for communities to intervene early when they see warning signs of violence, encourages businesses to consider workplace violence prevention plans and highlights the …
‘A Tale of Two Halves’ for 2022’s Insurance Mergers and Acquisitions
Last year was a tale of two halves for insurance mergers and acquisitions. OPTIS Partners reports 987 agency mergers and acquisitions were announced in 2022 – down 8% from 2021. A significant rise in interest rates and economic uncertainty may …
CFOs Now Occupy Hottest Seat in Boardroom and Most Acute Labor Shortage
It’s not just truck drivers and nurses. The most acute labor shortage for many companies right now is the chief financial officer. Assignments for CFO appointments across Europe, the Middle East and Africa are up almost a third on this …
U.S. Says It ‘Hacked the Hackers’ to Bring Down Hive Ransomware Gang
The FBI on Thursday revealed it had secretly hacked and disrupted a prolific ransomware gang called Hive, a maneuver that allowed the bureau to thwart the group from collecting more than $130 million in ransomware demands from more than 300 …
British Financial Services Damaged by Slow Supervisors, Report Warns
Britain’s regulators can be slow, inefficient and unpredictable, raising costs and slowly damaging the financial sector’s global competitiveness, industry body TheCityUK said in a report. Complex, opaque and slow authorizations, such as for a new chief executive or a new …
Amazon Rainforest Is Deteriorating Too Fast for Species and Climate to Adapt: Reports
Two new scientific review articles by international teams of researchers paint a bleak picture of the state of the Amazon rainforest: The critical ecosystem is being damaged at an unprecedented pace, they warn, which may usher in “a qualitatively different …
EU Eyes $100/Barrel Cap on Russian Premium Oil Products in Next Round of Sanctions
The European Commission is proposing that the EU set a $100 per barrel price cap on premium Russian oil products like diesel and a $45 per barrel cap on discounted products like fuel oil, European Union officials said on Thursday. …
British Motor Insurer Direct Line’s CEO James Steps Down
Direct Line Insurance Group’s chief executive of nearly four years, Penny James, will step down with immediate effect after the British motor and home insurer faced “significant headwinds” in recent months, the company said on Friday. James, who joined Direct …
Tesla, Insurers Address Expensive Repairs in Sharply Different Ways
Tesla Inc.’s electric vehicles are expensive to repair – so much so that the automaker and insurers are addressing the issue in sharply different ways. Chief Executive Elon Musk says Tesla is making design and software changes to its vehicles …
Risk Strategies Buys Tanenbaum-Harber Agency in Florida
Risk Strategies, a national insurance brokerage, has acquired Florida’s Tanenbaum-Harber, a risk management and insurance advisor. Based in Miramar, Florida, Tanenbaum-Harber traces its beginnings to 1860, the companies said in a news release. It is considered one of the largest …
Alera Group Acquires Hackney Agency in North Carolina
Alera Group, an independent insurance and wealth management firm, has acquired the John Hackney Agency in North Carolina. Hackney, with offices in Wilson, in the eastern part of the state, was founded in 1895 by the Hackney brothers’ great-grandfather, the …