JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Republican U.S. Rep. Ander Crenshaw will not be running for re-election in November, according to a statement released on Wednesday. “After a great deal of reflection, I have decided not to seek re-election this fall. Representing the Congressional District where my family has lived for four generations has been a tremendous privilege. …
TALLAHASSEE — Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Tuesday signed a bill that supporters say will help make certain that people receive life-insurance benefits after family members die. The bill (SB 966), sponsored by Senate Banking and Insurance Chairwoman Lizbeth Benacquisto, R-Fort Myers, and Rep. Bill Hager, R-Delray Beach, involves requirements for insurers to use what…
TALLAHASSEE — There is little relief coming for homeowners facing crushing rate increases after being nudged (some would say shoved) out of the state-run property insurance company. And those left in Citizens Property Insurance Corp. could be facing big increases of their own because of another failure in the Legislature. In short, it was a…
Six Questions To Help Consumers Decide When To Purchase Travel Insurance April 5, 2016 NEW YORK, April 6, 2016 — Travel insurance can’t prevent bad things from happening on a vacation, but it may be able to protect your financial investment, according to the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.). “For many consumers worried that an extreme…
Hurricane Season Is Less Than Two Months Away, And Policies Have A 30-Day Waiting Period April 4, 2016 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE New York Press Office: (212) 346-5500; media@iii.org NEW YORK, April 4, 2016 — Nine out of 10 natural disasters in the United States involve flooding, yet less than 15 percent of the nation’s homeowners…
Sen. Don Gaetz Guest column Like the mongoose and the cobra, politicians and the media are natural enemies, watching each other warily and always ready to strike at the other’s vulnerabilities. So it was an uncomfortable moment for some in the political establishment when state Rep. Ritch Workman of Melbourne and I introduced anti-corruption legislation…
DES PLAINES, Ill., March 30, 2016 — The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) reports today that from January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2015, a total of 2,792,331 water damage claims were filed across the United States. In 2015, there were 1,403,054 water damage claims filed—an increase of just 1 percent over 2014’s total of…
By Harold Bubil , Herald-Tribune Wednesday, March 23, 2016 ORLANDO — After Hurricane Ike’s storm surge virtually wiped out all the beachfront houses east and west of Galveston, Texas, in 2008, FEMA came to the rescue and bought what was left of the first and second houses along the beachfront, and for pre-Ike values. FILE…
President Obama arrived in Cuba, becoming the first United States president to visit the large Caribbean island nation since Calvin Coolidge in 1928. The historic trip comes 15 months after Obama announced the restoration of diplomatic ties between the U.S. and Cuba. In the push to normalize relations with the communist-led government in Havana, U.S.…
Following the 2016 Florida Legislative Session’s failure to pass essential assignment of benefit (AOB) reforms, the insurance industry and Citizens Property Insurance Corp. are working in tandem with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) to find workable administrative measures to help combat this kickback-driven lawsuit-for-profit scheme. The sad truth is AOB abuse is organized…