AIIA Young Agents
Conference is July 22-24 at the New Baytowne Village Resort
Come
experience the new Sandestin Resort property – the beautiful Village of
Baytowne Wharf. The Young Agents conference is July 22-24 this year, and will
not overlap the back to school rush of August. Come experience a taste of New
Orleans in this pedestrian setting. Full of shops, eateries and a rich
atmosphere, the Village will be the perfect spot to mix business with pleasure.
Speaker Steve Morgan is back by popular demand. His high energy and topics
received great response the last time he joined us. His topics this year are
“Four Phases of Attitude” and “Customer Relations.” We all know attitude plays
in huge role in our daily interaction with customers. Fun events include a
dolphin cruise for all ages and a golf tournament. Registration information is
available online at www.aiia.org or call
Nancy Crowe or Kim Kay at (205) 326-4129.
INDUSTRY NEWS: Work
Comp for non-Florida Employees Working in Florida
June
20, 2004 -- Florida has began enforcement of their newly implemented state Work
Comp laws that lead to surprise, shock, Stop Work Orders and large fines for
out-of-state workers working in Florida. Florida’s Chief Financial Officer
announced the completion of a sweep of construction sites across Florida in an
effort to verify that employers are complying with state work comp insurance
laws. During random statewide site visits, investigators made contact with over
900 businesses, including subcontractors, and issued more than 75 SWOs (Stop
Work Orders) to halt operations because employees were not properly covered by
work comp insurance in compliance with state law.
During
2003, lawmakers made several important reforms to the WC system in effort to
stem the tide of rising premiums. As part of the reforms, the Division of
Workers Compensation was granted greater enforcement authority to ensure
businesses provide proper coverage. In 2003, Florida legislature required that:
Work
Comp for non-Florida workers MUST be written on a Florida policy! This
regulation applies to all states with contractors working in Florida. Recently,
a Texas contractor was hit with a large fine for not having Florida-specific
coverage. All employees were from Texas and eligible for Texas benefits, and
the business owner had purchased appropriate coverage for work in any other state.
However, the Florida protectionist legislation makes this illegal – only
Florida benefits can protect a contractor while working in Florida.
Exciting news! AIIA’s Building for Tomorrow’s
Capital Campaign nears $700,000! Thanks to the following contributors who
raised our pledge total to $686,250! We
are so close to $700,000 – Will you help us reach our goal? Call in your pledge to AIIA today! 205-326-4129.
Trey Starke, The Starke Agency,
Montgomery $1,000
Paul Burkholder, Jr., Burkholder
Insurance, Mobile $1,000
Mitch Hurt, Howell-Hurt, Anniston $1,000
Larry Pinkerton, The Turner Agency,
Fayette $1,000
Young Agent Contributor Ray Kilpatrick,
Lamar Agency, Vernon $400
Young Agent Contributor Larry
Pinkerton, The Turner Agency, Fayette $400
Vickie Morris, Insurance Place,
Childersburg $1,000
Young Agent Contributor Mandy Morris,
Insurance Place, Childersburg $400
Warren
Johnston, Henninger, Johnson & Layton, Tuscumbia $1,000
W. K. Thrasher, Thrasher Insurance
Agency, Haleyville $500
Leroy Clark, Clark Associates, Hoover $1,000
Mary Foy Kirkland and Young Johnston,
Young Johnston & Associates, Eufaula $1,000
Thanks so much to all Capital Campaign
Contributors! We cannot do it without your help!
The U.S. Treasury Department announced Friday its decision to
extend the “make available” provision of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act
(TRIA) through 2005. The provision requires that insurers must make terrorism
coverage available. In making the announcement, Treasury Secretary John Snow
said that TRIA has bolstered the confidence of the business community in the
wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The decision partially was based
on a Treasury Department study that found a widespread belief that the “make
available” provisions have contributed to TRIA’s effectiveness by providing
terrorism risk insurance coverage offers that otherwise would have been
unavailable. The department also found that the provision helped make terrorism
risk coverage more affordable and available than it otherwise would have been.
Additionally, the Big “I” praised the National Association of Insurance
Commissioners (NAIC) for supporting a two-year extension of TRIA. The Big “I”
and eight other organizations representing virtually the entire
property-casualty insurance industry are asking Congress to renew TRIA.
Separately, a study released last week by Marsh, Inc., shows that business’
appetite for terrorism risk insurance is on the upswing. Marsh found that about
44 percent of more than 600 public and private entities surveyed nationwide
that had bought or renewed property coverage in the year’s first quarter also
bought terrorism coverage. That figure compares with 32.7 percent of
respondents to an earlier Marsh survey in the fourth quarter of 2003. The Big
“I” believes the federal backstop is crucial to satisfying the need for
terrorism insurance of American businesses. For more information, contact
Charles Symington at (800) 221-7917 or charles.symington@iiaba.net.
EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES
"Insuring
Contractors" Class Coming to Alabama in July. Don't miss this practical
course taught by Patrick Deem, CIC. Patrick is one of the nation's most
highly sought after instructors and expert witnesses, with excellent practical knowledge
on every line of insurance that is commonly written on contractors. Topics
include general liability, business auto, contractual liability issues,
builders risk, workers compensation and more. Questions from the
class will be taken, so be sure to bring your questions. This course is
approved for 6 hours CE credit. Class meets 8am until 3pm on July 27 in
Mobile, July 28 in Montgomery, July 29 in Birmingham, and July
30 in Huntsville. Cost is only $80.00 for AIIA members! Space is
still available in all cities, but we encourage early registration as this is a
popular class.
CIC, Personal Lines Institute, August 4-6, 2004. Registration is $325. Reserve your spot, as the next available Personal Lines Institute will be in November 2005!
EMPLOYMENT / AGENCY OPPORTUNITIES
Ø
Underwriter
Needed. Underwriter needed for fast-paced MGA in Florence. NAI seeks an
experienced E&S binding underwriter. www.nai1982.com
Send resume and salary requirements to P.O. Box 2909, Florence, AL 35630.
Ø C/L CSR Seeks Position. Licensed CSR with CISR designation seeks position in
Birmingham area. Please contact Brenda Hope @ 205-791-2985.
Ø C/L Lines Marketer Seeks Position.
Experienced commercial lines marketer seeks agency position in the Mobile area
performing marketing and/or agency management function. Contact Dick MacDonald
at (251) 625-8971.
Ø Seeking P&C Producer. Florence
agency needs P&C producer. Please call (256) 766-2222 for more info.
Ø PL CSR Seeking Position.
Licensed personal lines CSR seeks position in Jefferson / Shelby County. 23
years of experience. Call Lavelle Huff at (205) 680-1799.
Ø Seeking P&C Producers: Agency
needs P&C producers in Alabama to sell top Auto insurance. For appointment
or sponsorship, call (205) 795-2540.
Ø Seeking Agents: Birmingham area agency
looking for agents to solicit surety accounts. Agency will provide office space
and is willing to split commissions 50/50 with the agent on all business they
produce. All inquires confidential. Send all inquiries to PO Box 449,
Trussville, AL 35173.
Ø Seeking
Commercial Lines Assistant. Birmingham agency seeking
experienced individual to assist Account Executives with customer service.
Please submit resume to fax 205-930-0450, Attn: W. Cochrane or email to wcochrane@jrprewitt.com .