PIANH Symposium14, Oct. 2-3

The education event of the season is just around the corner—and it includes so much more than education. PIANH’s Symposium14 will take place Thursday and Friday, Oct. 2-3, 2014, at the 100 Club and Hilton Garden Inn, Portsmouth. This unique, two-day networking event features an international wine and food tasting; PIANH’s Company Awards Dinner; a keynote breakfast featuring Bernd G. Heinze, Esq., CLU; and E&O Risk: Issues Every Producer and CSR Needs to Know, continuing education led by Curt Pearsall, CPCU, CPIA, AU, ARM, AAIF, approved for 3 Producer NHCEU. Sip wine and mingle during Thursday’s welcome reception, and explore the world of wine and beer. During the awards dinner on Oct. 2, PIANH will announce the winners of its 2014 Awards of Excellence. Among those recognized are the following: Acadia Insurance Co.; Main Street America; MMG Insurance Co.; Mt. Washington Assurance Corp.; and Vermont Mutual Insurance Co. For more information, or to register, click here.  

Click for more information.

Commission on WC reform meeting this week

Gov. Maggie Hassan’s Commission to Recommend Reforms to Reduce Workers’ Compensation Medical Costs will meet Friday, Sept. 26, 2014, at 1 p.m. The meeting will take place at the New Hampshire State House, Council Chambers, Concord. More …  

NHID to hold public hearing on Western World, Stratford, Tudor acquisition

The New Hampshire Insurance Department will hold a public hearing regarding the acquisition of control of Western World Insurance Co., Stratford Insurance Co., and Tudor Insurance Co. on Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2014, at 9 a.m., at 21 S. Fruit St., Ste. 10, Concord. The companies will be acquired and controlled by Validus Specialty Inc. and Validus Holdings Ltd. More …  

NHID Health Exchange Advisory Board meeting, Oct. 10

The NHID will hold its next Health Exchange Advisory Board meeting Friday, Oct. 10, 2014, at 9:15 a.m. at the Walker Building, Concord. The meeting is open to the public, and past meeting minutes are available online. More …  

HealthCare.gov given overhaul

Federal health officials said Monday that the Obama administration plans to redesign the HealthCare.gov website, and that 70 percent of consumers will be able to use a shorter, simpler online application to purchase health insurance. The second-annual open enrollment period begins in mid-November. More …  

TRIA renewal may be delayed past November elections

Even though the U.S. Senate has passed its own version of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act renewal, The U.S. House of Representatives has not considered an extension bill (H.R.4871) passed by the House Financial Services Committee in June. Congress is in recess through the midterm elections in November. The current version of TRIA will sunset Dec. 31, 2014. More …  

U.S. House passes insurance capital bill

The U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation to amend the 2010 Dodd-Frank law to provide the U.S. Federal Reserve with greater flexibility in setting new capital rules for insurance companies in a vote of 327-97 on Sept. 16. More … What this means for agents: This change would grant the Federal Reserve flexibility in the treatment of insurance companies under the Dodd-Frank Act. More …  

OSHA: New rules for reporting worker injuries

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced a final rule requiring employers to notify OSHA when an employee is killed on the job or suffers a work-related hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye. The rule, which also updates the list of employers partially exempt from OSHA record-keeping requirements, will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2015, for workplaces under federal OSHA jurisdiction. More …  

Tower: ACP has completed acquisition

In a discussion with a Tower representative, PIA learned that privately owned Bermuda-based reinsurer ACP Re Ltd., has completed its $143 million acquisition of Tower Group International Ltd. As part of the deal, National General acquired of the new and renewal rights to Tower’s personal-lines business. It also acquired the attorney-in-fact who manages two reciprocal exchanges, Adirondack Insurance and NJ Skylands insurance companies. AmTrust acquired the renewal rights to Tower’s commercial-lines businesses. PIA will have more on the transaction as the details of the deal are released. More …  

A.M. Best upgrades Tower

A.M. Best has upgraded the financial strength rating to "B-" (Fair) from "C" (Weak) and the issuer credit ratings to "bb-" from "ccc" of the former members of the Tower U.S. Pool and CastlePoint Reinsurance Co. Ltd. Additionally, A.M. Best has revised the implications on the under-review status for these ratings to positive from developing. Finally, A.M. Best has withdrawn the ICR of "c" of the intermediate holding company, Tower Group Inc. It also has withdrawn the ICR of "c" of the ultimate holding company, Tower Group International Ltd. More …  

Nationwide announces restructuring to one brand

Nationwide has announced it is aligning all of its property/casualty agency businesses of its former Nationwide Insurance and Allied Group operations under one new office—Nationwide P&C Agency Operations. The company also is restructuring its commercial- and personal-lines product organization and sales organization.  

Fireman’s Fund commercial-lines business to become part of Allianz

The Fireman’s Fund commercial property/casualty business will be integrated into Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty, the global corporate insurance company of Allianz. The integration further strengthens the Allianz brand in its U.S. commercial P&C business. More …  

Warwick Resource Group wins PIA National social media award

PIA member Warwick Resource Group was awarded the "Excellence in Social Media Award" at PIA National’s Fall Governance Meetings in San Antonio, Texas, Sept. 19. The annual PIA National Excellence in Social Media Award, inaugurated in 2010, is given to honor a PIA-member insurance agency for excellence in the use of social media in a business setting. CAPTION: (LEFT to RIGHT) Keith A. Savino, CPIA, and Richard A. Savino, CIC, CPIA, with Warwick’s award. More …  

Click for more information.

Sending out privacy notices? Think PIA first

Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, professional, independent insurance agents are required to develop and distribute privacy policies to their clients each year. PIA Creative Services makes complying with this requirement easy. Through PIA Creative Services you can send personal- and commercial-lines newsletters that can be mailed to your clients. This is a perfect way to get your privacy notice to your insureds. Contact Mike Lee at mlee@pia.org or call (800) 424-4244 for more information. For more information on privacy policies, access QS28021 in the PIA QuickSource library.  

Ask PIA: Willing and able contractor recommendations

Q. When, based on its appraisal, a homeowners insurer offers a settlement for damage to a home, but the insured cannot find anyone who will do the job for the price quoted, can the homeowner ask the insurer to identify someone who will accept the price quoted, but not be required to use this repairer? A. Homeowners who cannot find anyone to do the repairs for the amount offered can ask the company to identify someone who will. The insured is free to use, or not to use, a repairer the company identifies. If the company can identify someone, then it owes only the original price quoted. For a more comprehensive answer to this question, click here. To access our entire Ask PIA library offrequently asked questions and expert answers by PIA’s technical staff, click here.  

PIA’s Market Transition Tool Kit

PIA offers information to help educate your clients and agency staff on the changing market. Through PIA’s Market Transition Tool Kit, association members have access to: information on market cycles (definitions of hard and soft markets, etc.); latest market news (industry information and survey results assessing the changing market); markets/expert information to assist clients; customer-education resources (e.g., sample letters and articles); policyholder protection laws/regulations; and surplus-lines market rules.  

PIANH offers Webinar on agency appraisals

Agency managers: Annual review time is just around the corner, and compensation is the single biggest expense in an agency. Do you have competent staff and appropriate job descriptions? When it comes time to evaluate your staff's performance, is it something you enjoy or something you dread? Do you know how to seek good CSR candidates to hire? PIANH will hold Agency Staffing, Performance and Job Evaluations on Thursday, Oct. 2, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Led by Jonathan Persky, CPA, CIC, PHR, this course is not applicable for continuing-education credit. To register, click here. Can't make the live Webinar? No problem! Sign up and RSVP anyway and you will automatically get the replay.  

Upcoming PIANH Webinars

In addition to the Webinar on agency staffing, PIANH will offer the following Webinars in the next few months: Agency Staffing, Performance and Job Evaluations (Thursday, Oct. 2, from 10-11 a.m., NHCEU: N/A); E&O Hotspots … 2014 and Beyond^{^FF^UM} (Thursday, Oct. 16, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., NHCEU: 3 GEN PRO); Top Ten Personal Lines Endorsements (Tuesday, Oct. 21, from 10-11 a.m., NHCEU: 1 GEN PRO); Ethics—Something Worth Pursuing (Tuesday, Dec. 2, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., NHCEU: 3 ETHICS PRO); and Top Ten Commercial Lines Endorsements (Wednesday, Dec. 10, from 10-11 a.m., NHCEU: 1 GEN PRO). ^{^FF^UM}—This course has been approved for E&O loss-prevention credit by Fireman’s Fund and Utica Mutual. Call the PIA E&O Department for details at (800) 424-4244. For more information or to register, click here.  

Homeowners premium comparison

The NHID offers a premium comparison guide broken down by ZIP code, using four typical homeowners scenarios, including ones for renters and condominium owners, for consumer reference. This guide was developed to offer insurance consumers an idea of the typical insurance premiums for their local area. For a copy of this comparison, access QS28047 in PIA’s QuickSource library.  

Click for more information.

This email message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply email and destroy all copies of the original message. If you prefer not to receive ANY email communication from PIA click here.