Agency Management

Arthur J. Gallagher has reached a nationwide agreement with the Illinois attorney general and insurance department permitting the brokerage to once again accept contingent commissions.

In recent years, the specialty market for solo practitioner and small group lawyers professional liability--LPL--insurance has posted strong and stable financial results.

As the insurance industry navigates through increased and never-ending change, some common challenges are surfacing among independent agents.

The gap between attractive prices being charged by incumbent directors and officers liability insurance carriers and higher premiums that have been charged by competitors in recent quarters has started to narrow.

With the use of e-mail by insurance agents and brokers to transact routine business proliferating, tech security experts warn that a growing body of regulation will require greater attention to encryption and storage of communications.

Despite poor financial results, competition among insurers continued to be intense in the second quarter, but depletion of capital signals rising commercial insurance rates ahead.