Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. reported fourth-quarter net income grew 72 percent on the strength of cost-cutting, integration of new business and stepped-up sales activity.

The Florida Supreme Court has ruled that insurers can be liable for unsolicited blast faxes that violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) under a commercial general liability insurance policy.

Profitability for insurance brokerages is expected to remain stable for this year despite continued challenges from the soft market and global economic conditions, said a report from Fitch Ratings.

Munich Re reported fourth-quarter profit jumped 591 percent, helped by the combination of improvements in its investment portfolio and extraordinarily low natural catastrophe losses.

Hamilton, Bermuda-based XL Insurance, the global insurance operations of XL Capital Ltd, said it named Patrick Tannock as president of XL Insurance (Bermuda) Ltd and country manager, effective Feb. 22.

San Francisco-based insurance brokerage Confie Seguros said it has acquired Vern Fonk Insurance Services Inc., an insurance agency headquartered in Puget Sound, Wash.

If any agents or brokers doubt how expensive the simple act of not documenting a client's requests can be, all they need do is review a recent case in California where one brokerage is facing a $5.8 million judgment.

Like the rest of the commercial insurance sector, the market for errors and omissions coverage to protect agents and brokers continues to show signs of softening.