Flash floods in southeastern France have damaged hundreds of homes and killed 22 people, according to bulletin by Guy Carpenter's Instrat unit that cites various media reports.

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) said it has reached an agreement with a second reinsurer to participate in the state's market under modified regulatory terms.

The insurance industry needs to give greater support to nascent minority insurance producers or risk losing ground to the direct markets in the future, a New Jersey agents association president said.

Impairment ratings are an important issue for claims professionals. In state workers' compensation systems they drive more than $20 billion of costs.