BlogThursday, August 15 2019
Don’t be lulled by a quiet June and July, the real Atlantic hurricane season is about to kick off. The hurricane season generally runs from June 1 to the end of November. But the next six weeks — “the season within a season” — is regularly the most dangerous and active time for storms to develop in the Atlantic, said Dennis Feltgen, spokesman for the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Only two named storms have developed in the Atlantic so far this summer. Dry, dusty air from Africa’s Sahara robbed potential storms of moisture, and wind shear spurred by the El Nino climate systems ripped apart budding storms. Now, those brakes on hurricane development are gone. The result: “A big change in the pattern over the Atlantic, going from a very lackluster quiet weather pattern to a much more active one,” said Dan Kottlowski, the lead hurricane forecaster at AccuWeather Inc. in State College, Pennsylvania. “We are thinking this season will be back-loaded.” Last week, the U.S. National Weather Service forecast 10 to 17 named storms in the Atlantic. Last year, there were 15, including hurricanes Florence and Michael that killed a combined 96 people and caused more than $49 billion in damage. A storm is named when it reaches tropical storm strength, with maximum sustained winds of at least 74 miles per hour. At risk is $17 trillion in U.S. real estate along the coasts, as well as some of America’s most valuable commodities. More than 45% of U.S. refining capacity and 51% of gas processing is along the Gulf of Mexico coastline. Florida is the world’s second-largest producer of orange juice after Brazil. There are two other factors that could spur on storms in September, according to Bob Henson, a meteorologist with Weather Underground, an IBM business. The first is the so-called Madden-Julian Oscillation, a ripple of rising and sinking air that swirls through the atmosphere about every 45 to 60 days that can spark typhoons and hurricanes when combined with other factors. It could affect the Atlantic in late August or September, Henson said. The second is a fast-moving atmospheric system known as a “convectively-coupled kelvin wave” that’s affected by the earth’s rotation. When one runs into a tropical wave moving off Africa, it can give it a speedy boost to swirl into a hurricane or tropical storm. There is one now moving across the Pacific on its way to the Atlantic, Henson said. Two Calm WeeksAll of this doesn’t mean the Atlantic will pop to life at high noon on August 20. The next two weeks should extend the streak of drifting doldrums across the basin, Henson said. Once they do start rolling, though, look out. There is a deep pool of warm water tucked into the Gulf of Mexico, across the western Caribbean and along the U.S. Southeast coastline, according to Jim Rouiller, chief meteorologist at the Energy Weather Group outside Philadelphia. Any storm that reaches those areas could explode in power, he said. “This is high-octane fuel that is all waiting in the wings for the first storm,” Rouiller said. “This is all untapped, and it will really intensify storms.” Monday, August 12 2019
Government meteorologists say this year’s hurricane season may be busier than initially expected now that summer’s weak El Nino has faded away. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center said Thursday the Atlantic season looks more active than normal as peak hurricane season begins. Forecasters now expect 10 to 17 named storms, with five to nine hurricanes and two to four major ones. In May, they forecast a normal season, one or two fewer named storms and hurricanes. Forecaster Gerry Bell says the end of El Nino means more hospitable hurricane conditions. El Nino is the periodic warming of parts of the Pacific that affects weather worldwide and dampens storm activity. Hurricane season is June through November. So far, there have been two named storms, with one hurricane. Thursday, August 08 2019
Officials in the southwest Florida city of Naples say they lost $700,000 in a recent cyberattack. The Naples Daily News reports that the attack was a “spear phishing” effort targeting a specific person or department and that appeared to be from a trusted source. Authorities say the money was paid to a fake bank account the attacker provided while posing as a representative from the Wright Construction Group, which was doing infrastructure work in downtown Naples. City Manager Charles Chapman says the attack was an isolated incident and has not impacted the city’s data systems. Chapman says a criminal investigation has been launched. Other Florida cities including Key Biscayne, Riviera Beach and Lake City have also been targeted in cyberattacks. Monday, July 15 2019
Olympus Insurance Co. has appointed James “Jim” Carpenter as assistant vice president of Sales and Marketing.  Carpenter has more than 20 years of experience in the property & casualty insurance industry, seven of which he spent at Tower Hill Insurance. He also worked for two years as an underwriting manager at Vanguard before switching to the sales side. He worked in marketing with Florida Family for 11 years, and then spent a year and a half with Prepared Insurance before being asked to step into the assistant vice president of Sales and Marketing role with Olympus Insurance. Headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., and founded in 2007, Olympus Insurance Company specializes in Florida property insurance. Through its independent agency force, Olympus insures $40 billion worth of residential and investment property including homes, condos, rental properties and valuable personal property, with umbrella coverage and Spartan Enhanced Coverage available. Monday, June 17 2019
Florida-based Olympus Insurance Co. has added Nathan Kochilaris as the company’s new Southwest Florida Sales manager. Kochilaris will work under Vice President of Sales and Marketing Crystal McInnis. Kochilaris has experience in both the insurance and real estate sectors. He previously worked as a branch manager for Bank of America before launching his career in the insurance industry with Brown & Brown Insurance Agency in 2008. His past experience includes serving as team leader, account manager, and risk advisor working with multiple Florida insurance agencies in Sarasota. Kochilaris is 215 and 220 licensed, and obtained his CPIA designation in 2017. He brings over five years of experience writing Olympus policies to his new role as Regional Sales manager. Headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., and founded in 2007, Olympus Insurance Co. specializes in Florida property insurance. Through its independent agency force, Olympus insures $40 billion worth of residential and investment property including homes, condos, rental properties, and valuable personal property, with umbrella coverage and Spartan Enhanced Coverage available. Tuesday, May 28 2019
Long-awaited reforms for Florida’s assignment of benefits (AOB) crisis that the insurance industry and consumer advocates say has led to less coverage and higher rates for Florida property owners will officially become law July 1. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 7065 on Thursday, marking the end to a seven-year battle by the industry and reform advocates seeking a solution to escalating abuse of the policyholder benefit. “I thank the Florida Legislature for passing meaningful AOB reform, which has become a racket in recent years,” DeSantis said in a statement. “This legislation will protect Florida consumers from predatory insurance practices.” DeSantis previously indicated he would sign the bill after it was passed by lawmakers in April, saying “the exponential growth in AOB abuse has contributed to mounting insurance costs for Floridians for far too long.” “By signing House Bill 7065, we will better protect consumers from those who would take advantage of them by abusing the Assignment of Benefits process,” Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier said in a statement after DeSantis signed the bill. The bill’s provisions:
The bill also requires savings be passed along to Florida consumers who are covered by Citizens Property Insurance Corp., which has borne the brunt of AOB abuse. In South Florida in particular, AOB lawsuits have exploded over the last 10 years and Citizens has filed for rate increases to offset litigation costs. It proposed rate increases for 97 percent of its homeowners policyholders for 2019. Written into the bill is a stipulation stating Citizens “may not implement rate changes in 2019 for DP-3 and HO-3 policies unless the rate filing reflects projected rate savings from this act.” Citizens said in a statement after the passage of the bill that its actuaries estimated reforms would reduce the statewide average rate need from 25.2% to 10.1% for homeowners policyholders. In South Florida, the average rate need would drop from 30.4% to 12.8%. Citizens spokesperson Michael Peltier told Insurance Journal in April that the insurer is planning to refile its rate request in the coming months. It plans to release further details at a later date and will work with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) on timing. Barry Gilway, president, CEO and executive director of Citizens praised the signing of the bill on Thursday. “This new law represents a major step forward in our efforts to stem rising premiums caused by unnecessary litigation and assignment of benefits abuse. It is going to make a difference,” he said in a statement. Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis said Florida consumers are the biggest winners with the soon-to-be law’s protections. “This year, we advocated for Florida homeowners and passed reforms to help stop rampant lawsuit abuse across the state. My fraud detectives, as well as sheriffs, state attorneys and other law enforcement leaders have joined our efforts to create a Fraud Free Florida, and this new law furthers this mission,” Patronis said. Other industry groups also praised the passage of the bill. “We are grateful that AOB reform is now officially here for homeowners, so fewer Floridians can be taken advantage of during their times of need,” said Michael Carlson, president of the Personal Insurance Federation of Florida (PIFF). On Friday, the governor also signed House Bill 337, which contains language providing that the attorney’s fee provisions of HB 7065 takes effect once the bill has been signed by the governor and becomes law. Lawmakers added the effective date for the attorney fee provision to HB 337, which was already the works, in response to claims by law firms profiting off of AOB agreements that they would rush to file cases and continue AOB abuse before the law takes effect on July 1. Lead Florida AOB attorney Harvey Cohen posted a video within days after the reforms were passed urging vendors to submit their AOB agreements for litigation as soon as possible. The video was circulated by the Florida Consumer Protection Coalition in a news release titled “Shameless.” “The law takes effect July 1, so you need to have your documents sent to us right away. Make sure we get all of these cases filed well before July 1,” Cohen said. “You can imagine, at the end of June there is going to be a mad rush to get everything filed.” Fred E. Karlinsky, co-chair of law firm Greenberg Traurig’s Insurance Regulatory and Transactions Practice Group in Florida, said adding the effective date to HB 337 was a wise move by lawmakers. “This predatory practice has cost the citizens of the state of Florida tens of millions of dollars and the legislature and governor clearly wanted to put an immediate end to it,” he said. Tuesday, May 28 2019
As many as 8 hurricanes may form in the Atlantic in 2019, a “near normal” season following two years of storms that have left a trail of death and destruction in the Caribbean and U.S. coast. Nine to 15 named storms are forecast during the six-month season that starts June 1, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which has been largely correct with its predictions in recent years. Of those, 4 to 8 will become hurricanes and 2 to 4 will be major systems with winds of 111 miles (179 kilometers) per hour or more. “It only takes one landfalling hurricane to create great destruction to a community, we need to prepare now,” said Daniel Kaniewski, a deputy administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The hurricane season will be closely watched because of its potential to take a heavy human toll as well as rattle oil and gas markets across the globe. Over the past two years, storms including Michael, Irma and Harvey led to scores of deaths and over $250 billion in damages. They have also sent U.S. gasoline prices surging, shifted global crude and fuel flows, disrupted production in the energy-rich Gulf Coast and threatened crops. This year is the fifth time in a row that a system has spun up in the Atlantic before the official June 1 start to the season, with Subtropical Storm Andrea forming earlier this week. A system gets a name when it reaches tropical storm strength with winds of 39 mph. Still, a lingering El Nino weather phenomenon in the equatorial Pacific could help keep overall storm numbers lower by creating wind shear across the Atlantic that rips budding systems apart, said Neil Jacobs, acting NOAA administrator. In April, Colorado State University predicted 13 storms could be named in the Atlantic this year. Energy markets will focus on the potential impact in the Gulf Coast, which accounts for 45% of U.S. refining capacity and 51% of gas processing. About 5% of the nation’s natural gas and 17% of crude comes out of the Gulf of Mexico, according to the Energy Information Administration. There are also more than 6.6 million homes with an estimated reconstruction cost of $1.5 trillion along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, according to the Insurance Information Institute in New York. Florida is the world’s second-largest producer of orange juice. In 2018, storms Michael and Florence struck the U.S. South, causing widespread damage that’s still lingering as residents struggle to rebuild. Florence ripped into North Carolina in September, bringing record storm surge and rain that flooded homes and businesses before causing additional destruction across South Carolina. It’s blamed for 52 deaths, according to the National Hurricane Center. The following month, Hurricane Michael leveled homes in Florida’s panhandle when it came ashore near Mexico Beach. The storm killed at least 16 and caused $25 billion in damage, the National Hurricane Center said. It was the third most intense storm in terms of central pressure and brought the fourth strongest winds of any to hit the contiguous U.S. on record. Both storm names have been retired from official lists. Monday, April 29 2019
Press ReleaseOlson & DiNunzio Insurance Agency, Inc. Receives Accreditation from Wednesday, April 24 2019
After seven years of failed attempts, Florida legislators have passed property insurance reform to address the abuse of a policyholder benefit known as assignment of benefits (AOB). The insurance industry and consumers advocates say the abuse has caused higher insurance premiums in the state and made insurance harder to obtain. By a vote of 25-14 by the Florida Senate on Wednesday passed a measure (SB 122) that addresses the abuse of post-loss AOBs for residential or commercial property insurance claims and limits one-way attorney’s fees related to AOB agreements. The bill was a committee substitute for House Bill 7065, which passed the House on April 11. The bill’s provisions:
The Senate bill was sponsored by Senator Doug Broxson, chair of the Insurance & Banking Subcommittee. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is expected to sign the bill, which would then become law on July 1, 2019. Advocates of reform praised the passage of the bill, saying it was long overdue and will bring much needed relief to Florida homeowners. Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier issued the following statement to Insurance Journal following the passage of the AOB reform, “OIR’s main focus is to work towards decreasing insurance costs for consumers living in Florida, while balancing the solvency needs of companies operating in Florida. The passage of HB 7065 is a significant step towards stemming the insurance product affordability and availability crisis that has grown from years of compounding AOB abuse.” President of the Florida Association of Insurance Agents (FAIA) Jeff Grady said the passage of AOB reform is also a big win for insurance agents. “This a long awaited day for Florida consumers and the industry as a whole. Agents have been impacted by AOB fraud resulting in poor loss ratios and cancellations of company appointments,” Grady said. “We are grateful for the leadership within both the legislature and the Florida cabinet to finally enact AOB reform and eliminate this fraud from our insurance marketplace.” Tuesday, April 23 2019
A restoration contracting company owner was arrested this month in Florida for allegedly stealing more than $40,000 from consumers who assigned their insurance benefits to him through assignment of benefits (AOB) contracts, according to a statement from Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis. Wyatt Green, owner of Storm Restoration Specialists LLC, and his staff are accused of forging customer signatures on construction documents and insurance claim payment checks that required signatures from both the homeowner and mortgage lender. An AOB gives a third-party authority to file a claim, make repair decisions and collect insurance payments without the homeowners’ involvement. Detectives from the Florida Department of Financial Services discovered that Green was hired by four homeowners to perform contracting work. Green’s office would directly receive insurance checks that required three signatures—one from the homeowner, one from the mortgage lender, and one from Storm Restoration Specialists LLC. Allegedly, Green directed his staff to forge homeowners’ signatures on the checks as well as added the mortgage lenders’ endorsement before depositing the checks into his bank account. The investigations revealed that Green and his employees purchased 58 false bank endorsement stamps from a online manufacturer to aid in this scam. Employees of Green also admitted to forging customer signatures on construction documents required by counties and municipalities. In some cases, construction work was never completed, and in others the work never even began. Green was booked into the Duval County Jail on April 12, on charges of organized scheme to defraud, grand theft and forgery. If convicted, Green faces up to 35 years in prison. “This case is another example of a bad contractor scamming Floridians and pocketing the money without actually making repairs. AOBs were once used to protect Floridians but recently, assigning your benefits over to a contractor has become an abusive practice,” Patronis said. “When they hire a company, consumers should have peace of mind that work is being completed and not have to worry about being left high and dry by a contractor. My detectives work hard every day to find these criminals and stop them from preying on homeowners.” |
