News & Updates
Trusted Choice® COVID-19 Relief Fund Now Accepting Applications
The coronavirus has drastically changed our lives and how we do business. It is a difficult, uncertain time. However, the Big ‘I’ is here to help. With $2 million in funding from Progressive Insurance Company, the Big ‘I’ established the Trusted Choice® COVID-19 Relief Fund to provide critical relief to independent insurance agencies and brokerages and their owners…
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New Producer Licensing Now Available
KAIA and the Kansas Insurance Department (“KID”) have been working closely to develop a solution for the licensing of agency employees. Effective April 16, 2020, the Pearson Vue Professional Centers in Kansas are open to those needing to take the Kansas Insurance Producer Exams. In addition, the Kansas Insurance Department authorized Pearson Vue to open…
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Fingerprinting Options Available for New Producers
For the last several weeks, the Kansas Insurance Department has been working to address the lack of available locations to get fingerprints taken in light of the COVID crisis and the background check requirement for a producer license. During recent discussions with the KBI, they were informed that there is not a certification or authorization…
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Licensing Challenges Today
Many members are experiencing challenges for getting new employees licensed. Testing facilities are closed and there are limited locations for fingerprinting. KAIA staff understands the challenges and continues to communicate with the Kansas Insurance Department (KID) to develop a solution, such as a temporary license. The good news is that a potential licensing solution has…
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An Agent’s Right to Request Cancellation for Non-Payment
Every time I think I know something about insurance, something always happens to teach me, I don’t know as much as I thought I did. One of those times occurred a couple of weeks ago. An agent called me with a problem. He explained he had a customer for whom he had advanced the premium…
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COVID-19 and Commercial Property Vacancy Concerns
As of this writing, 38 states and countless cities and counties have enacted some form of stay-at-home order amid the pandemic panic arising from COVID-19. If the operation is not considered an “essential” business, its doors are shut – for now. How long such orders will or even can stay in place is anyone’s guess.…
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Key Leadership Practices for Virtual Teams
We are living in an environment where circumstance forces change. Work teams everywhere have been forced to shift quickly to a work from home setting. Both leaders and team members must cope with many other challenges. A study conducted by the Business Research Consortium (BRC) in association with the American Management Association survey of 1,500…
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How the Insurance Industry Can Help with the Coronavirus Pandemic
by Bill Wilson, CPCU, ARM, AIM, AAM Two days ago, I posted this analysis of a lawsuit filed in New Orleans seeking a declaratory judgment that business income insurance covers losses arising from government-mandated business shutdowns or curtailments: “Business Income Insurance…Does It Cover Coronavirus Shutdowns?” https://insurancecommentary.com/business-income-insurancedoes-it-cover-coronavirus-shutdowns/ I received the following comment on LinkedIn: “A great…
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Licensing during the Coronavirus Emergency
The Kansas Insurance Department (KID) has issued a bulletin and press release stating it will suspend all “non-essential” operations beginning on March 23 until at least April 6. Several members have contacted KAIA asking what to do about new employees they need to get licensed. KID has posted answers to frequently asked questions about the…
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