Author: completebodyneeds

Iran and the United States are about to sign a peace deal that will reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that carries about one-fifth of the world’s oil. Oil prices reacted quickly to the announcement of the tentative deal, dropping from highs that had pushed gasoline prices toward record levels in North America. (Editor’s note: This article was originally published on June 18 by The Conversation). The global supply chain, however, will take the better part of a year to recover, and the relief at the pumps may prove more gradual than the relief in oil markets. The…

Hub International Limited (HUB), headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, appointed Paul Collins as Northeast area president, effective July 1. In this expanded role, Collins will continue to lead HUB Northeast while also assuming responsibility for HUB New England. Collins has been in the insurance industry for more than 29 years. He began his career as a producer and went on to hold senior leadership roles at national insurance brokerages before joining HUB. Collins joined HUB in 2017 and has served as president and CEO of HUB Northeast. A series of targeted acquisitions expanded HUB Northeast’s areas of industry and product specialization…

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz appeared to thin early on Friday, just a day after a burst of oil flows through the waterway as the US and Iran vowed to lift a dual blockade. No tankers were seen moving outbound from the Persian Gulf on Friday morning, though one very large crude carrier re-appeared off the Omani capital Muscat, suggesting it had crossed the strait. An Iran-linked liquefied petroleum gas carrier and a Norwegian-flagged products tanker made inward transits. Meanwhile, four fully-laden very large crude carriers stuck inside the Persian Gulf appeared to be approaching the strait. Two India-linked…

There’s an increasingly narrow strip of New Orleans marshland that hardly anyone lives on, but without it, hundreds of thousands of people will face far greater risks from storms and floods. The area, commonly called the New Orleans Land Bridge, stretches from New Orleans East to St. Tammany Parish and separates Lake Pontchartrain from the Gulf of Mexico. Like much of Louisiana’s coast, it’s disappearing at a rapid rate. The on-again, off-again effort to restore the land bridge could get a jump-start next year with a $101 million project aimed at reviving a large patch of marsh that protects the…

The US and Iran have postponed the start of their negotiations over a permanent peace deal and restricting the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program.It’s uncertain why the talks, meant to be held in Switzerland on Friday, have been delayed, though Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants clashed overnight in southern Lebanon. Iran has insisted on a ceasefire in Lebanon as part of an interim deal with the US finalized this week. Neither is it clear if the developments will affect the Strait of Hormuz, where maritime traffic has picked up since US President Donald Trump and Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian signed the…

Space companies have spoken with insurers about coverage for orbital AI data centers, a sign of early progress for an experimental industry backed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin. The concept of data center satellites — designed to bypass Earth’s power constraints — has drawn growing attention since Musk described them as the future of artificial intelligence development ahead of SpaceX’s record‑breaking public listing this month. Securing insurance is critical for companies trying to move orbital data centers from concept to reality. Without coverage for the costly hardware and risks involved, attracting the debt financing needed to…

This article is part of a sponsored series by EZLynx. If your insurance agency is built primarily on personal lines like auto, homeowners, or renters’ insurance, you already know the market has been challenging to manage. Shifts in underwriting, carrier pricing, and eligibility can impact profitability, even when your renewal strategy is solid. That’s why so many independent agents are looking beyond auto and home. Small commercial insurance represents a meaningful path for growth in 2026. Adding commercial lines helps insurance agents build a more balanced, resilient insurance business. When personal lines become harder to place, commercial coverage gives agencies…

Inszone Insurance Services acquired Webtec Insurance Services Inc. Webtec is a specialized insurance agency primarily focused on auto and homeowners insurance. Originally based in California, which remains the bulk of its business, the agency later relocated its home base to Colorado. Sacramento, California-based Inszone is an insurance brokerage firm offering a range of property/casualty, along with employee benefits services. Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Was this article valuable? Yes No Here are more articles you may enjoy. Interested in Mergers? Get automatic alerts for this topic.

Rob Faber Donegal Insurance Group, headquartered in Marietta, Pennsylvania, and its member company, Michigan Insurance Company, promoted Rob Faber to regional vice president of the group’s Greater Midwest region. Faber succeeds Melissa Veenstra, who will retire on July 2. Faber joined the Donegal team in 2009 as a production underwriter covering an Iowa territory. He transitioned to the marketing side as a business relationship manager in 2012 and was promoted to assistant vice president and regional sales manager for the Midwest region in 2015. Melissa Veenstra Veenstra’s retirement follows a career of nearly four decades in insurance, including 23 years…

A Michigan Senate Committee this week advanced a bill that would mandate auto insurance premium reductions of at least 10% without reduced benefits, Sen. Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor) authored SB 328, which he says will lower car insurance premiums for Michiganders. Another bill sponsored by Irwin, SB 247, would allow consumers to pursue civil action when insurers improperly deny claims. That bill also advanced to the Senate floor. “This legislation will immediately lower our state’s infamously high auto insurance rates by 10% and reduce unnecessary lawsuits by removing the incentive to deny claims, even when the claims are valid,” Irwin…