Service customer arrested at gunpoint after dealership lost paperwork
A Kia dealership in California is being sued for reporting a vehicle as stolen after it misplaced the agreement loaning it to a customer who was having repair work done.
Insurance rates stabilizing thanks to legal reforms, officials say. But homeowners still feeling pain.
Lawsuits against property insurers declined significantly through the first quarter of 2024 and that’s fueling market confidence that’s beginning to stabilize homeowner insurance rates in Florida, the state’s chief financial officer said.
Homeowners say they haven’t seen rates ease yet, but officials at a roundtable insurance discussion held by CFO Jimmy Patronis in Sarasota on Thursday urged further patience, saying rate increases are slowing as a result of increased competition from new carriers entering the market.
The roundtable featured the state’s top insurance officials, elected officials from Southwest Florida, leaders of business organizations and area policyholders.
Patronis said that lawsuits were down more than 20% “over the last quarter,” but a spokesman for the CFO later presented figures showing that lawsuits as reported to the Department of Financial Services’ Legal Service of Process database declined by 20.4% between the first quarter of 2021 — prior to the Legislature’s enactment of insurance reforms — and the first quarter of 2024. The spokesman said he knew that figure was what Patronis was referencing.
Don Petersen, CEO who steered Ford to success in late 1980s, dies at 97
A mechanical engineer with a zeal for quality, Petersen led the company during some of its most prosperous years and was only the second person outside the founding Ford family to lead the automaker, after his predecessor, Philip Caldwell.
People on the move
Arts and entertainment
Alana Jackson was appointed arts and wellness director at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.
Construction
Jared Wilken has joined Landsea Homes Corporation’s Florida division as the vice president of land.
Employment
Larry Lacefield has joined Loyal Source Government Services, Orlando, as a program director in its Department of Veteran Affairs Medical Disability Examinations Program.
Michele Gordon has joined Loyal Source Government Services, Orlando, as a program director in its Department of Veteran Affairs Medical Disability Examinations Program.
Real estate
Brooks Robinson has joined NAI Realvest, Orlando, as a commercial real estate associate.
Other
Curtesa Vanderpool was appointed vice president of behavioral health at the Children’s Home Society of Florida, Orlando.
Submit professional appointments, management-level promotions and significant awards for individuals, along with photos as .jpg attachments, to peopleonmove@orlandosentinel.com.
Retirement could come sooner than you think — how to plan for it
By Kate Ashford | NerdWallet
The investing information provided on this page is for educational purposes only. NerdWallet, Inc. does not offer advisory or brokerage services, nor does it recommend or advise investors to buy or sell particular stocks, securities or other investments.
American workers expect to retire at a median age of 65, according to a 2023 survey from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). But the actual median age for retirement is 62, the survey found.
That may not seem like a big gap, but if you retire three years earlier than planned, that’s three fewer years of savings and three more years of retirement to fund.
This could happen for all sorts of reasons: You (or your partner or your parents) could get sick or disabled, there could be changes at your company, or you could simply burn out on the job. Forty-six percent of retirees exit the workforce sooner than they had planned, according to the EBRI survey, and of those, 35% say they did so due to a hardship (like health issues or disability).