Skelton-Morris Joins Keystone Insurers in Georgia

January 8, 2013Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

Skelton-Morris Associates, a Hartwell, Ga.-based insurance agency, is the eleventh Keystone Insurers Group partner in Georgia.

Skelton-Morris Associates has offices in Toccoa, Ga., Lavonia, Ga., and Anderson, S.C.

The agency is under the management of Chip Kidd, Carey Jackson and Jennifer Patterson.

 

 

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Georgia AG Warns Auto Buyers: Beware of Sandy-Damaged Vehicles

November 28, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

Georgia’s Attorney General Sam Olens issued a consumer alert notice last week, warning consumers who are in the market for used cars to beware of flood-damaged vehicles in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.

Attorney General Olens said many previously-flooded vehicles are recycled into the economy and end up being sold at auction. They may then be sold at used car lots or through online classified ads.

Cars that were flooded during Superstorm Sandy may have been written off as

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Georgia Unlikely to Run Health Insurance Exchange: Gov. Deal

November 9, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticle1 Comments

A day after Barack Obama’s re-election, Gov. Nathan Deal suggested that he will not implement a Georgia health insurance exchange as part of the 2010 federal health care overhaul that ranks as the president signature legislative achievement.

Deal told The Associated Press that he wouldn’t disclose his decision until notifying federal authorities. But he noted that the state stopped planning an exchange once federal agencies wrote regulations that he says restrict Georgia’s ability to design its own program.

The decision to stop, Deal says, is “probably a pretty good indication of where we are headed.”

The law gives states the option to run the exchanges or default to the federal government. The exchanges would allow individuals to shop for private insurance.

Whether consumers would notice real differences between a federal or state exchange remains to be seen. But Deal’s reticence underscores the continued philosophical and political wrangling that surrounds implementation of the Affordable Care Act.

Congress set a Jan. 1, 2013, deadline for states to have an operable exchange. Deal has until Nov. 16 to submit an outline for an exchange or notify federal authorities that Georgia declines to open its own.

Deal said he was initially inclined to consider a state-run exchange, and in 2011, he appointed a committee that advised him on how to proceed. That panel opted against recommending a state-managed exchange.

By the time the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of the law’s key provisions this spring, Deal said he would wait until after the election to make a decision. Republican challenger Mitt Romney had promised to “repeal and replace” the law, a prospect that now is moot given the president’s re-election and Democrats retaining control of the U.S. Senate.

Asked for an example of a policy that Georgia couldn’t implement as part of the exchanges, Deal cited “association plans,” a concept that would allow a professional or trade association to form a large group insurance pool

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Georgia Mom Posed as Dead Son to Collect $151K From Insurance Policy

June 7, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

Prosecutors in Fulton County, Georgia, say a woman has admitted to collecting more than $151,000 on a fraudulent insurance policy she took out in her dead son’s name.

Donna Ellis Gibbs was sentenced to 20 years’ probation in the case after pleading guilty. She faced five counts of insurance fraud and one count of theft by taking.

Prosecutors say Gibbs pretended to be her deceased son and applied for an accidental death policy two months after his death in a December 2002 car crash. She later submitted a claim and collected the full policy amount.

Gibbs’ ex-husband, the son’s father, uncovered the plot in March 2007.

The Fulton County District Attorney’s Office says Gibbs’ sentence can be terminated after five years if she successfully completes the terms of her plea agreement.

 

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: Southeast NewsTopics: accidental death policy, insurance fraudHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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Georgia Jury Awards Longshoreman $5.6 Million for Injury

May 14, 2012Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetArticleComments

The Georgia Ports Authority is considering whether to appeal a jury verdict that awarded more than $5.6 million to a longshoreman for injuries he suffered in a collision at the Port of Savannah.

The jury last Thursday decided to award Kirk Deweese money for medical expenses, lost wages and pain and suffering he experienced because of an April 2005 wreck. Shortly after the jury announced its decision, Deweese was arrested for attempting to bring a loaded gun into the courthouse.

Deweese’s lawyers said he was driving a truck when a top lift backed into his vehicle, causing the truck to jackknife. He suffered injuries to his neck, back and hip that required nine surgeries and left him unable to work as a longshoreman, according to the lawsuit.

It’s unclear exactly how much money Deweese might ultimately collect. The Savannah Morning News reported that state law limits the maximum liability of the Georgia Ports Authority to $1 million. An attorney for the port, Thomas Mahoney Jr., said his client is considering an appeal.

Deweese was stopped by security officers from entering the courthouse Thursday when a scanner revealed that he had a .44-caliber revolver in a bag. The officers confiscated the gun and later arrested Deweese on charges of carrying a pistol without a license, carrying a concealed weapon and contempt of court.

He was released from jail after posting a $4,000 bond.

Deweese told The Associated Press that he lives in a high-crime area and has the gun for personal protection. He said that he accidentally placed the gun in a bag that contained papers his lawyer needed urgently in the courthouse. In the rush to deliver the papers, Deweese said he forgot to take the gun out of the bag.

“I got caught up in the moment,” he said. “I didn’t even know it was there.’

 

 

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Email ThisPrintNewslettersTweetCategories: Southeast NewsTopics: Georgia Port Authority, Georgia workers' compensation, liability cap, longshoreman injuryHave a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk

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