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Seeking High-Quality CE Online? |  Hotel Update |  Bissett Chosen for NIPR Leadership Role |  Special Event Coverage Available |  Call for Awards Submission |  Donate to the 2006 Silent Auction | Industry News

V I R T U A L     U N I V E R S I T Y
Seeking High-Quality CE Online?

With the end of the year approaching, you might be looking for a creative and fun way to get in that last minute CE*, or trying to make good on that "old" new year’s resolution to take a least one online class this year. The Big "I" Virtual University contains a variety of unique quality online classes to enhance and expand your insurance technical and business skills. The classes, which can be purchased by both members and non-members, include certification and designation programs, as well as beginner, intermediate and advanced levels all are available online any time. To access the Big "I" Virtual University, click here.

Check out these course offerings:

New Employee Training Course
ACSR Module 1: Homeowners Insurance
ACSR Module 2: Personal Auto Insurance
ACSR Module 3: Personal Lines Related Coverages
ACSR Module 4: E&O Loss Control
ACSR Module 5: Professional Development & Account Management
Building Your Service Into Gold
Business Interruption Insurance
Changing Attitudes: Creating Opportunities
Commercial Crime
Conflict Resolution
Design an Information Security Program
E and O Exposures for Trucking
Fair Access
Fair Credit Reporting Act and Insurance Scoring
Generation X
Highlights of Homeowners 2000
Home-Based Business Coverage
Insuring E-Commerce Exposures
Mastering Time
New! How to Calculate Business Income in Five Minutes
New! The Ultimate Rental Car Course
Ordinance or Law Coverage Review
Personal Umbrella Policy Review
The Facts of Flood
Why We Have Additional Insureds
Workers Compensation Experience Rating
Zoom In On Branding 

What are the advantages of using the Big "I" Virtual University’s online course offerings?

Self-paced: learn as fast or slow as you need at your own PC.

Simple: The Big "I" VU uses easy-to-understand technology and step-by-step instructional diagrams on the Web site to help you effortlessly navigate through the courses.

Comprehensive: The Big "I" VU’s online classes combine video, audio, presentation slides, worksheets and interactive tests and challenges to teach you what you need to know. You can even print select resources as references to help you apply what you've learned as you work.

Timely: The Big "I" VU’s training is available whenever you need it. Available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, it allows you to access your class from home, the office or even a vacation spot. After you complete the courses, apply what you've learned in your own organization and reuse each completed class for up to one full year.

Consistency: Every person in your organization will see, hear, read and apply the consistently high quality Big "I" training.

Technical Support: All Big "I" VU classes come complete with terrific online e-mail support.

*CE credits are available for many classes. Please check your state’s Big "I" Virtual University course catalog for CE availability.

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N A T I O N A L   L E G I S L A T I V E   C O N F E R E N C E   &   C O N V E N T I O N
Hotel Update

Have you secured your guest room at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington, D.C., for the week of April 23 to 28, 2006? Have you registered for the Big "I" NLC & Convention?

The Grand Hyatt Hotel (the location of the Executive Committee Meeting, National Board of State Directors and the National Legislative Conference) is sold out of rooms at the Big "I"-negotiated rates. Rooms are still being sold at the Grand Hyatt, but at higher per-night room rates, as some members have already discovered.

If you have a room but have not registered for the National Legislative Conference and Convention, please do so as quickly as possible and avoid the holiday rush.

However, please don’t despair…We have additional rooms available at an overflow hotel just one block and away from the Grand Hyatt at the Renaissance Hotel, located at 999 Ninth Street, NW. To reserve your room at the Renaissance, call 800-228-9290 or 202-898-9000, and make sure to inform the reservations agent that you will be attending the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America meeting.

The Renaissance Washington Hotel is located directly across the street from the Washington, D.C. Convention Center. The Washington, D.C. Convention Center is the location for the Exposition, workshops and general sessions for the Convention portion of the program in April.

Direct questions to the Big "I" Events & Conventions Department at 800-221-7917;  jeff.etzkin@iiaba.net; dana.pattini@iiaba.net.

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I I A B A   N E W S
Bissett Chosen for NIPR Leadership Role

Wesley Bissett, Big "I" senior vice president for government affairs and state relations, has been elected vice president of the National Insurance Producer Registry (NIPR). Bissett is only the second vice president in NIPR’s 10-year history, and the first to come from the agent/broker side of the industry.

NIPR is a private-public partnership of insurance regulators and the insurance industry, and its simple goal is to modernize, streamline and make more uniform the producer licensing process. It is governed by a 13-member board, comprised of six insurance commissioners, six industry representatives and the executive vice president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Bissett has served on the board of directors in the past.

"NIPR is an incredibly important element of our industry’s quest for meaningful licensing reform nationwide, and I look forward to playing an active leadership role in this crucial endeavor," Bissett says. "I share NIPR’s vision for the future of agent and broker licensing, and I hope we can soon make that dream a reality."

NIPR has had several critical successes in recent years. For example, NIPR worked with insurance regulators to create the Producer Database (PDB), a nationwide database of licensing information concerning the nation’s agents and brokers. All states are now providing regular updates to the PDB, which enables regulators to more quickly take action on license applications.

NIPR is also rolling out products that will enable insurance producers to obtain licenses (and renew those licenses) on the NIPR Web site. This is of considerable interest and importance to the hundreds of thousands of agents and brokers licensed across the country. Forty states now issue new nonresident licenses through NIPR’s expedited process, and nearly 20 jurisdictions also are equipped to issue nonresident renewals.

Big "I" CEO Robert A. Rusbuldt is pleased with Bissett’s election and is confident his ascent will help NIPR continue its progress.

"Agents and brokers are understandably frustrated by the inefficiencies, delays, and costs historically associated with producer licensing, especially at a time when agencies are operating in an increasing number of states," Rusbuldt says. "NIPR’s progress, if combined with needed legislative reforms, offers hope and promise that the multi-state licensing process may soon be streamlined and modernized. The Big ‘I’ congratulates Wes on his new post, and I have complete confidence that he will have a very significant impact on NIPR and its mission to improve and streamline agent licensing."

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B I G   " I "     M A R K E T S
Special Event Coverage Available

It is the time of year when many celebrations take place, and that means increased exposure to loss by whoever is hosting the festivities. Just as there are some last-minute shoppers for holiday gifts, there could also be some last-minute shoppers for event liability insurance. Do your clients know that you can provide them with event liability coverage? If not, it’s time to spread the word! Big "I" Markets, through its partner Gales Creek, provides you with the coverage your clients need. Annual packages are available for promoters, event planners and facilities that have multiple events. Gales Creek Short/Long-Term Event Liability offers per-event aggregate limits and host liquor coverage (not in the business of serving and selling). Log on to Big "I" Markets and review the event liability "Underwriting and Coverage" page to learn more about this product. To register for Big "I" Markets, the online agent market access program available exclusively to Big "I" members, visit www.bigimarkets.com.

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Y O U N G   A G E N T S
Call for Awards Submission

The Big "I" National Young Agents Committee (YAC) is seeking submissions for the 2006 YAC awards in the following categories: membership development, state committee project, communications, young agents meeting and political involvement. Outstanding Young Agents Committee of the Year and first runner-up honors will also be awarded. Participating in the National YAC awards program demonstrates state young agents and brokers committees’ commitment to perpetuating the independent agency system, and it solidifies their presence as the driving force behind its future. The 2006 YAC awards will be presented at the inaugural 2006 Young Agent Leadership Institute being held in conjunction with the National Board of State Directors meeting tentatively scheduled for Sept. 8 through 10 at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside.

Entries must be postmarked by July 1, 2006. Click here to download the 2006 YAC Awards Criteria. Direct questions to Leslie Mularski at 724-779-2076; leslie.mularski@iiaba.net.

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I N V E S T
Donate to the 2006 Silent Auction

Participate in the InVEST Silent Auction to support the program’s annual scholarships awarded to InVEST graduates who pursue higher education with an emphasis on insurance. The InVEST Board of Directors will hold the 2006 InVEST Silent Auction during the Big "I" National Legislative Conference & Convention.

A 501(c)3 educational trust, InVEST introduces high school and community college students to insurance and the more than 350 diverse careers available within the industry giving students a new outlook on the future. The program also offers insurance agencies, brokers and carriers a diverse and talented group of entry-level recruits.

Play an important roll in the future of InVEST’s brightest students by making a donation to the 2006 Silent Auction. Click here to download a Silent Auction Contribution Form. Thank you in advance for your contribution and support of InVEST.

For more information, contact Sandra Skipper at 703- 706-5437;  sandra.skipper@iiaba.net.

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