The FSLSO would like to extend best wishes to Board Member, R.C. Chaffin of SeaCoast Underwriters, who has tendered his resignation from the FSLSO Board of Governors effective April 2012 as he prepares for his position as the 2012-2013 President of the American Association of Managing General Agents (AAMGA). Mr. Chaffin has served on FSLSO's Board of Governors since 2006, having held various leadership roles including Chairman and Vice-Chairman.

"Due to the commitments of both time and travel as demanded by the role of AAMGA President, I feel that it is in the best interest of the organization that I resign from the FSLSO Board of Governors," commented Mr. Chaffin. "It has been a pleasure serving Florida's surplus lines industry in this capacity, and I look forward to the opportunities I will have to continue my service to the industry through the AAMGA."

The FSLSO would also like to congratulate Michael Franzese of Burns and Wilcox of Tampa on his recent appointment to the FSLSO Board of Governors. Mr. Franzese will serve out the remaining term of past Board Member, Daniel C. O'Leary, III who passed away in December 2011. Additionally, Mr. Franzese will fulfill a subsequent three-year term expiring September 30, 2015.

FSLSO is building up its continuing education offerings with a new classroom course in 2012 with plans to travel to five different locations around Florida.

"Building Florida's Property Insurance Industry: A Solid Foundation in the Admitted and Non-Admitted Markets" is a three-hour course featuring an in-depth discussion of the three "building blocks" that make up the groundwork of Florida's property insurance industry including the admitted market, the regulation of rates and forms and the surplus lines industry. This course is designed to provide the student with a foundation of knowledge of the rules and regulations that govern Florida's admitted and non-admitted insurance industries through the exploration of applicable Florida Statutes.

"We want to provide the student with a thorough understanding of how the Insurance Code establishes the structure for Florida's property insurance market," commented Tom Terfinko, Assistant Director of Agent and Insurer Services. "This is a great course for both surplus lines agents as well as general lines agents as it gives the attendee an in-depth look at how the compliance requirements that regulate the admitted and non-admitted markets are similar and different. We are going to look at the Statutes in a different way, pulling out some of the interesting and often times, overlooked pieces."

Florida-licensed surplus lines agents may attend this class for FREE. Additionally, an attending surplus lines agent may bring up to two members of their support staff at no charge. All others pay a nominal fee of $60. This course has been approved by the Department of Financial Services for three hours of intermediate property and casualty credit (Course ID: 79737)

All offerings of this class will begin at 9:00 A.M. and last until 12:00 P.M.

FSLSO will be taking this class to the road in March with five total offerings this year in the following cities:

March 29
Embassy Suites Jacksonville - Baymeadows
9300 Baymeadows Road
Jacksonville, FL

May 31
Miami Dadeland Marriott
9090 S. Dadeland Blvd.
Miami, FL

August 23
Embassy Suites Boca Raton
661 NW 53rd Street
Boca Raton, FL

October 11
Sheraton Orlando North
600 North Lake Destiny Drive
Maitland, FL

November 8
Crowne Plaza Tampa Westshore
5303 West Kennedy Blvd.
Tampa, FL

Early registration is encouraged as space is limited and classes fill quickly. Registration is as simple as a click away by visiting: http://www.fslso.com/education/

FSLSO will be performing upgrades to its router software this Wednesday, February 1 from 6:00 P.M. to 11:00 P.M. EST. During this time, FSLSO's filing platforms and website may be unavailable.

Should FSLSO encounter any issues that would force systems to remain down into the next business day, we will send notification to our customers advising them of system availability. Thank you for your cooperation.

Payment Remittance:

When remitting payment to FSLSO please do not combine entities within a single payment (i.e. you cannot combine fees and taxes in one check). Taxes, assessments and service office fees are separate charges to different entities and must be paid with separate checks. Combined payments will be returned for reissue.

Billing Report Access:

If you're having a problem opening your Billing Report in your SLIP Inbox, make sure your pop-up blockers are turned off before clicking on the message link to access your report.

To check if your pop-up blockers are turned off, click on "Tools" located on your menu bar of your browser (located top left) and/or command bar (located top right). Scroll down to Pop-up Blocker. You may also need to hold down the "Control" key while clicking the link in order to open the Billing Report. If you have any questions, please call FSLSO at (800) 562-4496, Option 4 for Accounting.