balbright@iiabl.com (225) 236-1357
IIABL STAFF
Benjamin Albright
Karen Kuylen
Director of Insurance Programs jnewchurch@iiabl.com (225) 236-1350
Director of Accounting & Finance kkuylen@iiabl.com (225) 236-1353
Jamie Newchurch
Director of Communications & Events koregan@iiabl.com (225) 236-1360
Kathleen O'Regan
Karson Kyle
E&O Administrator lyra roberts@iiaba net (225) 236-1352
Communications & Events Administrator kkyle@iiabl com (225) 236-1351
Lyra Roberts
BACK TO SCHOOL, BACK TO BUSINESS:
KARSON KYLE
IIABL COMMUNICATIONS AND EVENTS ADMINISTRATOR
This article highlights fall education opportunities, including free CE, expert-led webinars, and National ABEN Day 2025—offering insights, real-world case studies, and practical professional growth.
Fall is here, and while the kids are cracking open their textbooks, it’s also the perfect time for our industry to sharpen skills, refresh knowledge, and prepare for the year ahead. Think of this season as a chance to stock up on new ideas the same way you’d stock up on school supplies—fresh strategies, practical tools, and professional development opportunities that set you up for success. At IIABL, we’re rolling out an education lineup that blends real-world insight with engaging formats to keep you learning in ways that are both useful and enjoyable.
Professional growth doesn’t have to feel like homework. From live webinars with nationally recognized experts, to a one-day event packed with stories you won’t believe, to brand-new E&O courses designed to protect your agency, this fall’s schedule is proof that learning can be practical, impactful, and even entertaining. Whether you’re here for the CE credit, the business-building insights, or simply the chance to grow alongside your peers, we’ve got something for you.
National ABEN Day 2025 - 5 Hours of FREE CE
Mark your calendar for Thursday, October 16, 2025. This one-of-a-kind, all-virtual event gives you 5 hours of FREE Continuing Education just for being an IIABL member. You can drop in for one session, or stay all day—it’s your choice.
Here’s what’s on the agenda:
E&O Nightmares with Bryan Tilden – Real-world errors and omissions cases that will make you rethink how you handle risk.
Strange but True Claims with Brian Hudson – Bizarre insurance stories that sound like fiction, but aren’t. True Crime: The Schoharie Limousine Accident with Sue Keegan – A gripping deep dive into one of the deadliest transportation disasters in recent U.S. history and the insurance lessons that followed. Why attend? You’ll walk away with free CE, powerful case studies, and a new perspective on the insurance world— all without leaving your desk. Register Here
Focus Forward: Carey Wallace Webinar Series Finale
Over the past year, agency leaders have joined us for the Focus Forward: Empowering Agencies with Carey Wallace webinar series, and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. Each session has been designed to help agencies strengthen operations, grow strategically, and think more intentionally about the future. Now, it’s time for the grand finale.
The fourth and final session, “KPIs: Metrics Every Agency Owner Should Know,” is one you’ll want to finish strong with. Carey Wallace will break down the most essential key performance indicators for agencies—from revenue and premium volume to retention, profitability, and overall performance. You’ll learn how to select the right KPIs for your agency, avoid the traps of tracking the wrong data, and turn numbers into smarter decisions about hiring, compensation, and growth.
Even if you haven’t joined the earlier sessions, this webinar stands alone as a masterclass in using data to drive success. Agency owners and managers who attend will walk away with a clear roadmap for measuring what matters most and building long-term success.
Missed the last three webinars in this series? No worries! Check out the recap here.
Secure Your Spot
Coming Soon: New E&O Courses
E&O prevention remains one of the most important (and most challenging) responsibilities for agencies, which is why we’re excited to share that three new Swiss Re–approved courses are on the way. These courses are part of the Big “I” Power of Prevention: Agency Risk Management Essentials series, each three hours long, and each tailored to a different area of agency operations:
Essentials of Service – Targeted at agency staff who manage day-to-day client interactions, this course outlines practical steps to reduce E&O exposure during routine service operations.
Essentials of Sales – Perfect for producers, account executives, or even CSRs involved in sales, this course addresses how selling practices can create or reduce risk—and what you can do to stay protected.
Essentials of Management – Focused on supervisors, managers, and principals, this course explains how leadership decisions create the foundation for minimizing E&O risk across an agency.
These courses will soon be available in the IIABL ABEN CE Catalog. In the meantime, don’t forget that ABEN already offers hundreds of on-demand CE and professional development opportunities. With flexible scheduling and high-quality instructors, you can fit learning into your calendar anytime.
Browse the Catalog
SCHOOLBUSINESS
A Season for Learning
From free national events and expert webinars to specialized E&O training, there’s no shortage of opportunities this fall to earn CE and strengthen your professional skills. Think of it as your own “back-to-school” season—a time to stock up on knowledge, sharpen your tools, and give your agency an edge.
The best part? You can engage however it works for you. Want a fast-paced, one-day crash course with unforgettable case studies? Join us for National ABEN Day. Prefer a focused, data-driven session that will give you takeaways you can apply immediately? Don’t miss Carey Wallace’s final webinar Ready to dive deeper into agency operations? The new E&O courses will soon be available on-demand, so you can learn at your own pace.
This season isn’t just about checking the CE box—it’s about investing in your future, your team, and your business. And you won’t be doing it alone. Every event is a chance to connect with peers, share insights, and strengthen the Louisiana insurance community
So, whether you attend one session or all of them, we hope you’ll take advantage of these opportunities to learn, grow, and lead with confidence. The school bell has rung—it’s time to get back to business.
THELEGISLATIVEWRAP-UPTOUR TAKING THE CONVERSATION STATEWIDE
KARSON KYLE
IIABL COMMUNICATIONS AND EVENTS ADMINISTRATOR
In this article, IIABL recaps its 2025 Legislative Wrap-Up Tour, highlighting legal reforms, property insurance progress, and consumer protections shared with members across Louisiana.
Over the past few weeks, IIABL hit the road for our 2025 Legislative Wrap-Up Tour, making stops in New Orleans, Shreveport, Monroe, Lafayette, Lake Charles, and Baton Rouge. At every stop, members gathered to hear first-hand updates on the outcomes of this year’s legislative session—and what those outcomes mean for our industry moving forward.
Ben Albright, IIABL CEO & President, delivered an outstanding briefing that broke down the key reforms, challenges, and opportunities that came out of this high-stakes session. From property market stabilization to landmark legal system reforms, Ben provided members with clear takeaways they could bring back to their agencies and clients. Members praised his ability to make complex policy issues accessible and actionable.
Special thanks also go to Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple, who joined the tour at several stops to share his perspective on the reforms debated and passed this spring—particularly the legal system changes that dominated discussion throughout the session. His remarks gave members valuable context on how state leadership is navigating Louisiana’s insurance crisis.
So what did the session deliver? Among the highlights Ben shared were:
Major wins on legal system abuse reforms, including new comparative fault rules, limits on recoverable medical expenses, and repeal of the Housley Presumption.
Progress for property insurance markets, including fortified roof tax credits and improved claims processes. Enhanced consumer protections, such as clearer cancellation notices and premium discounts tied to telematics and dashboard cameras.
LEGISLATIVETOUR
But Ben also emphasized that the fight isn’t over. Key reforms—like stronger medical billing transparency, nuclear verdict caps, and litigation financing disclosure—failed to pass. Louisiana’s market is improving, but affordability and long-term availability remain critical challenges.
The Legislative Wrap-Up Tour isn’t just about reporting on the session—it’s about equipping our members. Every stop gave agents the tools to educate their teams and clients, and to stay engaged in the advocacy process that continues year-round.
As Ben reminded members, your voice matters. Building relationships with legislators, educating clients, and advocating for reform will remain essential as we push for fairness and affordability in Louisiana’s insurance market.
IIABL is proud of the strong turnout across the state and grateful to everyone who joined us. Together, we will continue working toward meaningful, lasting reform!
crcgroup.com
IT VS. CYBERSECURITY
In anticipation of October’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month, I thought it would be important to get ready by digging into the key differences between IT and Cybersecurity – because we often find there are gaps when we talk to people about their strategies.
I’ve had over a decade worth of experience working with Cybersecurity, IT, and closely related technology providers. And, over that time, it’s been pretty common to see businesses scratching their heads at exactly where the line between responsibilities exist.
It’s not really anyone’s fault, it’s a very blurry line. Sometimes it’s from confusion in marketing and use of buzz words, but it can also be hard to keep track of all of the unique approaches a vendor may offer.
It really matters though, because gaps can be a serious problem and a blind spot that leaves you exposed to threats.
This most recently came up, and inspired this article, because an office I’ve been sharing free resources with for a few months reached out with a hard lesson they learned that’s worth sharing:
We’d been looking at their practices and there were some questions about what they were getting, if it was enough, and what ‘good cybersecurity’ looked like for their business.
I only recently heard that during the time we were talking, they’d had an attack.
One of their copiers was accessed and the threat actor was able to get images of scanned checks. Luckily, a diligent client was one of the first to have their check forged and they called right away, drawing attention to the breach.
It turned out that the copier was running on a very old version and was connected to the internet, making it an external-facing vulnerability that was very easy to detect and attack.
As they went through the breach investigation with their insurer, they said ‘that’s when it became really clear that their trusted IT provider was in over his head’
I think about this a lot and I’ve seen this situation quite often really, where it’s assumed IT has it covered – but they don’t!
RYAN SMITH
Continued from page 14
And, I’ve seen it the other way around, where IT has been very vocal that more is needed to be done but the client either isn’t getting it or just doesn’t want to do anything
So with that in mind, I wanted to help lay out what some of the differences are that you need to look for and be aware of, and give you some things to look into to make sure you’re on the right track.
IT and Cybersecurity Missions
Let’s start with looking at the core missions behind each practice:
IT tends to be more focused on keeping systems up and running efficiently
Where Cybersecurity tends to be more about identifying and addressing risks, and responding to attacks
Of course, this is highly generalized, but a great example of how this can play out is when you look at how each group might approach a ransomware attack.
IT’s response is to get things back up and running quickly. They have the backups, so they wipe everything and start fresh. Ransomware gone!
Cybersecurity’s response is to start with an investigation, so they need to capture evidence to make sure they understand what exactly the threat actor did and how they got in, so they can make sure they don’t come back. Getting evidence has to happen before anything can be wiped or restored.
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Continued from page 15
ITCYBERSECURITY
I don’t hear about this happening as much but I ran into several issues in the past where we hit a dead end with a breach investigation because the IT team didn’t realize they destroyed the evidence we needed
Ben Albright
December 2023
All this being said, some organizations now combine IT and Cybersecurity services to make sure they can cover all of the related missions necessary to manage and protect your business
But that also brings me to the next area to look at
Who Watches The Watchman?
The structure that I’ve seen be the most successful is working with 3rd party providers where the IT or Managed Services Provider (MSP) tends to act similar to your general physician. And, where specialists may be needed to provide niche expertise or a second opinion.
That isn’t to say it’s impossible to do both under one vendor, but sometimes that other opinion is really important.
I once went into the ER and was told I had a fractured elbow and was sent to get a second opinion from an orthopedic practice. When the MRI came back, it showed a torn bicep. Probably something really obvious to that specialist but a bit of a big miss for the ER doc.
It’s why they have a referral process to get that other opinion.
And, it’s something to keep in mind when you have IT and Cybersecurity combined under one provider.
Even beyond biases, it can be easy to overlook something or make a mistake. Having an unbiased 3rd party act as quality assurance and bring a unique perspective with their expertise can help you avoid these types of blind spots.
Read the rest of the article here.
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UPCOMINGEVENTS
10 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
IIABL 2025-2026
BOARD OF DIRECTORS & OFFICERS
CHAIRMAN, ROSS HENRY
CHAIRMAN-ELECT, JOE KING MONTGOMERY
SECRETARY-TREASURER, CHRIS HAIK
NATIONAL DIRECTOR, JOHNNY BECKMANN, III
PAST CHAIRMAN, BRET HUGHES
YOUNG AGENT REP, MICHAEL MOBLEY
IASC REP, DAVID DETHLOFF
ANN BODKIN-SMITH
MATTHEW DEBLANC
CHRISTY DESOTO
DOMINIQUE DICARLO CROUCH
ROB W. EPPERS
KARA GARZOTTO
MATT GRAHAM
BEAU HEAROD
CHARLES H. LEBLANC
CRAIG MARTEL
LYDIA MCMORRIS
EUGENE MONTGOMERY, III
HARTWIG "ROBBY" MOSS, IV
SETH OSTENDORFF
ROBERT LOUIS PALMER, JR.
RANDY PERISE
ROBERT STONE
JEFF ZEAGLER
Henry Insurance Service, Inc. - Baton Rouge
Community Financial Insurance Center, LLC - Monroe
Higginbotham Insurance Agency - Lafayette
Assured Partners - Metairie
Hughes Insurance Services, Inc - Gonzales
Moore & Jenkins Insurance Agency, LLC - Franklinton
Dethloff & Associates, Inc. - Shreveport
Thomson Smith & Leach Insurance Group - Lafayette
Continental Insurance Services - Marrero
1st Insurance of Marksville - Marksville
Riverlands Insurance Agency - LaPlace
Risk Services of Louisiana - Alexandria
DJW Insurance Agency - New Iberia
Lincoln Agency - Ruston
Jeff Davis Insurance - Jennings
Bourg Insurance Agency, Inc. - Donaldsonville
Insurance Unlimited of LA, LLC - Lake Charles
Alliant Insurance Services - Baton Rouge
Community Financial Insurance Center, LLC - Monroe
Hartwig Moss Insurance - New Orleans
Dethloff & Associates - Shreveport
Insurance Underwriters, Ltd - Metairie
Blumberg and Associates - Ponchatoula
Stone Insurance, Inc. - Metairie
McClure, Bomar & Harris - Shreveport