News & Insights

Roanoke Insurance Group is proud to participate in a discussion panel that will enhance your knowledge on ACE and eBond sponsored by Houston Customhouse Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association on Wednesday, August 20, 2014 Guest Panelists Include: Mary Pugh – ACE Ambassador, Houston Field Office Customs and Border Protection Colleen Clarke – Vice President, Surety Trade Relations, Roanoke Insurance Group Lisa Gelsomino – President/CEO, Avalon Risk Management Important Registration Information:Register by August 15th for $35 Register after August 15th or walk-ins for $40 Please email reservation forms to hcbffa@aol.com and mail checks to PO Box 53359, Houston, TX 77052 This seminar has been approved by NCBFAA’s NEI for two CCS/CES credits!

Join us for a complimentary webinar on Tuesday, August 19, 2014, 11:30am – 12:30pm CT Customs and Border Protection (CBP) began development of eBond earlier this year which is set to deploy in January 2015. All single transaction bonds filed in ACE will require an eSTB. The filing of continuous bonds will also become electronic in January 2015. The eBond concept has been around for many years and Roanoke has been actively working with industry associations and CBP since its inception. Now that implementation is imminent, we are committed to helping our clients to best prepare. In this presentation you will learn: […]

CBP Releases eBond Implementation Guide In June, U.S. Customs Border Protection (CBP) released a Customs and Trade Automated Interface Requirements (CATAIR) document providing updated conventional trade interface information for ACE eBond filing between CBP and sureties. The CATAIR update is intended for the future deployment of eBond functionality in ACE and provides input and output electronic data interchange (EDI) record formation for the electronic submission of bonds to CBP. The document presents both the bond input transaction proprietary records used by sureties and surety agents to file and maintain an electronic bond as well as the output transaction proprietary records […]

Update: Terrorism Insurance Reauthorization and Transportation Industry In April, we spoke about the looming expiration of the government-backed Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA), set for December 31st, 2014. Just last week, there was some progress made on this front with the Senate voting to extend TRIA. Senators voted 93-4 to extend the program through 2021, allowing the federal government to pay for a portion of damage arising from attacks costing more than $100 million. The Senate bill also increases the co-payment for private insurers from 15 percent to 20 percent. This news was welcomed by the insurance industry with various […]

Logistics Providers, Transportation Firms: Mitigating EPL Exposures All employers of any size across every industry sector, including the logistics and transportation industries, are vulnerable to employee-related lawsuits arising from alleged employment practices violations. This is particularly so in an environment in which the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) has stepped up its actions to investigate allegations of wrongful termination, discrimination and other violations. This has made robust employment Best Practices, regulatory compliance, and Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) so critical today. Employment Practices in the Forefront In December 2012, the EEOC established and approved its Strategic Enforcement Plan (SEP) for […]

Roanoke Insurance Group regularly checks on the status of the requested re-exemption for ATA Carnets from the Electronic Export Information (EEI) filing requirement under the new Foreign Trade Regulations. As of today we still have no response on the status and thus no further update to share. We can tell you that US Census has released their official FAQ on how ATA Carnet shipments are to be handled during this period of Informed Compliance. Please click here to view the Foreign Trade Regulations’ FAQ; page 19 contains the following language specific to ATA Carnet: Do carnet shipments require filing during the period of informed compliance?  The period of informed […]