Third-party claims administrator Gallagher Bassett Services has been subpoenaed by New York Attorney-General Eliot Spitzer.

The company is the first third-party administrator to be subpoenaed in Mr Spitzer’s insurance industry probe.

The parent company, insurance brokerage Arthur J Gallagher, has not been subpoenaed.

Meanwhile, the Washington-based Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers is supporting a regulation proposed by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners that brokers fully disclose all compensation arrangements to commercial insurance buyers.

However, the New York Insurance Association has warned state legislators against a knee-jerk reaction to allegations of improper business practices by brokers, agents and insurers.