Claims Journal

Tropical Storm Beta Floods Houston, Dumps Rain on Gulf Coast

Tropical Storm Beta is flooding Houston as it slows to a crawl along the Gulf Coast, forcing highways to shut and threatening to boost water levels even more before meandering toward Louisiana. Beta will likely stall for most of Tuesday, …

Posted: Sep 22, 2020

Extreme Wildfires Turn Smoke Apps Into the New Weather Apps

For weeks, smoke has blanketed the west coast. The Bay Area has seen a vast improvement in the past few days, but terrible air lingers in Portland and Seattle. Millions of people have been furiously checking the air quality ratings …

Posted: Sep 22, 2020

Fierce, Frequent, Climate-Fueled Wildfires May Decimate Forests Worldwide

LONDON — Wildfires among ponderosa pines and Douglas firs of the U.S. West have long been part of nature’s cycle of renewal, as much as the changing of the seasons. But as climate change makes the region more arid, wildfires …

Posted: Sep 22, 2020

Russia Says ‘We’re Confident,’ Will Share Legal Risks of COVID-19 Vaccine

MOSCOW/BRASILIA — Russia is so confident in its COVID-19 vaccine that it will shoulder some of the legal liability should anything go wrong, rather than requiring buyers to take on the full risk, the head of the state fund bankrolling …

Posted: Sep 22, 2020

At Least 10 Dead in Residential Building Collapse in India

NEW DELHI — A residential building that was due for repairs collapsed in central India early Monday, killing at least 10 people and trapping many others, officials said. Around 20-25 people are feared to be trapped under the rubble of …

Posted: Sep 22, 2020

Liability Claims Against Nurses Cost $20K Even When Insurer Wins

Liability claims that involve nurses cost an average of $210,513 if a large indemnity payment is made, but even claims that are dropped, defeated or dismissed end up costing more than $20,000, according to a report released Monday by CNA …

Posted: Sep 22, 2020

Claims Business: Davies, Verisk, Insurity and CIRMA

Davies Acquires TriPlus Davies, an International professional services and technology business based in London, as acquired Boston-based TriPlus Service Inc. TriPlus provides its long term care carrier clients with claims and policy administration ma...

Posted: Sep 22, 2020

U.S. Charges Seven In Wide-Ranging Chinese Hacking Effort

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday it has charged five Chinese residents and two Malaysian businessmen in a wide-ranging hacking effort that encompassed targets from videogames to pro-democracy activists. Federal prosecutors s...

Posted: Sep 21, 2020

AIR Worldwide and KCC Project Hurricane Sally Insured Losses From $1 to $3 Billion

Catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide estimates that industry insured losses to onshore property resulting from Hurricane Sally’s winds, storm surge, and inland flood will range from $1 billion to $3 billion, with wind representing the majorit...

Posted: Sep 21, 2020

Air Taxi Firm Volocopter Teams Up With Schenker to Deploy Heavy-Lift Drones

BERLIN — German aviation startup Volocopter has teamed up with logistics group DB Schenker to deploy its heavy-lift drones, in a project that will gather vital practical flying experience before its air taxis enter service. Volocopter is one of a …

Posted: Sep 21, 2020

Desert Communities Told to Evacuate as Winds Stoke Flames

JUNIPER HILLS, Calif. — Strong winds stoked a wildfire burning for nearly two weeks in mountains northeast of Los Angeles, prompting authorities to issue new evacuation orders for desert communities that lost some homes a day earlier. Meanwhile, offi...

Posted: Sep 21, 2020

Massive Damage of Rare Plants Probed at Nevada Mine Site

RENO, Nev. — State and federal authorities are investigating the mysterious loss of a significant swath of a rare desert wildflower that’s being considered for federal protection at a contentious mine site in Nevada with some of the largest untapped...

Posted: Sep 21, 2020

Maine Blueberry Industry Reels From Drought, Frost, Virus

PORTLAND, Maine — A late spring frost, a devastating drought and labor troubles wrought by the coronavirus pandemic conspired to make 2020 a difficult year for the wild blueberry producers who harvest the fruit in the nation’s northeastern corner. Am...

Posted: Sep 21, 2020

Slow-Moving Storm Beta Set to Drench Texas, Louisiana Coasts

Beta, a slow-moving tropical storm, will bring flooding rains to Texas and Louisiana as well as raking offshore energy fields with high winds, but may not reach hurricane strength. Beta’s winds will likely hold at 50 miles (80 km) per …

Posted: Sep 21, 2020

N.J. Judge Clears Path for COVID-19 Business-Interruption Suit

A second judge has ruled that a policyholder’s COVID-19 business-interruption claim should proceed, marking an uncommon procedural win for business owners who have seen similar lawsuits dismissed by at least six other state and federal judges. Bergen...

Posted: Sep 21, 2020

Sri Lanka Names Captain of Oil Tanker a Suspect In Fire

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — A Sri Lankan magistrate on Thursday ordered the captain of an oil tanker that caught fire off the country’s coast to appear in court as authorities seek $1.8 million from the ship’s owner for assistance provided …

Posted: Sep 18, 2020

No Emergency Training for Crew on Boat Where Fire Killed 34

LOS ANGELES — Crew members on a dive boat say they were never instructed on emergency procedures before a predawn fire swept through the vessel as it was anchored off the Southern California coast, killing 34 people as they slept …

Posted: Sep 18, 2020

Push by Feds to Investigate Violent Demonstrators Nets 300 Arrests So Far

WASHINGTON — In a private call with federal prosecutors across the country, Attorney General William Barr’s message was clear: aggressively go after demonstrators who cause violence. Barr pushed his U.S. attorneys to bring federal charges whenever th...

Posted: Sep 18, 2020

Colorado Workers Protest Covid-19 Fine Issued to Meat Plant

DENVER — A union representing workers at a Colorado meatpacking plant where six workers died of COVID-19 and hundreds more were infected will stage a protest Wednesday, claiming that federal officials should have fined the company more for its allege...

Posted: Sep 18, 2020

More Than 20 Workers Hurt in Crane Accident In Austin, Texas

AUSTIN, Texas — Two cranes collided Wednesday at a construction site in Austin, Texas, causing one of them to partially collapse and injuring at least 22 workers who were sent scrambling for safety, authorities said. The cranes collided and got …

Posted: Sep 18, 2020

5th Circuit Reasserts That Bad Faith Not Necessary to Win Interest Penalty Against Texas Insurers

A Houston plaintiff’s attorney defeated State Farm Lloyd’s for the fourth time on the same issue, this time coming away with a federal appellate court ruling that policyholders don’t have to prove that their insurer acted in bad faith in …

Posted: Sep 18, 2020

Businesses Call On U.S. Insurers to Ditch Fossil Fuel Underwriting

A group of about 60 American businesses on Thursday urged their insurers to stop providing coverage to and investing in fossil fuel producers. In a letter, companies including outdoor-gear producer Patagonia and ice-cream maker Ben & Jerry’s, a unit...

Posted: Sep 18, 2020

NTSB Says Boeing 737 MAX Safety Upgrades Are ‘Positive Progress’

CHICAGO/SEATTLE/WASHINGTON — The U.S. air accident investigator said on Thursday that proposed safety upgrades in the Boeing Co 737 MAX jet were “positive progress” toward meeting cockpit and systems recommendations it made after faulting Boeing and...

Posted: Sep 18, 2020

Federal Appeals Court Questions Asian-American Bias Claims Against Harvard

BOSTON — A federal appeals court on Wednesday appeared skeptical of arguments that Harvard discriminates against Asian-American applicants, a claim made in a closely-watched lawsuit challenging the use of race as a factor in U.S. college admissions....

Posted: Sep 17, 2020

How a ‘Hillbilly Brigade’ Saved an Oregon Town From Raging Wildfires

MOLALLA, Ore. — Nicole West steered her bulldozer through the smoldering forest, pushing logs into the underbrush and away from the wildfires ripping through Oregon’s Cascade Mountains. Her border collie, Oink, rode shotgun as West and a volunteer cr...

Posted: Sep 17, 2020