Claims Journal

Earthquake Risk Prompts Order to Drain California Dam
Earthquake Risk Prompts Order to Drain California Dam

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Worried that an earthquake could collapse a big dam south of San Francisco, officials have ordered its reservoir to be completely drained by October to reduce the risk of floodwaters spilling into Silicon Valley. The 240-foot …

Posted: Feb 27, 2020

US Official Says Pace of Federal Recovery Funds for Puerto Rico Speeding Up
US Official Says Pace of Federal Recovery Funds for Puerto Rico Speeding Up

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — The newly appointed U.S. official charged with overseeing disaster recovery in Puerto Rico said Tuesday that while the pace of federally funded projects to help hurricane and earthquake victims has quickened, he’s worried abou...

Posted: Feb 27, 2020

Texas Prosecutors Accuse Arkema, Executives of Failures Over Chemical Fire
Texas Prosecutors Accuse Arkema, Executives of Failures Over Chemical Fire

Opening statements began on Thursday in criminal charges against the U.S. arm of a French company and three executives over chemical fires that burned for days and injured emergency workers called to the site. The Arkema SA plant outside of …

Posted: Feb 27, 2020

Catastrophe Bonds Signal Coronavirus Nearing Pandemic Status
Catastrophe Bonds Signal Coronavirus Nearing Pandemic Status

The World Health Organization says the coronavirus isn’t yet a global pandemic. Bonds that insure against just such a catastrophe say that it probably is. The bonds, sold in 2017 by the World Bank to raise money for poor countries …

Posted: Feb 27, 2020

Bayer’s Roundup Woes May Force It to Sell Assets or Borrow
Bayer’s Roundup Woes May Force It to Sell Assets or Borrow

Bayer AG acknowledged for the first time that lawsuits related to the controversial weed killer Roundup could force it to sell assets, issue new equity or borrow money at unfavorable terms. In its annual report published Thursday, Bayer said that …

Posted: Feb 27, 2020

California Releases Autonomous Mileage Reports Car Makers Love to Hate
California Releases Autonomous Mileage Reports Car Makers Love to Hate

Alphabet’s Waymo and General Motors-backed Cruise saw their autonomous vehicles require less help from human drivers on California’s public roads in 2019. Waymo drove 13,219 miles on average before a human safety driver had to take control of the veh...

Posted: Feb 27, 2020

Sedgwick Founder Robert Young Dead at 83
Sedgwick Founder Robert Young Dead at 83

Robert Lerton “Bob” Young, founder of a company that grew to become claims-management giant Sedgwick, died on Feb. 20, the company announced Wednesday. He was 83. Young in 1969 founded a small claims services company in San Francisco. The company …

Posted: Feb 27, 2020

Hoboken Gets Boost for Park that Will Also Hold Floodwaters
Hoboken Gets Boost for Park that Will Also Hold Floodwaters

HOBOKEN, N.J. — Hoboken, one of the areas in New Jersey hit hardest by Superstorm Sandy, is making progress toward completing a large public park that will double as a reservoir for nearly 2 million gallons of storm water to …

Posted: Feb 26, 2020

Forest Fire Near I-80, Appalachian Trail Mostly Contained
Forest Fire Near I-80, Appalachian Trail Mostly Contained

HARDWICK TOWNSHIP — A forest fire burning through a popular hiking area that is crossed by the Appalachian Trail and a major interstate highway was about 80% contained by Monday afternoon, New Jersey fire officials said. The fire began Sunday …

Posted: Feb 26, 2020

Nisource Unit to Plead Guilty After U.S. Probe into Mass. Gas Explosions
Nisource Unit to Plead Guilty After U.S. Probe into Mass. Gas Explosions

BOSTON — A subsidiary of utility operator NiSource Inc has agreed to pay $53 million and plead guilty to breaking federal pipeline safety laws to resolve an investigation into catastrophic gas explosions in three Massachusetts communities in 2018. Co...

Posted: Feb 26, 2020

Bayer’s Chairman to Leave as Company Fights Roundup Suits
Bayer’s Chairman to Leave as Company Fights Roundup Suits

Bayer AG Chairman Werner Wenning will step down as the German drug and chemicals company wrestles with the growing fallout from U.S. lawsuits over its Roundup weedkiller. Wenning will be succeeded in April by Norbert Winkeljohann, 62, who has served...

Posted: Feb 26, 2020

Drugmaker’s Opioid Settlement Offer Gains Ground With States
Drugmaker’s Opioid Settlement Offer Gains Ground With States

Opioid makers and distributors who proposed paying almost $50 billion to resolve U.S. lawsuits over the addictive drugs are drawing more support from states, including California and New York, as pressure mounts for a deal before a trial starts next...

Posted: Feb 26, 2020

Viewpoint: The Coronavirus May Be Worse Than a Natural Disaster
Viewpoint: The Coronavirus May Be Worse Than a Natural Disaster

Everyone is wondering when China will return to work. While it may be tempting to consider past epidemics or labor strikes to gauge how quickly that could happen, the industrial shutdown from the coronavirus is looking more like a natural …

Posted: Feb 26, 2020

Carrier Can Deny Widow’s Claim Because Heart Disease Contributed to Crash Victim’s Death
Carrier Can Deny Widow’s Claim Because Heart Disease Contributed to Crash Victim’s Death

Zurich American Insurance Co. concluded that heart disease killed Joseph Arruda, not the spine fracture he suffered after his vehicle careened across opposite lanes of traffic and collided with an oncoming vehicle. Zurich denied an accidental death c...

Posted: Feb 26, 2020

Tesla’s Autopilot, Cell Phone Use Blamed in 2018 Fatal Crash
Tesla’s Autopilot, Cell Phone Use Blamed in 2018 Fatal Crash

U.S. crash investigators faulted Tesla Inc.’s Autopilot system and the driver’s distraction by a mobile device for a fatal accident in 2018 and called on Apple Inc. and other mobile phone makers to do more to keep motorists’ attention on …

Posted: Feb 26, 2020

2nd Person in Days Killed by Mardi Gras Float in New Orleans
2nd Person in Days Killed by Mardi Gras Float in New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS — A man was struck and killed by a Mardi Gras float during a raucous weekend street parade in New Orleans, becoming the second person in days killed along a parade route during this year’s Carnival season, authorities …

Posted: Feb 25, 2020

Mallinckrodt Agrees to $1.6 Billion Opioid Settlement, Unit to File Chapter 11
Mallinckrodt Agrees to $1.6 Billion Opioid Settlement, Unit to File Chapter 11

Mallinckrodt Plc said on Tuesday its specialty generic unit would file for bankruptcy after agreeing to pay $1.6 billion over eight years to settle opioid-related lawsuits globally, sending the drugmaker’s shares up 48%. The settlement was reached wi...

Posted: Feb 25, 2020

U.S. Labor Board Limits Companies’ Liability for Franchisee Labor-Law Violations
U.S. Labor Board Limits Companies’ Liability for Franchisee Labor-Law Violations

A U.S. labor board on Tuesday finalized a rule that will make it more difficult to hold companies liable for unlawful labor practices by franchisees and contractors, reversing a more worker-friendly Obama-era standard criticized by business groups. T...

Posted: Feb 25, 2020

Lawyer Who Helped Musk Beat Defamation Suit Takes on Tesla’s Investors
Lawyer Who Helped Musk Beat Defamation Suit Takes on Tesla’s Investors

A Manhattan trial lawyer who helped Elon Musk defeat a defamation lawsuit by a British caver is now set to defend the Tesla Inc. CEO in a fight with shareholders. Alex Spiro, a partner in the New York office of …

Posted: Feb 25, 2020

Jakarta Hit by Flooding as Cyclones Trigger Extreme Rainfall
Jakarta Hit by Flooding as Cyclones Trigger Extreme Rainfall

Parts of Indonesian capital and its suburbs were flooded after two tropical cyclones off the nation’s coast triggered extremely heavy rainfall, inundating houses in low-lying areas and forcing evacuation of hundreds of residents. More than 200 spots...

Posted: Feb 25, 2020

Tesla to Face Fresh Autopilot Scrutiny After Company Snubs NTSB
Tesla to Face Fresh Autopilot Scrutiny After Company Snubs NTSB

The National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday will convene its second hearing on a fatal crash involving Tesla Inc.’s automated driver-assist technology even though the pioneering automaker hasn’t filed formal responses to recommendations stemm...

Posted: Feb 25, 2020

Lloyd’s May Proceed With Defect Claim Against Manufacturer for Oil Rig Blowout
Lloyd’s May Proceed With Defect Claim Against Manufacturer for Oil Rig Blowout

A federal appellate court revived products liability claims filed by an offshore oil rig operator and its insurer against the manufacturer of a blowout prevention device that failed to prevent a catastrophic blowout that caused $70 million in damages...

Posted: Feb 25, 2020

Kobe Bryant’s Widow Sues Helicopter Operator for Fatal Crash
Kobe Bryant’s Widow Sues Helicopter Operator for Fatal Crash

Kobe Bryant’s widow sued the owner of the helicopter that crashed in California last month, killing the retired basketball legend, their 13-year-old daughter and seven others. Vanessa Bryant is seeking compensatory and punitive damages from Island Ex...

Posted: Feb 25, 2020

Federal Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Involving Firefighter Deaths
Federal Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Involving Firefighter Deaths

DOVER, Del. — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit against Delaware’s largest city involving deaths and injuries of firefighters who responded to an arson. The lawsuit sought to hold Wilmington officials liable for the deaths of three firefighters...

Posted: Feb 24, 2020

Minnesota Shuts Down Recycling Plant, Site of Massive Fire
Minnesota Shuts Down Recycling Plant, Site of Massive Fire

MINNEAPOLIS — The state of Minnesota on Friday shut down a metal recycling company where a fire burned for days and sent up plumes of smoke. The state cited “imminent and substantial danger” to the public, the Star Tribune reported. …

Posted: Feb 24, 2020