Insurance Journal

Katrina’s Legacy: Louisiana Fortifies Itself Against the Next Storm

When Hurricane Katrina made landfall in southern Louisiana 20 years ago, the region was ill-prepared for the 125 mph winds and catastrophic flooding that would follow. Louisiana, like the rest of the United States, was still adopting modern internati...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

US Farmers Are Pulling Back on Spending in Threat to Rural Economy

Sunny skies and mild temperatures this week greeted the biggest US farm show of the year. The contrast couldn’t be greater with the sentiment among attendees as low crop prices and trade tariffs squeeze the agricultural sector. The market for &...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

A Texas Congressman is Quietly Helping Elon Musk Pitch Building $760M Tunnels Under Houston to Ease...

The devastating flooding in Houston caused by Hurricane Harvey in 2017 killed dozens of people, inundated hundreds of thousands of homes and left the community desperate for a solution. Since then, local flood experts have extensively studied the pos...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

A Texas Congressman Is Helping Musk Pitch $760M Tunnel Project for Flooding

The devastating flooding in Houston caused by Hurricane Harvey in 2017 killed dozens of people, inundated hundreds of thousands of homes and left the community desperate for a solution. Since then, local flood experts have extensively studied the pos...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

NOAA Develops Tool to Predict Hourly US Wildfire Hazards

Scientists at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s Global Systems Laboratory said it has developed an hourly assessment of wildfire potential across the U.S. The Boulder, Colorado-based lab’s Hourly Wildfire Potential...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

The Ghost of Hurricane Katrina Haunts Catastrophe Modelers

When Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans in August 2005, causing greater insurance losses than any other natural disaster in history, it became clear that a lot of the city’s flood protection engineering — walls, pumps, levees — had fail...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

After Fearsome Dust Storm Rips Phoenix Area, Trees Cleaned up And Power Restored

Crews cleaned up downed trees and got electricity mostly restored for thousands of people this week after a powerful dust storm roared through the Phoenix area. The wall of dust towering hundreds of feet high dwarfed the city’s neighborhoods. C...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

California Jury Awards $2 M to Protester Shot in Face With Nonlethal Projectile

A jury has awarded at least $2.2 million to a protester who was shot in the face with a less-lethal munition by a Los Angeles sheriff’s deputy during a demonstration against police brutality in 2020. In the verdict last week, …

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Heavy Rain Causes Flooding, Landslides and Deaths in Vietnam and Thailand

Heavy rain caused flooding and landslides Wednesday in parts of Southeast Asia, where at least eight deaths were reported in the aftermath of a tropical storm. Flooding occurred in several northern and central provinces of Vietnam, where seven people...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Kenya’s Britam Seeks More African Expansion After Imminent Congo Entry

Kenya’s biggest publicly traded insurer by market value is planning expansion in African nations with low insurance penetration to augment and diversify revenue. Britam Holdings Ltd., which already has operations in seven African nations, will...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Markets/Coverages: Liberty Mutual Re, Safehub Launch Parametric EQ Insurance Cover

Liberty Mutual Reinsurance (LM Re) and Safehub, a provider of seismic sensor and risk management technology, announced the launch of an earthquake parametric insurance solution, called “ShakeNet Parametric.” With capacity provided by LM R...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Canada’s 2023 Wildfires Pushed Air Pollution to Decade-Level Highs

Canada’s record-breaking 2023 wildfire season led to a spike in air pollution in the country and in the US, erasing recent progress in cleaning up the air, according to new analysis. The wildfires, which burned 42 million acres of Canadian &#82...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Climate Change Made Turkey, Greece Wildfires 10 Times More Likely: Scientists

The wildfires that raged across Greece, Turkey and Cyprus this summer were 22% more intense and 10 times more likely than they would have been in a world without climate change, according to scientists. The extremely hot, dry and windy …

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Sierra Club Received Sex Harassment Complaint About Then-Chief Earlier This Year

A Sierra Club employee filed a workplace misconduct complaint earlier this year with the board of directors alleging that then-executive director Ben Jealous engaged in sexual harassment and bullying. The employee’s complaint, reviewed by Bloom...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

AM Best Affirms A+ Financial Strength Rating for Allstate Group Members

Insurance industry rating agency AM Best on Thursday affirmed the financial strength rating of A+ (Superior) for the Allstate Insurance Group. The Oldwick, N.J.-based firm noted Allstate’s “favorable market position in the private passeng...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

US, Allies Step Up Fight Against North Korean Cyber Activities

The US, Japan and South Korea pledged to intensify efforts to block North Korea’s use of overseas IT workers to raise money for its weapons programs, warning that Pyongyang’s operatives are using increasingly sophisticated tactics to evad...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

A Mississippi City’s Tax Break Spurred Post-Katrina Building. But Will Homes Stand?

GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) — Rocking on his front porch overlooking the Mississippi Sound, former Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes questions how anyone wouldn’t want to live there. “People are always going to gravitate to the water,” he said. &...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

New Vermont Law Halts Public Funds for Religious Schools. Is Litigation Ahead?

Since 2021, religious schools in Vermont have been receiving an increasing amount of money through Vermont’s school tuitioning program. But Act 73, Vermont’s wide-ranging education reform law signed into law in July, effectively halts tha...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Aspire in California Secures Strategic Debt Financing from Comvest Partners

Aspire General Insurance announced the completion of a strategic debt financing agreement with Comvest Partners. The investment will enhance California-based Aspire’s capital position, enabling expanded capabilities, deeper market penetration,...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Aspire in California Secures Strategic Debt Financing From Comvest Partners

Aspire General Insurance announced the completion of a strategic debt financing agreement with Comvest Partners. The investment will enhance California-based Aspire’s capital position, enabling expanded capabilities, deeper market penetration,...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

People Moves: Mize to Lead IMA’s Wichita Office, Jamison Takes on New Enterprise Role

IMA Financial Group, Inc., a North American insurance brokerage firm specializing in risk management, wholesale brokerage and wealth management, has named Dan Mize as its new Wichita market president, effective Aug. 15. Jeff Jamison, who previously h...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

People Moves: Mize to Lead IMA’s Wichita Office, Jamison Takes on Enterprise Role

IMA Financial Group, Inc., a North American insurance brokerage firm specializing in risk management, wholesale brokerage and wealth management, has named Dan Mize as its new Wichita market president, effective Aug. 15. Jeff Jamison, who previously h...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Husband and Wife Insurance Agents Charged With $700K Fraud Scheme

A Massachusetts couple was arrested this week for their alleged involvement in a scheme that defrauded at least 50 individuals or insurance providers of more than $700,000 through their insurance agency, BL Insurance Brokerage, LLC. Brendan Lawler an...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

People Moves: Novatae Risk Group Names Greggains as New Leader

Novatae Risk Group, the wholesale business of leading insurance brokerage World Insurance Associates, has announced that Richard Kerr, CEO, has left the firm effective Aug. 22, and its president, Nick Greggains, is assuming all of Kerr’s respon...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025

Vermont Seeks Federal Disaster Declaration for July Rainstorm Damage

Vermont Governor Phil Scott has submitted a formal request to President Donald J. Trump for a major disaster declaration to help communities in Caledonia and Essex counties recover costs for repairing public infrastructure damage caused by rainfall a...

Posted: Aug 29, 2025