Insurance Journal

How Responders Rescued Steel Plant Workers; Search for Cause of Blast Underway

Moments after an explosion erupted at a U.S. Steel plant outside Pittsburgh, company firefighters, local responders and employees raced in to rescue people from the smoldering wreckage. They were able to free one injured worker who was whisked to a &...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Another Downgrade for State Farm General: S&P Lowers Rating to A-

Earlier this month, Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings announced another downgrade for State Farm General Insurance Co., lowering the California company’s financial strength rating to A- in spite of a show of financial support from its...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Norway Spy Chief Blames Russian Hackers for Dam Sabotage in April

Russian hackers briefly took control of a dam in Norway earlier this year, the head of the Nordic country’s counter-intelligence agency said on Wednesday, the first time Oslo has officially attributed the cyberattack to its neighbor. While in c...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Australia Pension Fund Mercer Sued Over Customer Disclosures

Australia’s financial regulator is suing A$70 billion ($46 billion) pension fund Mercer Super, accusing it of failing to report multiple investigations into serious member services issues. In a Federal Court filing, the Australian Securities an...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Swiss Re Sets Up Task Force to Monitor Tariff Impact

Swiss Re AG has set up a task force to see how the tariffs installed by the United States against Switzerland and other countries is impacting the Zurich-based reinsurer. Chief Executive Officer Andreas Berger said he doesn’t see the tariffs &#...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Hong Kong Extends Record Rain Warnings as Podul Skirts City

Hong Kong’s central business district and outer airport were hit by violent gusts and a deluge of heavy rain on Thursday, with the city again issuing its highest rain warning as Tropical Storm Podul passed the region. Parts of Hong …

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Nigeria Gives Insurers a Year to Boost Capital Fivefold

Nigeria increased capital requirements for insurance businesses fivefold and gave operators a year to comply or risk losing their licenses. The capital threshold for non-life insurers was raised to 15 billion naira ($9.8 million) from 3 billion naira...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Mission, Purpose Not High on Wish Lists of Industry Newbies: Informal Talent Poll

A poll of workers recently hired into the property/casualty insurance industry conducted during a Travelers Institute webinar last month produced some unusual results, surprising one webinar panelist who leads a key business segment at Travelers. Onl...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Senator Schiff Brings Back Idea of Federal Reinsurance Program

Sen. Adam Schiff recently reintroduced his Incorporating National Support for Unprecedented Risks and Emergencies (INSURE) Act to create a federal catastrophic reinsurance program. The insurance industry promptly reintroduced their opposition. &#8220...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

People: Sterling Seacrest Pritchard Adds QB Jake Fromm to the Backfield

Former University of Georgia and NFL quarterback Jake Fromm has been hired as client advisor for Georgia-based insurance broker Sterling Seacrest Pritchard. “I’m excited to start this new chapter of my life, building new and long-lasting...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

People Moves: Sterling Seacrest Pritchard Adds QB Jake Fromm to the Backfield

Former University of Georgia and NFL quarterback Jake Fromm has been hired as client advisor for Georgia-based insurance broker Sterling Seacrest Pritchard. “I’m excited to start this new chapter of my life, building new and long-lasting...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

$36M Clearinghouse System Has Problems, Some Fla. Agents Say. Citizens Disagrees

It was supposed to simplify and speed the process for insurance agents trying to find private coverage for Citizens policyholders, a vital link in depopulating Florida’s oversized insurer of last resort. But a year after the $36 million Citizen...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

A Year Later, Mixed Reactions Over Florida’s $36M Citizens Clearinghouse System

It was supposed to simplify and speed the process for insurance agents trying to find private coverage for Citizens policyholders, a vital link in depopulating Florida’s oversized insurer of last resort. But a year after the $36 million Citizen...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

People Moves: The Hanover Appoints Mitchell; MEMIC Promotes Kelley

The Hanover Appoints Mitchell President of Technology and Life Sciences Business The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc., headquartered in Worcester, Massachusetts, appointed Toni E. Mitchell as president of its technology and life sciences business. Mitch...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Brown & Brown Acquires Assets of Tire Shield in Nevada

Brown & Brown Dealer Services has acquired the assets of Tire Shield. The Tire Shield team will join Brown & Brown Dealer Services and continue to operate from their offices in Las Vegas, Nevada. The team will report to William …

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

New York AG Sues Zelle, Claims Lax Security Led to $1 Billion Consumer Fraud Losses

Zelle was sued on Wednesday by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who said the electronic payment platform’s refusal to adopt critical safety features enabled fraudsters to steal more than $1 billion from consumers. The lawsuit in a New Y...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Owner Sentenced, Fined $1.2M for Workers’ Comp Scheme Uncovered After Tragedy

A large-scale workers’ compensation fraud and tax evasion scheme that came to light when an employee was killed while removing a sign from a brewery has resulted in the sentencing of a construction firm owner. According to New York State &#8230...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

California Employer Pleads Guilty to Charges Over Deadly Nitrogen Leak

An employer has pleaded guilty to criminal charges after investigation into deadly nitrogen leak held the company responsible. California Ranch Foods, a subsidiary of Golden West Food Group, pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts after being crimin...

Posted: Aug 14, 2025

Michigan Man to Stand Trial for Insurance Fraud

A Michigan financial advisor will stand trial for insurance fraud after waiving preliminary examination, Attorney General Dana Nessel announced this week. Todd Bernstein, 67, of Birmingham, is alleged to have submitted misleading information on annui...

Posted: Aug 13, 2025

Black Hills, South Dakota Region Faces Severe Water Shortages

Water levels in this major source of drinking water for Rapid City were so low this spring that city leaders implemented water-use restrictions weeks earlier than normal and the state delayed installation of public boat docks. Lingering drought condi...

Posted: Aug 13, 2025

Almong Texas’ Guadalupe River, Several Summer Camps Are in Flood Zones

The all-girls Christian summer camp where 27 people, most of them children, were swept away and killed by the July 4 flooding in Kerr County was just one of 13 summer camps along the Guadalupe River built on land prone …

Posted: Aug 13, 2025

Along Texas’ Guadalupe River, Several Summer Camps Are in Flood Zones

The all-girls Christian summer camp where 27 people, most of them children, were swept away and killed by the July 4 flooding in Kerr County was just one of 13 summer camps along the Guadalupe River built on land prone …

Posted: Aug 13, 2025

RPS: Cyber Market Flush With Capacity as Buyers Get More Limit, Low Premium

Cyber insurance remains an area of growth opportunity for property and casualty insurers, particularly in the face of large-scale risk factors. According to a new report, “CYBER: Insights on the current and future state of the US cyber insuranc...

Posted: Aug 13, 2025

Shadow Tanker Fleet Grows More Slowly as Western Sanctions Target Russian Oil

Dozens of tankers have joined the shadow fleet this year compared with hundreds in previous years as the harshest Western sanctions yet target Russia’s oil exports and add to the difficulty of finding suitable vessels, shipping sources said. Th...

Posted: Aug 13, 2025

World Insurance Acquires Texas’ Abacus

World Insurance Associates LLC announced that it acquired the business of Abacus Insurance and Financial Services of Irving, Texas on April 1, 2025. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Abacus provides primarily commercial lines insurance to...

Posted: Aug 13, 2025