Insurance Journal

Retrial Begins in Civil Suit Against Contractor Accused in Abu Ghraib Prison Scandal

A military contractor accused of contributing to the abuse of detainees at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison two decades ago is again on trial in a federal courtroom after a long-awaited civil case earlier this year ended with a hung jury. …

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Global Reinsurers’ ROE Jumps to 22% in 2023, but Market Softening Unlikely: AM Best

AM Best’s population of global reinsurance companies posted a return on equity (ROE) of 22% in 2023 – a five-year high that was driven mainly by favorable investment income and strong underwriting performance. The fundamentals are excellent but...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Markets/Coverages: IQUW Launches Financial Institutions Product in Australia

IQUW, the London-based property and specialty re/insurer, has announced that its financial institutions (FI) product, FortiFI, has launched new wording for the Australian insurance market. Launched in the US earlier this year, FortiFI is one of the o...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Ardonagh Advisory Agrees to Acquire Rowett Insurance Broking in UK

Ardonagh Advisory announced it has agreed to acquire Rowett Insurance Broking Ltd. in the UK. Rowett specializes in commercial, and personal insurance from its offices in St. Austell and Plymouth, England. Its subsidiary company, AGRi Insurance Facil...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Ryan Specialty in Discussions to Acquire UK’s Innovisk Capital Partners

Ryan Specialty, the Chicago-based specialty insurance services firm, announced it is in final discussions to acquire Innovisk Capital Partners from Abry Partners and BHMS Investments LP. As a result of the acquisition, Innovisk would become a part of...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Kremlin Says Google Should Lift YouTube Block on Russian Broadcasters

The Kremlin said on Thursday that Alphabet’s Google should lift its block on Russian TV channels broadcasting on YouTube and said it hoped huge legal claims racking up against the U.S.-based company would jolt it into action. Google stopped ser...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Bain-Backed Motor Insurer Esure Draws Interest from Aviva, Allianz

Aviva Plc and Allianz SE are among potential bidders for Britain’s home and motor insurance firm Esure Group Plc, according to people familiar with the matter. Sampo Oyj, which owns British general insurer Hastings Group, and Belgium-based Agea...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

People Moves: Marsh Promotes Lang, Aronson, Rouse in Placement Strategy; Chubb Expands Merna’s Role...

Marsh Makes Global Senior Leadership Appointments Marsh, a business of Marsh McLennan, named Christopher Lang as digital leader, Marsh Specialty and Global Placement. In this newly created role, Lang leads Marsh’s digital global insurance place...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Deadly Spain Floods Show Difficulty of Adapting to Intense Rains

Floods that killed more than 150 people in eastern Spain this week were caused by a storm that dumped a year’s worth of rainfall in less than 24 hours. The tragedy has raised questions about whether earlier warnings could have …

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Purdue Pharma Nears New Bankruptcy Deal With Sacklers, Mediator Says

Purdue Pharma is close to a new bankruptcy settlement with its owners, members of the wealthy Sackler family, and state and local governments that have filed lawsuits alleging that its painkiller OxyContin spurred a deadly opioid-addiction crisis in...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Abbott, Reckitt Score First Victory in Baby Formula Trial

Abbott Laboratories and a unit of Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc were cleared by a jury over claims they hid risks their premature-infant formulas can cause a bowel disease that severely sickened a baby boy. It was the companies’ first trial &#823...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Companies Are Dropping the D or E From DEI to Avoid Criticism

After a backlash against DEI programs by conservative activists, a majority of executives in a new survey said that their companies have changed how the initiatives are described with reduced emphasis on racial diversity. Among more than 60 executive...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Insurer Not Liable if Bank Improperly Cashes Insurance Check, Appeals Court Finds

Insurance carriers are not responsible if a bank improperly cashes a check made out to two insureds and gives the proceeds to only one of them, a federal appeals court decided this week. The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals …

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Delos in California Secures Another $9M Funding

Property insurance managing general agent Delos Insurance Solutions said it has raised $9 million through a Series A funding round led by HSBC Asset Management and includes IA Capital Group, Blue Bear Capital and Generation Space along with angel inv...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Delaware Voters to Elect Insurance Commissioner

On November 5, Delaware voters will decide who will be the state’s insurance commissioner. Incumbent Trinidad Navarro is running for re-election. He won more than 70% of the vote in the Democratic primary in September. Navarro was first elected...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Penn Nursing Awarded $3.2 Million Grant to Improve Firearm Storage

The University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing has been awarded a $3.2 million, five-year grant to develop an evidence-based secure firearm storage intervention at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). The grant is from the National Ins...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Jaywalking Is Now Legal in New York City. It’s Still Risky.

Jaywalking — that time-honored practice of crossing the street outside of the crosswalk or against the traffic light — is now legal in New York City. Legislation passed by the City Council last month officially became law over the weekend …

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Court Upholds Firing of Philadelphia Cops Over Offensive Facebook Posts

The Philadelphia police department did not violate the First Amendment rights of several officers who were fired or suspended for racist and violent social media posts, a federal judge has ruled. U.S. District Judge Wendy Beetlestone issued her rulin...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Los Angeles County Sues PepsiCo and Coca-Cola Over Plastic Pollution

Los Angeles County has sued beverage makers PepsiCo and Coca-Cola, accusing them of polluting the most populous U.S. county with plastic bottles and misleading the public about the environmental impact and recyclability of their containers. The count...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Washington Farm Labor Contractor Facing $140K in Fines for Withholding Info From Workers

A Pasco farm labor contractor faces nearly $140,000 in fines for violations uncovered during a Washington State Department of Labor & Industries investigation that include withholding information from worker. According to the L&I, there are m...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Washington Farm Labor Contractor Fined $140K for Withholding Info From Workers

A Pasco farm labor contractor faces nearly $140,000 in fines for violations uncovered during a Washington State Department of Labor & Industries investigation that include withholding information from worker. According to the L&I, there are m...

Posted: Nov 01, 2024

Landmark Admin Reports Data Breach, Exposing 800,000 Users’ Information

Landmark Admin filed a notice of data breach last week after detecting suspicious activities on its system in May. Landmark is a Texas-based company that provides third-party administrative solutions for life insurance carriers, Approximately 800,000...

Posted: Oct 31, 2024

Texas Pharmacy Owner Sentenced in $41M Health Insurance Fraud

A Dallas pharmacy owner who routinely billed insurance companies for headache sprays, pain creams, and scar creams never dispersed to patients was sentenced last week to 10 years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of...

Posted: Oct 31, 2024

Louisiana DuPont Plant Fined $480K for Releasing Cancer-Causing Chemical

RESERVE, La. (AP) — A chemical manufacturing plant west of New Orleans has agreed to pay a $480,000 federal fine and install equipment to stop the release of a cancer-causing chemical from a storage tank and pipe. The consent agreement …

Posted: Oct 31, 2024

Former Principal of Missouri Boarding School Charged with Sex Crimes Involving Student

A former principal at a Christian boarding school in Missouri that closed in March amid abuse allegations has been charged with sex crimes involving a former student. Craig Wesley Smith Jr. was charged by the prosecutor in Wayne County in …

Posted: Oct 31, 2024