Insurance Journal

Debby Triggers Floods, Power Outages, Water Rescues in Rural MidAtlantic, Northeast

First responders launched high-water and helicopter rescues of people trapped in cars and homes in rural New York and Pennsylvania as heavy rain from the remnants of Debby slammed the Northeast with intense floods. The worst of the flash flooding &#8...

Posted: Aug 11, 2024

California Commissioner Moves to Implement Insurance Rate Review Reforms

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Friday released a statement on his latest administrative action designed to address the state’s homeowners insurance crisis. Lara today issued a bulletin implementing rate review reforms he says...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Judge Tosses Suit Alleging Excessive Force During Dakota Access Pipeline Protest

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A federal judge in North Dakota has thrown out the remainder of a lawsuit by an Arizona man who alleged excessive force was used against him when he was protesting the Dakota Access oil pipeline. In …

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Oklahoma Contractor Faces $85K Fine Over Fatal Trench Collapse

An Edmond, Oklahoma contractor with a history of workplace safety violations dating back to 2018, including three related to the dangers in underground trenches, was found disregarding U.S. Department of Labor regulations. In February 2024, investiga...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Court Orders Regulators to Fix Process, Reconsider Gas Export Projects in South Texas

McALLEN — A federal court struck down a regulatory agency’s authorization of two controversial, multi-billion-dollar gas export projects in far South Texas, one of which is already under construction. The ruling orders federal regulators to cor...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Rapper Nelly Arrested in Missouri for Lack of Insurance, Possession of Ecstasy

Rapper Nelly was arrested early Wednesday at a St. Louis-area casino, and the Missouri Highway Patrol said an officer found four illegal ecstasy pills on him. The rapper’s attorney said an “overzealous” officer targeted him and cond...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Dog Chewing on Lithium-Ion Battery Sparks House Fire in Oklahoma

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — A dog chomping on a lithium-ion battery sparked a serious house fire in Oklahoma, and video of the moment the sparks began to fly has been enlisted by a fire department to show the potential dangers …

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

New York, Mid-Atlantic States On Tornado Watch as Debby Remnants Move North

A tornado threat is expected today from the Mid-Atlantic states northward into eastern New York, according to the National Weather Service. The risk for a few tornadoes will likely focus initially over the Mid-Atlantic states and Pennsylvania in the...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Japan Issued Its First ‘Megaquake’ Warning After Powerful Tremor

An earthquake off the coast of Japan’s southern island of Kyushu prompted the government to issue its first-ever warning for a megaquake from an undersea trough running along a swath of the country’s coast. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida ca...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Taylor Swift Cancellations Deal Blow to Insurers: Sources

Insurers face millions of dollars in claims after a foiled attack forced three Taylor Swift concerts in Austria to be canceled, though several providers will share out the hit, two people involved in insurance for her tour told Reuters. The …

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Hurricane/Tropical Storm Debby Should be Manageable for Insurers, Early Data Show

Reports from Gallagher Re and the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation suggest that Tropical Storm Debby will not be a heavy lift for property insurers and reinsurers. “Early assessments suggest wind-related physical damage (is) not as extens...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Palomar Plans Public Offering to Fund $25M Acquisition of Surety Bonds Specialist FIA

La Jolla, California-based Palomar Holdings, Inc. reports it is buying First Indemnity of America Insurance Co. (FIA), a Morris Plains, New Jersey domiciled insurance carrier specializing in surety bonds for small to medium sized contractors primaril...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Sign of the Times: With Debby, Georgia Neighborhood Floods Twice Since 2016

POOLER, Ga. (AP) — The water began seeping into Keon Johnson’s house late Monday night after Tropical Storm Debby had been dumping rain nearly nonstop throughout the day. By Tuesday morning, Johnson’s street was underwater and flooding in...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Hyundai, Kia Software Upgrades Cut Theft Rates By More Than Half, HLDI Finds

Anti-theft software upgrades provided for Hyundai and Kia vehicles regularly targeted by thieves has cut theft rates by more than half, according to new research from the Highway Loss Data Institute. Theft rates of the affected automobiles soared aft...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

New York City Deploys Drones to Warn About Storms

Gone is the bullhorn. Instead, New York City emergency management officials have turned high-tech, using drones to warn residents about potential threatening weather. With a buzzing sound in the background, a drone equipped with a loudspeaker flies o...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Delta Rejects CrowdStrike Criticism, Sees $500 Million Hit From Cyber Outage

Delta Air Lines said on Thursday it is pursuing legal claims against CrowdStrike and Microsoft after a global outage last month caused mass flight cancellations, disrupting travel plans of 1.3 million customers and costing it at least $500 million. A...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Australia’s QBE Reports More Than Doubling of 1st-Half Profit, but Misses Estimates

Australia’s QBE Insurance Group on Friday reported a more than twofold jump in its first-half profit, boosted by higher income from premiums, but missed analysts’ view, sending its shares to over a six month low. The company’s gross...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Australia’s QBE More Than Doubles First-Half Profit, but Misses Estimates

Australia’s QBE Insurance Group on Friday reported a more than twofold jump in its first-half profit, boosted by higher income from premiums, but missed analysts’ view, sending its shares to over a six month low. The company’s gross...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Hong Kong’s Insurance Boom Lures Job-Seeking Mainlanders

Hong Kong is seeing an influx of professionals from mainland China’s finance and tech sectors who are disillusioned with their career and salary prospects across the border. Many are trying to make a living and stay in the city by …

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

More People Moving In Than Out of Counties With High Catastrophe Risk

Despite the dangers and expense associated with living in high-risk areas, large numbers of people are still moving to parts of America most impacted by wildfires, flooding and extreme heat. According to a new report from real estate company Redfin,...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

SE People Moves: Bisig to Alliant, Former Lawmaker Bell to TDCI Fire Post

Alliant Insurance Services, a distributor of insurance products around the U.S., has named Sean Bisig vice president and producer in its employee benefits group. He will continue to be based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Bisig spent 18 years with Uni...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

IMA Financial Spreads Into Florida Market with Wallace Welch & Willingham

IMA Financial Group, a large brokerage specializing in wealth management and risk advice, is moving into the Florida commercial property insurance market with the acquisition of Wallace Welch & Willingham Inc. WW&W, based in the St. Petersbur...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Construction Firm to Pay $50K to Settle Retaliation Claim

Pro Pallet, LLC, a Pennsylvania-based construction company, will pay $50,000 and furnish other relief to settle a retaliation lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, a human resource...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Judge Allows Vermont Suit Alleging Police Bias, Excessive Force Against Black Teen

A Vermont judge has denied the city of Burlington’s request to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that police used excessive force and discriminated against a Black teenager whose mother had called law enforcement to teach him a lesson about stealing....

Posted: Aug 09, 2024

Third Trial Over Zantac Cancer Claims Ends With Hung Jury

The third trial over claims that discontinued heartburn drug Zantac ended in a mistrial on Wednesday when jurors could not agree about whether pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim was responsible for an Illinois man’s cancer. Martin Gros...

Posted: Aug 09, 2024