Insurance Journal

Building Explosion Kills Bank Employee, Injures 7 Others in Youngstown, Ohio

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (AP) — A massive explosion blew out much of the ground floor of an apartment building, killing a bank employee and injuring several other people. Police and emergency officials initially blamed natural gas, but the fire chief later &...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Marsh McLennan Acquires Texas’ Perkins Insurance Agencies

Marsh McLennan Agency, a subsidiary of Marsh, announced the acquisition of Perkins Insurance Agencies, an Abilene, Texas-based independent agency. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Founded in 1977, Perkins primarily provides commercial pro...

Posted: May 31, 2024

American National Exiting Homeowners Insurance Market

Following its announcement several months ago to leave the homeowners insurance business in nine states including California and Louisiana, American National appears to be exiting the line in all states. According to a letter sent to employees and ot...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Michigan Willing to Repair Flint Homes Ripped Up by Pipe Replacement

DETROIT (AP) — The state of Michigan said it’s willing to step in and oversee property repairs at 1,900 homes in Flint where water pipes have been inspected or replaced but the grounds remain a mess. The city in March …

Posted: May 31, 2024

Inszone Acquires Texas’ T Blackwell Insurance Group

Inszone Insurance Services announced the acquisition of T Blackwell Insurance Group, an agency based in Garden Ridge, Texas. Founded by Tracey Blackwell in 2012, T Blackwell Insurance Group has carved a niche in personal lines insurance, offering a s...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Banks, Asset Managers Warned of ‘Huge’ Fallout of UK’s New Greenwashing Law

Banks and asset managers in the UK woke up to a new reality on Friday, as the country enforces some of the most far-reaching anti-greenwashing rules ever seen. Due to its broad scope, the new requirement from the Financial Conduct …

Posted: May 31, 2024

Banks, Asset Managers Warned of ‘Huge’ Fallout From UK’s New Greenwashing Law

Banks and asset managers in the UK woke up to a new reality on Friday, as the country enforces some of the most far-reaching anti-greenwashing rules ever seen. Due to its broad scope, the new requirement from the Financial Conduct …

Posted: May 31, 2024

AM Best Revises Outlooks to Stable, Affirms Excellent Ratings for MEMIC Group

AM Best has revised the outlooks to stable from negative and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings of “a” (Excellent) of workers’ compensation specialist Maine Employers&#821...

Posted: May 31, 2024

People Moves: Howden Re Names Hearn as Chair, Global Clients Strategy; Ex-Lloyd’s CEO Beale Named Ch...

This edition of International People Moves details appointments at Howden Re and climate consultancy South Pole. A summary of these new hires follows here. Howden Re Names Hearn as Chair, Global Clients Strategy Howden Re, the reinsurance and risk ad...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Nurse Honored for Compassion Is Fired After Referring to Gaza ‘Genocide’ in Speech

A nurse was fired by a New York City hospital after she referred to Israel’s war in Gaza as a “genocide” during a speech accepting an award. Labor and delivery nurse Hesen Jabr, who is Palestinian American, was being honored …

Posted: May 31, 2024

Investors With Trillions Aren’t Handling Australia Climate Risks: Study

Major investors in Australia aren’t responding fast enough to rising threats to infrastructure and other assets from cyclones, floods and other natural disasters, according to a group focused on climate risks. Extreme weather events in the nati...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Investors With Trillions Aren’t Handling Australia Climate Risks

Major investors in Australia aren’t responding fast enough to rising threats to infrastructure and other assets from cyclones, floods and other natural disasters, according to a group focused on climate risks. Extreme weather events in the nati...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Israel Aims to Boost Red Sea Oil Deliveries Despite Environmental Risks

Israel plans to allow more oil tankers to dock at a Red Sea port in Eilat despite environmental risks, as it strives to maintain energy security amid conflict on multiple fronts, according to Israeli officials and government documents. Prime Minister...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Cleaner Shipping Fuel Is Contributing to Ocean Warming: Report

Shipping fuel regulations introduced in 2020 have led to a substantial cut in sulfur dioxide (SO2) pollution, but may also have made the ocean warmer by reducing cloud cover, according to a modeling study in a paper published late on …

Posted: May 31, 2024

Nationwide’s Kandhari Talks Building a Bionic Workforce With AI

Nationwide’s Chetan Kandhari said the company is working to build a bionic workforce. Maybe that brings to mind robots, futuristic technology and sci-fi imagery, but Kandhari said no one should fear robots replacing humans. Bionic simply means...

Posted: May 31, 2024

US P/C Insurers Hit Record Investment Income in 2023

The U.S. property/casualty insurance segment’s net investment income hit a record $73.9 billion in 2023, bolstered by the higher interest rate environment, according to a new AM Best report. The Best’s Special Report, “U.S. P/C Insu...

Posted: May 31, 2024

AIG Drops Claims Against Former Execs Who Started Dellwood Insurance

American International Group and a group of its excess and surplus lines subsidiaries have dropped claims against three former AIG executives who launched Dellwood Insurance Group but its claims against the E&S lines insurer live on. AIG earlier...

Posted: May 31, 2024

‘Cautiously Optimistic’ on Florida: Defense Costs Down, but Reinsurance Still a Drag

Analysts with the AM Best financial rating firm and other stakeholders are cautiously optimistic about the resurrection of the Florida property insurance market, 18 months after state lawmakers approved monumental litigation reforms. That was the sen...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Boeing Pays Millions in Wages After in Washington Investigation

A Washington wage complaint investigation resulted in The Boeing Co. paying $11.5 million in unpaid wages to nearly 500 workers. The Washington State Department of Labor & Industries reports receiving four complaints in November 2022 from workers...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Clinic Sued for Allegedly Firing Employee for Not Disclosing Disability in Job Interview

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is pursuing a case against an employer the agency says fired a new employee for not disclosing her low vision disability in her job interview. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits empl...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Denial of House Fire Claim Upheld. Insureds Never Knew Their Policy Was Nonrenewed.

A Connecticut Appeals Court has affirmed that an insurer is not obligated to provide actual notice of a home insurance nonrenewal; proof that the insurer sent the notice by registered or certified mail is sufficient. The homeowners claimed they never...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins Team Assessing Likelihood of Another Tragic Bridge Disaster

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore are assessing the country’s bridges to determine the likelihood of another disaster like the one that collapsed the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The team includes students and faculty members an...

Posted: May 31, 2024

People Moves: Pastorius Joins Alliant Insurance Services as EVP, Managing Director

Mark Pastorius joined Alliant Insurance Services as executive vice president, managing director within Alliant Specialty. Pastorius’ insurance career spans more than 37 years. Before joining Alliant, Pastorius was an executive vice president an...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Oregon Wineries and Vineyards Seek $100M from PacifiCorp for Wildfire Smoke Damage

Dozens of Oregon wineries and vineyards have sued PacifiCorp over the deadly 2020 wildfires that ravaged the state, alleging that the utility’s decision to not turn off power during the Labor Day windstorm contributed to blazes whose smoke and...

Posted: May 31, 2024

Let’s Win One for the Good Guys: A Familiar Claims Situation

Growing up we all watched television shows and movies pitting the good guy against the bad guy. Often the bad guy held some power over the good guy, either as the boss, the holder of all the money or the …

Posted: May 30, 2024