Insurance Journal

Worker Caught in Conveyor Belt at Georgia Plant While Retrieving Earbuds

An investigation is underway after a worker at a golf cart manufacturer in Georgia was caught in a conveyor belt and fatally injured. Multiple news reports said a contract worker, Alyssa Drinkard, age 21, had dropped one or more of …

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Smartphone Screen Repairs Surge to $8.3B in 2023: Allstate Protection

While smartphone use is rising, fewer phones are suffering damage that requires repairs or replacement. Good thing, because users can hardly part with smartphones long enough to get them fixed. In its latest Mobile Mythconceptions Surveys, Allstate P...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Texas Cities Grow Fastest in US as NYC Keeps Losing People

Texas cities dominated the list of US metro areas with the biggest population increase last year, claiming four spots in the top 10. The Dallas-Fort Worth area topped the rankings with a population gain of nearly 153,000 during the 12 …

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Storm Carrying Massive ‘Gorilla Hail’ Hits Parts of Kansas and Missouri

Massive chunks of hail pelted parts of Kansas and Missouri on Wednesday night, bringing traffic to a standstill along Interstate 70, as storms unleashed possible tornadoes and meteorologists urged residents to stay indoors. There were three unconfirm...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

In Ukraine’s Bombarded Ports, Ship Buyers Scout for Deals

Since Russia invaded Ukraine two years ago, nearly 50 merchant ships have been languishing in its waters, stuck in ports too dangerous to sail from. But while these ships have not moved, some of their owners have changed, highlighting the …

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Michigan Man Who Was Accidently Shot in Face with Ghost Gun Sues Manufacturer

A 19-year-old Michigan man who lost his right eye after being shot with a firearm made from a ghost gun kit filed a lawsuit against his former best friend who accidentally shot him and the Pennsylvania company that sold his …

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Michigan Man Who Was Accidently Shot in Face With Ghost Gun Sues Manufacturer

A 19-year-old Michigan man who lost his right eye after being shot with a firearm made from a ghost gun kit filed a lawsuit against his former best friend who accidentally shot him and the Pennsylvania company that sold his …

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

One of Lindberg’s Attorneys Withdraws Two Months Before Retrial Set to Begin

Embattled former insurance executive and entrepreneur Greg Lindberg has asked for a new attorney to represent him, less than two months before his second trial on bribery charges is set to begin. A federal magistrate judge this week granted a …

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Florida Suit Says OnStar, LexisNexis Shared Driving Data with Insurers, Spiking Rates

Do motorist-assistance systems like GM’s OnStar feed data to auto insurers, resulting in higher premiums for some drivers? A south Florida man says indeed, they do, and has filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against General Motors and LexisN...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Bayer Weighs ‘Texas Two-Step’ Bankruptcy Filing Over Roundup

Bayer AG is weighing whether to use a controversial legal maneuver known as the Texas Two-Step bankruptcy to try to resolve tens of thousands of US lawsuits claiming its Roundup weedkiller causes cancer, according to people familiar with its thinking...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Residents Frustrated as $600K in Shore Protection Washes Away at Beach

A Massachusetts beach community is scrambling after a weekend storm washed away $600,000 in sand that was trucked in to protect homes, roads and other infrastructure. The project, which brought 14,000 tons (12,701 metric tons) of sand into Salisbury...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

China Probes Exposure of HK Units of Banks, Insurers to Local Gov’t Debt: Sources Say

China’s financial sector regulator is looking into the exposure of the Hong Kong units of domestic banks and insurers to the country’s local government debt, three sources with knowledge of the matter said, as part of its efforts to conta...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

BNP Paribas Considers Buying Fosun’s Ageas Stake

BNP Paribas SA is considering a potential acquisition of Fosun International Ltd.’s stake in Belgian insurer Ageas, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The French lender has been holding discussions on a possible purchase of Fosun...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Music Festivals Canceled This Year Reveal Rising Costs of Producing Large Events

For four decades, the Riverbend Festival delighted music fans in Tennessee with headlining acts like Lionel Ritchie and ZZ Top, but this year the show won’t go on. “Riverbend is reevaluating and restructuring in order to be successful in...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Sierra Club Sues SEC for Weakening Climate Risk Disclosure Rules

A major environmental group has sued to challenge new rules issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission requiring public companies to report climate-related risks, arguing they do not go far enough to protect investors. The Sierra Club and...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Terrorist Threat to US Has Reached ‘Whole Other Level,’ FBI’s Wray Warns

Terrorist threats toward the US have reached a “whole other level” from the already heightened situation before the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel and its response, FBI Director Christopher Wray said Tuesday. “You’ve seen a...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

People Moves: Former Louisiana Commissioner of Insurance Donelon Joins McGlinchey

McGlinchey Stafford, headquartered in New Orleans, named former Louisiana commissioner of insurance and attorney Jim Donelon as a member. While his insurance regulatory practice is national in scope, he will primarily work from the Baton Rouge and Ne...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Buttigieg Scolds Railroads for Not Doing More to Improve Safety Since Ohio Derailment

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has reiterated his concerns about railroad safety and scolded the industry for not doing more to improve since last year’s fiery Ohio derailment. In a new letter to the freight railroads’ main trade...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Massachusetts Couple Charged With $627K in Workers’ Compensation Fraud and More

A Hopkinton, Massachusetts couple has been arrested and charged in connection with separate schemes to defraud their workers’ compensation insurance carriers, the Small Business Administration (SBA) and their mortgage lender. According to the U...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Dozens Allege Child Sexual Abuse in Maryland Treatment Program Run by Catholic Order

More than three dozen people allege in two lawsuits filed Tuesday that they were sexually abused as children at a Maryland residential program for youths that closed in 2017 following similar allegations. In the separate lawsuits, attorneys detailed...

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Police Say Private Jet Was Short on Approach to Virginia Runway When It Crashed, Killing 5

A small private jet was short on its approach to a rural Virginia airport’s runway when it struck trees and crashed into a hillside and burned, killing all five people aboard, state police said Monday. The twin-engine IAI Astra 1125 …

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

Police: Private Jet Was Short on Approach to Virginia Runway When It Crashed, Killing 5

A small private jet was short on its approach to a rural Virginia airport’s runway when it struck trees and crashed into a hillside and burned, killing all five people aboard, state police said Monday. The twin-engine IAI Astra 1125 …

Posted: Mar 15, 2024

State Farm Announces New CEO; Farney Succeeding Tipsord June 1

The State Farm Mutual board of directors has selected President Jon Farney as the company’s next chief executive officer. Farney will succeed retiring CEO Michael Tipsord on June 1. Farney joined State Farm in 1993 and has served in a …

Posted: Mar 14, 2024

Waymo’s Robotaxi Expands into Los Angeles, Starting Free Rides in Parts of City

Robotaxis will begin cruising the streets of Los Angeles this week when Google spinoff Waymo starts offering free rides to some of the roughly 50,000 people who have signed up for its driverless ride-hailing service. Waymo is expanding into Los &#823...

Posted: Mar 14, 2024

California Insurance Commissioner: Allow Cat Modeling in Rates for Wildfires

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said he will allow catastrophe modeling to be used in rate regulation for wildfires, a move he says will help restore insurance options for Californians, including allowing. It was the latest phase of La...

Posted: Mar 14, 2024