Insurance Journal

Do Regulators, Insureds and Agents Understand How Reciprocal Carriers and Some New MGAs Work?

I recently read an article regarding how the U.S. Senate wants to investigate how well reserved Florida Citizens is because of their expressed concern that if a large hurricane destroys enough property insured by Florida Citizens, will Florida Citize...

Posted: Jan 21, 2024

Google Must Bargain With YouTube Worker Union

By Daniel Wiessner Alphabet Inc’s Google violated U.S. labor law by refusing to bargain with a union representing contract workers for YouTube Music, a federal agency has ruled. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) rejected claims by Googl...

Posted: Jan 21, 2024

Former Detroit Tigers Scouts Sue Team for Age Discrimination

A pair of former Detroit Tigers scouts sued the team, alleging age discrimination over their terminations after the 2020 season. Gary Pellant and Randall Johnson filed the suit in U.S. District Court in Detroit, claiming a shift toward analytics was...

Posted: Jan 21, 2024

Judge Slams Florida’s Universal P&C for ‘Stonewalling’ Court Orders, Demands Answers

Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Co. officials have downplayed the significance of recent Florida judges’ rulings that have slammed the company for violating court orders, have forced Universal to default on lawsuits, have referred a...

Posted: Jan 21, 2024

Changing Risks Shape the Future of Agency E&O: Webinar

By Allen Laman While today’s insurance agency errors and omissions (E&O) market remains mostly stable, emerging exposures, cyber risk, natural disasters and more could shape its course ahead. That’s according to experts who shared the...

Posted: Jan 21, 2024

Minnesota Woman Sues Dentist After 4 Root Canals in Single Visit

A Minnesota woman has sued her dentist after receiving four root canals, eight dental crowns and 20 fillings in a single visit that she says led to her disfigurement. Kathleen Wilson filed the lawsuit in Hennepin County District Court, accusing &#823...

Posted: Jan 21, 2024

Illinois Supreme Court Applies ‘RTFP!’ Principle to Faulty Workmanship Claims

As reported by attorney Randy Maniloff in his Coverage Opinions newsletter, the Illinois Supreme Court has finally addressed coverage for construction defects, joining what is probably a slight majority of legal jurisdictions in finding that faulty o...

Posted: Jan 21, 2024

New York Fund for Injured Limo Drivers Wins Surcharge Fight

The New York workers’ compensation fund for black car drivers was within its authority to impose a 2.5% surcharge on noncash tips that passengers paid to drivers, a three-justice panel of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled on...

Posted: Jan 21, 2024

New Orleans to Activate Citywide Freeze Plan Ahead of Extreme Winter Weather

The City of New Orleans announced that they will activate a citywide freeze plan in anticipation of the extreme winter weather expected to bring dangerously low temperatures below freezing starting Jan. 19. The National Weather Service (NWS) predicts...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Medical Experts May be Needed, Even in Negligence Claims – Kentucky Supreme Court

When a baseball umpire, well-traveled in college baseball conferences, went to a hospital for X-rays on his surgically repaired ankle in 2015, a hospital attendant pushing the ump’s wheelchair accidentally bumped his foot against a desk. The qu...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Cold Weather Causes More Than 60 Oil Spills in North Dakota

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Bitter cold weather is causing a rash of spills in the oil fields of North Dakota as well as a slowdown in production, regulators say. North Dakota has seen multiple days of frigid weather with windchills …

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

People Moves: Atain Names Dassow VP, Head of Primary Liability; WSIA Names New Secretary and Directo...

Atain Names Dassow VP, Head of Primary Liability Atain Insurance Companies, headquartered in Farmington Hills, Mich., hired Tom Dassow as vice president and head of primary liability, leading Atain’s newly formed general liability brokerage uni...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Texas Car Dealership Faces Lawsuit for Sexual Harassment and Retaliation

South Austin Nissan, a car dealership in Austin, Texas, operated by NICPA Central Auto Group, LLC, subjected female employees to sexual harassment and retaliated against employees when they reported the harassment the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunit...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

GM Financial Rebranding OnStar Insurance as General Motors Insurance

GM Financial earlier this week said it is rebranding its OnStar Insurance to General Motors Insurance, with plans for market expansion. During 2023, the GM Insurance unit shifted from an agency model to a full-stack carrier, GM Financial said. The &#...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

People Moves: Castle, Gray Named to Senior Posts at American Coastal

St. Petersburg-based American Coastal Insurance Corp. has named two to high-level positions in the company. Svetlana Castle is the new chief financial officer, starting Jan. 22, the company said in a press release. Castle, who holds a law degree and...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

19 Dead, Hundreds of Auto Accidents from Ice Storm in Tennessee, Mississippi

Tennessee health officials have confirmed at least 14 weather-related deaths from the icy storm that has gripped much of the country. Memphis-Shelby County Schools, the state’s largest public school system with about 100,000 students, canceled...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Keystone Agency Partners Secures $300 Million in Additional Financing

The Pennsylvania-based Keystone Agency Partners (KAP) insurance brokerage platform reported that it has secured an additional $330 million of financing. Apogem Capital led the financing which was significantly over-subscribed and jointly arranged by...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Travelers’ Q4 Net Income Skyrockets as Personal Lines Reverses Underwriting Loss

Net income at The Travelers Cos. for the last quarter of 2023 about doubled compared to the same time last year to $1.6 billion on lower catastrophe losses and a return to profitable results in the personal insurance segment. The …

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Allstate Q4 2023 Reserve Charge Near $200M

Allstate offered some preliminary details of factors that impacted fourth-quarter 2023 earnings—among them a $199 million non-catastrophe reserve charge. The carrier said the figure representing unfavorable prior year reserve reestimates, excluding c...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

People Moves: Liberty Specialty Markets Appoints Bolaños as CUO, Moreno as President US, LatAm; HDI...

This edition of International People Moves details appointments at Liberty Specialty Markets and HDI Global. A summary of these new hires follows here. Liberty Specialty Markets Names Bolaños as CUO, Moreno as President US, LatAm Liberty Specialty Ma...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Reinsurers’ Casualty Appetites Varied, but Capacity Was ‘Ample’ During 1/1 Renewals

Reinsurers had varied appetites for casualty reinsurance during the January 2024 renewals; while capacity was sufficient, they still maintained underwriting discipline, according to reinsurance brokers in their renewal reports. “Some reinsurers...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Iowa Lawsuit Accuses TikTok of Misrepresenting Content

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa on Wednesday became the latest state to sue TikTok over claims that the social media company deceives consumers over the amount of “inappropriate content” that children can access via the platform. TikTok clai...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Alta Signa Launches European Marine Division

European boutique managing general agent (MGA), Alta Signa Europe B.V., announced the launch of a new European marine underwriting business. The new unit will focus on core marine lines of business, backed by Alta Signa’s panel of insurance par...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Grain Insurance Program Could Be Blueprint for Ukraine’s Return to Air Travel: Doyle

Ukraine is working “intensively” with partners to restore air travel suspended for nearly two years, with the main focus on Boryspil International Airport outside the capital Kyiv, a presidential official said on Thursday. Ukraine’s...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024

Owner of Michigan Insurance Agency Charged With Embezzlement

The owner of a Michigan insurance agency has been charged with embezzling money from employees by misappropriating payroll deductions, announced Attorney General Dana Nessel. Nancy Caviston, 76, of Superior Charter Township, was arraigned Thursday on...

Posted: Jan 19, 2024