Gun Group Fined For Selling ‘Illegal’ Insurance Coverage For Shootings

The rejection means the California Insurance Co., which is a subsidiary of Applied Underwriters, cannot sell insurance in California– for now at least. California Insurance last week incorporated in New Mexico, after California regulators delayed approving an application to transfer ownership. California regulators “had been in the process for several…

Oct. 20– Eighteen-year-old Mikayla Taylor saved her junior year of high school to buy a car by working part-time as a kennel technician for $9 an hour. Taylor’s situation is repeated by hundreds of victims of hit-and-run drivers every month, says Trooper Kenn Watson, a Florida Highway Patrol spokesman. Taylor was driving south on U.S. 41 when she followed a white…

Insurance companies have become an obstacle to some people rebuilding from the Memorial Day tornadoes, a Dayton Daily News investigation found. The Dayton Daily News used Ohio public records laws to obtain all insurance complaints filed in Montgomery, Greene and Miami counties and identified 41 related to the Memorial Day tornadoes. Dean Fadel, president of…

According to the number-crunchers at State Farm Insurance, the average American driver has a 1 in 116 chance of plowing into some kind of large wilderness creature every time they venture out in the car, especially in the months of October, November and December. “Claims after collisions with an animal range from small dents to totaled vehicles and injured…

Oct. 16– When Baltimore officials refused to pay the hackers that had locked them out of key parts of their network in a May ransomware, the resultant price tag was some $18 million in recovery costs and lost revenue. The city will spend a combined amount of $835,103 on the insurance: Chubb will provide $10 million in coverage, with a price tag of $500,103, while the…

Hurricane Dorian was no different when it hammered North Carolina’s barrier islands at the start of September. Rob Young, a geology professor at Western Carolina University and director of the Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines, is ringing the alarm on coastal development. “I fear we have reached some sort of threshold here on Cape Lookout that has…

Ron DeSantis on Thursday made his first use of a controversial economic-development program by saying money will go to a pair of roads tied to workforce housing in Bay County. Marking the one-year anniversary of Category 5 Hurricane Michael slamming into the Panhandle, DeSantis said his first dip into the state’s Job Growth Grant Fund will be for $2.86…

JERSEY CITY, N.J., Oct. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Private U.S. property/casualty insurers’ surplus reached a new record of $802.2…

PG&E., whose faulty power lines have caused dozens of fires in drought-plagued Northern California in recent years, insisted the latest power shutoff, which began shortly after midnight Wednesday, was an act of last resort. Utility officials said it was necessary to protect the state from a repeat of last November’s Camp Fire, which killed 85 people and…

MILWAUKEE – (Oct. 10, 2019) – Zywave, a leading insurance tech provider, today released the results from its highly anticipated…

Oct. 9– One year after Category 5 Hurricane Michael barreled over the Florida Panhandle and into Georgia, Mexico Beach is urgently working to bring in more visitors, thousands of Panama City families are still “couch surfing,” a prison with critically needed jobs remains shuttered in Marianna and tarps still cover hundreds of homes in south Georgia.

It’s a new practice for PG&E but not for one of its utility counterparts– San Diego Gas& Electric. On Tuesday night, SDG&E notified customers that lines in areas including Fallbrook, Julian, Valley Center and Rancho Santa Fe may be shut down as the region braces for the first serious bout of Santa Ana winds this fire season. While SDG&E has estimated about 30,000 of…

Statewide, nearly 4,000 claims were submitted through Sept. 16, according to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. Of those, 908– or 23 percent– came from Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties. Dorian stayed about 100 miles offshore as it moved north up the Florida coast, sending wind gusts up to 41 mph into South Florida.

Oct. 8– PANAMA CITY– City leaders approved long-term rebuilding and economic development plans Tuesday on the cusp of Hurricane Michael’s one year anniversary. The Panama City Commission approved the plans during its regular meeting on Tuesday. “It’s important to streamline the process so you don’t have to be a big corporate investor to invest downtown,” said…

Oct. 8– When Hurricane Sandy’s floodwaters ravaged the first floor of Frank Cattie’s Ocean City, N.J., home, he assessed the damage, filed a flood insurance claim, and braced for the financial impact. Cattie and his wife, Susan, who live in Jenkintown, bought a condo in Ocean City in 2000, then traded up for a nearly 100- year-old duplex a block from the bay in 2003.

Rates Up 4% in Third Quarter Transportation and Habitational Risks Assessed Largest Rate Increases US property and casualty insurers continue…

Composite Rate for Personal Lines Insurance Rises to Plus 4.5% Homeowners rates continue to increase across US The composite rate…

More than 90 percent of fires in California are started by humans, often along roads and buildings lined with flammable invasive grasses. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, known as Cal Fire, has largely sidestepped any discussion of whether fire-prone landscapes should be off limits to new home construction. “The physical location of…

Across the northeast swath of South Carolina, the answer is still unfolding. In the small Marion County town of Nichols, about 8 miles west of the North Carolina border, a skeleton crew of town staff face an uphill battle trying to keep the hamlet together. About 50 miles away, in the Horry County neighborhood of Rosewood, the shock caused by the water is more subtle.

New York City has gotten busy bolstering itself against future “super storms” like 2012′ s Sandy. Developing resilient infrastructure is another way that city planners are hoping to mitigate future flooding issues, like at the recently opened Hunter’s Point South Park along the East River in Queens. One especially climate-resilient feature of this park is a…

Oct. 4– For the second time in three months, a judge for the California Department of Insurance has refused to change or reconsider his ruling in a workers compensation case, despite direction from Commissioner Ricardo Lara or his special counsel. Administrative Law Judge Clarke de Maigret, also known as an ALJ, wrote in a response to the commissioner last week…

Next month, Acuña’s home, now in the 500- year floodplain, could be one of thousands in Austin to be redesignated as in the 100- year floodplain, based on new rainfall data released last year that show major storms are more common in Texas than previously believed. The data, known as Atlas 14, revealed that parts of Austin are seeing as much as three inches more rain…

FISHKILL, N.Y.- October 2, 2019-. Lead Marvels recently launched PropertyCasualtyAgent.com, an online resource center targeting approximately 475,000 active property& casualty insurance agents. Michael Palacios, President of Lead Marvels, says,“ We are pleased to provide a new tool for agents across the country to grow their business and learn best practices–…

Sep. 30– More review is planned before any flood map changes are imposed along the Wilkes-Barre/ Hanover and Plymouth stretches of the Wyoming Valley Levee, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA. Although FEMA plans to release preliminary flood maps for all Luzerne County communities along the Susquehanna early next year, these maps…

A study found that, on average, millennials pay $1,753 annually compared to the $1,395 paid annually by drivers of older generations.

Winston-Salem and Forsyth County homeowners will face a 3.5% increase in their insurance rate as part of a settlement approved Friday by state Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey. The rate, which goes into effect May 1, is significantly less than the 20% hike sought by the N.C. Rate Bureau in December. Commissioner Mike Causey also approved an overall 4.3%…

Five months after this spring’s historic flooding, they’re beginning to get an idea of how much they will receive as FEMA teams investigate their requests. East St. Louis has been temporarily approved by FEMA to receive $209,557– or about 8% of what it wants– to fix its sewer system the city claims was damaged by flooding on the Mississippi River.

Consumer Watchdog issued the following statement by Executive Director Carmen Balber:. In response Carmen Balber, Executive Director of Consumer Watchdog, a member of the Insure Our Future campaign, issued the following statement:. “The U.S. insurance industry can and must do better.

The planet is in hot water— literally— and that will have dire consequences for humanity, warns a new United Nations report on the state of the world’ s oceans and ice. And the total biomass of animals in the sea could drop by as much as 15%, according to the sobering assessment by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. “The oceans and ice are in trouble, so we’ re…

The California Department of Insurance issued the following news release:. The Department of Insurance has released data showing wide socioeconomic disparities in auto insurance group discounts offered to millions of California drivers. “This disturbing data confirms what we have heard for years, that auto group discounts do not apply equally across…

The counties are Butte, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sonoma and Yuba. Power was cut to 24,000 customers in Butte, Nevada and Yuba counties on Monday evening, lasting into Tuesday. Some of the most destructive blazes in the state in the past two years were started by PG&E power lines, including a November blaze that killed 86 people and virtually leveled the Butte…

–Travel insurance is meant to protect travelers from financial distress, not cause it. In 2019, the overall average cost for a travel insurance policy purchased on squaremouth.com is $249. Total Trip Cost Travelers have the choice to insure all, some, or none of their prepaid and nonrefundable trip costs for Trip Cancellation coverage.

–Chubb announced that Louis Hobson has joined the company as Senior Vice President of Flood Insurance for its North America operations. In this new role, Mr. Hobson will work in conjunction with Chubb’s personal and commercial lines of business, and lead efforts centered on the development and implementation of strategies to further broaden the delivery of…

Sep. 24– Dorian Steeber jokes about wanting to change his address “from Bowden Place to Bowden Lake.” Steeber, who has two houses along Manard Bayou, can joke about it now. Steeber said Federal Emergency Management Agency helped a little with the house.

Sep. 23– The Memorial Day tornado outbreak forced people to find new homes and start the rebuilding process, but state law changes could make reducing their tax burdens a little easier. Rick Perales, R- Beavercreek, has worked with Greene County Auditor David Graham on the language to amend the state law. “After the Memorial Day experience there was a lot of hurry up…

Before adding her 17- year-old daughter and the Nissan, Chaisson said she paid only $62 a month. According to a recent study by The Zebra, an auto comparison website, Louisiana drivers pay the second-highest auto insurance rates in the country. The average American pays about $1,470 a year to insure a vehicle, but motorists who live in Louisiana pay $2,338,…

After Hurricane Andrew devastated Miami-Dade County in 1992, builders and lawmakers responded with new codes that girded South Florida homes and buildings for Category 5 winds. After multiple storms swept through Florida in 2004 and 2005, Florida Power& Light spent billions hardening its system to withstand winds up to 145 mph. “Whatever the building code…

For example, $492,542 was paid to resolve flood claims in 2013 vs. “Homeowners should factor in climate risks when purchasing a home,” recommends Les Masterson, managing editor of Insure.com. Les Masterson is available to discuss weather-related home insurance claims; plese let me know if you would like to arrange a call or email interview with Les.

As people across the coastal United States prepare for peak hurricane season, the state of the insurance backstop protecting almost half of coastal Texas homeowners from wind damage is still in question. Mark Hanna, spokesman for the Insurance Council of Texas, said TWIA’s main fund for paying out windstorm damage claims essentially was wiped after Tropical…

—Board members of an Iowa government insurance program have frequently held public meetings at posh out-of-state resorts, costing tens of thousands of dollars while making it harder for the public to attend, a review by The Associated Press shows. Directors of the Iowa Communities Assurance Pool for years have held two of their six annual meetings in other…

Sep. 15– Frances Mann-Craik loves living amid the trees along Highway 35. Along with more than a dozen of her neighbors, Mann-Craik recently received a letter from Walnut Creek- based CSAA, a AAA insurer, informing her the company would not be renewing the fire coverage she’s had for nearly two decades. According to figures published recently by the state’s…

The sum is below the $20 billion originally requested by insurers to cover losses but a boost from the $8.5 billion PG&E offered up just four days ago. PG&E outlined a plan Monday to establish a trust capped at $8.4 billion to compensate tens of thousands of people and businesses with losses from 19 different fires. “PG&E focuses on taking care of hedge funds and…

Sep. 13– CRESTVIEW– The family of a Crestview girl who was brutally attacked by a pit bull two years ago has settled a pair of lawsuits in connection with the attack. Paige Woody, the girls’ mother who was also injured in the attack, confirmed that lawsuits filed against the Panhandle Animal Welfare Society and animal control officer Kevin Schoeneman in August 2018…

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency issued the following news release:. Be aware that it is illegal to require full or partial payment before disaster-remediation work in Texas. It is also best to get multiple estimates, avoid out-of-town businesses and never trust someone claiming to be a ” FEMA- certified”…

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency issued the following news release:. Depending on their level of coverage, flood insurance policy holders may receive up to $250,000 for home damage and up to $100,000 for contents– far more than FEMA’s assistance for individuals and households after a presidentially-declared…

After multiple storms swept through Florida in 2004 and 2005, Florida Power& Light spent billions hardening its system to withstand winds up to 145 mph. >>Related: FPL chief predicts “significant destruction” if Dorian hits Florida. “Whatever the building code is in the state of Florida– and we have the best building code in the country– it was not built for Hurricane…

BURLINGTON, Vt., Sept. 11, 2019/ PRNewswire/– According to a study just released by DealerPolicy, 83% of car buyers want to complete everything related to their car purchase at one time within the dealership, including their purchase of auto insurance. “Traditionally, dealers have seen insurance as a problem, but insurance is now a new income opportunity for dealers,”…

Trump responded to a New York Times report that acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney told Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to have the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration publicly disavow the position that Alabama was not at risk. NOAA said in a statement last Friday that National Weather Service forecasters in Birmingham, Alabama, “…

Duane Sands, the health minister of the Bahamas, told reporters Sunday. “Some places it’s like nothing happened,” Mark Green, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, told The Washington Post after an aerial tour. Dorian, then a Category 5 storm bearing sustained winds of 185 miles per hour and gusts even stronger, stalled over the northern…

Sep. 10– BRUNSWICK COUNTY– Nearly a year after Hurricane Florence slammed ashore at Wrightsville Beach and proceeded to stall over Southeastern North Carolina, the big lake at Boiling Spring Lakes remains a city landmark in name only. In Wilmington, apartment complexes remain unoccupied as repairs continue. And across the region, state and local officials are…

Sep. 6– Hurricane Dorian’s trail of destruction and flooding has it on the verge of North Carolina Thursday night, after spending the day working up the South Carolina coast. The storm is picking up speed as it approaches North Carolina, traveling northeast at 10 mph, the hurricane center reported. While Dorian is already affecting North Carolina, its impact from…

The U.S. Small Business Administration has issued a disaster declaration for flooding that occurred in Wayne County and five adjacent counties in July. A preliminary damage assessment found 38 structures in Wayne County had uninsured damage from flooding that occurred July 21. The SBA-only declaration is for homeowners, renters, and businesses who have…

The California senator laid out her plan to tackle the climate crisis at CNN’s presidential town hall on the issue Wednesday, along with nine of her White House rivals. The contenders pointed to the real-world impacts Americans are already seeing from climate change– from storm surges and flooding in the South and Midwest to increasingly deadly wildfires in…