Yearly Archives: <span>2021</span>

Fire at Indian Firecracker Factory Kills at Least 12, Police Report

At least 12 people were killed in a fire at a firecracker factory in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu last Friday, police said. Raja Narayanan, a regional police official, said an investigation was under way into what caused …

Zaffino to Succeed Duperreault as CEO of AIG March 1

American International Group (AIG) has officially named Peter S. Zaffino as chief executive officer, succeeding Brian Duperreault, AIG’s current CEO, who will become executive chairman of the board. Both moves are effective March 1, 2021. Duperreault’s move to executive chairman …

Brown Reappointed as Texas Workers’ Compensation Commissioner

Cassie Brown has been reappointed by Gov. Greg Abbott as Commissioner of Workers’ Compensation at the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) for a term set to expire on Feb. 1, 2023. Brown has led the Division of Workers’ Compensation since …

Viewpoint: Post-Pandemic: Will Employers or Workers Have Upper Hand?

It’s been a year now since we came under the relentless domination of the coronavirus. After all this time, the picture isn’t pleasant. The end is uncertain and the implications for the future are far from clear. McKinsey reports that …

California Commissioner Names Morales Diversity Task Force Leader

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has named Mark Morales to lead the California Department of Insurance’s Diversity Task Force, the first LGBTQ+ person named to the post. Morales replaces Sal Peinado, Jr. He will lead the first quarterly meeting of …

California Mother, Son Arrested for Fraud Involving Aston Martin

Ahmad Haris Tajyar, 45, and his mother, Malalay Tajyar, 70, both of Porter Ranch, Calif., were arrested on one felony count of insurance fraud each after allegedly filing a false auto insurance claim and making fraudulent statements in order to …

Lloyd’s Construction Specialists Say They Are Ready For U.S. Infrastructure Boom

Construction insurance specialists at Lloyd’s of London are hoping to see more U.S. business from increased government investment in infrastructure projects in 2021. That will be welcome after a period of dealing with requests to step in on U.S. construction …

Newfront in California Adds Gallagher’s Pedisich

San Francisco, Calif.-based Newfront Insurance has added Nick Pedisich as a principal and commercial insurance broker. He joins Newfront from Gallagher, where he was the area vice president. Prior to that, he had leadership and sales roles at EPIC Insurance …

GM Settles With California Over Ignition Switch Statements for $5.75M

General Motors Co. agreed to a $5.75 million settlement to resolve allegations it made false statements to California’s largest pension system and other investors over its deadly ignition switch recalls. California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said the largest U.S. automaker …

Microsoft Exec Calls SolarWinds Hack ‘Largest, Most Sophisticated Attack’ Ever

A hacking campaign that used a U.S. tech company as a springboard to compromise a raft of U.S. government agencies is “the largest and most sophisticated attack the world has ever seen,” Microsoft Corp. President Brad Smith said. The operation, …