Latest Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Motorcycle-Related Deaths in Connecticut Lower than 1980s
Nov 11 2008 // Connecticut transportation officials say even with thousands of new motorcyclists in Connecticut, the death rate involving motorcycles has gone down in the past two decades. As of Nov. 1, state figures show that 54 people...
New Colorado Car Insurance Law Drives Consumer Education
Nov 11 2008 // Starting this month, the mail and inboxes of Colorado drivers will begin filling up with notices from their car insurance companies informing customers of a new “opt-out” requirement due to a new Colorado Law...
National Study Says Michigan Average Auto Premiums Decline
Nov 10 2008 // Michigan’s average auto insurance premiums decreased in 2006, compared to 2005, a recent study released by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) shows. For the two-year period 2004-6, Michigan...
Crash Victim’s Widow Sues New Jersey Truck Driver
Nov 10 2008 // A Vermont woman whose husband died when a tractor-trailer slammed into two vehicles is suing the driver for negligence. Forty-two-year-old Kenneth A. Middlebusher, of Deptford, N.J., is charged with gross negligent...
South Carolina Auto Insurance Rates up Slightly in 2006
Nov 7 2008 // South Carolina auto insurance rates increased slightly in 2006, but remained on average lower than most national rates. A study by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners showed that South Carolina drivers paid...
Van Gilder Creates New Real Estate Division
Nov 7 2008 // Denver-based Van Gilder Insurance Corp. has created a new business unit designed to serve the housing-related commercial real estate market. The new unit will be called the Habitational Real Estate Division, and will serve...
Kentucky Deals with Insurance for Low-Speed Electric Vehicles
Nov 5 2008 // Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear recently signed legislation directing the state’s transportation department to develop and implement standards to authorize the operation of low speed electric vehicles on Kentucky...
Mass. Drivers Slow to Shop Under New Auto System
Nov 2 2008 // Barely six months into Massachusetts’ new deregulated auto insurance system — one designed to favor consumers who shop around for the best rates — fewer than one in four drivers have actually done so, according...
Mass. Surviving Bumps in the Auto Insurance Road
Nov 2 2008 // Burnes Rules Out Permitting Insurers to Use Credit Scores; Goes Slow on Property Market Issues Massachusetts Insurance Commissioner Nonnie Burnes has presided over the biggest shakeup in the Massachusetts’ personal...
Higher Gas Prices Drive Down Auto Rates, Drive Up Politics Over Regulation in New York
Nov 2 2008 // In New York, there exists a curious relationship between gas prices and insurance premiums, at least in government officials’ minds. Gov. David Paterson said his state’s efforts to rein in insurance rates by...
North Carolina Thwarts Alleged Auto Accident Ring
Nov 2 2008 // North Carolina Department of Insurance investigators said they arrested five Halifax County residents for their roles in what they are calling an auto insurance fraud ring that netted the accused more than $25,550 in...
Aon Selling Auto Insurance Broker in California to Mercury General
Nov 2 2008 // Mercury Casualty Co., the largest insurance subsidiary of Los Angeles-based Mercury General Corp., agreed to buy Auto Insurance Specialists Inc. from Aon Corp. AIS is an independent broker and producer of automobile...
Cab Driver’s Family Not Entitled to Uninsured Motorist Coverage in Carjacking
Nov 2 2008 // The estate of a cab driver who was killed during a carjacking is not entitled to uninsured motorist coverage benefits because the carjacker was not considered an “operator” of the cab, the Court of Appeals of...
Utah Motorcycle Deaths Hit Record High
Nov 2 2008 // More motorcycle riders than ever have died in Utah in 2008. Motorcycle deaths hit a record low in 1997 in the United States, but the number of deaths has reached record highs both nationally and in Utah since then. More...
Fatalities Up 50% in Animal-Vehicle Crashes
Oct 31 2008 // November is the peak month for vehicle-deer collisions, and a new analysis of insurance claims and federal crash data indicate the problem is growing. The Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI), an affiliate of the Insurance...
Abram Interstate Offers Nonstandard Auto Program in California
Oct 29 2008 // Abram Interstate Insurance Services Inc. in Rocklin, Calif., has a new nonstandard auto program in California, called Abram Auto Advantage. Coverage is provided by an A.M. Best rated “A-” carrier. The program...
AIG Settles North Carolina Injury Case for $18 Million
Oct 29 2008 // American International Group, the insurance giant rescued by $85 billion in federal loans last month, has agreed to an $18 million settlement with the father of a disabled former Raleigh man. AIG’s decision to...
‘Good Students’ in Virginia Get 15% Auto Insurance Break from GEICO
Oct 29 2008 // In Virginia, drivers who are full time students between the ages of 16 and 24 could be eligible for a 10-15 percent discount from GEICO. The insurer said its discount applies if the teens meet any of these requirements: B...
High Point Auto Insurance Offers New Jersey Chamber Members Discount
Oct 29 2008 // The 500,000 employees of the member companies of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce are now eligible for a discounted auto insurance program. The deal is being offered in a partnership with High Point Safety and Insurance...
Empathy, Communication Rank High in Auto Claims Satisfaction
Oct 29 2008 // Managing expectations, showing empathy, ensuring convenient service and effective communication are key themes in enhancing overall insurance customer satisfaction with the claims process, according to the J.D. Power and...
