Latest Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
People
Nov 5 2006 // Peter McMurtrie has joined Columbus, Ohio-based Grange Insurance in the new position of chief claims officer. The company said McMurtrie would focus on three main areas of operation: transactional excellence, best...
Wildlife making highways hazardous
Nov 5 2006 // The increasing number of motorists and deer in Texas are leading to a greater frequency of collisions between the two on the state’s roadways. Cooler weather and the annual rut season should make for even more...
News Currents
Nov 5 2006 // Many California Hispanics unaware of uninsured motorists requirements On Oct. 1, 2006, the California Department of Motor Vehicles began enforcing Senate Bill 1500 that requires the DMV to suspend a vehicle’s...
Insurance credit scoring plagued with fundamental problems
Nov 5 2006 // A fundamental problem exists with insurance scoring. The problem is that insurance scores and credit scores reflect correlation, but correlation does not necessarily indicate dependency upon which effective decisions can...
Everything old (or hot, modified, exotic, muscle, etc.) is valuable again
Nov 5 2006 // Insurance producers, follow the money. It’s going into collector vehicles of all makes, models and years. Here are three facts to illustrate. 1) Collectors spend money — lots of it — to buy and restore...
Feds, Consumer Groups at Odds Over Vehicle Early Warning Data
Nov 2 2006 // The government proposed this week to keep confidential some vehicle safety data covering consumer complaints, warranty claims and information on vehicles involved in deaths and injuries. Consumer groups have tried to get...
1991 Honda Most Stolen Vehicle
Nov 1 2006 // For 2005, the most stolen vehicle in the nation was the 1991 Honda Accord, according to Hot Wheels, the National Insurance Crime Bureau’s companion study to its annual Hot Spots auto theft report. The study examines...
Texas Truck Driver’s Fraud Conviction Nets Jail Time
Nov 1 2006 // Texas Mutual Insurance Company reported that Arthur Menard of Spring, Texas, pleaded guilty to workers’ compensation fraud-related charges and a Travis County district court sentenced him to 14 months in jail. The...
Best Issues Special Report on Canadian Auto Insurance Industry
Oct 31 2006 // “During the past 10 years, the Canadian automobile insurance industry’s underwriting results have changed dramatically as reflected by the significant variations in the direct loss ratio,” concludes a...
S.C. to Raise Minimum Auto Limits
Oct 31 2006 // Starting Jan. 1, drivers in South Carolina who buy the least amount of insurance coverage allowed by law will see their premiums go up as legislatively mandated changes in coverage take effect. Those drivers will begin...
Many California Hispanics Not Aware of Uninsured Motorists Requirements
Oct 27 2006 // On Oct. 1, 2006, the California Department of Motor Vehicles began enforcing Senate Bill 1500 that requires the DMV to suspend a vehicle’s registration if the vehicle does not have a valid insurance policy or bond....
Esurance Seeks to Grow in Oregon
Oct 26 2006 // Esurance, a direct-to-consumer personal auto insurance company, announced the launch of its auto insurance program in Oregon. Gary Tolman, Esurance President & CEO, stated, “We think Oregon drivers will...
Mich. H.E.A.T. Increases Stolen Property Recovery by $2 Million
Oct 25 2006 // Michigan celebrated the 21st anniversary of the H.E.A.T. (Help Eliminate Auto Thefts) program with its annual award program this week. According to the official release, since its inception in 1985, H.E.A.T., with its...
Conn. Motor Vehicle Registries Expand Hours, Add Staff
Oct 24 2006 // As part of an effort to improve customer service at the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles, Governor M. Jodi Rell announced that, beginning November 1, DMV will open an additional day per week at three small...
Navy, Marines Battling Fatal Off-Base Car Crashes
Oct 24 2006 // Frustrated Navy and Marine Corps officials are taking a hard line to try to reduce fatal traffic crashes off bases. The Navy has tallied the most traffic fatalities in more than a decade and the Marine Corps had the...
Insurer Sues Vermont Arson Suspect for Fire Truck Damage
Oct 24 2006 // A Vermont man already facing arson charges in two apartment house fires now is being sued by the city of Rutland’s insurance company, which says the blazes damaged a fire truck. Robert Vandriel has pleaded innocent...
News Currents
Oct 23 2006 // Insurance issues take back seat in Mass. governor’s race Insurance issues have taken a back seat to crime and taxes but there is evidence that the candidates locked in the race to succeed Massachusetts Gov. Mitt...
Premium rating errors cost auto insurers more than $16 billion
Oct 23 2006 // In 2005, the private passenger auto insurance industry lost $16.2 billion because of premium rating error, according to San Francisco-based Quality Planning Corp.’s annual Premium Rating Error report. Data showed...
P/C market takes hold of rapidly developing identity theft solutions
Oct 23 2006 // Identity-related fraud is a virulent crime, with 3.5 times the aggregate losses of all property crimes, such as burglary, larceny and vehicle theft, reported last year. In today’s technology- information-driven...
Poor stepchild HO market about to smarten up
Oct 23 2006 // It’s worth $53 billion a year but the homeowners insurance market is largely unsophisticated and unloved, according to Brian Sullivan, editor of Risk Information Inc., which publishes the Property Insurance Report....
