Latest Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
World’s Automakers Face Massive Disruption from Car Sharing Phenomenon
Feb 11 2019 // When Evgeny Barkov owned a car, the 31-year-old software salesman would often look out of his Moscow window at it with disgust. His possession sat unused more than 90 percent of time, while sucking up money and causing him...
Man Steals Cement Truck, Hits Vehicles at Michigan GM Facility
Feb 8 2019 // Authorities say a person is in custody after driving a stolen cement truck through a locked gate at a General Motors facility in mid-Michigan and hitting several parked vehicles. The Eaton County sheriff’s office...
State Farm to Again Lower Auto Insurance Rates in Louisiana
Feb 8 2019 // Beginning in April, Louisiana customers of State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. will see a decrease in their auto insurance rates, the insurance department announced. It will be the third rated decrease filed by the...
Allstate Q4 Catastrophe Loss Tempered by Higher Premiums, Reduced Auto Claims
Feb 8 2019 // The Allstate Corp. lost $312 million in its 2018 fourth quarter, which was attributable to higher catastrophe losses, lower investment income and a pension settlement charge. Catastrophe losses hit $963 million, versus...
Alleged 2018 Staged Vehicle Crash Leads to Arrest of 4 in Louisiana
Feb 7 2019 // Detectives with the Louisiana State Police Insurance Fraud/Auto Theft Unit – Lafayette Field Office on Jan. 31 arrested four Crowley residents in relation to a vehicle crash that authorities say was staged in an...
AM Best Upgrades Credit Ratings of Auto Club Insurance Co. of Florida
Feb 7 2019 // AM Best has upgraded the Financial Strength Rating to A- (Excellent) from B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating to “a-” from “bbb+” of Auto Club Insurance Company of Florida (ACICF),...
Volvo’s Autonomous Car Venture to Begin Testing on Swedish Roads
Feb 6 2019 // A Volvo Cars joint venture has won approval to begin hands-free testing of its software for self-driving cars on Swedish highways, partner Veoneer said. Veoneer said the Zenuity joint venture’s software for Level 4...
Safety Agency Pulls Obama Proposal to Require Event Data Recorders in Cars, Trucks
Feb 6 2019 // The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said on Tuesday it is withdrawing a 2012 Obama administration proposal to require event data recorders in all new cars and trucks because it says automakers have...
Firm Battling over Hemp Product Idaho Says Is Pot
Feb 5 2019 // A company has filed a lawsuit against Idaho State Police and Ada County after authorities seized nearly 7,000 pounds of cannabis from a truck headed to Colorado, the Idaho Statesman reported. Authorities who stopped the...
North Carolina Auto Insurers Request 7.6% Rate Increase
Feb 5 2019 // The annual auto insurance filing from the North Carolina Rate Bureau to the North Carolina Department of Insurance calls for an overall statewide average increase of 7.6 percent, according to a statement from Insurance...
Insurance Tries to Keep Up with Sharing Economy
Feb 4 2019 // As more and more consumers click for services and borrow rather than buy, the sharing economy is benefitting. According to Harvard Business Review, the sharing or on-demand economy is attracting more than 22.4 million...
Parent-Centric Auto Insurer, Apparent, Launches in Texas
Feb 4 2019 // Apparent Insurance, a new auto insurance company designed for parents by parents, has begun offering coverage in Texas. The company has been established to provide specialized coverage and services for parents at every...
CAUTION: Safety U-Turn for Truckers with Animals
Feb 4 2019 // Hours of Service, Other Safety Exemptions for Livestock Haulers Raise Concerns Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting It was sometime around 4 a.m. on a cool, spring morning when James McGilvray lost control of his...
An Old Dog Up to New Tricks
Feb 4 2019 // For the seventh consecutive year, commercial auto is losing money. Despite rate increases in 23 of the past 25 quarters, the combined ratio topped 111 percent in 2017. The line has been a weak spot for many insurers,...
Big 3 Drive Personal Auto Insurance Recovery;
Feb 4 2019 // Signs of Rate Hike Fatigue Ahead Steady improvement for U.S. personal auto insurance companies has culminated in the sector’s best underwriting performance in 10 years, according to Fitch Ratings in a report. The...
Michigan Senate GOP: Cutting Car Insurance Rates a Priority
Feb 4 2019 // Michigan Senate Republicans have proposed legislation that would make it optional for Michigan drivers to buy what is now mandatory unlimited medical coverage. Senate Bill 1 was the first to be introduced by GOP senators...
U-Haul, Former Manager Plead Guilty After Food Truck Blast in Pennsylvania
Feb 1 2019 // A U-Haul subsidiary and the former general manager of one of its Philadelphia stores have pleaded guilty after a food truck explosion that killed a woman and her teenage daughter. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports the...
Federal Safety Investigators Sidelined by Shutdown Begin Heading to Crash Scenes
Feb 1 2019 // It’s been four weeks since a van carrying children from a Louisiana church to Disney World in Florida collided with a swerving tractor-trailer, igniting diesel fuel and killing seven people in a fiery crash. Now,...
Insurtech Geared to Autonomous Vehicle Coverage Grabs $5 Million in Funding
Jan 30 2019 // A startup focused on rewarding drivers and fleet owners that use autonomous vehicles and semi-autonomous car safety features has raised $5 million in seed funding. California-based Avinew’s technology uses artificial...
China’s Ping An P&C Unveils Credit-Based Smart Auto Insurance Claim Solution
Jan 30 2019 // Ping An Property and Casualty Insurance Co. of China has launched a credit-based smart auto claim solution in China, to make it easier for car owners to make claims and encourage good driving habits. The credit-based...
