Latest Auto Headlines

All the headlines from our Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.

TAIPA Files Private Passenger, Commercial Auto Rate Increases

Oct 1 2018 // The Texas Automobile Insurance Plan Association filed rate increases of 4.9 percent for private passenger auto insurance and 3.9 percent for commercial auto coverage. The proposed rate increases for new and renewal...

Commercial Auto: Profitability Issues Remain, but There’s Light at the End of Tunnel

Oct 1 2018 // Despite insurers’ best efforts to increase rates to compensate for losses, commercial auto continues to be an unprofitable line. In less than a decade, despite continued increases in premiums, two major carriers have...

Toyota Eyes Future When People Don’t Buy Cars, Pushing Ride-Hailing Ties, Insurance

Sep 27 2018 // Toyota Motor Corp., Asia’s biggest carmaker, is preparing for a potential future where people don’t buy cars. That’s behind the hefty investments that the company has made in ride-hailing providers, most...

Insurers Tell Congress Trump Tariffs Harm Insurance Consumers

Sep 27 2018 // As the Trump Administration continues to slap tariffs onto various consumer products, property/casualty insurers are increasingly concerned how some of these actions will affect the cost of auto and home insurance. Auto...

Florida Auto Shop Suffers $800k in Damage After Car Crashes Into It, Causes Fire

Sep 27 2018 // Fire officials say a Florida auto shop erupted in flames when a vehicle crashed into it. Tampa Fire Rescue reports multiple people called 911 early Saturday morning to report the fire at a Havoline Express Lube shop. The...

FEMA Chief Long to Keep Job, Repay Government for Car Misuse

Sep 24 2018 // The head of the federal disaster response agency used government vehicles without proper authorization, but will not lose his job over it, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said Friday. Federal Emergency...

Donelon: Louisiana Auto Insurance Rate Hikes Lower This Year

Sep 20 2018 // Louisiana’s insurance commissioner says the state’s auto insurance market may be stabilizing, with a smaller rise in premiums expected this year compared with prior years. Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon...

Assurant Invests in Connected Car Services Startup

Sep 20 2018 // Niche market specialty insurer Assurant has invested in a technology startup focused on connected car services. The New York-based company declined to disclose the level of investment in Mojio, a technology platform and...

Kansas City Star: Changes Urged After Spike in Deadly Big Truck Crashes

Sep 17 2018 // Tractor-trailers and other large trucks aren’t required to have crash-avoidance technology, despite thousands of crashes annually and repeated calls for it to be mandated. Federal data shows that more than 4,300...

Auto Dealers Safety Group Gets $1M Dividend from Texas Mutual

Sep 17 2018 // Texas Mutual Insurance Company, a policyholder-owned company, recently awarded a dividend of $1,060,313 to the Lone Star Auto Dealers Association (LSADA) safety group, which includes franchised auto, truck, RV, boat and...

VW, Other Carmakers in Talks Over Autonomous Vehicle Standards

Sep 17 2018 // Germany’s Volkswagen is in talks with other carmakers to set common standards for self-driving vehicle technology, Automotive News reported on Friday. The Volkswagen Group is discussing the initiative with more than...

High Customer Expectations Leads to New Challenges for Insurance Satisfaction

Sep 17 2018 // Record high customer satisfaction among auto insurance customers is clearly good news for customers, especially at a time when their overall customer experience is being tested by the rising cost of auto insurance. For...

Texas Auto Insurance Residual Plan Files Rate Increases

Sep 14 2018 // The auto insurer of last resort in Texas has filed rate increases for both private passenger and commercial auto coverage. The Texas Department of Insurance reported that the Texas Automobile Insurance Plan Association has...

Washington Tow Company Being Sued over Sale of Serviceman’s Car

Sep 14 2018 // A Washington Tacoma towing company is being accused of illegally selling an impounded car belonging to a serviceman deployed on the USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier. The News Tribune reported the state Attorney...

Marijuana Use Suspected in Fatal Colorado Crash

Sep 13 2018 // The Colorado State Patrol says a woman killed in a single-vehicle rollover on Interstate 70 is suspected of being under the influence of marijuana at the time. KMGH-TV reported that the crash occurred Monday afternoon near...

Safety Board Seeks to Mandate Anti-Lock Brakes, Stability Controls on U.S. Motorcycles

Sep 13 2018 // A federal safety agency is recommending that all new motorcycles built for road use in the U.S. have anti-lock brakes and electronic stability control as standard equipment. The National Transportation Safety Board voted...

Exclusive Remedy: The Scope of Protection in Illinois Workers’ Comp

Sep 13 2018 // Section 5(a) of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act provides the damages an employer must pay for work-related injuries. It specifies a worker injured in the line of duty cannot sue her employer or its other...

Next Insurance Rolls Out Commercial Auto Policy

Sep 13 2018 // Small business-focused digital insurance carrier Next Insurance has launched a commercial auto insurance policy available entirely online with no extra fees. Small businesses can now purchase a commercial car insurance...

Volvo Offers Self-Driving Truck with No Cab as Way to Address Shortage of Drivers

Sep 13 2018 // Sweden’s Volvo, the world’s second-biggest truck maker, presented a new self-driving electric truck on Wednesday, which it said should help respond to the boom in e-commerce and a shortage of freight...

Rhode Island Woman Charged With Stealing Funds from Auto Dealer

Sep 12 2018 // A 45-year-old Rhode Island woman has been charged with forging business checks and stealing as much as $400,000 from a Cranston, R.I., auto dealership where she worked. Federal prosecutors say Michelle Saritelli of South...