Latest Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Ice Storm Adds to Weather Woes in Pacific Northwest
Jan 20 2012 // A deadly ice storm swept across the Pacific Northwest on Thursday, adding to the misery of residents struggling with power outages and treacherous roads since an earlier record snowfall. Washington’s governor...
Consumer Group Publishes ‘Insiders’ Advice’ on Filing Auto Claims
Jan 20 2012 // The Consumer Federation of America, a Washington, D.C.-based group whose insurance division is directed by consumer advocate J. Robert Hunter, recently published a guide with “insiders’ advice” on filing...
N.J. Siblings Indicted for Auto Insurance Claims Fraud
Jan 19 2012 // Authorities in New Jersey announced last week that a Union City woman and her Jersey City brother were indicted for their alleged roles in a scheme to submit false auto insurance claims. According to Acting Insurance Fraud...
XL Adds Excess Auto Coverage to E&S Product Line
Jan 13 2012 // XL Group’s insurance segment has added excess auto coverage to its excess and surplus product offerings. The company has hired Michael Gramm to manage the new product line. He will join the company as vice president...
Five Star Expands Classes for Business Auto Program
Jan 11 2012 // Five Star Specialty Programs has announced a new market for the business auto program, which will provide additional coverage for more classes, including wholesale distributors, retail locations and various...
Florida Lawmakers File Bills to Address Auto Insurance PIP Fraud
Jan 11 2012 // State Sen. Joe Negron this week filed legislation designed to crack down on the fraud that leads to more expensive personal injury protection insurance required of all Florida drivers. Negron’s bill (SB 1860) targets...
‘Like’ Facebook in Driver’s Seat? Mercedes Offers App Inside Cars
Jan 9 2012 // At restaurants, at movies and at the office, checking Facebook has become a regular habit for many of the Internet social network’s more than 800 million users. Now that habit has reached a new frontier: the...
Consumer Group Hammers Mercury Rate Increase Filing in California
Jan 9 2012 // A California consumer group is challenging a rate hike bid by Mercury Insurance because the group claims the company is trying to pass along the costs of its political campaigning. But the insurer says those costs are not...
Insurers Divided Over North Carolina Auto System
Jan 9 2012 // North Carolina legislators are once again examining the state’s car insurance rate-setting system as insurers themselves remain divided over whether changes are a good idea. Legislative proposals floated in 2011...
California Arson Suspect Also Faces German Fire Probe
Jan 6 2012 // The man who allegedly ignited more than 50 fires that terrorized Los Angeles last week is also under investigation in Germany for a house fire near Frankfurt. U.S. investigators also disclosed that a search of Harry...
State Auto Enters Quota Share Agreement for Homeowners Business
Jan 5 2012 // State Auto Financial Corp., based in Columbus, Ohio, announced that the State Auto Group has entered into a quota share reinsurance agreement with a syndicate of reinsurers covering its homeowners book of business. The...
Western Insurance Agents Roundtable: In Uncertain Economy, Change Is Certain
Jan 5 2012 // The economy, the promised-land of a hard insurance market and the need to master technologies dominated discussion at the first annual Insurance Industry Roundtable in Irvine, Calif. The daylong event was attended by 23...
Honda Owner Bypasses Class Action in California, Hopes Others Follow
Jan 4 2012 // A woman who expected her 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid to be her dream car wants Honda to pay for not delivering the high mileage it promised. But rather than joining other owners in a class-action lawsuit, she is going solo in...
San Bernardino County Settles Motorcycle Claim for $3 Million
Jan 4 2012 // San Bernardino County has agreed to pay $3 million to settle a lawsuit that blamed dangerous road conditions for a motorcycle crash that left a passenger with head and neck injuries. The Riverside Press-Enterprise reported...
South Carolina Considers Mandating Motorcycle Helmets for All Riders
Jan 4 2012 // State lawmakers in South Carolina are considering modifying a 30-year old law so that all motorcycle riders in the state must wear helmets. South Carolina State Senator Ralph Anderson (D-Greenville) is sponsoring a bill...
Allstate Offers Claim Satisfaction Guarantee
Jan 3 2012 // Allstate has decided to expand a claims guarantee to their auto insurance customers that will provide a credit to their auto policies if they are not satisfied with their auto claims service. The claim satisfaction...
Maryland Court: Premium Financing Firms Overcharged Auto Policyholders
Dec 30 2011 // A Maryland court ruled last week that the state’s largest premium financing companies were engaged in illegal financing practices against auto insurance policyholders. In Maryland, most auto insurance policyholders...
State Auto Financial: Changes to Pooling Agreement Approved
Dec 30 2011 // State Auto Financial Corp. has received regulatory approval for proposed changes to the intercompany reinsurance pooling agreement for the State Auto Group, the company reports. With all necessary regulatory approvals from...
Propane Truck Crash Spurs Evacuation In Montana
Dec 28 2011 // Missoula, Mont. authorities say part of Reserve Street is closed and the immediate area is being evacuated after a head-on collision between a propane truck and another vehicle. Reserve Street is closed between Mullan Road...
Auto Insurance Claim Costs Rising Again
Dec 28 2011 // Auto insurance claim costs countrywide have recently increased, reversing previous trends of declining or relatively stable costs. A new report from the Insurance Research Council (IRC), “Trends in Auto Injury...
