Latest Auto Headlines

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

N.Y. Files Auto Fraud Charges Against 25 People

Sep 26 2002 // New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and Insurance Superintendent Gergory Serio announced charges have been filed against 25 people allegedly involved in two auto insurance fraud rings operating in New York...

CAIC Appeals to N.J. Consumers to Push for Auto Reform

Sep 26 2002 // The Coalition for Auto Insurance Competition (CAIC), an organization advocating reforms of New Jersey auto insurance laws, has begun launching television and newspaper ads in an effort to enlist consumer support for its...

Non-Standard Personal Auto

Sep 26 2002 // Nuts & Bolts: Arrowhead General Insurance Agency Inc. is offering a non-standard personal automobile insurance program for select producers through its personal lines division. Dollars: BIPD limits available up to...

Insurance Auto Auctions Opens Greenfield Facility in Baton Rouge

Sep 20 2002 // Insurance Auto Auctions Inc., which provides automotive salvage and claims processing services in the U.S., announced it is opening a greenfield facility in Baton Rouge, La. The new 24-acre facility is Insurance Auto...

NAII Opposes N.Y. Auto Rental Liability Bill

Sep 19 2002 // The National Association of Independent Insurers (NAII) has denounced a bill recently approved by the New York Assembly that would shift liability for rental car damage from auto rental agencies to...

Hagerty Collector Car Agency to Offer Exclusive 24-Hour Roadside Assistance Program

Sep 18 2002 // Hagerty, the nation’s largest collector car insurance agency, has a new program for collector car owners. It will implement the first 24-hour, seven days a week flatbed towing service exclusively for collector cars,...

AIA: N.J. Auto Crisis Will Persist Despite DOBI Efforts

Sep 17 2002 // The New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance (DOBI) has devised a program to assist the state’s auto policyholders find new coverage in light of State Farm Indemnity’s pending non-renewal of 4,000 polices...

La. Governor Wants Lower Auto Rates

Sep 17 2002 // On his weekly radio show, Louisiana Governor Mike Foster told his audience he plans to meet with various insurance industry groups to discuss ways to lower the state’s auto insurance rates. According to the New...

N.Y. Auto Plan Clarifies New Application Process

Sep 16 2002 // The New York Automobile Insurance Plan (NYAIP) has sent a clarification to the Professional Insurance Agents of New York (PIANY) regarding its new declination procedure for agents in that state. As stated by the Plan, the...

Husband, Wife Charged with Auto Fraud

Sep 16 2002 // Hugo Tapia Lopez, 42, and his wife, Angelica Rivera, AKA Angelica Rivera Munoz, 45, of Arbuckle, Calif., were arrested and booked into the Colusa County Jail as the result of an investigation by the CDI’s Criminal...

Use of Credit a Hot Topic at Senate Hearing

Sep 16 2002 // The insurance industry took a few hits at a recent Senate committee hearing on the use of consumer credit histories in rating and underwriting insurance policies. In addition to criticisms from consumer groups, the...

La. Okays State Farm Auto Rate Increases

Sep 13 2002 // The Louisiana Insurance Rating Commission approved automobile insurance rate increases for State Farm Group that were less than those originally requested by the insurer. According to A.M. Best regulators approved a 14...

Privacy, Auto Repair Shop Bills Fail in Calif. 2002 Legislative Session

Sep 10 2002 // California’s 2002 legislative session came to a close recently without passage of bills aiming to restrict insurers’ use of personal financial information and investments in auto repair shops. Both measures...

Palisades Acquires N.J. Auto Lines from American Financial, The Hartford

Sep 10 2002 // Subsidiaries of American Financial Group Inc. and The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. announced transfers of their New Jersey personal auto businesses to units of Palisades. American Financial subsidiary Great...

InsWeb Introduces Auto Index

Sep 6 2002 // California-based InsWeb Corp. a producer of automobile insurance in the U.S., has introduced the InsWeb Auto Insurance Index. The InsWeb Auto Insurance Index is designed to identify and track general pricing trends of...

German Insurers Set Up Terror Risk Vehicle

Sep 4 2002 // 16 leading insurance companies, including Munich Re, Swiss Re and Allianz, announced the foundation of “Extremus,” a jointly owned insurance vehicle which will provide excess coverage for losses caused by...

Fraud Fighters Tackle Individuals Looking to Exploit Disaster

Sep 2 2002 // Among those combating this problem has been the New York Department of Insurance. New York Insurance Commissioner Gregory Serio said his department has actively coordinated with other law enforcement agencies to...

Friends Arrested on Auto Fraud Charges

Sep 2 2002 // Emmanuel Benavides Torres, 25, and Oscar Gomez Martinez, 26, were arrested on insurance fraud and arson charges. According to the CDI Criminal Investigations Branch’s Fraud Division, a Suspected Fraudulent Claim...

Fraud Fighters Tackle Individuals Looking to Exploit Disaster

Sep 2 2002 // The events of Sept. 11, 2002 are no doubt unique, but as with all disaster, there are some that are likely to take advantage of the situation. Needless to say, insurance fraud has reared its ugly head over the last year as...

Vesta Affirmed

Sep 2 2002 // Fitch Ratings affirmed “BBB-” insurer financial strength ratings of Vesta Insurance Group’s insurance subsidiaries. A “BBB-” rating was assigned to Florida Select Insurance Company (Florida...