Latest California Headlines
All the headlines from our California Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Industry Trends to Exploit for 2019
Jan 21 2019 // It is time to take out our crystal ball and plan for 2019 and how our insurance industry will be impacted by the trends around us. Those that consider these changes, and plan ahead, will usually be in a better position...
Wildfires, Dynamex Dominate California Wholesaler Conference
Jan 21 2019 // Wildfires and the Dynamex decision dominated discussions at an insurance wholesaler conference in early January. The California Wholesaler Association conference in La Jolla, Calif., from Jan. 6 to Jan. 8 featured numerous...
California OK’s Pot Deliveries into Communities that Ban Sales
Jan 18 2019 // California has endorsed a rule that will allow home marijuana deliveries statewide, even into communities that have banned commercial pot sales. The regulation by the state Bureau of Cannabis Control was opposed by police...
California Insurance Commissioner Names Executive Team
Jan 18 2019 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced new members of his executive team, including the first Latina chief deputy in the history of the California Department of Insurance. The new executive team members...
PG&E Says It Won’t Commit to Paying Settlements With 2015 California Fire Victims
Jan 18 2019 // PG&E Corp. is so cash-starved that it won’t commit to paying settlements reached with people who lost their homes in a 2015 wildfire caused by a tree falling on a power line. The disclosure by a lawyer for the...
Enviro Risks, Climate Change Lead Concerns in World Economic Report
Jan 17 2019 // Environmental risks continue to dominate long-term concerns, a new report shows. World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2019 released on Wednesday included as collaborators Marsh & McLennan Cos. and Zurich...
3.7M Earthquake Hits Northern California
Jan 17 2019 // The U.S. Geological Survey confirmed a 3.7 preliminary magnitude earthquake rattled the small city of Piedmont in northern California. The USGS says the tremor occurred on Wednesday at 4:42 a.m. The impacts of the...
Woodruff Sawyer in California Names Mckenna National Healthcare Practice Leader
Jan 17 2019 // San Francisco, Calif.-based Woodruff Sawyer has named Frank Mckenna senior vice president and national healthcare practice leader. Mckenna will be responsible for expanding and growing the current Healthcare...
Bhatia Joins California’s Preferred Employers Insurance as Sr. Underwriter
Jan 16 2019 // San Diego, California-based Preferred Employers Insurance, a Berkley Company, has added workers’ compensation underwriting expert, Minoo Bhatia, as a senior business development underwriter. Bhatia comes to Preferred...
Mudslide, Traffic Snarls Accompany 1st of Expected SoCal Storms
Jan 16 2019 // The first in a series of Pacific storms brought heavy rain to Southern California and snow in the mountains on Jan. 14, closing some highways and snarling traffic. Fears were that the rain could unleash mud and debris...
CSAA in California Names Evans VP of Regulatory and Government Affairs
Jan 15 2019 // CSAA Insurance Group has named Katherine Evans president of regulatory and government affairs. Evans will oversee all areas of CSAA Insurance Group’s government and regulatory practices, and will report to the...
PG&E Restructuring Highlights California’s Inverse Condemnation Rule
Jan 15 2019 // PG&E Corp.’s chances of emerging from bankruptcy proceedings hinge in part on an arcane California legal rule that threatens to keep the utility owner perpetually on the hook for liabilities from catastrophic...
Swiss Re Estimates Its Q4 Natural Catastrophe Claims to Hit US$1.0B
Jan 15 2019 // Swiss Re estimates it will pay claims of approximately $1.0 billion for natural catastrophes booked in the fourth quarter of 2018, with the largest generated from California wildfires and Hurricane Michael. These natural...
Pension Trustees Seek Corporate Disclosure of Sexual Harassment Costs, Policies
Jan 15 2019 // A group of trustees from some of America’s biggest public pensions are calling on companies to detail costs related to sexual harassment and any measures they’re taking to address the problem. “We...
Cavignac & Associates in California Names Goucher Commercial Account Manager
Jan 14 2019 // San Diego, Calif.-based Cavignac & Associates has named Brandon Goucher an account manager within the firm’s commercial department. Goucher is the primary contact at the agency for his assigned clients, charged...
California Comp Insurers Won’t See Insurance Guarantee Assessment, a First in 20 Years
Jan 14 2019 // California worker’s compensation insurers and their customers are getting a bit of a break this year. The California Insurance Guarantee Association won’t be collecting its annual assessment on 2019...
Woodruff Sawyer in California Names Overbay COO, Allen Chief Revenue Officer
Jan 14 2019 // San Francisco, Calif.-based Woodruff Sawyer has promoted Zac Overbay to the position of chief operating officer, and Norman Allen has been named chief revenue officer. As COO, Overbay will direct the firm’s...
‘Goat Fund Me’ Campaign Launched by California Town to Prevent Wildfires
Jan 14 2019 // The threat of catastrophic wildfires has driven a California town to launch a “Goat Fund Me” campaign to bring herds of goats to city-owned land to help clear brush. Nevada City in the Sierra Nevada began the...
PG&E Bankruptcy Looms With $30B in Potential Liabilities from California Wildfires; CEO to Exit
Jan 14 2019 // PG&E Corp. said it will file for bankruptcy in California after the cost of wildfires left it with potential liabilities of $30 billion or more, gutting its share price and prompting the departure of its chief...
Trump, California in Battle Over Wildfire Relief Funds
Jan 11 2019 // President Donald Trump threatened this week to withhold money to help California cope with wildfires after Gov. Gavin Newsom asked him to double the federal investment in forest management. Trump again suggested poor...