Latest California Headlines

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

California Appeals Court Upholds Guzman Workers’ Comp Decision

Aug 20 2010 // California’s Sixth District Court of Appeal has affirmed the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board decision in Milpitas Unified School District v. WCAB and Joyce Guzman, allowing physicians to apply any part of...

Calif. Workers’ Comp Insurance Rating Bureau Wants 30% Rate Increase

Aug 20 2010 // As expected, the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California has submitted a pure premium rate filing to the California Insurance Commissioner recommending among other things a 29.6 percent increase...

Calif. Employers Face New Workers’ Comp Posting Requirements

Aug 18 2010 // As of Oct. 8, California employers must begin distributing an updated version of the workers’ compensation new hire pamphlet to all employees hire on or after that date; post revised workers’ comp employee...

2010 Education & Training Directory

Aug 16 2010 // Insurance Journal is pleased to publish the 2010 Education and Training Directory. This exclusive resource directory has been designed to help independent agents and brokers find educational and training opportunities to...

Pension Fund Sues Hewlett-Packard Directors Over CEO Hurd Exit

Aug 15 2010 // Hewlett-Packard Co.’s directors have been sued by a Massachusetts pension fund that alleges they violated their fiduciary duties in connection with the abrupt departure of Chief Executive Mark Hurd, causing the...

California Commissioner Asked to Raise Workers’ Compensation Rate

Aug 12 2010 // The California Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau’s Governing Committee has approved the recommendation to allow the pure premium rate in the state to rise by 29.6 perent, as was expected and widely...

California Supreme Court Prohibits Senior Citizens from Trebling Damages

Aug 10 2010 // The California Supreme Court has ruled that plaintiffs may not seek treble damages under the state’s Unfair Competition Law, and instead can only seek remedies to injunction and restitution. According to court...

Age Bias Lawsuit Against Google Cleared for Trial in California

Aug 6 2010 // Google Inc., which runs the world’s most popular Internet search engine, was ordered to defend itself against a lawsuit by a former manager who said he was fired for being too old, clearing the way for a trial. The...

Calif. Imposes Regulations To Prevent Illegal Insurance Recissions

Aug 6 2010 // California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner has imposed regulations designed to combat illegal rescissions. The rules take effect on August 18. Currently, health insurers may only rescind policies under very specific,...

California Bureau May Ask for 30 Percent Workers’ Comp Increase

Aug 6 2010 // California’s Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau is considering requesting a 30 percent increase in pure premium rates for 2011 policies. The news that California’s Workers’ Compensation...

Mercury General Reports Q2 Net Premiums Written Down 1 percent

Aug 2 2010 // Mercury General Corp. reported it spent $12.1 million in the second quarter of 2010 supporting Proposition 17, a California ballot initiative that did not pass. Nevertheless, the Los Angeles-based insurer reported net...

Heffernan Insurance Focusing on Latin Markets

Aug 2 2010 // Walnut Creek, Calif.-based Heffernan Insurance Brokers has created a team of brokers focused on the Latin marketplace. Leticia Treviño, a commercial lines manager and vice president in Heffernan’s Walnut Creek...

California GOP Nominates Villines for Insurance Commissioner

Aug 2 2010 // Assemblyman Mike Villines says the California Department of Insurance needs a good manager, not a politician looking at the post as a stepping stone to higher office. Villines will face Democratic Assemblyman Dave Jones in...

People

Aug 2 2010 // AAA has named current company president Paula F. Downey CEO of AAA Northern California, Nevada and Utah and its insurance affiliate, the California State Auto Group. According to the company, Downey is the only female...

It Figures

Aug 2 2010 // $600 Million All 16 private insurance companies that participate in a federal crop insurance program have signed off on the new federal reinsurance agreement that cuts the subsidies they get by $600 million per year for...

Seabright Has Q2 Net Loss of $15.5 Million

Jul 30 2010 // SeaBright Holdings Inc. reported a second quarter net loss of $15.5 million or $0.74 per basic and diluted share, primarily due to the recognition of adverse development of prior years’ loss reserves. This compares...

SeaBright Files California Rate Increase

Jul 29 2010 // SeaBright Holdings Inc. announced that its subsidiary, SeaBright Insurance Co., has filed a 15.3 percent rate increase with the California Department of Insurance. The Company plans to apply the increase to California...

Kehaly Named President of Anthem Blue Cross of California

Jul 28 2010 // Pam Kehaly has been appointed president and general manager of Anthem Blue Cross of California, headquartered in Woodland Hills, Calif. In this position, Kehaly will be responsible for the management of all local group...

Farmers Reduces Calif. Auto Rates 14.5%

Jul 28 2010 // California Insurance Commissioner Poizner announced that Farmers Insurance customers are eligible to receive an average rate reduction of 14.5 percent and a one time 10 percent insurance premium rebate, worth a combined...

Calif. State Fund Names Rowe President/CEO

Jul 27 2010 // The California State Compensation Insurance Fund has named Tom Rowe president, CEO and member of the Executive Committee. He will report directly to the Board of Directors and is responsible for the day-to-day operations...