Latest California Headlines

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

‘Party Houses’ Banned by Airbnb After California Shooting Kills 5

Nov 4 2019 // Airbnb’s CEO said the company was taking actions against unauthorized parties in the wake of a deadly shooting at a Halloween party held at an Airbnb rental home in California. In a series of tweets, Brian Chesky...

California Agent Arrested for Allegedly Stealing $148K, Leaving Clie…

Nov 4 2019 // Insurance agent Stephen Mark Gomez, 64, of Lake View Terrace, Calif., was arraigned last month on eight felony counts of grand theft and embezzlement after allegedly collecting over $148,000 in insurance premium payments...

Wildfire Season Rages on in Southern California as Thousands Flee

Nov 1 2019 // A wildfire that erupted overnight near Los Angeles has forced 7,500 people to flee as the tail end of a powerful windstorm takes its a final swing at Southern California. The blaze in Ventura County ripped through more...

Topa Insurance in California Names Rozema Director of Programs

Nov 1 2019 // Calabasas, Calif.-based Topa Insurance Co. has named Ben Rozema director of programs. Rozema Responsible for the P&L of all program business as well as the relationships with all program partners and direct oversight...

Suit Against Facebook Alleges Age, Gender Bias in Financial Services Ads

Nov 1 2019 // Facebook Inc. was sued on Thursday in a proposed class action accusing it of discriminating against older and female users by withholding advertising for financial services such as bank accounts, insurance, investments and...

CEO Greenberg Says Chubb Has Been Able to ‘Reshape Portfolio’ in Wildfire Zones

Nov 1 2019 // Some insurers may be facing sizable risks stemming from the latest round of California wildfires now raging, but Chubb Chairman and CEO Evan Greenberg insists his company isn’t one of them. “We do have a quota...

A.M. Best Says Insurers Challenged by ‘New Normal’ of California Wildfires

Oct 31 2019 // While the number of burned acres in 2019 is still well below the number reported last year through October, experts predict the greatest fire potential will occur from now through December as the Santa Ana winds pick up,...

Report: Cannabis Dispensaries May Become ‘Most Profitable’ Specialty Stores

Oct 31 2019 // Selling insurance to cannabis dispensaries may the business in which to be in the very near future. A new report claims that cannabis retailing could become one of the “most profitable specialty store categories...

Covering Cannabis Risks on a BOP

Oct 31 2019 // Back in June 2018, AAIS filed its first CannaBOP policy to provide admitted markets a BOP that would cover the unique risks associated with cannabis businesses. While the admitted market has yet to fully embrace the...

Kincade, Tick and Getty Fires Currently Threaten Nearly 1,000 Homes with a Reconstruction Cost Value of $535M

Oct 31 2019 // This post is part of a series sponsored by CoreLogic. As of October 29, there were at least 18 fires burning in California, ranging in size from a few acres to more than 74,000 acres as in the case of the Kincade Fire in...

Groups, Officials Pen Letter to 3 Large California Insurers Asking Them to Ditch Fossil Fuels

Oct 31 2019 // Several dozen activist groups, businesses and elected representatives released a letter on Thursday to the CEOs of Liberty Mutual, AIG and Farmers calling on the three biggest fire insurers in California to stop fueling...

Uber And Lyft Will Ask California Voters to Block Employee Law

Oct 31 2019 // Some of the country’s largest ridesharing companies proposed a California law on Tuesday that would let them continue to treat drivers as independent contractors while also guaranteeing them a minimum wage and money...

Cavignac & Associates in California Names Dix Human Resources Risk Advisor

Oct 30 2019 // San Diego-based Cavignac & Associates has named Diana Dix human resources risk advisor. Dix has nearly 20 years of experience in the human resources field. She was previously human resources business partner at ADP...

Another $550M in Properties at Immediate Risk in 3 California Blazes, Report Shows

Oct 30 2019 // A catastrophe modeler released figures on Wednesday showing how costly ongoing California blazes could potentially be as blustery winds make for increasingly dangerous fire risk up and down the state. Damages from the...

Study: 94.1% Approval Rate for California Workers’ Comp Treatment Services

Oct 29 2019 // A new study shows that following the adoption of recent changes to streamline the California workers’ compensation medical review and approval process, 94.1% of medical services performed or requested for California...

Capital in California Names Doll Senior Vice President, Chief Operation Officer

Oct 29 2019 // Monterey, Calif.-based Capital Insurance Group has named Andrew Doll senior vice president and chief operating officer. He will continue to manage the insurance operations teams, as well as all other corporate...

XPT Group Acquires Sierra Specialty in California

Oct 29 2019 // XPT Group LLC has acquired Sierra Specialty in Fresno, Calif. Sierra Specialty will continue to operate under its brand name. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Sierra Specialty was founded in 2005 by Kathy Schroeder...

PG&E Open to Extending California Wildfire Victim Claims Deadline

Oct 29 2019 // PG&E Corp. told a judge it’s willing to extend the deadline for victims of wildfires caused by the utility’s equipment to file claims in its bankruptcy. U.S. District Judge James Donato criticized the...

This Wildfire Metric Threatens to Upend PG&E’s Restructuring Plan

Oct 29 2019 // PG&E Corp. investors looking to learn their fate may not get the answer from the bankrupt power company. Instead, the key data point could pop up within days on the website of California’s forestry...

California Wildfire Damage at $25.4B and Rising

Oct 29 2019 // Damages from the fires ripping across California stand at $25.4 billion, and they’re bound to keep rising. The Kincade fire has cost $10.6 billion, while the tally in Southern California is $14.8 billion mainly from...