Latest Claims Headlines

Aon Notes M&A Activity Produces Increased Warranty Claims

Nov 25 2008 // A bulletin from Aon’s London office concerning mergers and acquisitions states that “sellers are facing a new hurdle as buyers are increasingly seeking to recover damages for financial discrepancies on the cusp...

IAG Estimates Queensland Storm Claims at $38 to $44 Million

Nov 24 2008 // The Insurance Australia Group Limited (IAG) announced that it has received around 6,000 claims as a result of the storms that hit southeast Queensland (See IJ web site –...

Insurance Information Network Of California Offers Fire Victims Recovery, Claims Info

Nov 18 2008 // With displaced residents of the Southern California fires now returning to their neighborhoods, several home and business owners are now finding themselves facing dozens of questions before they rebuild. To help navigate...

La. Citizens OKs $35M Settlement; Pays $90M in Hurricane Claims

Nov 17 2008 // The board of Louisiana’s last-resort insurance company approved paying up to $35 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging that the firm took too long to pay off policyholders’ claims after the 2005...

California Commissioner Declares Insurance Emergency to Expedite Fire Claims Processing

Nov 17 2008 // California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner declared an insurance emergency to cut red tape and allow insurance companies to use out of state adjusters to more quickly work through the spate of fire...

Public Entities Use Early Intervention to Improve Workers’ Comp Results

Nov 16 2008 // Public entities nationwide are searching for new strategies to improve the performance of their workers’ compensation programs. A primary challenge has been frequent delays in reporting employee injuries, which sets...

How to Control Construction Claims in a Collapsing Homebuilders’ Market

Nov 16 2008 // Working with Experienced Homebuilders, Rigorous Inspections and Defect Remedies Reduces the Risk from Possible Shortcuts A significant increase in unsold assets represents a substantial hole in the balance sheet for...

Lawsuit Claims Discrimination in Katrina Recovery

Nov 14 2008 // A group of civil rights attorneys filed a federal lawsuit claiming racial discrimination by the Louisiana Road Home program, an already troubled $10.3 billion effort designed to help Hurricane Katrina victims rebuild their...

Florida’s Fay Claims Total $246M in Damage

Nov 12 2008 // More than 41,000 claims were filed with Florida insurers on damages suffered from Tropical Storm Fay which swept across much of the state in August. A spokesman for the Office of Insurance Regulation said Monday that 84...

West Virginia Miners’ Widows Press Claims Against Massey Energy

Nov 12 2008 // Lawyers in a suit stemming from a fatal fire at a Massey Energy coal mine 2006 clashed this week over whether the deaths of two men could have been averted. Bruce Stanley, representing the widows of both men, told a Logan...

AIG Reports $24B Loss in Q3; Claims ‘Strong’ Client Retention

Nov 10 2008 // Giant financially-troubled insurer American International Group Inc. posted its largest-ever quarterly loss today– $24.47 billion — as the damage from write-downs on assets related to subprime mortgages...

A Winning E&O Defensive Strategy: How Agents Can Block Claims

Nov 4 2008 // In sports, the best offense is a great defense, right? When it comes to preventing errors and omissions claims defensive measures are also the best offense in protecting an insurance agency. Defensive strategies, or risk...

No Ruling by Arkansas Supreme Court on Fairness of Workers’ Comp System

Nov 2 2008 // But Justices Don’t Exclude Possibility of Revisiting the Issue The Arkansas Supreme Court reversed the decision of the Arkansas Workers’ Compensation Commission to deny an injured worker’s claim but...

Public School Officials Can Be Liable for Not Responding to Harassment Claims

Nov 2 2008 // A California school district could be liable for damages for an inadequate response to peer sexual orientation harassment suffered by students, the California Court of Appeal ruled. According to Megan Donovan et al. v....

California Commissioner Announces 5% Workers’ Comp Rate Increase

Nov 2 2008 // Rejecting the Workers Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau’s (WCIRB) call for a 16 percent increase in the benchmark for determining workers’ compensation costs, California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner...

Law Changes Defense in Construction Defect Claims

Nov 2 2008 // New California Law Affects Wraps’ Indemnity Contracts, Could Increase Litigation California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has approved legislation affecting indemnity for construction defect claims in contracts in...

Nov 2 2008 // Pete Garvey, current president of Integro Ltd., assumed the additional responsibility of CEO for the insurance broker, succeeding Roger Egan, who has left the company. Garvey has served as president of Integro since 2005....

More Lawsuits, Firmer Prices on the Horizon for Executive Liability

Nov 2 2008 // Property Premiums Fall Sharply; P/C Insurers Post Q3 Losses; Some Sell Stock to Raise Cash for Surplus Woes More lawsuits and firmer rates for directors and officers liability coverage are almost certainly ahead as a...

A Winning E&O Defensive Strategy

Nov 2 2008 // How Agents Block Claims In sports, the best offense is a great defense, right? When it comes to preventing errors and omissions claims defensive measures are also the best offense in protecting an insurance agency....

Kentucky Farm Bureau Deploys Guidewire ClaimCenter

Oct 31 2008 // Louisville, Ky.-based Kentucky Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. deployed Guidewire ClaimCenter as its next generation claims management system. ClaimCenter replaces KFB’s legacy claims system. KFB said it deployed...