Latest Iowa Headlines
All the headlines from our Iowa Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Iowa Father and Son Sentenced in Grinnell Mutual Insurance Fraud Case
Feb 26 2018 // A father and son were sentenced in early February in a case involving insurance fraud perpetrated against Grinnell Mutual Reinsurance Co., the Iowa Insurance Division reported. Richard H. Hartman, age 69, of Manchester,...
Fareway Chicken Salad Produced at Iowa Processing Plant Recalled
Feb 23 2018 // The federal government issued a recall of chicken salad made by an Iowa processing company and distributed by Fareway Stores which has now sickened more than 100 people in five states and prompted lawsuits in Illinois,...
Former Iowa Insurance Agent Sentenced for Ongoing Criminal Conduct
Feb 15 2018 // A former insurance agent in Bettendorf, Iowa, has been sentenced to five years’ supervised probation for insurance fraud, the Iowa Insurance Division reported Billie J. Holmberg pleaded guilty in Scott County...
Property Manager in Iowa City Ordered to Pay $5.6M in Worker’s Death
Feb 14 2018 // A prominent Iowa City landlord was ordered to pay $5.6 million in damages after jurors held him responsible for the 2014 death of a maintenance worker. A jury ruled that Jeffrey Clark, manager of Apartments Downtown Inc.,...
‘Dancing with the Stars’ Bus Crashes in Iowa Pileup
Feb 7 2018 // Officials say a bus carrying the touring cast and crew of “Dancing with the Stars” was involved in a large pileup during a snow storm in central Iowa, but no one on the bus was seriously hurt. Iowa State...
Man Admits to Damaging Iowa’s ‘Field of Dreams’ Site
Feb 5 2018 // A 20-year-old man has told authorities that he drove onto and damaged the Iowa baseball field made famous by the 1989 “Field of Dreams” movie. Court records say Austin Pape, of Dyersville, is charged with...
Vandal Causes Thousands of Dollars in Damage to ‘Field of Dreams’ Site in Iowa
Feb 5 2018 // A vandal has caused thousands of dollars in damage to the Field of Dreams in Iowa by driving a vehicle onto the site made famous by the 1989 movie. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports that workers at the site outside...
Iowa’s Holmes Murphy Adds Stewart, McCumber to Leadership Team
Jan 25 2018 // Des Moines, Iowa-based independent insurance brokerage Holmes Murphy & Associates has added Tom Stewart, president of Innovative Captive Strategies (a Holmes Murphy subsidiary) and Charisse McCumber, senior vice...
Investigation: Worker Killed in Iowa Mine Sought Crystals, Despite Warning
Jan 25 2018 // A federal investigation has concluded a worker wasn’t following safety protocols when he was killed last year in a limestone mine collapse in Iowa’s Scott County. The Quad-City Times reports a Mine Safety and...
Iowa School District Settles Wrongful Termination Suit for nearly $1M
Jan 25 2018 // School officials in central Iowa have reached a nearly $1 million settlement with a former employee who alleged he was wrongfully fired after reporting improper conduct by a high-ranking district officer. The Waukee Board...
Vandal Causes Thousands of Dollars in Damage to Iowa ‘Field of Dreams’ Site
Jan 25 2018 // A vandal has caused thousands of dollars in damage to the Field of Dreams in Iowa by driving a vehicle onto the site made famous by the 1989 movie. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports that workers at the site outside...
Iowa Hospitality Industry Seeks Dram Insurance Law Changes
Jan 24 2018 // The Iowa Restaurant Association reported it is asking state lawmakers to pass dram insurance reform that would make it possible for restaurant and tavern operators to secure better policies to help compensate innocent...
Ratings Assigned to Iowa’s Midwest Family Advantage Insurance
Jan 17 2018 // A.M. Best has assigned a Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A- (Excellent) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) of “a-” to Midwest Family Advantage Insurance Co. (Midwest Advantage). The outlook...
Iowa High-Rise Project Uncertain After Property Swap with Insurer
Jan 12 2018 // The developer of an $88 million high-rise project in downtown Des Moines has announced plans to trade the land to an insurance company in exchange for a portion of a downtown property. Blackbird Investments’...
Iowa Agrees to Pay $1.1M in Lawsuit Over Worker Injury, Firing
Jan 11 2018 // An Iowa board has approved payment of nearly $1.1 million in a lawsuit by a former state worker who said the state Natural Resources Department fired him because of a work injury. A judge had ordered the state to pay John...
People
Jan 8 2018 // Grinnell, Iowa-based property and casualty insurer/reinsurer, Grinnell Mutual, named Dave Wingert, executive vice president and chief operating officer, to serve as acting president. Larry Jansen retired on Dec. 15, 2017,...
Iowa Roads Were Safer Last Year, Fatality Statistics Suggest
Jan 3 2018 // State statistics on traffic-related deaths suggest Iowa roads were safer last year than in 2016. Iowa Department of Transportation figures show that 329 people died in traffic-related incidents in 2017, as of Dec. 29. The...
Top Insurance Journal Midwest Stories of 2017
Dec 29 2017 // A bad broker, classic cars that got destroyed in a fire and insurer rating downgrades were among the most widely read news stories in Insurance Journal’s Midwest region in 2017. Broker Gone Bad One story that...
Wingert Named Acting President at Iowa’s Grinnell Mutual
Dec 18 2017 // Grinnell, Iowa-based property and casualty insurer/reinsurer, Grinnell Mutual, has named Dave Wingert, executive vice president and chief operating officer, to serve as acting president. Larry Jansen retired on Dec. 15...
A.M. Best Upgrades Outlooks for Petroleum Marketers Management Insurance
Dec 13 2017 // A.M. Best has revised the outlooks to positive from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating “a-” of Des Moines, Iowa-based Petroleum Marketers...
