Latest Massachusetts Headlines

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

Mass. Lt. Gov. Healey to Address Agents at The Big Event

Nov 4 2005 // Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey has agreed to address members of the Massachusetts Association of Insurance Agents at the group’s upcoming annual convention, known as The Big Event. Republican Healey,...

Mass. City Honors OneBeacon Employee for Fraud Fight

Nov 4 2005 // Theresa Flaherty, head of the New England Special Investigations Unit of OneBeacon Insurance Co. in Boston, has been recognized by the city of Lawrence, Mass., and Mayor Michael Sullivan for her work and that of OneBeacon...

Gov. Romney, Insurers Wage TV Ad War Over Mass. Auto Reforms

Nov 2 2005 // Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney’s legal office asked television stations this week not to air advertisements attacking his auto insurance reform proposal, sparking criticism that he is trying to squelch debate about...

Admitted Drunk, Underage Driver Can Sue Bars, Mass. Court Rules

Nov 1 2005 // A Suffolk Superior Court in Boston has ruled that an admittedly drunk underage drinker in Massachusetts can sue two bars that served him alcohol before he was involved in a vehicle crash. According to Judge Ralph Gants,...

Berkshire Bank Acquires 2 Western Mass. Agencies

Oct 27 2005 // Berkshire Insurance Group, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. in Pittsfield, Mass., has acquired the business and assets of each of MacDonald & Johnson, Inc., a full-service property and...

Failing Taunton, Mass. Dam Replaced with New Structure

Oct 23 2005 // Crews on Saturday began dismantling a decrepit wooden dam that nearly collapsed and swamped Taunton, Mass. last week. Workers used heavy machinery to grab chunks of the Whittenton Pond Dam, which was replaced overnight by...

N.Y. Gov. Hopeful Weld ‘s Insurance Chief in Massachusetts Stirred Controversy

Oct 19 2005 // As governor of Massachusetts, William Weld, a Republican who has said he wants to be governor of New York, helped turn around the state’s workers’ compensation system and introduce some competition into the...

Gov. Romney Orders Inspections of Mass. ‘High Hazard’ Dams

Oct 19 2005 // Following a week of heavy rains, Governor Mitt Romney has ordered an emergency inspection of all “high hazard” dams in Massachusetts that are classified as not in good condition. High hazard means the dams will...

Rain-Soaked, Wind-Whipped Northeast Getting Back On Its Feet

Oct 17 2005 // Emergency and utility crews across the Northeast worked Sunday to repair the damage caused by several days of rain and floods, but strong winds continued to cause problems. Parts of the Northeast had received more than a...

ProMutual Stays on Course as Medical Liability Market Starts Moving Again

Oct 17 2005 // Richard Brewer likens the medical liability business to a barge floating down the Mississippi. “You’re never quite sure what it’s going to look like around the bend,” he explained. As president and...

ProMutual Stays on Course as Medical Liability Market Starts Moving Again

Oct 17 2005 // Richard Brewer likens the medical liability business to a barge floating down the Mississippi. “You’re never quite sure what it’s going to look like around the bend,” he explained. As president and...

16 Charged in Lowell, Mass. Staged Accident Scheme

Oct 13 2005 // Nine individuals have been arraigned in Middlesex Superior Court in Cambridge, Mass. in connection with an insurance fraud scheme that included the staging of several motor vehicle collisions in Lowell, Tyngsborough, and...

Three in Mass. Indicted in $30 Million Payroll Scheme

Oct 13 2005 // Three Quincy, Mass. residents have been charged in an under-the-table payroll scheme in which they allegedly paid hundreds of temporary employees, who performed manual labor at factories and warehouses in Massachusetts, a...

Mass. Lawmakers Promise Health Insurance Plan By Next Month

Oct 12 2005 // House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi vowed to deliver a bill dramatically expanding health care coverage to the uninsured in Massachusetts but shied away from offering specifics. DiMasi said the bill, which he promised to place...

Mass. Alters Formula for Sharing High Risk Auto Insurance Business

Oct 4 2005 // Some 18 months after a report called the current system unfair and inequitable and three months after a court halted a substitute plan, the Massachusetts Division of Insurance has approved a modification in the way high...

Some Massachusetts Drivers Eligible for Refund from State Farm Over Salvaged Autos

Oct 3 2005 // Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reilly announced that more than 100 Massachusetts car owners are eligible to receive between $600 and $9,000 in restitution from State Farm Insurance. Reilly said those consumers will be...

Mass. Auto Rates Certain to Go Down in 2006 as Bureau Calls for 5.4% Cut

Sep 30 2005 // One thing is known: auto insurance rates in Massachusetts will be going down in 2006. How much remains a matter for Insurance Commissioner Julianne Bowler to decide by the end of the year. Bowler today received her third...

Mass. AG Recommends 18% Rate Cut for Auto Insurance

Sep 29 2005 // Massachusetts drivers should see an 18 percent decrease in the cost of auto insurance, said Attorney General Tom Reilly. The recommendation, being filed today with the state Department of Insurance (DOI), would reduce the...

Auto Reform Advocates in Mass. Take to TV, Radio to Drive Message

Sep 23 2005 // An insurance industry-backed group that calls itself Fairness for Good Drivers is going on television to advance its program for changes in the auto insurance system in Massachustetts. The group has bought advertising time...

Mass. Fair Plan Softens Rate Blow; Seeks12.5% Statewide, 25% on Cape Cod

Sep 15 2005 // Despite indications that a 28.4 percent statewide rate hike is called for, the Massachusetts Fair Plan is requesting a 12.5 percent hike across all homeowners policies. The residual market insurer’s overall request...