Latest Michigan Headlines

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

Tornadoes Hit Northern Ind., Minn., Causing Damage and One Death

Aug 25 2006 // Severe thunderstorms and tornadoes swept off Lake Michigan Wednesday evening, downing trees and power lines and causing some injuries in Indiana and killing one resident in Minnesota. In LaPorte County, Ind., 911 Assistant...

Mich. Blue Cross Offers Free Dental Cleaning to Expectant Moms

Aug 21 2006 // Research suggests that hormonal changes in pregnant women place them at increased risk of gum disease, which can lead to premature or low birth weight babies and increase the chance of toxemia in expectant mothers,...

Michigan’s Watters Has Faith in Plan for Good Urban Risks

Aug 21 2006 // Michigan Insurance Director of Insurance Linda Watters wants drivers in urban areas to get a fair shake on insurance by getting them group rates through their faith-based and community organizations. Working with urban...

Mich. Supreme Court’s stand on asbestos cases could impact other states

Aug 21 2006 // The Michigan Supreme Court’s decision to preclude trial courts from bundling asbestos cases for trial or settlement is an excellent first step toward restoring balanced justice in asbestos cases in the state, one...

Michigan blocks asbestos case

Aug 21 2006 // The Michigan Supreme Court’s 4-3 decision to preclude trial courts from bundling together asbestos cases for trial or settlement is an “excellent first step toward restoring balanced justice” in asbestos...

Mich. Supreme Court’s stand on asbestos cases could impact other states

Aug 21 2006 // The Michigan Supreme Court’s decision to preclude trial courts from bundling asbestos cases for trial or settlement is an excellent first step toward restoring balanced justice in asbestos cases in the state, one...

Mich. Hylant Group Adds Professional to Large Account Practice

Aug 11 2006 // Hylant Group, a full-service business insurance agency, has hired Basima Rumman to serve as vice president in the company’s Large Account Practice. She will be based in Hylant’s Troy, Mich., office. Previously,...

Insurers: Mich. Supreme Court’s Decision Will Reduce Asbestos Litigation Abuse

Aug 11 2006 // The Michigan Supreme Court’s decision to preclude trial courts from bundling asbestos cases for trial or settlement is an excellent first step toward restoring balanced justice in asbestos cases in the state,...

People and Places

Aug 7 2006 // The Insurance Information Institute has promoted Dr. Robert P. Hartwig to president; Dr. L. James Valverde Jr. to vice president of Economics and Risk Management; and announced the retirement of Gordon Stewart,...

Linda Watters

Aug 7 2006 // Michigan Insurance Director of Insurance Linda Watters wants to make sure drivers in urban areas get a fair shake on the premiums they pay for auto and homeowners insurance. She has developed an initiative that would...

Mich. Burns & Wilcox Adds New Director of Branch Development

Aug 4 2006 // Farmington Hills, Mich.-based national specialty insurance wholesaler, underwriter and managing general agent Burns & Wilcox, has hired Paul Anderson, CPCU, ARM, AIM, to serve as the company’s director of branch...

Insurance Journal Series ‘The Commissioners’ Presents Interviews with 15 State Regulators

Jul 28 2006 // Reinsurance collateral, natural disaster plans, brokerage compensation disclosure, credit scoring, competition for insurance jobs—state insurance regulators across the country deal with these and many other...

Insurance Journal Presents Video Interviews with 15 State Insurance Commissioners

Jul 27 2006 // Reinsurance collateral, natural disaster plans, brokerage compensation disclosure, credit scoring, competition for insurance jobs—state insurance regulators across the country deal with these and many other...

Ohio Hylant Group Names President, Grand Rapids Office

Jul 25 2006 // The Hylant Group, a commercial insurance brokerage headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, announced today that Len Dyer has been hired as president to head the newly-established office in Grand Rapids, Mich. Dyer comes to Hylant...

Mich. Offers New On-line Payment Option for Agents’ Licenses

Jul 25 2006 // Individuals wishing to become licensed as insurance agents in Michigan may now pay online for their license, Office of Financial and Insurance Services (OFIS) Commissioner Linda A. Watters announced. The online payment...

News Currents

Jul 24 2006 // News Currents While states adopt seat belts laws, 29 still balk at motorcycle helmets In Illinois and Iowa, motorists can get tickets for not wearing seat belts. In Connecticut, they are prohibited from talking on cell...

Mich. Jury Acquits Man of Charges When Several Become Sick After Handshakes

Jul 24 2006 // A jury acquitted a man who had been charged with assault after authorities said an assistant prosecutor, police officer and courtroom bailiff got sick after shaking hands with him. John Curtis Ridgeway, 42, was seen...

Mich. Employee Found Guilty in Security Breach Scheme

Jul 21 2006 // Attorney General Mike Cox announced earlier this month that a Kent County jury has returned a guilty verdict against 46-year-old James Benjamin Brunk of Cadillac. In a case that had potential homeland security...

New Company LifeSecure Insurance Approved in Mich.

Jul 17 2006 // LifeSecure Insurance Company, a wholly-owned, for profit subsidiary of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, has received a final Certificate of Authority from the Office of Financial and Insurance Services (OFIS) to operate...

Mich. Comerica Names New Vice President, National Sales Director

Jul 13 2006 // Detroit, Mich.-based Comerica Insurance Services has named Steven Turtz as a vice president and national sales director. Turtz will manage national sales, marketing, product development and training initiatives for...