Latest Michigan Headlines

Let Michigan Insurance Consumers Tailor Auto Coverage

Jun 10 2010 // Imagine you live in a town where anyone who dines out is required to buy a $200 bottle of champagne with their meal. That sounds crazy, but it is essentially what is happening to insurers in Michigan, where they are...

Michigan Court Upholds Denial of Basic Home Insurance Rate Hike

Jun 10 2010 // In a unanimous decision this week, the Michigan Court of Appeals upheld a 2008 order by Insurance Commissioner Ken Ross that denied the state’s property insurer of last resort an 18.9 percent rate hike. In reversing...

Michigan University Seeks Compensation Over Bias Charge

Jun 9 2010 // Central Michigan University is asking for $174,294 from an ex- basketball player and her lawyer over their failed sex discrimination complaint involving coach Sue Guevara. The Saginaw News says the university asked U.S....

Change in Michigan Law Opened Door to Lawsuits Against Hooters

Jun 8 2010 // An attorney for two former waitresses in Michigan who said Hooters fired them because of their weight told a newspaper the case is about civil rights. But Hooters said the appearance of its waitresses is a legitimate...

Business Moves

Jun 7 2010 // Fremont Michigan, Northern Mutual Fremont Michigan InsuraCorp Inc., a Michigan-exclusive property and casualty insurance company headquartered in Fremont, Mich., and Northern Mutual Insurance Co. (Northern), a Michigan...

Michigan Court: Wrong Address Not a Barrier to Filing Malpractice Lawsuit

May 27 2010 // The Michigan Supreme Court says the wrong address is not a reason to stop a woman from filing a medical malpractice lawsuit against her former eye doctor. The court’s 4-3 decision this week reinstated a lawsuit...

Survey: Michigan Employers Shifting Healthcare Costs to Employees

May 25 2010 // A survey of mid-sized Southeast Michigan employers shows that health benefits are on par with national trends as traditionally rich benefit offerings go by the wayside, according to McGraw Wentworth, a Michigan-based...

Michigan Employee Sues Hooters, Claims Weight Bias

May 25 2010 // A former Hooters employee in a Detroit suburb has sued the restaurant chain, alleging she was unable to keep her job after being told to lose weight. Cassandra Smith alleges that Hooters put her on 30-day “weight...

May 17 2010 // 26.4% The U.S. Department of Agriculture said crop insurance companies posted profits of 26.4 percent last year, and the federal government wants to reduce its spending on crop insurance. Participating farmers pay premiums...

Fremont Michigan InsuraCorp, Northern Mutual Insurance Plan Alliance

May 13 2010 // Fremont Michigan InsuraCorp Inc., a Michigan-exclusive property and casualty insurance company headquartered in Fremont, Mich., and Northern Mutual Insurance Co. (Northern), a Michigan mutual insurer have agreed to a...

Fremont Michigan InsuraCorp Sees Growth in Q1 2010

May 5 2010 // Fremont Michigan InsuraCorp Inc., a Michigan-exclusive property and casualty insurance carrier, reported revenues of $14.9 million for the first quarter of 2010, up 9.4 percent from revenues in the first quarter...

People

May 3 2010 // Cincinnati, Ohio-based American Empire Surplus Lines Insurance Co. (AESLIC) has named Frederick J. Woebse president and chief operating officer. He succeeds Robert Nelson, who was named chairman and chief executive...

Michigan Governor to Sign Fremont Insurance Anti-Takeover Bill

Apr 29 2010 // A spokeswoman says Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm is expected to sign legislation that would make it tougher for San Antonio-based Biglari Holdings Inc. to take over a west Michigan insurance company. The legislation...

Michigan Injured Workers’ Drug Costs Lowest in Study

Apr 28 2010 // The cost per claim of prescription drugs used to treat injured workers in Michigan is the lowest among 16 states studied. According to the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI), the average payment per claim for...

Insurance Hall of Fame in Michigan to Induct 3 Executives

Apr 21 2010 // The Michigan Insurance Hall of Fame will honor three leaders in the insurance industry at the seventeenth annual induction ceremony of the Michigan Insurance Hall of Fame on August 18 on the campus of Olivet College. New...

Michigan Warns Consumers on Scam Using Fake Allstate Insurance Checks

Apr 21 2010 // Michigan insurance officials and Allstate Insurance Co. are warning consumers of an international mail fraud scheme using counterfeit checks with Allstate’s name on them. The Michigan Office of Financial and...

Michigan Officials Suspect Arson in 10 Fires in Flint

Apr 20 2010 // Authorities in Flint are investigating a dozen weekend fires — most of them suspected to be arson. Flint Fire Department Battalion Chief Andy Graves said Sunday that 12 fires were reported since midnight last Friday....

Michigan House Panel Advances Bill on Fremont Insurance Takeover

Apr 19 2010 // Michigan lawmakers are wading into a fight over control of a west Michigan insurance company. The House Insurance Committee has approved legislation that would make it tougher for Biglari Holdings Inc. to take over Fremont...

Michigan Court Reinstates Award for Woman Hurt in Spiritual Fall

Apr 12 2010 // The Michigan Supreme Court has reinstated a $317,000 award to a woman who says she was hurt when no one caught her fall after she was “overcome by the spirit of the Lord” in church. The Lansing woman says she...

Michigan Senate Backs Bill to Thwart Fremont Insurance Takeover

Apr 9 2010 // The Michigan Senate recently advanced a bill to make it more difficult for outsiders to take over the domestic insurer Fremont Michigan InsurCorp. The measure, which passed the Senate 27-10 and was sent to the House...