Latest Personal Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Personal Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
New Law Boosts Penalties for Drunk Driving in Oklahoma
Sep 9 2009 // A new state law in Oklahoma provides greater protection for children endangered by drunk drivers. Senate Bill 1139, by state Sen. Mary Easley and state Rep. Jeannie McDaniel, allows drunk drivers to face felony...
New York Regulators Post Rules for Flex-Rate Personal Auto
Aug 25 2009 // The New York State Insurance Department has posted a notice of proposed regulations for flexible-rating on personal auto insurance. Flex-rating, which allows insurers to set pricing within a certain premium range, was last...
Enforcement Stepped Up; Trends Show More Women Driving Impaired
Aug 20 2009 // At an event today kicking off a nationwide anti-drunk driving enforcement campaign, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood released a new study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that shows an...
Four Commercial Auto Endorsements Every Insured Should Consider
Aug 18 2009 // Insurance Services Office (ISO) lists more than 100 endorsements available for use with the business auto policy (BAP) (the total number varies by state). Out of that heap of policy-altering endorsements, most designed to...
Elderly Drivers Found More Prone to Side-Impact Crashes
Aug 18 2009 // Many drivers over age 70 realize that their reaction time is slower so they naturally compensate by driving more carefully, says Matthew Romoser, who studies age-related physical and cognitive function and driving skills...
Gainsco Reports Income Increase in Q2 2009 Results
Aug 14 2009 // Dallas-based Gainsco Inc. announced net income for the second quarter 2009 increased to $1.6 million, compared with a second quarter 2008 net income of $1 million. Net income for the six months ended June 30, 2009 was $3.7...
New Mexico Governor Wants First-Time Drunk Drivers Jailed, Fined
Aug 12 2009 // New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson wants to put first-time drunken driving offenders behind bars for three days and fine them $2,500. Richardson also said that measures to be introduced during the next legislative session in...
Report: Truck Driver’s Inattention Caused Massive Oklahoma Wreck
Aug 5 2009 // The inattention of a tractor-trailer driver led to a wreck on the Will Rogers Turnpike that killed 10 people in June, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said in a report released Aug. 3. Investigators looking into the June 26...
Mississippi High Court to Hear Case Challenging Drunk Driving Test
Aug 4 2009 // The Mississippi Supreme Court has agreed to hear a driving under the influence (DUI) case that revolves around the theory of “retrograde extrapolation.” Retrograde extrapolation is determining whether a person...
U Michigan Researcher: Less Leisure Driving Behind Drop in Road Fatalities
Aug 4 2009 // Fewer Americans are dying on the nation’s roads, not only because they are driving less, but also because the type of driving has changed, says a researcher at the University of Michigan Transportation Research...
U.S. Transportation Agency to Hold Distracted Driving Summit
Aug 4 2009 // U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced a September summit to address the dangers of text-messaging and other distractions behind the wheel. In late September, senior transportation officials, elected...
Lawmakers to Propose Ban on Texting while Driving
Jul 30 2009 // States would be required to ban driving while texting or face the loss of highway funds under legislation being pushed by a group of Democratic senators. Aimed at reducing driver distraction and highway deaths and...
Study: Texting while Driving More Dangerous than Previously Thought
Jul 29 2009 // Texting while driving increases the risk of a crash much more than previous studies have concluded with motorists taking their eyes off the road longer than they do when talking or listening on their cell phones, a safety...
Report: Federal Safety Agency Withheld Data on Dangers of Distracted Driving
Jul 22 2009 // The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration gathered hundreds of pages of research and warnings about the hazards of drivers using cell phones, but withheld the information from the public in 2003 in part out of...
Progressive Offers Behavior-Based Insurance Program to Texas Drivers
Jul 21 2009 // Progressive Insurance announced it is launching in Texas an optional car insurance program that offers lower rates on vehicles that are driven in less risky ways. The behavior-based insurance program, called MyRate, gives...
North Carolina Drunk Driver Reinstatement Bill Goes to Governor
Jul 17 2009 // The North Carolina Legislature has agreed that repeat drunken-drivers should get a chance one day to have their license restored. The House agreed 88-28 this week to create a procedure whereby someone convicted of habitual...
New York’s Dutchess County Bans Texting while Driving
Jul 14 2009 // New York’s Dutchess County is sending drivers a message: No more text messaging behind the wheel. County Executive William Steinhaus said Friday he wouldn’t veto a law against sending text messages while...
Fewer Drunk Drivers on U.S. Roads; Concern Rises Over Drugged Drivers
Jul 13 2009 // A new roadside survey by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration confirms a continuing decline in the percentage of legally intoxicated drivers. In 1973, 7.5 percent of drivers had a blood alcohol concentration...
New York Drivers Can Save on Insurance By Taking Online Courses
Jul 10 2009 // New Yorkers who want to take advantage of accident prevention courses to increase their chances of avoiding accidents while reducing the cost of their automobile or motorcycle insurance now can do so over the Internet. The...
North Carolina Bill Lets Repeat Drunk Drivers Get Back Licenses
Jul 10 2009 // Repeat drunken-drivers in North Carolina who get their license revoked could get their permit back after a clean criminal and traffic record for 10 years in legislation approved by the Senate. The measure approved this...
