Latest Texas Headlines
All the headlines from our Texas Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Texas Bill Would Modify ‘Claimant’ Definition in Medical Liability Cases
Feb 9 2015 // Texas Rep. Chris Turner, House District 101- Grand Prairie, has filed a measure that would clarify the definition of “claimant” in respect to a healthcare liability claim. HB 956 was crafted in response to a...
Texas Families Push for Statewide Ban on Texting While Driving
Feb 5 2015 // Sitting behind pictures of loved ones killed in crashes, 15 Texas families tearfully pleaded with lawmakers to support a statewide texting-while-driving ban. “This is how I hold my baby now,” said Jeanne Brown,...
Attorneys, Insurers Facing Off over Hail Litigation in Texas
Feb 4 2015 // The vestiges of twin hailstorms that ravaged the south Texas coast in 2012 are now blowing through the halls of the Capitol in Austin. Two of the state’s most-powerful lobbies, the insurance industry and trial...
Homeowner Insurance Complaints Drop to Record Low in Texas
Feb 3 2015 // Texas homeowners filed the fewest number of insurance complaints ever recorded with Texas regulators last year, the Insurance Council of Texas reported. It was the fifth year in a row that Texas homeowner complaints have...
Ratings of Texas-Based Producers Agriculture Insurance Cos. Upgraded
Feb 2 2015 // A.M. Best announced it has upgraded the financial strength rating to A+ (Superior) from A (Excellent) and the issuer credit ratings to “aa” from “a” of Producers Agriculture Insurance Co. (Pro Ag)...
Fatal Houston Fender-Bender Shows Shortcomings of Recalls
Feb 2 2015 // By the time Carlos Solis IV laid eyes on the silver Honda Accord in a Texas used-car lot last April, the sedan had changed hands twice, been in at least two crashes and still had a defective air bag that had been recalled...
Lawsuit Against Union Pacific over Texas Veterans Parade Crash Begins
Jan 30 2015 // A freight train that slammed into a parade float two years ago, killing four veterans and injuring 16 other people, came within 39 inches of missing the trailer, attorneys for both sides told a West Texas jury. A Midland...
4 CAA Agencies Expand Through M&As
Jan 30 2015 // Austin, Texas-based Combined Agents of America LLC (CAA) announced that member agencies have expanded their books of business and locations through mergers and acquisitions (M&A) over the last nine months. Together,...
Texas Yogurt Company Founder Gets 5 Years in Prison for Arson
Jan 29 2015 // The founder of a popular yogurt company is in prison after admitting he set the business ablaze in a fit of anger over investors’ handling of the company. The Dallas Morning News reports a judge has sentenced...
Texas Bill Would Modify ‘Claimant’ Definition in Medical Liability Cases
Jan 28 2015 // Texas state Rep. Chris Turner, House District 101- Grand Prairie, has filed a measure that would clarify the definition of “claimant” in respect to a health care liability claim. HB 956 stems from the Texas...
Texas-Based Roach Howard Smith & Barton Promotes Buchanan
Jan 28 2015 // Keleigh Buchanan was promoted to assistant vice president at Dallas-based independent insurance broker Roach Howard Smith & Barton. Keleigh Buchanan Buchanan has 15 years of experience in the insurance industry. She...
Deputy US Marshal Admits Guilt in Texas Insurance Fraud Scheme
Jan 26 2015 // A San Antonio-based deputy U.S. marshal has pleaded guilty to wire fraud relating to an insurance fraud scheme. According to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s office, Reynaldo Gonzalez entered his plea in San...
Hotchkiss Insurance Agency Names Conner, Ramsey Partners in Dallas
Jan 26 2015 // Dallas-based Hotchkiss Insurance Agency announced that Chandler “Ross” Conner and Ben “Hunter” Ramsey each accepted invitations to become partners of the firm in December 2014. Ross Conner Conner, a...
People – South Central
Jan 26 2015 // David Mattax has been appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to serve as Texas insurance commissioner to replace Julia Rathgeber, who has been tapped as deputy chief of staff for Gov.-Elect Greg Abbott. Mattax previously was deputy...
TWIA Legislative Recommendations Address Funding, Depopulation
Jan 26 2015 // The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, the state-created insurer that provides property coverage for wind and hail in 14 coastal counties and parts of Harris County, has submitted a report to the Legislature with...
Texas Bill Would Protect P/C Agent Ownership of Expiration Rights
Jan 26 2015 // A bill filed in the Texas Legislature for the 2015 session would clarify that insurance agents in the state have exclusive ownership of the expiration rights to property/casualty insurance policies they sell and place. HB...
Texas Bills Target ‘Named Driver’ Automobile Policies, Exclusions
Jan 26 2015 // A pair of bills filed in the Texas Legislature would prohibit automobile insurers from issuing “named driver” policies in the state, but one would allow named driver exclusions under certain circumstances. HB...
Ballinger on Growth, Professionalism in Texas Surplus Lines Market
Jan 26 2015 // Phil Ballinger retired at the end of December 2014 as executive director of the Surplus Lines Stamping Office of Texas (SLSOT), a post he’s held for more than two decades. During his tenure at SLSOT, the organization...
Schroeder Named VP of Marketing Texas-Based ITC
Jan 25 2015 // Insurance Technologies Corporation (ITC), a Carrollton, Texas-based provider of marketing, rating and management software and services, has promoted Becky Schroeder to vice president of marketing. In her new position as...
Legislative Focus for Texas Windstorm Insurer: Funding, Depopulation
Jan 22 2015 // The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, the state-created insurer that provides property coverage for wind and hail in 14 coastal counties and parts of Harris County, has submitted a report to the Legislature with...
