Latest Texas Headlines
All the headlines from our Texas Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Formosa Plastics Agrees to Pay $50M to Settle Texas Water Pollution Suit
Oct 16 2019 // Petrochemical manufacturer Formosa Plastics has agreed to pay $50 million to settle a lawsuit in which a judge ruled the company illegally dumped billions of plastic pellets and other pollutants into Lavaca Bay and other...
Credit Rating of Texas’ Pinnacle National Insurance Co. Upgraded
Oct 16 2019 // AM Best has upgraded the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating to “a+” from “a” and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) of Pinnacle National Insurance Co. (Pinnacle National, formerly...
Texas Company Faces $301K in Fines After Employee Fatality
Oct 15 2019 // A Texas company has been cited for workplace safety hazards and fined more than $301,000 after an employee fatality at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in April 2019. The U.S. Department of Labor’s...
Texas RV Dealer Insurance Practice Merges with Higginbotham
Oct 11 2019 // Fort Worth, Texas-based Higginbotham reports a merger with Diversified Insurance Management an independent property/casualty insurance agency in Plano, Texas. Diversified has a specialty practice serving recreational...
1st Death Linked to E-Cigarette Use Recorded in Texas
Oct 11 2019 // Health officials in Texas say the state has recorded its first death associated with vaping-related lung illnesses. The Texas Department of State Health Services confirmed Wednesday that an older woman in north Texas died...
George P. Bush Tapped to Oversee $4B Texas Disaster Mitigation Plan
Oct 10 2019 // Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush and the Texas General Land Office have been appointed to lead a comprehensive resiliency and disaster mitigation program, funded by more than $4 billion in U.S. Department of Housing...
Texas Windstorm Insurer Seeks Input for Actuarial & Underwriting Committee
Oct 10 2019 // Texas insurer of last resort for properties along the state’s coast is seeking input from the public in advance of a meeting of its Actuarial & Underwriting Committee. The Texas Windstorm Insurance...
More Charges Filed in Texas Against Louisiana Cattle Theft Suspect
Oct 10 2019 // A man previously accused of involvement in a Louisiana cattle theft ring has been indicted in Texas on charges he also stole cows from a rancher there. The Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association said in a news...
Texas Regulators Warn of Auto Insurance Phone Scam
Oct 9 2019 // The Texas Department of Insurance is alerting consumers about a phone calling scam being perpetrated by a group claiming to be the Consumer Insurance Association. The calls offer to lower the recipient’s auto...
Texas Man Convicted of $6K Workers’ Compensation Fraud
Oct 9 2019 // Texas Mutual Insurance Co. reported that a Travis County district court has sentenced Joe D. Lozano, Sr. of Midland, Texas, on workers’ compensation fraud-related charges. Lozano reported a job-related injury while...
AM Best: Outlooks Revised to Positive for Texas’ Columbia Lloyds Companies
Oct 8 2019 // AM Best has revised the outlooks to positive from stable, and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “bbb+” of Columbia Lloyds Insurance Co. and MDOW...
Comments Sought on Proposed Claim Rules for Texas Windstorm Insurer
Oct 7 2019 // Texas insurance regulators are seeking input on proposed changes to claims-related rules for the state’s property insurer of last resort along the Texas coast. The Texas Department of Insurance has proposed changes...
Federal Disaster Declared for 6 Imelda-Impacted Texas Counties
Oct 7 2019 // Texas officials say a federal disaster declaration has been granted for six Southeast Texas counties that sustained severe flooding caused last month by the remnants of Tropical Storm Imelda. Gov. Greg Abbott says the...
Texas’ BevCap Management Adds Marchino as EVP
Oct 7 2019 // Jeff Marchino has joined McKinney, Texas-based insurance services firm BevCap Management as executive vice president. Marchino brings more than 25 years of professional experience in employee benefits. His extensive...
Business Moves
Oct 7 2019 // East Plymouth Rock Assurance, Rider Insurance Company Plymouth Rock Assurance has agreed to expand its investment in the motorcycle insurance segment with the acquisition of Rider Insurance Company, subject to regulatory...
Texas Surplus Lines Premium Up 16% Over 2018
Oct 3 2019 // Reported Texas surplus lines premium through the first three quarters of 2019 reached $5.35 billion, a 16.15% increase over the same period in 2018, according to the Surplus Line Stamping Office of Texas...
Texas Mutual Commits $5M to Help Tropical Storm Imelda-Impacted Policyholders
Oct 2 2019 // Austin-based workers’ compensation carrier, Texas Mutual Insurance Co., is offering a grant of $5 million for policyholders affected by Tropical Storm Imelda. The grant is intended to support the recovery of business...
Texas Insurer Trade Group, Industry Partners Donating Alarms to Local Fire Departments
Oct 1 2019 // The Insurance Council of Texas (ICT), along with insurance industry partners First Alert, Travelers Insurance, State Farm Insurance, Hochheim Prairie and the Association of Fire & Casualty Companies in Texas, will...
Imelda-Impacted Texans Still Don’t Know if They Qualify for FEMA Aid
Oct 1 2019 // Two state officials are optimistic that southeast Texans whose homes were flooded by Tropical Storm Imelda will qualify for federal aid. And since it could be weeks before the destruction is fully inventoried, many leaders...
Fire Destroys Planes at Small Airport in North Texas
Sep 27 2019 // Emergency officials say several airplanes have been destroyed in a hangar fire at a small airport in North Texas. Fire officials say no one was hurt in a blaze at Caddo Mills Municipal Airport, about 35 miles (56.32...
