Latest USA Headlines

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

Public Adjuster Firm Upset with Florida Blogger’s Questioning of Name

Jan 30 2013 // A public adjusting firm is threatening to sue a Florida blogger who claims the adjusting firm is using a name that makes it sound like it is a government agency in soliciting business from homeowners insured by the...

Hearing Reviews West Virginia Gas Pipeline Explosion

Jan 30 2013 // To Sue Bonham, it was as if the world were coming to an end: A wall of flame had suddenly engulfed her West Virginia neighborhood. Amid a deafening roar, objects began crashing through her ceiling. Her home began melting...

ACE Limited Forecasts 2013 Profit below Estimates; Shares Drop

Jan 30 2013 // Insurer ACE Limited reported a 24 percent fall in quarterly operating profit, hurt by losses related to Superstorm Sandy, and forecast a full-year profit below analysts’ estimates. After-tax catastrophe losses...

Judge Approves BP Gulf Oil Spill Settlement

Jan 29 2013 // A U.S. judge has accepted an agreement by BP Plc to plead guilty for its role in the Deepwater Horizon disaster and pay $4.0 billion in penalties for the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history, a court official said on...

Less Than 50% of Small Businesses Offer Employee Benefits: LIMRA

Jan 29 2013 // Only 47 percent of small businesses (2-99 employees) in the United States offer benefits to their employees, the lowest level in two decades of research by the life insurance industry research organization LIMRA. According...

SEC Immune from Investors’ Suit Over Madoff, Says Appeals Court

Jan 29 2013 // Investors who said they lost money in Bernard Madoff’s fraud may not pursue a lawsuit against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for missing the swindler’s Ponzi scheme, a federal appeals court said on...

Fraud Concerns Linger Over Illinois Driver License Law

Jan 29 2013 // As Illinois becomes the fourth and most populous U.S. state to issue driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants, nagging concerns remain about whether there are enough safeguards to avoid the identity fraud and other...

Massive Floods Hit Queensland, New So. Wales; 4 Dead, Thousands Evacuated

Jan 29 2013 // Massive summer floods killed four people and forced thousands of people to evacuate their homes across two Australian states on Tuesday, disrupting air and rail travel and coal production. A deluge fed by ex-tropical...

Judge Freezes Assets of Owners of Meningitis-Linked Pharmacy

Jan 28 2013 // A bankruptcy judge on Monday froze the assets of the owners of the pharmacy linked to a deadly U.S. meningitis outbreak. Orders signed by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Henry Boroff temporarily restrict the owners of New England...

Treasury Pay Czar Allowed Excessive Pay at Bailed-Out AIG, GM: Inspector General

Jan 28 2013 // The U.S. Treasury Department in 2012 failed to curb executive pay at companies rescued with taxpayer funds, the second straight year that it did not live up to its own rules, an internal watchdog said on Monday. The...

Drought Seen Worsening in Plains, Midwest States

Jan 28 2013 // Dry weather continues to plague the drought-stricken U.S. Plains and western Midwest with only light showers and snowfall expected this week, an agricultural meteorologist said on Monday. “The Plains and the...

Florida Too Slow with Obamacare Regulations, Say Democrats

Jan 28 2013 // Florida Democrats expressed frustration with state insurance regulators Friday, accusing them of dragging their feet on drafting policies to comply with the new federal health overhaul. For nearly two years after the...

Antigua May Use Trade Sanctions Against U.S. Copyrights

Jan 28 2013 // The tiny Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda will tell the World Trade Organization on Monday that it intends to use trade sanctions against the United States, which it could enforce by allowing movie downloads without...

Best Affirms AIG, U.S. Property/Casualty Subs Ratings; Outlook Stable

Jan 28 2013 // A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the issuer credit rating (ICR) of “bbb” of New York-based American International Group, Inc. (AIG), as well as the financial strength rating (FSR) of ‘A’ (Excellent) and...

U.S. Insurers Should Be Stable in 2013, Says S&P

Jan 28 2013 // U.S. insurance sectors are generally poised for stable credit trends in 2013, resulting from strong balance sheets, a stable business climate, and improved enterprise risk management, according to Standard &...

Foodborne Illness Cases Present Complex Coverage Questions

Jan 28 2013 // One of the most heavily litigated insurance issues in coverage liability cases related to outbreaks of widespread foodborne illnesses is the determination of occurrence where multiple people in multiple states are affected...

Court Considers Travelers Case Limiting Class Actions

Jan 28 2013 // The U.S. Supreme this month weighed whether to impose new limits on class-action lawsuits, as it reviewed whether a homeowner’s lawsuit against his insurer belonged in a state court considered friendly to...

Surplus Lines Regulatory Picture for 2013

Jan 28 2013 // State implementation of the Nonadmitted and Reinsurance Reform Act (NRRA), effective July 21, 2011, proceeded relatively smoothly during 2012, albeit with a few hiccups as industry and regulators navigated the transition...

Confie Eyes More Expansion, Push Into Standard Lines

Jan 28 2013 // In 2013 Confie Seguros plans to up its buying spree and expand into standard personal and small commercial lines, while broadening its demographic from being primarily Hispanic focused, the president of the Buena Park,...

Business Moves – Midwest

Jan 28 2013 // Willis North America Willis North America, a unit of global insurance broker Willis Group Holdings, has relocated its Cleveland, Ohio office to 1001 Lakeside Ave., Suite 1600. Willis established a presence in Ohio more...