Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
U.S. Chamber: ‘Broken Lawsuit System’ Hurts Small Businesses
May 18 2007 // The tort system in the United States cost small businesses $98 billion in 2005, with the fear of lawsuits altering the way the small business owners make decisions, according to studies released at a Congressional hearing...
Okla. Commissioner Testifies Before U.S. Senate
May 18 2007 // Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland told members of a U.S. Senate committee recently that federal law is impeding the ability of insurance commissioners to protect the elderly who buy Medicare managed care...
Graham, DeMint Support S.C. Disaster Declaration Request
May 17 2007 // U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham and Jim DeMint have joined Gov. Mark Sanford in asking for a disaster declaration after last month’s late freeze ruined much of South Carolina’s peach, wheat and other crops. Officials...
On Eve of Hurricane Season, U.S. Mandates Safety Labels on Generators
May 17 2007 // Nine words could save lives this hurricane season: “Using a generator indoors can kill you in minutes.” That might seem obvious, but it’s not — each year dozens of Americans die because they don’t...
Forecast: Conn. to Experience Big Population Shift, Slower Growth
May 17 2007 // With lagging birth rates and an influx of immigrants, the face of Connecticut is expected to change greatly over the next two decades. A new population analysis, released by the Connecticut State Data Center at the...
Ratings Roundup: Zurich (US), National Indemnity, 21st Century
May 17 2007 // A.M. Best Co. has assigned a rating of “bbb” to the $1.5 billion subordinated trust preferred securities issued by Zurich Holding Company of America (ZHCA). The notes were issued through ZFS Finance (USA) Trust...
The Hartford Seeks Branding Score with Japanese Baseball Sponsorship
May 16 2007 // Japanese baseball players are all the rage in the major leagues this year. Kei Igawa and Daisuke Matzuzaka have joined established stars such as Hideki Matsui and Ichiro Suzuki as imports on America’s premier teams....
New Travelers U.S. Aviation Company Takes Flight
May 16 2007 // Travelers has launched Travelers Aviation, a new business unit targeting corporate and business aircraft, small to mid-size airports, aviation ground services and manufactured non-critical products used as aircraft...
W. Va.: Massey Energy Hit with Lawsuit, Alleging Clean Water Act Violations
May 15 2007 // West Virginia coal producer Massey Energy Co. and its subsidiaries have illegally poured pollutants into West Virginia and Kentucky waterways 4,633 times within the last six years, federal prosecutors allege in a case...
N.C. Gov. Urges Colleagues’ Support in Protecting State Authority over Guard
May 15 2007 // Gov. Mike Easley sent a letter to the nation’s governors urging them to get their states’ representatives in the U.S. House to support repeal of a law adopted last year that expands the power of the president...
Zurich Launches New Ad Campaign
May 14 2007 // One of the added advantages of being a global company is the ability to market a global brand name. Last year the Zurich Financial Services Group launched a new a clever slogan – “Because Change Happenz.”...
U.S. Officials: Lightning Likely Cause of Deadly W. Va. Sago Mine Blast
May 11 2007 // One or more lightning strikes likely caused an electrical current in a cable left deep inside the Sago Mine and touched off the methane blast blamed for the deaths of 12 coal miners last year, the federal Mine Safety and...
Bach to Lead Hiscox Business Development for U.S.
May 10 2007 // London-based Hiscox has announced the appointment of Carl Bach within its Global Markets division to spearhead business development operations in the U.S. Bach will be based in Hiscox’s Manhattan office, working with...
West Virginia a ‘Test Ground’ of U.S. Chamber’s Anti-Lawsuit Efforts
May 8 2007 // In its ongoing, multimillion-dollar lobbying and advertising campaign decrying “frivolous” lawsuits and “jackpot” jury awards, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has anointed West Virginia the poster...
Business Moves
May 7 2007 // Aviva The U.K.-based Aviva Group announced plans to expand in Russia. One year ago, the company launched Aviva Russia, and it is now poised to enter the direct sales market with its Moscow-based direct sales force. The...
News Currents
May 7 2007 // California susceptible to class action lawsuits California’s class action law ranks 46th in the nation in fairness and reasonableness, according to an annual national ranking of state civil justice systems. The only...
Assisted living and miscellaneous medical facilities spur new growth
May 7 2007 // An aging population and a demand for new and unique medical services in non-hospital settings are driving growth in certain areas of medical professional liability coverage, in particular medical facilities coverage. The...
Disruptive forces in the insurance industry: Constructive or chaotic?
May 7 2007 // Capital markets, technology and the use of mass media could be disruptive forces in the insurance industry in the near future, according to Paula Reynolds, CEO of Seattle-based Safeco Insurance Co. Speaking at the...
Climate Change: The potential insurance costs and what’s being done
May 7 2007 // Estimating the potential costs of future weather related events, linked to climate change, is, at best, an inexact science; there are just too many variables. Nonetheless, a picture is emerging that, whatever happens, the...
Catching up on climate change
May 7 2007 // What insurers in U.S. and worldwide are doing to address the effects of climate change Recent mega-catastrophes such as Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Coast have brought increased attention to the issue of global climate...
