Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
PIP Breast Implant Scandal Exposes Weaknesses in EU Safety Net
Feb 3 2012 // In June 2000, when American medical regulators posted a warning letter on the Internet about problems at a breast-implant maker in southern France, French authorities didn’t pay much attention. A U.S. Food and Drug...
Senate Bill on Iran Sanctions Targets Banks, Subsidiaries, Insurers
Feb 3 2012 // Banking transactions with Iran and financing for its oil shipments could come under tougher scrutiny after a bipartisan sanctions bill easily passed a key U.S. Senate Committee on Thursday. The Senate Banking Committee...
U.S. Supreme Court Refuses to Stop Louisiana Citizens Judgment
Feb 2 2012 // The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to stall payment of a $93 million judgment against Louisiana’s property insurer of last resort, a decision that could get money within six months to policyholders who won the...
Treasury Says More Time Needed to Complete FIO’s Modernization Report
Feb 2 2012 // The Treasury Department’s Federal Insurance Office was expected to complete and send its highly anticipated report on modernization of insurance regulation to Congress in January. But now, it looks like it may take a...
Kodak Employee Sues Company Directors Over Stock
Feb 2 2012 // An Eastman Kodak employee filed a civil lawsuit against Kodak’s board members and other fiduciaries of the photography companies’ retirement plans, saying they breached their duties as the company was spiraling...
Major Companies Keeping Cyber Attacks Secret from SEC, Investors: Report
Feb 2 2012 // At least a half-dozen major U.S. companies whose computers have been infiltrated by cyber criminals or international spies have not admitted to the incidents despite new guidance from securities regulators urging such...
Nuclear Accidents Pose Little Risk to U.S. Health, Say Regulators
Feb 2 2012 // The risk to public health from a severe nuclear power plant accident in the United States is “very small” because reactor operators should have time to prevent core damage and reduce the release of radioactive...
Judge Frees $100M in Louisiana Citizens’ Claims Dispute
Feb 1 2012 // The governing board of Louisiana’s property insurer of last resort held a special meeting on Jan. 31 to discuss how to deal with a judge’s order that lifted a freeze on more than $100 million at issue in a...
Halliburton Wins Ruling vs. BP Over Some Gulf Oil Spill Claims
Jan 31 2012 // A federal judge on Tuesday said Halliburton Co. is not liable for some pollution claims arising from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, setting back BP Plc’s effort to hold other companies responsible for part of the...
Media Firms Could Face Insurance Hikes in 2012
Jan 31 2012 // U.S. communications, media, and technology (CMT) companies can expect their insurance market conditions to further deteriorate in 2012, continuing a trend that began in the second half of 2011, according to a report...
Florida Lawmaker Warns on Damages If Cuba Oil Drilling Spills
Jan 30 2012 // Since the United States couldn’t stop Repsol from drilling for oil off Cuba’s coast, it should make the Spanish oil giant pay dearly for damages from any spill that threatens neighboring Florida, a...
Consumer Group Charges Auto Insurers with ‘Disparate Treatment’ of Low Income Families
Jan 30 2012 // A consumer group on Monday issued a study that alleges “disparate treatment” of low-to moderate-income families by auto insurers nationwide. The group is asking state insurance commissioners to consider...
Chubb Says Commercial Renewal Rates Rose 6% in Q4, Up From 4% in Q3
Jan 30 2012 // Chubb Corporation said its commercial insurance renewal rates were up 6 percent in the 2011 fourth quarter, as the pace of renewal rate increases continues to accelerate. Chubb also said it secured renewal rate hikes in...
Lawyers Jump Into Cruise Ship Disaster Cases
Jan 30 2012 // Soon after Mitchell Proner, a New York personal-injury lawyer, heard about the capsizing of the Costa Concordia off the coast of Italy, he sprang into action. Proner, who specializes in motorcycle-accident lawsuits, has...
Best Revises Chartis, Lexington & Members Outlooks to Stable; Affirms Ratings
Jan 27 2012 // In connection with its revision of its outlook on AIG, A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength ratings of ‘A’ (Excellent) and issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “a” of Chartis US Insurance...
Chubb Posts $452M in Q4 Profit, Approves $1.2B Share Buyback
Jan 27 2012 // The Chubb Corporation reported fourth-quarter net income of $452 million, down 27 percent from $620 million net income reported during the same period one year ago. The Warren, N.J.-based insurer said the results were hurt...
U.S. Taxpayers Still Owed $132.9B From Bailout
Jan 27 2012 // A government watchdog says U.S. taxpayers are still owed $132.9 billion that companies haven’t repaid from the financial bailout, and some of that will never be recovered. The bailout launched at the height of the...
Increase in U.S. Tort Costs Driven by Gulf Oil Spill: Study
Jan 27 2012 // The April 2010 Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explosion and resulting oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico were the key drivers in the 5.1 percent increase in U.S. tort costs in 2010, according to a new report. The 2011...
Costa Cruises Offers Settlements to Passengers
Jan 27 2012 // Costa Cruises has offered to pay 11,000 euros ($14,500) in compensation to each of the more than 3,000 passengers aboard the ship that capsized near the island of Giglio two weeks ago, Italian consumer groups said on...
BP Must Cover Some Transocean Gulf Oil Spill Damages
Jan 27 2012 // A federal judge on Thursday said BP Plc must indemnify Transocean Ltd. for some compensatory damage claims over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier, who oversees multistate litigation over...
