Latest Washington Headlines
All the headlines from our Washington Topic Page, ordered by recency.
ID Fraud Touches 250,000 Washingtonians Per Year
Oct 9 2007 // Criminal activity in identity fraud touches more than a quarter of a million victims each year in Washington state, and “sucks” well more than $1 billion from the state’s economy, according to...
Washington insurers, trail lawyers at odds over treble damages
Oct 8 2007 // Study says Referendum 67 could cost $650 million With millions in campaign contributions and plenty of name-calling, trial lawyers and insurance companies in Washington are doing their best to spice up this fall’s...
Washington insurers, trail lawyers at odds over treble damages
Oct 8 2007 // With millions in campaign contributions and plenty of name-calling, trial lawyers and insurance companies in Washington are doing their best to spice up this fall’s otherwise ho-hum statewide vote. At issue is...
Washington Casualty Reinstated in Oregon
Oct 5 2007 // Medical professional liability insurer Washington Casualty Co. announced that it has earned the reinstatement of its license to underwrite insurance in Oregon, as determined by the Oregon Department of Insurance. The...
Washington Man Sentenced for Defrauding Workers’ Comp System
Oct 3 2007 // Willard Leech of Bellingham, Wash., has been sentenced to 30 days in jail and 12 months of community supervision for illegally collecting workers’ compensation wage-replacement benefits while working at another...
Washington’s Minimum Wage to Increase to $8.07
Oct 2 2007 // Washington’s minimum wage will increase 14 cents to $8.07 an hour beginning Jan. 1, 2008. The Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) recalculates the state’s minimum wage each year in September as...
More States Join Centralized Insurer Market Conduct Exam Initiative
Sep 30 2007 // Alabama, California, Montana, Rhode Island and Washington will begin requiring insurance companies to file annual statement data as part of a growing effort to make market conduct exams more efficient that now includes 30...
Washington Casualty Adds New Managing Director
Sep 25 2007 // Medical professional liability insurer Washington Casualty Co. (WCC), today announced it has named Mike Rutz to the newly created position of managing director. WCC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Lansing, Mich.-based...
Wash. wants comp rate increase
Sep 24 2007 // Washington’s Department of Labor and Industries has proposed raising workers’ compensation rates 3.2 percent in 2008, with the average premium increasing by just more than 2 cents per hour worked. L&I...
Washington’s Trial Bar, Insurers Roll Up Sleeves for Ref. 67 Fight
Sep 24 2007 // Who says an off-year election has to be boring? With millions in campaign contributions, weeks of bruising TV ads and plenty of name-calling, trial lawyers and insurance companies are doing their best to spice up this...
Study: Washington’s Referendum 67 Could Cost Consumers $650 Million
Sep 24 2007 // Referendum 67, a heavily debated law that would allow consumers to collect triple damages if their insurer unreasonably denies a claim or violates unfair practice rules, is expected to raise insurance rates for Washington...
Children Could Be Getting Soft-Soled Clogs Caught in Escalators
Sep 24 2007 // At rail stations and shopping malls around the world, reports are popping up of people, particularly young children, getting their toes caught in escalators. The one common theme seems to be the clunky, soft-soled clogs...
NIF Group Opens Office in Washington
Sep 18 2007 // Manhasset, N.Y.-based NIF Group Inc. has opened NIF Pacific in Bothell, Wash. This office will specialize largely in insurance for nonprofit social service agencies. The company said the Pacific office will help better...
Wash. Proposes Workers’ Comp Rate Increase
Sep 10 2007 // Washington’s Department of Labor and Industries has proposed raising workers’ compensation rates 3.2 percent in 2008, with the average premium increasing by just more than 2 cents per hour worked. L&I...
Atlantis Effect? Rising Sea Level Worries Wash. Shoreline Areas
Sep 5 2007 // Washington’s low-lying capital city is a bit nervous in planning a new $38 million City Hall near the shoreline of Puget Sound, fearing that global warming and rising waters could submerge much of the downtown in...
Business Moves
Sep 3 2007 // Hawaii, DTRIC Insurance Underwriters Hawai’i State Insurance Commissioner J.P. Schmidt announced the launch of DTRIC Insurance Underwriters Ltd. (DIU), an “A-” rated company and subsidiary of local...
Washington L&I Makes Appointments to Advisory Committees
Aug 29 2007 // Washington’s Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) announced appointments to medical and chiropractic advisory committees that will assist the department in providing high-quality, safe and cost-effective...
Liberty Mutual Realigns Agency Companies to Welcome Ohio Casualty
Aug 27 2007 // Boston-based Liberty Mutual Group finalized its acquisition of Ohio Casualty Corp. on Friday, Aug. 24, 2007 and immediately announced a realignment of its $5.9 billion net premium regional agency company organization to...
Former Wash. Mayor Charged in Fraud Scheme with Slain Trooper
Aug 27 2007 // Detectives investigating the killing of a former state patrol sergeant last year say they learned that he was involved in an insurance scam with another trooper. That second trooper, Douglas Merino, 51 — who is also...
Wash. Fines Progressive for Charging Incorrect Premiums
Aug 17 2007 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler has fined an Ohio auto insurer a total of more than $150,000 after it unlawfully calculated and charged incorrect premiums to more than 62,700 Washington...
