Latest Washington Headlines
All the headlines from our Washington Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Handshakes, Buffets Out. Otherwise It’s Insurance Conferences-as-Usual Amid Coronavirus.
Mar 3 2020 // As the coronavirus and its COVID-19 disease spread, Insurance professionals going to industry conferences over the next few weeks and months could find themselves having their temperature taken at the door and being told...
NRA Seeks to Block New York’s ‘Political’ Enforcement Over Liability Insurance Programs
Mar 2 2020 // The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is seeking a preliminary injunction in federal court in an attempt to stop the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) from conducting enforcement proceedings...
Washington Senate Advances Data Privacy Rules
Feb 18 2020 // The Washington Senate has passed a data privacy measure that would give consumers the right to manage how information held by private companies is used. The measure, called the Washington Privacy Act, passed on a...
DOXA Insurance Holdings Acquires Ultra Risk Advisors in Washington
Feb 12 2020 // DOXA Insurance Holdings LLC has acquired Bellevue, Wash.-based Ultra Risk Advisors. Ultra Risk Advisors will continue operating as Ultra from its home office in Bellevue, WA, with satellite offices in Chicago, Atlanta,...
Storm, Floods Cause Damage at Washington’s Mount Rainier National Park
Feb 11 2020 // Mount Rainier National Park was hit by flooding and landslides that closed all roads to the park and damaged roads, trails and buildings. The damage throughout the park is expected to be revealed as extensive as...
Washington Man Pleads Guilty in Effort to Cover Uninsured Car After Wreck
Feb 11 2020 // Byron Mounce, of Puyallup, Wash., pleaded guilty in Pierce County Superior Court to one count of third-degree theft after an investigation showed it was trying to defraud his auto insurer. An investigation by Washington...
CBIZ Acquires Alliance Insurance Services of Washington D.C.
Feb 7 2020 // CBIZ Inc., a provider of financial, insurance and advisory services, has acquired substantially all of the assets of Alliance Insurance Services Inc. (AIS) of Washington, D.C., effective February 1, 2020. With roots dating...
Phantom Auto Theft Claim Results in Charges Against Washington Man
Feb 6 2020 // Dale Maki, of Usk, Wash., was charged in Pend Oreille Superior Court with one count of false claims or proof in connection with a phantom auto theft claim. Maki was charged after an investigation by Insurance Commissioner...
Washington Woman Pleads Guilty After Filing 27 Fake Injury Claims
Feb 5 2020 // Rebecca Tabares Garza, of Yakima, Wash., pleaded guilty in Yakima County Superior Court to first-degree theft and filing a false insurance claim for 27 injuries she said occurred to herself and her family. Garza was...
Washington Roofer Ordered to Repay $25K in Workers’ Comp Scam
Feb 5 2020 // A Washington man caught doing a roofing job while claiming he was too disabled to work must repay the state more than $25,000. José Guadalupe Sanchez, 50, pleaded guilty in Pierce County Superior Court to third-degree...
Former Washington Insurance Agent Charged in $2.8M Premium Finance Case
Jan 31 2020 // Edward J. Chadwick, of Yakima, Wash., was charged this week with first-degree theft in Spokane County Superior Court. Chadwick was an insurance producer and owned an insurance agency called Kelt, primarily selling...
School in Washington Paying $475K in Claim of Kid Released to Wrong Parent
Jan 31 2020 // Seattle Public Schools in Washington has agreed to pay almost half a million dollars to resolve a claim involving a former student who said he was hospitalized after his elementary school released him to the wrong parent...
Washington Fines Contractor for Blasting Violations, Worker Safety Issues
Jan 31 2020 // A reportedly unsafe blasting operation in Spokane, Wash., that put workers and the public at risk has resulted in an Idaho-based drilling company losing its license to perform similar work in Washington. The Washington...
Privacy Firm Finds Cannabis Patient Info Left Unsecured by Washington Firm
Jan 30 2020 // An internet privacy firm says it was able to access private personal information of more than 30,000 medical marijuana patients, recreational pot customers or dispensary employees in several states. The privacy firm was...
Alera Group Acquires Muench Financial in Washington
Jan 28 2020 // Alera Group has acquired Muench Financial Inc. in Seattle, Wash. Muench Financial joins Alera Group through Wilson Albers. The Muench Financial team will operate out of Alera Group’s Seattle office. Terms of the deal...
Uber Goes to Washington. Autonomous Cars with Humans to Collect Data in D.C.
Jan 24 2020 // Uber Technologies Inc. will put self-driving vehicles on Washington, D.C. roads Friday with human drivers in control, the ride share company said on Thursday, as it seeks to collect data for future deployment of fully...
Washington Commissioner Orders Pet Insurers to Repay $4.7M to Consumers
Jan 21 2020 // Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler issued a fine of $950,000 against ACE American Insurance Co. and Indemnity Insurance Co. of North America for reportedly overcharging 18,000 Washington consumers for nearly...
USG Adds Gurkin as a Producer in Washington
Jan 21 2020 // USG Insurance Services Inc. has named John Gurkin a producer/broker in commercial lines in Seattle, Wash. Gurkin will continue to build his agency relationships, as well as expanding USG’s national network. Gurkin...
Washington Mom, Son Charged in Attempted Auto Insurance Fraud
Jan 14 2020 // Three people were charged in King County Superior Court in connection to two separate auto insurance fraud cases after investigations by Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler’s Criminal Investigations...
Chamber of Commerce to Fight Corporate Breakups, Gig Worker Benefits
Jan 10 2020 // The leader of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said the powerful business group will fight to reverse liberal policies being pushed in the states and by some Democratic candidates for president. “We will lead the...