Latest West Virginia Headlines

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

Jacobs Financial Group Acquires West Virginia Fire and Casualty Co.

Jan 3 2006 // Jacobs Financial Group Inc. has acquired all of the issued and outstanding stock of West Virginia Fire and Casualty Company (WVFCC) from The Celina Mutual Insurance Company (Celina) of Celina, Ohio. The transaction had...

W. Va. Coal Mine Had High Injury Rate, Multiple Safety Violations

Jan 3 2006 // A West Virginia coal mine where 13 miners were trapped after an explosion Monday was cited 208 times for alleged safety violations in 2005, up from just 68 citations the year before. Federal regulators’ allegations...

2005, a Year to Remember: Busiest Hurricane Season of the Century for United States

Dec 29 2005 // The hurricane season made 2005 a year-to-remember, with the southeast encountering the busiest hurricane season of the century, with 26 named storms and 13 hurricanes, meteorologists used up the list of 21 proper names and...

Court Upholds W. Va. Woman’s Coverage, Despite Bounced Check

Dec 12 2005 // A West Virginia Supreme Court ruling upholding coverage for a woman who wrote a bad check to start an auto insurance policy, saying she deserves coverage after she was involved in an accident, has Charleston insurance...

W. Va. Workers’ Comp Chief Warns Employers Failing to Pay

Dec 7 2005 // As it spins off as a private insurance program, West Virginia’s workers’ compensation program will show little patience with employers that fail to pay their premiums, its executive director said Monday. As of...

News Briefs

Dec 4 2005 // ALABAMA Alabama Expects 50,000 Claims More than 50,000 claims are expected in Alabama from hurricane damage, however, complete cost estimates won’t be available until this month. Ragan Ingram, Department of Insurance...

RATE DECREASE GRANTED

Nov 21 2005 // The West Vir-ginia Mutual Insu-rance Company has been granted a 5 percent rate increase according to Insurance Commissioner Jane L. Cline. West Virginia Mutual filed for the rate decrease with the Offices of the Insurance...

False Workers’ Comp Statement a Felony

Nov 21 2005 // West Virginia Insurance Commissioner, Jane L. Cline, announced Richard Custer Jr. was sentenced Oct. 12 on one felony charge of making a false statement to the Workers’ Compensation Commission. Custer, of Marshall...

FLORIDA

Nov 20 2005 // Brian, Brad and Dean Shecht-man, cousins who allegedly swindled more than 1,200 elderly victims out of millions of dollars in a bait-and-switch insurance scheme are in the limelight again as details surface about a...

News Briefs

Nov 20 2005 // FloridaFAIA Likes Due-Diligence Decision The Florida Association of Insu-rance Agents has filed an amicus (friend of the court) brief with the First District Court of Appeals in a case involving an insurance agent who...

Commissioner Cautions W. Va. Homeowners: Be Prepared For Winter

Nov 15 2005 // ‘Tis the season…for extreme cold, freezing rain, snow and strong winds, therefore, it is important to inspect and winterize your home, according to West Virginia Insurance Commissioner, Jane L. Cline. The...

PCI Applauds W. Va. Gov.’s Focus on Workers’ Comp Reform

Nov 14 2005 // The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) has applauded West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin for calling a special session of the State Legislature in order to finalize any remaining details of the...

W.Va. Study Shows Auto Collisions With Deer Average $1,700 Per Claim

Nov 9 2005 // The average cost of an automobile claim directly attributable to a driver having a collision with deer or wildlife is more than $1,700 per claim and totaling approximately $33 million, according to an annual study...

W. Va. Legislation Effectively Reduced Homeowners, Auto Rates

Nov 7 2005 // Automobile and homeowners rates have been dramatically reduced as a result of legislative changes made by the West Virginia Legisla-ture, Insurance Commissioner Jane L. Cline, told Professional Independent Insurance Agents...

W. Va. Legislation Effectively Reduced Homeowners, Auto Rates

Nov 6 2005 // Automobile and homeowners rates have been dramatically reduced as a result of legislative changes made by the West Virginia Legisla-ture, Insurance Commissioner Jane L. Cline, told Professional Independent Insurance Agents...

Rate Decrease Granted for W. Va. Mutual Insurance Co.

Nov 1 2005 // The West Virginia Mutual Insurance Company has been granted a 5 percent rate increase according to Insurance Commissioner Jane L. Cline. The new rates take effect Jan. 1, 2006. West Virginia Mutual filed for the rate...

Employer Guilty of Providing False Information to W.V. Workers Compensation Commission

Oct 25 2005 // West Virginia Insurance Commissioner, Jane L. Cline, announced Tuesday that Richard Custer Jr., was sentenced Oct. 12 on one felony charge of making a false statement to the Workers’ Compensation Commission. Custer,...

W. Va. Woman Charged With Fraud, Sold Fake Insurance Cards for $400

Oct 20 2005 // Martinsburg, W. Va. police have charged Barbara Lynn Gonzalez with making fake insurance cards and selling them to Hispanic residents, according to court records. Gonzalez has been charged with two felony counts of false...

Educational Seminar Kicks Off Big ‘I’ of W.Va.’s Annual Conference

Oct 7 2005 // An educational seminar on “Glitches, Hitches and Fixes,” by Fred Macy of Gray Wolf Insurance Seminars kicks off the Friday afternoon opening of the Professional Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of...

Horace Mann Corp. Decreases Auto Rates for W. Va. Educators

Oct 4 2005 // Horace Mann Educators Corp. has lowered auto insurance rates for West Virginia consumers an average of 4.4 percent effective Nov. 1, 2005. “We are pleased to reduce rates for educators in West Virginia,” said...