INSURANCE NEWS
Georgia Bill Would Expand PTSD Help for Responders But Not Through Workers’ Comp
After three years of starts and stops, a bill is moving through the Georgia legislature that would provide mental stress benefits for first responders – not through workers’ compensation but through a relatively new type of supplemental insurance program. So …
OSHA Fines Georgia Plumbing Contractor $186,000 After Fatal Fall Down Manhole
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has fined a Georgia plumbing contractor more than $184,000 for failing to take safety measures to prevent a fatal fall last summer. Robert Hall, a 34-year-old father of four, was asked to crawl …
Arthur J. Gallagher Acquires Ericson Advisors of Connecticut
Global insurance broker Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. reported the acquisition of Washington Depot, Connecticut-based Ericson Insurance Advisors. Ericson Insurance Advisors is a personal lines-focused insurance broker serving high-net-worth clients nationwide. Spencer Houldin, Peter Houldin and their team will remain …
Aviation Lessors Secure Settlements With Russia Totaling $2.5B for Trapped Planes
Aircraft leasing firms have secured settlements with Russia totaling more than $2.5 billion for over a quarter of the roughly 400 aircraft stuck in the country since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. In return, international lessors are handing ownership …
Louisiana Medical Group to Pay $480K Over Phishing Attack
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office for Civil Rights (OCR), last month announced that Lafourche Medical Group, a Louisiana medical group specializing in emergency medicine, occupational medicine, and laboratory testing, agreed to a settlement over a …
Bayer’s Billions in Roundup Verdicts Increase Pressure for New Legal Strategy
Bayer AG faces mounting pressure to come up with a new plan for handling its Roundup weedkiller litigation after getting hammered by US jury verdicts totaling almost $4 billion over the last three months. The German conglomerate’s latest courtroom loss …
Highway Repairs Underway in Ohio Following Tanker Truck Crash and Fuel Spill
MACEDONIA, Ohio (AP) — Authorities have identified the tanker truck driver killed in a crash in Ohio that spilled thousands of gallons (liters) of diesel fuel over the weekend as repairs to the highway continue. The Summit County medical examiner’s …
BMS Re’s CEO Chandler Steps Down to Become Vice Chair; Interim Co-CEOs Named
BMS Re, the specialty reinsurance arm of global broker BMS Group, announced that Andrew Wheeler and Russ McGuire have been appointed as interim co-CEOs of BMS Re. The appointments follow Pete Chandler stepping down as CEO and becoming vice chair …
Wisconsin Ice Cream Plant Fined $145K for Safety Violations
Responding to a report of workers being exposed to anhydrous ammonia, federal investigators found a Madison, Wisconsin ice cream plant lacked sufficient process safety management procedures to control the release of hazardous chemicals. Exposure to anhydrous ammonia, used in the …
State Troopers Arrested for Alleged Commercial Drivers License Bribery Scam
Two current and two former Massachusetts State Police troopers are among six charged in connection with an alleged conspiracy to give passing scores to certain Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) applicants, including individuals who had failed or did not take the …
Move to End Georgia’s Direct-Action Lawsuits vs. Trucking Insurers Gaining Steam
This year could be the year that Georgia joins most other states and repeals its direct-action law that has reportedly caused severe problems for trucking companies needing liability insurance. Several Georgia Republican legislative leaders and the state’s insurance commissioner said …
UK Navy Warns of Piracy Menace to Ships in Indian Ocean
The UK Navy posted an advisory to merchant ships in the Indian Ocean warning of pirate activity, a sign of a growing threat to a maritime industry that’s been coming under missile attacks near Yemen. Two so-called pirate action groups …