INSURANCE NEWS
Markets/Coverages: MGA Optio and Insurer Partner AmFirst to Offer Political Violence & Terrorism Cover
Optio Group, the London-based specialty managing general agent (MGA), announced it has entered into an agreement with a new insurer partner to provide underwriting capacity for political violence and terrorism (PVT) risks. The partner company – AmFirst Insurance Co. (AmFirst) …
Houthi Militants Hit Fuel Tanker With Missile in Vital Red Sea Trade Artery
A fuel tanker was struck by missile as it navigated the Red Sea, the latest in a string of incidents that have turned the area where the attack took place into the world’s riskiest waters. The vessel’s owner said the …
Tech Update: Hiscox London Mkt, Google Collaborate to Boost Underwriting With AI
Hiscox, the specialist global insurer, has collaborated with Google Cloud to create the first AI-enhanced lead underwriting model in the London market insurance industry. The collaboration combines Hiscox London Market’s recently built technology platform, Hiscox AI Laboratories (Hailo) with Google …
Typhoon That Hit China’s Ports Provides Wakeup Call for Climate Risk to Markets
As Typhoon Doksuri aimed toward mainland China, major southeast ports were forced to turn away dozens of vessels for days. The storm, supercharged by the warm July waters of the Pacific, delivered Beijing’s worst flooding in more than 50 years, …
Apple-Backed Study Finds Rise in Data Breaches as iPhone Maker Defends Encryption
In the first nine months of 2023, U.S. data breaches increased by 20% compared to the full year 2022, according to a new study that was commissioned by Apple. The iPhone maker paid for the study, which was conducted by …
Bernie Madoff Is Long Gone. The Lawyers Are Going Strong
Long before cryptocurrency and Sam Bankman-Fried, the biggest name in corporate fraud was Bernie Madoff. Fifteen years after the FBI arrested Madoff on Dec. 11, 2008 for running a massive Ponzi scheme — and two years after his death in …
Mallory Agency Adds Offices in Auburn and Charleston
Mallory Agency, a property/casualty insurance broker based in Atlanta and La Grange, has opened offices in Auburn, Alabama, and Charleston, South Carolina. The move in Charleston was driven in part by market demand in the growing restaurant and hospitality business …
Washington Cancer Center Patients Receiving Threatening Emails Following Massive Breach
Some patients of a Seattle, Washington-based cancer center received threatening emails following a data breach last month. Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center officials said a Nov. 19 hack hit a portion of the health care system`s clinical network, possibly leaking patient …
AM Best Upgrades Financial Strength Rating of Louisiana Dealer Services Insurance
AM Best has upgraded the Financial Strength Rating to A (Excellent) from A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings to “a” (Excellent) from “a-” (Excellent) of Louisiana Dealer Services Insurance, Inc. (LDS) and its subsidiaries, Loss Deficiency Surety Insurance …
Texas Department of Insurance to Hold Meet The Regulator Event
The Texas Department of Insurance will hold a Meet the Regulator event from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, January 16, 2024. Commissioner Cassie Brown starts the event with an agency update in Barbara Jordan Building conference room 2.035. No …
Ohio Meat Processing Plant Faces $277,000 in Proposed Penalties for Safety Violations
A federal investigation into how a 35-year-old worker suffered severe leg burns, degloving of their foot and other injuries after falling into corrosive chemicals in May 2023 has found that an Ohio meat processing plant’s safety failures exposed employees to …
Adults in Ohio Can Legally Possess and Grow Marijuana – But There’s Nowhere to Buy It
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Ohioans woke up Thursday in a land of recreational marijuana limbo, in which adults can legally grow and possess cannabis at home, but cannot legally buy it. That combination of factors related to a citizen-initiated statue …