INSURANCE NEWS
Erie Insurance Launches Venture Capital Fund
Pennsylvania-based Erie Insurance has launched Erie Strategic Ventures to invest in innovations in risk avoidance, claims, underwriting, digital sales, agency productivity, and products and services for home, families and small businesses. Erie said the venture fund is stage and geography …
State Farm to Pay $100 Million to Federal Government for Hurricane Katrina Claims
State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. and two former claims-adjuster sisters, who more than 16 years ago filed a lawsuit claiming the insurer committed fraud against the government’s National Flood Insurance Program following Hurricane Katrina, have settled. According to documents …
Hub Acquires Winter Harbor Agency in Massachusetts
Global insurance broker Hub International reports it has acquired the assets of Winter Harbor Insurance Group. Located in Woburn, Massachusetts, Winter Harbor Insurance Group is an independent insurance agency providing commercial and personal insurance. Jimmy Aiken, president of Winter Harbor, …
Gas Producer Santos Faces New Climate Claim in Landmark Greenwashing Case
Activists mounting one of the world’s first legal challenges over corporate greenwashing have expanded a case against gas producer Santos Ltd., raising fresh allegations about the company’s climate plans. A suit filed against the oil and gas producer is the …
Indian Ocean Off Coast of Somalia to Lose ‘High-Risk Area’ Designation as Piracy Drops
The global shipping industry agreed to declassify the Indian Ocean coastline off Somalia as a “high-risk area” following years of successful counter-piracy operations. The change was approved by marine groups including the International Chamber of Shipping and will be operational …
Russian Coal Exports Effectively Halted by EU Ban, With Re/Insurance as Key Factor
Russian coal exports were effectively halted by a European Union ban on entities within the 27-nation bloc servicing shipments of the fuel to anywhere in the world. Suek JSC, Russia’s largest thermal coal miner, was unable to ship the fuel …
Judge Dismisses Former Nebraska Officer’s Discrimination Lawsuit
A judge has dismissed the discrimination lawsuit of a former Lincoln, Nebraska Police Department spokeswoman, saying her allegations did not sufficiently prove a hostile work environment. Erin Spilker said in her lawsuit that she faced years of discrimination and that …
Weather Whiplash: Summer Lurches From Drought to Flood
Parts of northern Texas, mired in a drought labeled as extreme and exceptional, are flooding under torrential rain. In a drought. Sound familiar? It should. The Dallas region is just the latest drought-suffering-but-flooded locale during a summer of extreme weather …
Baldwin Risk Partners Donates $5M to USF for Insurance Program
Tampa-based Baldwin Risk Partners Group and the family behind it this week announced a $5 million gift to the University of South Florida to boost the school’s risk management and insurance program. It’s the largest gift in the history of …
Gas Vapors Caused Cape Cod Marina Fire That Ruined 6 Buildings, 47 Vehicles, 14 Boats
Gasoline vapors ignited by spark during a gas tank replacement project on a boat was the likely cause of a major fire at a Massachusetts marina last week that destroyed buildings, vehicles and boats and sent one employee to the …
Walmart Ordered to Pay Oregon Man $4.4M for Racial Profiling
A Multnomah County grand jury has ordered Walmart to pay $4.4 million in damages to a man who sued the store, saying he was racially profiled and harassed by a Walmart employee at a Portland, Oregon, area store in 2020. …
Firefighter Sues Rochester Over Party Couple Defends as ‘Anti-Liberal’ Not Racist
ROCHESTER, N.Y. —A Rochester couple who a Black firefighter accused of throwing a racist pool party this summer mocking the Juneteenth holiday said Tuesday that the party was intended to ridicule liberal politicians but wasn’t bigoted. The couple, dentist Nicholas …