The Fight Against Staged Collisions Goes Federal
A bipartisan proposal has been put forth by U.S. Congressmen Garret Graves, Henry Cuellar, and Mike Bost with the aim of criminalizing intentional collisions with motor carriers at the federal level. Named the Highway Accident Fairness Act of 2023, this legislation seeks to address the issue of fraudulent lawsuits, decrease car insurance rates, and enhance road safety.
June 30, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Legislation & Regulation
Nature Conservancy Adds $2M Insurance Coverage for Hawaii’s Coral Reefs
The Central Pacific hurricane season has started, and this year, the Nature Conservancy has purchased $2 million in insurance coverage to protect against potential damage to the coral reefs in Hawaii.
June 15, 2023
Catastrophe
Excess & Surplus Lines
Hawaii
IIHS Advocates for Mandatory Side Underride Guards in Large Trucks to Save Lives
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) should reconsider its dramatic underestimate of the number of lives that could be saved by requiring side underride guards for large trucks, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said in a recent regulatory comment.
June 14, 2023
Auto
Excess & Surplus Lines
Legislation & Regulation
Legal Consequences: Jury Verdict Could Cost Utility Company Billions After Oregon Wildfires
A jury in the northwestern U.S. state of Oregon on Monday found the electric utility PacifiCorp responsible for causing devastating fires during Labor Day weekend in 2020, ordering the company to pay tens of millions of dollars to 17 homeowners who sued and finding it liable for broader damages that could push the total award into the billions.
June 13, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Liability
Litigation
Oregon
Inferno Erupts at Charlotte Apartment Construction Site, Two Workers Missing
Over 90 firefighters responded to the scene of a massive fire at a construction site in Charlotte, North Carolina, Thursday morning and braved devastating conditions to rescue workers who were caught in the blaze.
May 19, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
North Carolina
’Warlike Action’ Exclusion Doesn’t Apply To Merck’s Cyberattack Claim
A New Jersey appeals court ruled last week that an exclusion for ‘hostile/warlike action’ in insurance policies covering "all risks" didn’t bar a pharmaceutical company’s claim for damages in a cyberattack.
May 10, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Litigation
New Jersey
Words Matter: Series Of Leaks Constitutes Single Occurrence Under Policy Language
In a recent decision from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division, styled KT State & Lemon, LLP et al. v. Westchester Fire Ins. Co. et al., the Court granted summary judgment to the Plaintiffs and held that a series of leaks occurring over a three-month period constituted a single ‘occurrence’ under a specific Builder’s Risk Policy.
May 3, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Litigation
SpaceX’s Starship Launch Goes Boom
Well, it looks like SpaceX’s Starship had a bit of a rough day. You know that feeling when you’re super excited for a big trip and then your car explodes just a few minutes after leaving the driveway? Yeah, that’s pretty much what happened here.
April 20, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Texas
Many Organizations Admit To Covering Up Data Breaches
Almost a third (30%) of all IT and security professionals whose firms suffered a data breach did not publicly disclose the event, but rather decided to sweep it under the rug.
April 7, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Fraud
Cargo Shipping Snarls Are Wreaking Havoc In The Supply Chain. One Group That’s Not Complaining? Thieves
There were 1,778 ‘supply-chain risk events’ across the United States and Canada in 2022, an increase of 15% from 2021, according to CargoNet, a commercial theft-prevention and recovery service.
April 3, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Construction’s Cloudy Outlook
This year expects to see challenges in the housing market, construction industry, and claims. The headwinds are plenty: higher interest rates for construction loans, rising labor and material costs, slowing demand from homebuyers squeezed by more expensive mortgages, and fears of a looming recession as cities continue to recover from the pandemic.
March 31, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Property
Spooky Nook Lawsuit Designated As ‘Complex Litigation’
Butler County Judge Noah Powers designated this week the lawsuit against Spooky Nook Sports Champion Mill and its owner, a subcontractor, and multiple insurance companies as ‘complex litigation.’
March 28, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Litigation
Ohio
Ohio Sues Norfolk Southern Over Train Derailment In East Palestine
Ohio filed a lawsuit against railroad Norfolk Southern to make sure it pays for the cleanup and environmental damage caused by a fiery train derailment on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border last month, the state’s attorney general said Tuesday.
March 15, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Liability
Litigation
Ohio
Louisiana Gubernatorial Candidate Declares She’d Halt Coastal Litigation
Louisiana Republican gubernatorial candidate Sen. Sharon Hewitt is promising to shut down all coastal litigation involving alleged damage from energy companies.
March 2, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Litigation
Louisiana
Ohio Residents Evacuate After Derailed Train Threatens Explosion
Residents of East Palestine in northeast Ohio have been asked to evacuate, as officials fear the cars of a train that derailed nearby might explode or release toxic gases.
February 6, 2023
Excess & Surplus Lines
Ohio
