Latest Business Insurance Headlines

All the headlines from our Business Insurance Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Employers Can’t Use Vicarious Liability to Block Negligence Claims, TN High Court Says

Apr 10 2024 // The Tennessee Supreme Court this week dealt a blow to businesses and insurance companies, finding that employers can no longer argue that direct negligence claims are barred when the business admits vicarious liability for...

Arrowhead Launching Commercial Auto Product in California

Apr 5 2024 // Arrowhead General Insurance Agency Inc. in California launched a new commercial auto product. Arrowhead’s Commercial Auto is available to California customers in construction-related industries. The program includes:...

People Moves: Leif Assurance Hires Galvan as Commercial Lines Account Manager; Applied Underwriters Names Holtmeier VP, Strategic Development, for M&A and Partnership Alliances

Apr 4 2024 // Leif Assurance Hires Galvan as Commercial Lines Account Manager Leif Assurance, headquartered in St. Louis, hired Mayra Galvan as commercial lines account manager. Galvan is responsible for managing clients’ renewal...

Markets/Coverages: AXA XL’s U.S. Mid-Market Insurance Business Expands GL Coverage

Apr 4 2024 // AXA XL’s U.S. Mid-Market insurance business is extending its general liability coverage for mid-sized businesses with its new XL Plus broadening endorsement, offering more than two dozen expanded protections. The XL...

California Beefing up Recruitment for Inspectors to Better Enforce Workplace Laws

Mar 28 2024 // California’s Department of Industrial Relations is beefing up a statewide effort to recruit inspectors and investigators throughout California to more thoroughly enforce labor and workplace laws. The DIR is hiring...

Dean’s Sausage Faces $116K OSHA Penalty Over Alleged Workplace Hazards

Mar 27 2024 // The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says that a second inspection of Dean Sausage Co. Inc. in Ayyalia, Alabama found similar workplace safety hazards as identified in a 2022 inspection,...

Chubb: Middle Market Companies Post Record Gains

Mar 26 2024 // Middle-market companies posted record economic growth and revenue gains in the second half of 2023, according to a recent indicator survey by Chubb. A record 77% of companies reported performance improvement in the last...

Oklahoma Contractor Faces $103K in Fines After Fatal Workplace Asphyxiation

Mar 22 2024 // An Oklahoma City employer’s failure to follow federal safety procedures left a 30-year-old worker suffering fatal asphyxiation as they tried to make repairs inside a water tank at a McClain County wellsite in...

Medical Marijuana Law Does Not Impair Employers’ Right to Drug-Free Workplace

Mar 22 2024 // A Connecticut employer has the right to terminate an employee who is impaired by medical marijuana in the workplace. The Connecticut Appellate Court on March 19 upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit brought against a nonprofit...

People Moves: Sompo Promotes Allen as CUO of Global Markets Commercial P&C Insurance, Succeeding Easton; BMS Taps Howden’s Leahy as Cyber Practice Co-Leader

Mar 20 2024 // This edition of International People Moves details appointments at re/insurer Sompo and the re/insurance broker BMS. A summary of these new hires follows here. Sompo Promotes Allen as CUO of Global Markets Commercial...

North Carolina Labor Chief Rejects Infectious Disease Rules for Workplaces

Mar 19 2024 // RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s elected labor commissioner has declined to adopt rules sought by worker and civil rights groups that would have set safety and masking directives in workplaces for future...

People Moves: Moscowitz New COO at RT Specialty; Williams to Lead Nationwide’s Small Market Commercial Lines

Mar 15 2024 // Moscowitz New COO at RT Specialty RT Specialty promoted Marissa Moscowitz to chief operating officer. Moscowitz has over 15 years of information technology, business intelligence and business operations experience and has...

US Commercial Lines Survey Shows Aggregate Increase of 6.6% in Q4: WTW

Mar 7 2024 // U.S. commercial insurance prices increased 6.6% in the fourth quarter 2023, with “intriguing shifts” in some coverage areas, according to a survey from broker WTW. According to the latest results from...

25 Straight Quarters of Premium Increases for Commercial Lines: CIAB Survey

Mar 4 2024 // Overall commercial property/casualty premiums increased slightly for all account sizes to 7% on average in the fourth quarter 2023, continuing a trend that has now last more than 6 years. According to The Council of...

Small Business Cyber Gap

Mar 4 2024 // Yvette Prichard says cyber insurance continues to be an area where small businesses have significant gaps in their insurance portfolios. “It is a big risk; any business that does anything on a computer needs cyber...

SAIF in Oregon Reports Ice Caused Most Workplace Slips, Trips, Falls in 7 Years

Mar 4 2024 // SAIF in Oregon, which reported receiving 400-plus claims after January’s winter weather, said more Oregon workers were injured from slips, trips, and falls due to snow or ice than during any other storm since January...

Small Business Market: Rising Costs, Hard Market but Hope for New Opportunities

Mar 4 2024 // There are reasons to be optimistic about the small business insurance market. New businesses are opening their doors every day. Small business start-ups are booming with record-breaking new business applications reported...

Embedded Business Insurance Agency Coverdash Raises $13.5 Million

Feb 29 2024 // Coverdash, which offers embedded commercial insurance technology with products for startups and small-to-medium businesses, announced $13.5 million in Series A funding. Coverdash’s technology package gives businesses...

Marsh: US Commercial Lines Rates Up 3% in Q4 2023

Feb 19 2024 // Broker Marsh said the composite rate change at renewal for U.S. commercial lines was up 3% in the fourth quarter 2023, led by an 11% increase in property rates. The Marsh Global Insurance Market Index said it was the 25th...

Report: 2023 Combined Ratio Forecast at 103.9, Commercial Lines Performed Best

Feb 19 2024 // The 2023 net combined ratio for the property/casualty industry is forecast to be 103.9, with commercial lines at 97.7 and personal lines at 109.9, according to the latest underwriting projections by actuaries at the...