Latest California Headlines

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

Firms to Pay $9M to Settle Suit Over Damages in 2012 California Wildfire

Dec 12 2018 // Officials say a construction company and a logging firm have collectively agreed to pay $9 million for damages resulting from a 2012 wildfire that burned more than 1,600 acres of national forest land in Northern...

Utilities to Cover Power Lines, Expand Weather Monitoring in High Risk Areas

Dec 12 2018 // California utilities plan to insulate power lines, increase inspections and build new weather stations in areas at high risk for wildfires in an effort to combat increasingly destructive blazes. Southern California Edison...

PG&E Sued for Ad Spending Instead of on Preventing Events Like the California Wildfire

Dec 11 2018 // PG&E Corp. was accused of putting its “reputation above public safety” in a lawsuit alleging that the power company spends too much on advertising and not enough on preventing devastating Northern...

Online Sleuthing Skills Help in Wake of California Wildfire

Dec 11 2018 // They have become known as the Angels of Paradise. But there is nothing ethereal about them. They are online sleuths who know how to find people, and they have been putting their skills to use in the aftermath of...

Probe into Student Death Finds California School Violated Rules

Dec 10 2018 // An investigation into a 13-year-old student’s death at a Northern California private school has found the school violated state rules when its staff put him in a face-down restraint position for nearly an hour. State...

Chiropractor in California Pleads Guilty in $150M Workers’ Comp Fraud Scheme

Dec 10 2018 // A Los Angeles, Calif. chiropractor has pleaded guilty to taking part in a $150 million workers’ compensation fraud scheme. Paul Turley of Granada Hills pleaded last week to conspiracy to commit insurance fraud,...

Report: Return on Net Worth for California Workers’ Comp Insurers Rose

Dec 7 2018 // A new report shows the average return on net worth for California workers ‘ compensation insurers rose to 9.9 percent in 2017, the fourth consecutive increase. The report comes from the National Association of...

Target Paying $7.4M to Settle California Waste Lawsuit

Dec 7 2018 // The Target store chain has agreed to pay $7.4 million to settle California allegations that it improperly dumped hazardous waste into landfills, ranging from batteries to drugs and syringes. Minnesota-based Target...

Deadly California ‘Firenado’ Explained in New Study

Dec 7 2018 // A rare fire tornado that raged during this summer’s deadly Carr Fire in Northern California was created by a combination of scorching weather, erratic winds and an ice-topped cloud that towered miles into the...

Aon Cites Need for Mitigation as Insured Wildfire Losses Top $10B for Second Year

Dec 7 2018 // Total aggregated economic losses for the wildfires that have burned across Northern and Southern California throughout the month are expected to minimally exceed $10 billion, while insurance claims payouts for wildfires...

Emails Released in U.K. Probe Show How Facebook Wielded Users’ Data

Dec 7 2018 // Facebook Inc. wielded user data like a bargaining chip, providing access when that sharing might encourage people to spend more time on the social network — and imposing strict limits on partners in cases where it...

Romaine Lettuce Outbreak Highlights Safety Measures in Produce Industry

Dec 7 2018 // After repeated food poisoning outbreaks linked to romaine lettuce, the produce industry is confronting the failure of its own safety measures in preventing contaminations. The E. coli outbreak announced just before...

Modeler: Insured Losses from Camp Wildfire in California at $6B to $9B

Dec 6 2018 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide estimates that industry insured losses from the Camp Fire in Northern California will be between $6 billion and $9 billion, and taken together with the Woolsey fire in Southern...

California Attorney General Brought into PG&E Wildfire Probe

Dec 6 2018 // California Attorney General Xavier Becerra was asked by a federal judge to weigh in on whether reckless operation of power lines by PG&E Corp. in connection with deadly Northern California wildfires would constitute a...

Farmers Expects $2.1B in Claims from California Wildfires

Dec 5 2018 // Farmers Insurance expects $2.1 billion in claims from the California wildfires in November. The Los Angeles, Calif.-based carrier said it has so far received more than 9,000 claims combined for the Camp Fire in Northern...

Woodruff Sawyer Names Margolin Northern California Employee Benefits Practice Leader

Dec 5 2018 // Woodruff Sawyer has named Joelle Margolin the Northern California employee benefits practice leader. Margolin has nearly 20 years of experience, and is a former employment lawyer and long-term HR professional. She was...

California School District to Settle Child Molest Lawsuit for $6.2M

Dec 5 2018 // Attorneys say a Southern California school district has agreed to pay $6.2 million to settle a lawsuit over a worker who allegedly molested three elementary school students. The Riverside Press-Enterprise says the...

California Highway Patrol May Have Used Tesla Autopilot to Stop Speeding Car

Dec 5 2018 // The California Highway Patrol says it may have used the Autopilot system of a Tesla to stop the car after its driver fell asleep. The CHP says officers attempted to stop the Tesla Model S, which was doing about 70 mph on a...

Schools Open 3 Weeks After Northern California Wildfire

Dec 4 2018 // Monday marked a return to school and some semblance of routine for thousands of children who lost their homes to a deadly wildfire in Northern California. Schools in Butte County have been closed since Nov. 8, when the...

Expert Sees a ‘Strong Need’ for Insurance for Cannabis Industry

Dec 3 2018 // Powered by InsuranceJournal.tv There’s “still a really strong need” for specialty insurance to cover cannabis businesses as well as medical professionals prescribing cannabis, according to an attorney who...