Latest Claims Headlines
All the headlines from our Claims Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Can a Governmental Entity Be Liable for Tort Claims? It Depends.
Jun 1 2020 // Everyone needs insurance. My entrance into the insurance world taught me that. The first place I worked in insurance specialized in providing insurance to fire departments and ambulance companies. Municipalities and their...
Australia’s 4 Summer Natural Disasters Cost Insurers More Than US$3.44 Billion
May 28 2020 // The cost of insurance claims from four natural catastrophes during Australia’s 2019-2020 summer has passed A$5.19 billion (US$3.44 billion), said the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA). Thousands of new claims and...
German Court Backs Damages Claims Against VW, Providing Clarity for 60,000 Cases
May 28 2020 // A German court has ruled that Volkswagen must buy back cars from owners of its diesel cars equipped with software that evaded emissions testing – but but consumers must accept the current value of the car based on the...
Viewpoint: What’s Fair When It Comes to Paying Insurance Claims?
May 28 2020 // The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has tragically resulted in the deaths of 100,000 Americans, changed our day-to-day lives, hampered our economy, and forced us to reexamine how we live. As the country moves to reopening, after...
California Workers’ Comp Bureau Lowers Mid-Range Estimate of COVID Costs by $10B
May 26 2020 // The Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California published estimated costs of allowing state workers to receive benefits for COVID-19 claims without proving virus exposure at work, dropping a prior...
Update: AXA to Pay Business Interruption Claims to Restaurants After Court Ruling
May 26 2020 // A Paris court ruled last week that AXA should pay a restaurant owner two months of revenue losses caused by the virus pandemic. AXA had argued its policy did not cover business disruption caused by the health...
Insurers, Agents Propose Pandemic Business Relief Plan; Plaintiffs Offer BIG Compromise
May 22 2020 // Key segments of the property/casualty insurance industry, which is facing mounting claims for business interruption losses from the pandemic, have thrown their lobbying weight behind a proposed federal program to replace...
Some of Hand Sanitizer Purell’s Claims Called Misleading, Draw Lawsuits
May 22 2020 // Everyone’s favorite hand sanitizer may have to stand trial for claiming it can stop you from getting sick. A trio of lawsuits has hit Purell’s maker, Gojo Industries Inc., since the World Health Organization...
Federal Coronavirus Business Interruption Suits Now Top 100; Many More Expected
May 22 2020 // A federal court has received notice that 101 lawsuits have been filed as of Wednesday seeking coverage from insurers for business interruption losses caused by COVID-19. Plaintiffs attorneys say they expect the number to...
UK’s Aviva Expects COVID-19-Related Claims of Nearly $200 Million
May 21 2020 // British insurer Aviva expects 160 million pounds ($195 million) in claims related to the coronavirus pandemic and weaker second quarter sales, it said on Thursday, as government lockdowns aimed at containing the virus hit...
I’m From the Government and I’m Here to Help – Part 3
May 20 2020 // This is third in a series of posts where I plan to respond to the bills that several states have filed to force insurance companies to pay business income claims related to COVID-19. Not reimbursing insurers means higher...
When Insurers Deny Claims, Brokers Are Next in Line for Allegations of Wrongdoing
May 19 2020 // In the wake of government orders shutting down or seriously limiting the operations of businesses to deal with the COVID-19 outbreak, many affected businesses have turned to their insurers for coverage. This has led to a...
Talc Miner Imerys to Forfeit North America Units to Settle 14,000 Cancer Lawsuits
May 18 2020 // Imerys SA, which mines talc used in Johnson & Johnson’s iconic Baby Powder and other products, agreed to turn over its North American operations to resolve more than 14,000 lawsuits claiming the mineral caused...
Profits to Sink Until 2021 Second Half: Fitch
May 18 2020 // While insurance rates have risen for nine consecutive quarters due to large catastrophe losses and accelerating claims inflation, Fitch Ratings expects that technical profits won’t be seen until the second half of...
Why Trust When You Should Know?
May 18 2020 // It is often said that people buy insurance trusting that it will be there when they actually need it, and this is very true. But why trust when you should know? Also true, but rarely said is the following, “Often,...
What to Expect in Workers’ Compensation Costs From COVID-19: NCCI
May 18 2020 // If only 10% of health care workers contract COVID-19 and all of their claims are deemed compensable, workers’ compensation loss costs for that sector could double or even triple in some states, according to an...
Transparency Is Key for Insurance Agents Handling Coronavirus Claims
May 18 2020 // Business interruption insurance has been a much-debated topic during the coronavirus crisis, with some businesses already pushing back against virus-related claim denials. In several cities, groups of businesses have filed...
California Workers’ Comp Bureau Chief Addresses COVID’s Impact on System
May 15 2020 // Bill Mudge has been put in a unique position during the pandemic. He’s got a sizeable workforce he’s had to reconfigure and manage much differently, and he heads the bureau that regulators, employers and...
Zurich Insurance Estimates Coronavirus Pandemic Claims to Hit $750 Million for 2020
May 14 2020 // Zurich Insurance estimates that the overall property and casualty (P&C) claims from the COVID-19 pandemic will be in the region of $750 million for 2020. To put that into context, Zurich’s CFO George Quinn said...
Legislation to Limit Car Accident Claims Advances in Louisiana
May 14 2020 // Louisiana’s Republican lawmakers have advanced proposals to limit damage claims against businesses in car wreck lawsuits, pushing ahead with the pre-coronavirus priority as Democrats argued the debate was...
