Latest Contractors Headlines
All the headlines from our Contractors Topic Page, ordered by recency.
U.S. Appeals Court Takes Up American Family Agent/Employee Classification Case
Aug 1 2018 // A federal appeals court in Ohio on July 31 heard arguments by opposing attorneys in a class action involving whether agents working for an insurance carrier on an exclusive basis should be classified as independent...
Texas Petrochemical Contractor to Pay $135K in Disability Suit Settlement
Aug 1 2018 // A Texas petrochemical services company that fired three brothers because of a blood disorder that they shared will pay $135,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by federal officials over the firing. Signature Industrial Services...
Texas Contractor Ordered to Pay $250K After Worker Fatality at Dallas Site
Jul 26 2018 // A Texas construction contractor has been ordered to pay $250,000 in criminal and civil penalties an employee suffered a fatal fall at an apartment complex in Dallas, federal safety officials said. U.S. District Court Judge...
Contractor Cited in Worker’s Death at Indiana University
Jul 23 2018 // Indiana regulators have cited a contractor for serious workplace safety violations found following a worker’s death at an Indiana University construction site. Thirty-five-year-old William M. Brown Jr. of Bloomington...
What’s New in Today’s Construction Insurance Market
Jul 23 2018 // Brokers who specialize in the construction industry love their clients and are very committed to keeping up with their needs. Ask them, “So what’s new?” and the conversations inevitably veer off in...
Philadelphia Launches Pool, Spa Contractors Program
Jul 19 2018 // Philadelphia Insurance Companies’ (PHLY) has launched a new Pool and Spa Contractors Program in response to increased demand for pool construction. The PHLY comprehensive package product includes coverage for pool...
How the Florida Insurance Industry Hopes to Rein In AOB Crisis
Jul 19 2018 // “I think the number one thing the insurance industry can do is link AOB (assignment of benefits) to the impact that it’s having on the individual consumer and the huge impact it’s having on the premiums...
$47.5M Settlement for Boy Who Lost Leg During California Camping Trip
Jun 29 2018 // A boy who lost his leg and part of his pelvis after a tree fell on his tent during a camping trip at a public park will receive $47.5 million from a California municipality and utility in a lawsuit settlement, an attorney...
Florida Utility Contractor Faces Nearly $19K in Fines for Safety Hazards
Jun 25 2018 // South Florida utility contractor Douglas N. Higgins is facing $18,659 in proposed penalties after the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited the contractor for exposing...
Chubb Adds Artisan Contractors Coverage to Small Business Online Platform
Jun 22 2018 // Chubb has introduced a new insurance product available to more than 60 classes of artisan contractors through its new digital platform – the Chubb Small Commercial Marketplace, which places and services small business...
A Few More Thoughts About Assignments of Benefits
Jun 20 2018 // I last wrote about assignments of benefits (AOB) back in January. You didn’t read that one? I’m shocked, but I’ll be ok. Here’s the link to my thoughts about assignments of benefits. You don’t...
UK Court Rules Contractor Entitled to Employment Rights in Test Case for Gig Economy
Jun 18 2018 // A London plumber who claimed he was unfairly dismissed after years of working as a contractor won a court ruling Wednesday [June 13] giving him employment rights, in a closely watched case testing labor rules in the...
Insider Viewpoint: How Contractors’ Use of Digital Surveillance Enhances Quality While Reducing Defect Litigation
Jun 18 2018 // In the quality assurance world, the days of clipboards, pencils and punch lists have gone the way of green eye shades and buggy whips. Today’s quality assurance is based on sophisticated, digitally generated business...
Keeping Up With Construction Insurance
Jun 18 2018 // Brokers who specialize in the construction industry love their clients and are very committed to keeping up with their needs. Ask them, “So what’s new?” and the conversations inevitably veer off in...
WCIRB: California Workers’ Comp Written Premium to be Down Again This Year
Jun 15 2018 // Lower workers’ compensation rates in California will bring down written premium once again this year, according to a forecast from the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau. That revelation is expected...
Wisconsin Contractor Cited, Fined $120.3K for Workplace Safety Hazards
Jun 15 2018 // Federal safety officials have cited a Wisconsin roofing contractor for exposing employees to falls and other safety hazards at two separate job sites. Penalties proposed for Appleton roofing contractor Hector Hernandez by...
XL Catlin Offers TradeTapp Tool that Helps Contractors Pre-Qualify Subcontractors
Jun 15 2018 // XL Catlin’s North America Construction insurance business has teamed up with construction tech start up, TradeTapp, to provide Subcontractor Default Insurance (SDI) clients with access to the platform that helps...
Engineering Insurance Results Deteriorate but Better Times Could Be Ahead: Swiss Re
Jun 14 2018 // Underwriting performance in global engineering insurance has deteriorated over recent years – on declining premiums and rising claims in some construction sectors due to poor quality control, according to Swiss Re in its...
Sizing Up the Gig Economy
Jun 14 2018 // Look around, and it seems more Americans are working outside traditional full-time jobs — whether as freelance graphic designers or independent contractors or Uber drivers. Or maybe not. A government report this week...
Hundreds of Complaints Filed Against Texas Contractors After Harvey
Jun 13 2018 // Homeowners have filed hundreds of complaints and lawsuits against contractors in Houston and other storm-damaged cities following Hurricane Harvey. The Houston Chronicle reports that the complaints vary from shoddy work...
