Latest Illinois Headlines
All the headlines from our Illinois Topic Page, ordered by recency.
States’ Lawsuit Climates Influence Expansion Decisions, Say Businesses
Sep 18 2017 // An all-time high 85 percent of senior business executives at major U.S. companies say a state’s lawsuit environment is likely to impact decisions about where to locate or expand their business, according to the U.S....
Ex-Illinois County Chairman, State Farm Consultant Sentenced in Fraud Case
Sep 15 2017 // A former Illinois county board chairman who also previously worked for State Farm Insurance Co. as a consultant has been sentenced to 12 months and a day in federal prison after being convicted of a wire fraud scheme. In...
Illinois Governor Vetoes Workers’ Comp Bills Opposed by Insurers
Sep 4 2017 // Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has vetoed two workers’ compensation reform bills that were strongly opposed by the insurance industry. Rauner in August vetoed HB 2622 and HB2525, two bills that would have had profound...
Northern Underwriting Managers’ Fendler Indicted Again; Faces 20 Fraud Counts
Sep 4 2017 // The owner of multiple property/casualty insurance operations in northern Illinois has been indicted once again, this time on charges that he defrauded more than 100 clients. Todd J. Fendler, of Rockford, Ill., previously...
Illinois Governor Vetoes 2nd Workers’ Comp Bill
Aug 29 2017 // Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has vetoed another workers’ compensation reform bill that was strongly opposed by the insurance industry. He has nixed HB2525, which would have required pre-approval of workers’ comp...
Illinois Governor Vetoes 1 of 2 Workers’ Comp Bills Opposed by Insurers
Aug 23 2017 // Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has vetoed a workers’ compensation reform bill that has been strongly opposed by the insurance industry. Rauner on Aug. 18 vetoed HB 2622, which would have created the Illinois Employers...
Northern Illinois Agency Owner Indicted Again; Slapped with 20 Fraud Counts
Aug 22 2017 // The owner of multiple property/casualty insurance operations in northern Illinois has been indicted once again, this time on charges that he defrauded more than 100 clients. Todd J. Fendler, of Rockford, Ill., previously...
Illinois Attorney General Reaches $4.5M Settlement in Opioid Marketing Case
Aug 22 2017 // Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has reached a $4.5 million settlement with an Arizona-based pharmaceutical company that her office sued for deceptive marketing of an opioid drug meant for cancer patients. Madigan...
Industrial Insurer HDI Global Forms Excess Surplus Lines Carrier
Aug 18 2017 // Industrial insurer HDI Global Insurance Co. (HDI) has formed an excess and surplus lines subsidiary, HDI Specialty Insurance Co. The new platform will “bring European expertise and solutions” to the alternative...
Illinois’ Alera Group Taps Assurex Global’s Clark to Lead Employee Benefits Practice
Aug 15 2017 // Alera Group, a Deerfield, Illinois-based national employee benefits, property/casualty, risk management and wealth management firm, appointed John Clark as its national employee benefits practice leader. Clark will...
Illinois’ Mutual Reinsurance Bureau Looking for New CEO
Aug 11 2017 // The Mutual Reinsurance Bureau (MRB), based in Cherry Valley, Ill., has begun the formal process of identifying a successor to the company’s current chief executive officer Timothy Dorr. Dorr plans to retire from the...
Classic Cars Worth Millions Destroyed by Fire in Illinois
Aug 11 2017 // Dozens of antique vehicles were destroyed when a fire swept through a garage outside the southern Illinois community of Staunton. Staunton Fire Protection District Chief Rick Haase says about a third of the building that...
Crop Damage from Herbicide Dicamba a Growing Problem Across U.S. Farm Belt
Aug 2 2017 // Larry Martin in Illinois says he’s never seen anything like it in his 35 years of farming. Arkansas soybean grower Joe McLemore says he faces the loss of his life savings. They’re among farmers across the U.S....
Illinois Insurance Agent Sentenced to 5 Years for Fraud Scheme
Jul 26 2017 // A Decatur, Ill., independent insurance agent has been sentenced to 63 months in federal prison for defrauding his clients, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of Illinois reported. Chief U.S. District...
Flooding Continues in Northern Illinois as Storms Move Through
Jul 25 2017 // Severe thunderstorms that brought heavy rain, hail and strong winds to northern Illinois have exacerbated recent flooding in some areas. The storms moved through Sunday, causing the already-swollen Fox River to rise again...
How Surplus Lines Insurers Can Beat Illinois Bad Faith Claims
Jul 24 2017 // Surplus lines insurers, your Illinois policies are exempt from all statutory bad faith claims. Or at least they’re arguably exempt. But whether arguable or actual, you should be moving to dismiss these claims at the...
Study: Reforms Targeting Physician-Dispensed Drugs Have Mixed Results
Jul 24 2017 // A new study has found that state reforms to control the costs of prescription drugs by targeting reimbursements for physicians dispensing them are having some effect but that physician-dispensing still accounts for a large...
States See Mixed Results from Reforms Targeting Physician-Dispensed Drugs: WCRI
Jul 12 2017 // A new study has found that state reforms to control the costs of prescription drugs by targeting reimbursements for physicians dispensing them are having some effect but that physician-dispensing still accounts for a large...
Arsons in Peoria, Illinois, Keep Firefighters Busy
Jul 11 2017 // Dealing with a fire can be a serious problem on its own and becomes even more intense when people set buildings ablaze deliberately. That’s the issue in South Peoria, Ill., in late 2016 and earlier this year when a...
Illinois County Sues Opioid Makers
Jul 10 2017 // A southwest Illinois county is suing pharmaceutical companies, alleging the prescription painkiller epidemic is worse due to deceptive marketing. The Jersey County lawsuit was filed against the makers of opioids, including...
