Latest Maine Headlines
All the headlines from our Maine Topic Page, ordered by recency.
N.H. Auto Insurance Rates Falling
Feb 8 2005 // New Hampshire drivers are benefiting from increased competition among auto insurers. Seven of the 11 auto insurance companies that have filed rate change requests with the state so far this year have asked for decreases,...
Federal Judge Backs Maine Law Requiring Compensation Disclosure by Benefit Managers
Feb 7 2005 // A federal judge has sided with the state of Maine in an industry challenge to the constitutionality of a state law that requires pharmacy benefit managers to disclose side payments from drug companies and other financial...
Maine Supreme Court Rules on Abuse Exclusion
Jan 27 2005 // Sexual abuse of a minor falls within an insurance coverage exclusion for injuries resulting from “actual or threatened abuse or molestation,” the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled recently in its first...
Maine Motorists Angered by Uninsured Rule
Jan 24 2005 // Some Maine motorists are angered over a new law under which motor vehicle registrations can be suspended if an insurance company notifies the state of a motorist canceling or failing to pay insurance. So far, more than...
Maine Lawmakers Look at Insurance to Plug Budget Gap
Jan 21 2005 // As the Maine Legislature opens its 2005 session, lawmakers are reportedly primarily concerned with tax issues, including a proposal that would tax insurance premiums to fund retirement health insurance for police and...
Motorcycle Fatalities in Maine Highest in Decade
Jan 7 2005 // The number of motorcycle fatalities hit the highest level in a decade in Maine in 2004, and riders who die are more likely to be baby boomers than teenagers on sport bikes, according to state officials. The number of...
Maine Auto Coverage Cancellation Law in Effect
Jan 5 2005 // Maine Secretary of State Dan A. Gwadosky is encouraging all Maine motorists and insurance professionals to familiarize themselves with the state’s new law requiring insurers to report cancellation of mandatory...
From Maine to Virginia … What Happened in 2004
Dec 20 2004 // Leaving aside the insurance brokerage compensation investigations, the World Trade Center trial, the St. Paul-Travelers merger and the UnumProvident settlement, all of which have their roots in this region but grew to...
NAIC Elects 2005 Officers
Dec 6 2004 // The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) elected four officers for 2005 during the NAIC Winter meeting in New Orleans, including a newly created position of president-elect to effectively serve a two-year...
Keeping Up with Insurance Brokerage Investigations
Dec 6 2004 // Recent Key Developments in Ongoing Probes of Marsh, Other Brokers and Insurers Marsh ‘Hopeful’ of Quick Settlement Marsh & McLennan has been in constant contact and cooperation with New York Attorney Eliot...
States Reach $120 Million Claims Agreement with UnumProvident
Dec 6 2004 // A multi-state settlement with UnumProvident Corp. over its disputed handling of disability claims would cost the firm more than $120 million to comply and require it to review more than seven years of claims. It also calls...
Maine, N.H., Vt. Rules May Spur Attorney Competition
Dec 3 2004 // For Conn. Agents, Concern Over Privacy in Disclosure The ongoing investigation of brokerage commissions and alleged bid-rigging that started in New York is being felt everywhere, nowhere more so than neighboring...
Multi-State, $120M Agreement with UnumProvident Requires Reassessing Claims Back to 1997
Nov 18 2004 // A multi-state settlement with UnumProvident Corp. over its disputed handling of disability claims would cost the firm more than $120 million to comply and require it to review more than seven years of claims. It also calls...
Maine Preparing Questionnaires for Largest Brokers
Nov 18 2004 // Maine has joined a nationwide investigation into price fixing and other abuses in the insurance industry. Maine Insurance Superintendent Al Iuppa said his department is working with the National Association of Insurance...
Maine’s Northeast Bank Buys Sargent Agency
Oct 28 2004 // Northeast Financial Services, Co., Auburn, Maine, a subsidiary of Northeast Bank, recently agreed to acquire Sargent Insurance Agency of Rangeley, Maine. The expanded insurance agency will be known as Northeast Financial...
MAINE CLARIFIES UIM LANGUAGE:
Oct 25 2004 // The Maine Supreme Judicial Court in a 5-2 vote has ruled that insurers may not restrict their liability under uninsured motorists coverage to less than what Maine law requires. The Sept. 30 ruling in Butterfield v. Norfolk...
Maine Supreme Court Strikes Down Policy Limitation on Uninsured Motorist Coverage
Oct 4 2004 // The Maine Supreme Judicial Court in a 5-2 vote has ruled that insurers may not restrict their liability under uninsured motorists coverage to less than what Maine law requires. The Sept 30 ruling in Butterfield v. Norfok...
Sign-Up for Maine Health Plan, Dirigo, Begins
Oct 4 2004 // Small businesses and self-employed individuals in Maine can begin signing up for the state’s new health insurance program today, Oct. 4, with coverage beginning on Jan. 1. But people who are unemployed or work for a...
Maine Uncovers Bogus Hartford Casualty Operation
Sep 22 2004 // Maine officials have warned consumers and industry professionals about a scam involving an unlicensed company using a name and logo similar to those of The Hartford, the well-known insurer, and one of its duly licensed...
ME. GUN MAKER SETTLES SNIPER SUIT:
Sep 20 2004 // A rifle manufacturer’s decision to pay $550,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by victims and victims’ families in the Washington, D.C.-area sniper shootings is a first, according to a gun control lawyer. Bushmaster...
