Latest Pennsylvania Headlines
All the headlines from our Pennsylvania Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Pa. High Court Dismisses Insurer Appeal of $3.07M Award
Sep 5 2006 // The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal by Erie Insurance Exchange of a judge’s order to pay $3.07 million to a customer who alleged that her claim was mishandled. In a January 2002 case, Luzerne...
Court: Pennsylvania agents have no duty to inspect flood risks
Sep 4 2006 // Insurance agents and insurers in Pennsylvania were breathing a sigh of relief following a court ruling that says agents do not have a duty to inspect all properties before binding or renewing flood insurance coverage. Had...
Declarations
Sep 4 2006 // No requirement “Although the court concluded that the commissioner has the authority to implement an assigned risk plan, the decision by no means requires her to do so.” James A. Ermilio, executive vice...
Pa. Agent Accused of Stealing Premiums to Gamble Online
Aug 31 2006 // Criminal charges have been filed against a Potter County, Pa. insurance agent who is accused of stealing more than $21,000 in insurance premiums from clients for online gambling and other personal uses, according to...
Pa. Jury Awards $895K in Delayed Cancer Diagnosis Case
Aug 22 2006 // A Pennsylvania jury has awarded $895,000 in damages to a woman whose doctor was accused of failing to diagnose her with breast cancer when the disease was at an early stage, forcing her to undergo surgery and...
Pa. Police Stop 1,000 in Anti-Drunk Driving Effort
Aug 22 2006 // Police have stopped about 1,000 vehicles and made 20 arrests in Pittsburgh as part of “Operation Nighthawk,” a regional campaign to crack down on drunken driving, police said. A joint force of Pittsburgh and...
Penn. Court: Brokers Have No Duty to Inspect Property for Flood Insurance
Aug 18 2006 // A national insurance trade said it supports the recent Superior Court of Pennsylvania’s decision in the case of Wisniski v. Brown & Brown Insurance Co., that ruled insurance brokers do not have a duty to inspect...
Oops…172 Pa. Driver’s Licenses Accidently Voided
Aug 17 2006 // A bureaucratic error led to the accidental cancellation of 172 Pennsylvania driver’s licenses this week, according to the state Department of Transportation. The licenses have been restored, but residents who...
Private Tipster Trips Up Slip-and-Fall, Says Pa. Fraud Unit
Aug 9 2006 // Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett has initiated criminal charges against a Lancaster County man in connection with an apparent “slip and fall” insurance fraud scheme. Corbett said agents with the...
Willetts Joins NSM Insurance in Pa.
Aug 3 2006 // Richard Willetts has joined NSM Insurance Group in Conshohocken, Pa. as the director of the Addiction Treatment Providers Insurance Program. Willetts has 12 years of experience with niche programs, focusing on addiction...
Pa. Firm Settles Salmonella Cases; Battles Among Insurers Next
Aug 1 2006 // The Pennsylvania-based convenience store chain Sheetz Inc. has settled all but a few customer lawsuits spawned by salmonella-tainted tomatoes sold at its stores two years ago. But complicated legal battles involving...
Flooding in Pennsylvania destroys 518 homes
Jul 24 2006 // The floodwaters that inundated parts of Pennsylvania last month destroyed at least 518 homes and affected another 7,100 homes and businesses, according to the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency. The preliminary...
News Currents
Jul 24 2006 // News Currents While states adopt seat belts laws, 29 still balk at motorcycle helmets In Illinois and Iowa, motorists can get tickets for not wearing seat belts. In Connecticut, they are prohibited from talking on cell...
Pennsylvania’s Two Biggest Health Insurers in Merger Talks Again
Jul 17 2006 // Pennsylvania’s two largest health insurers are discussing a possible merger, which could happen as early as September. Independence Blue Cross, based in Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh-based Highmark Inc. are part of...
Pa. Officials Settle 1995 Defamation Suit Against Newspaper
Jul 17 2006 // Two former West Chester, Pennsylvania city officials have settled a decade-long lawsuit against their local newspaper in a case that spawned a 2004 Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling that news media said eroded free press...
Study: Pa. High Schoolers Risking Driving Under Influence
Jul 14 2006 // Pennsylvania high school seniors are increasingly drinking to excess and getting behind the wheel after drinking alcohol or taking drugs, according to a statewide survey. It also found that about one in five has gone to...
Inflatable Kiddie Pool Needs A Fence, Pa. Authorities Remind Parents
Jul 10 2006 // To Suzette Heydt of Allendale, Pa., an inflatable pool seemed like an inexpensive way to provide cool summer fun for her 9-year-old daughter and her roommate’s 23-month-old son. That was before a code enforcement...
Two Years After Outbreak, Parties Settle Most Salmonella Suits in Pa.
Jul 6 2006 // Attorneys for Pennsylvania-based Sheetz convenience stores and scores of customers sickened during a salmonella outbreak two years ago have settled more than 80 lawsuits in recent weeks and agreed to delay a filing...
Motorcycle Safety Is Second-Class; 29 States Now Say No to Helmet Laws
Jul 5 2006 // In Illinois and Iowa, motorists can get tickets for not wearing seat belts. In Connecticut, they are prohibited from talking on cell phones. And in New Hampshire, motorists can be fined if they are involved in an accident...
Pa. must end confusion over contractors in workers’ comp
Jul 3 2006 // An increasing number of Pennsylvania businesses are paying thousands more for workers’ compensation than necessary because of our state law’s vague treatment of subcontractors. While businesses must buy...
