Latest Pennsylvania Headlines

All the headlines from our Pennsylvania Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Pa. Man Sentenced in Murder-for-Profit Plot

Mar 25 2005 // A man who pleaded guilty to hiring a hit man to kill a used car dealer for insurance money was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Lawrence A. Skiba of White Oak sobbed after a federal judge sentenced him for his role in a...

Malpractice Payouts in Pennsylvania Rose in 2004

Mar 23 2005 // Insurance companies and other underwriters in Pennsylvania reported a steep jump last year in payments for malpractice claims against physicians, according to a federal agency. In 2004, insurers reported paying out $448...

$85 MILLION RELIANCE SETTLEMENT:

Mar 21 2005 // Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Diane Koken, in her role as statutory liquidator for Reliance Insurance Company, finalized the negotiation of an $85 million settlement with the former directors and officers of the...

Pennsylvania Keeps Its Workers’ Compensation Costs Under Control

Mar 21 2005 // Costs per workers’ compensation claim in Pennsylvania rose 6 percent between 2001 and 2002, according to a new report by the Cambridge, Mass.-based Workers Compensation Research Institute. This contrasts with more...

Main Street Matters

Mar 21 2005 // New York is one of the worst; New Jersey is also poor; Virginia remains among the best; Massachusetts and Maryland are looking better and better; Connecticut is holding steady, while Pennsylvania has some catching up to...

Pa. Sees Slower Growth in Workers’ Compensation Claim Costs, According to WCRI Study

Mar 15 2005 // Costs per workers’ compensation claim in Pennsylvania rose 6 percent between 2001 and 2002, according to a new report by the Cambridge, Mass.-based Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI). This contrasts with...

Rep. Hart of Pa. Joins Critics of Flood Insurance Plan

Mar 1 2005 // A Pennsylvania congresswoman wants more oversight of the federal flood insurance program, saying local victims were shortchanged last year. Rep. Melissa Hart, R-Pa., has joined representatives from Maryland, Virginia,...

Pa. Officials Reach $85 Million Settlement with Former Reliance Insurance Directors

Feb 25 2005 // Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Diane Koken, in her role as statutory liquidator for Reliance Insurance Company, announced today that the department has finalized the negotiation of an $85 million settlement with the...

Pa.-based Harleysville Insurance In Transition to Restore Historic Results

Feb 22 2005 // Several events stand out in the history of Harleysville Insurance. There was its launch as an auto theft protection association in 1915 in the Pennsylvania community whose name it shares and there was its debut as a public...

Allstate, AIG, Chubb, St. Paul/Travelers Ask Pa. Commissioner to Examine ACE Brandywine Sale

Feb 21 2005 // The law firm representing Allstate Insurance Company, American International Group Inc., Chubb & Son, and St. Paul Travelers has filed a demand, addressed to Diane Koken head of the Pennsylvania Department of...

Pa.’s Insurance Chief Koken Performs Balancing Act at Home and On the Road for NAIC

Feb 16 2005 // The nickname probably won’t be showing up anytime soon on the state’s license plates but Pennsylvania could be the Land of Stable Insurance Markets. Not that things are perfect but, according to Insurance...

Federal Flood Aid to Pa. Reached $140M

Jan 25 2005 // Pennsylvania residents, businesses and municipalities received about $140 million in federal aid to help them recover from flood damage caused by remnants of Hurricanes Frances and Ivan last year. Of that, the Federal...

PA. HIKES WEEKLY COMP BENEFIT:

Jan 24 2005 // Pennsylvania Secretary of Labor & Industry Stephen M. Schmerin announced increases in the maximum weekly benefits for new unemployment compensation beneficiaries and new workers’ compensation claimants,...

People & Places

Jan 24 2005 // Catherine Rein MetLife, Inc. has named Catherine A. Rein to the role of chief administrative officer, effective Jan. 1, 2005. Reporting to MetLife, Inc. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert H. Benmosche, Rein will...

Pa. Expects $120M in Car Insurance Rate Cuts

Jan 21 2005 // Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell said that findings from an auto insurance study would be used to cut premiums by at least $120 million over the next several months. Insurance Commissioner Diane Koken and her department will...

Pa. Names Fillman to Insurance Consumer Liaison Post

Jan 20 2005 // Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell appointed Cindy Fillman, a consumer advocate, to the new position of Consumer Liaison. Fillman will report to Insurance Commissioner Diane Koken. “The goal of this office is to...

S&T Bank Acquires Two Pa. Agencies

Jan 4 2005 // S&T Bank, based in Indiana, Pa., has acquired Bennett Associates, Inc. and Cowher- Nehrig & Co., (the Bennett Group), two multi-line insurance agencies. These agencies, which are located in Ebensburg and Nanty...

PA. COMP DECREASE PROPOSED:

Jan 3 2005 // Pennsylvania workers’ compensation rates will be going down next April if a loss cost filing submitted by the industry is approved. The Pennsylvania Compensation Rating Bureau has recommended that workers’ comp...

Pa. Commissioner Revokes Pittsburgh Agency’s License

Dec 30 2004 // Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner M. Diane Koken on Wednesday announced the license revocation of Michael D. Newton, Jr. of the J. Catherine Newton Insurance Agency in Pittsburgh. “Not only has Mr. Newton shown a...

Pa. Wildlife Officials Quash Coyote-Deer Risk Management Rumor

Dec 29 2004 // Did you hear the one about the insurance agent and the coyote? So have the Pennsylvania Game Commission, wildlife agencies in other states and insurers. They all dismiss as urban legend claims that insurance companies and...