Latest Personal Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Personal Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Tennessee House Panel OKs Ban on Texting-while-Driving
Apr 9 2009 // A proposal to prohibit texting while driving has advanced out of the House Transportation Committee despite the vocal objections of some members of the panel. Pegram Republican Rep. Phillip Johnson noted that drivers can...
Louisiana Agents See More Drivers Dropping Insurance
Apr 6 2009 // The Louisiana Workforce Commission said initial claims for unemployment insurance rose 3.4 percent for the week ending March 28 and remained at rates approaching double of those from a year ago. And amid these tough...
Philly Committee: Ban Handheld Cell Phone Use for Drivers
Apr 6 2009 // A City Council committee has approved a proposal that would ban the use of cell phones while driving in Philadelphia. If the ban is passed by the full council – possibly as early as next week – dialing, texting...
Allstate Tests Brain Fitness Exercise Software and Driver Safety in Pennsylvania
Mar 31 2009 // Posit Science, a brain fitness company, announced today that it has extended its relationship with auto insurer Allstate. The companies began working together six months ago in a program to determine whether brain fitness...
West Virginia House Targets Drivers’ Cell Phone Use
Mar 31 2009 // If you’re on the phone while driving and have your hands on your cell instead of the wheel, that could mean a misdemeanor charge in West Virginia. Legislation passed 80-18 by the House to the Senate aims to limit...
New Kansas Law Bans Cell Phone Use by Young Drivers
Mar 30 2009 // Many young drivers in Kansas won’t be allowed to use their cell phones while behind the wheel starting next year. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius has signed legislation that restricts cell phone use for some teenage drivers...
GAINSCO Reports Net Loss for 2008
Mar 27 2009 // Dallas-based insurer, Gainsco Inc., announced net losses for the fourth quarter and the year for 2008, but the losses are less than those the company reported in 2007. The company said its net loss for the fourth quarter...
Texting While Driving Already Illegal in Tennessee, Says AG
Mar 26 2009 // A Tennessee attorney general opinion says sending or reading texts while driving falls under a law prohibiting the unsafe operation of a motor vehicle. Rep. Vince Dean, an East Ridge Republican and chairman of the House...
Philly Committee: Ban Handheld Cell Phone Use for Drivers
Mar 26 2009 // A City Council committee has approved a proposal that would ban the use of cell phones while driving in Philadelphia. If the ban is passed by the full council _ possibly as early as next week _ dialing, texting or...
Esurance Exploring Massachusetts Personal Auto Market
Mar 24 2009 // Esurance, a San Francisco-based personal auto insurance direct writer, has taken preliminary steps to obtain a license to sell auto insurance in Massachusetts — although the company says it has no immediate plans to...
Younger Drivers Distracted by Music Says Australian Insurer NRMA
Mar 23 2009 // According to a study from Australian insurer NRMA, part of the Insurance Australia Group (IAG), younger drivers, who listen to music while at the wheel, are acting dangerously. NRMA said its research “revealed almost...
West Virginia Lawmakers Delay Drunk Driver Lock Expansion
Mar 18 2009 // A proposal to put interlocks in the vehicles of every West Virginian convicted of drunken driving appears to be on hold this year while lawmakers await the results of an earlier expansion of the program. But a West...
Texas Lawmakers Try to Undo Drivers License Identification Rules
Mar 18 2009 // Some Democratic lawmakers joined by Texas residents who have had trouble getting drivers’ licenses under new Department of Public Safety rules are pushing for legislation that would undo a policy they say harms U.S....
Mississippi House Passes Ban on Teens Texting While Driving
Mar 12 2009 // A bill that has passed the Mississippi House would ban newly licensed teenage drivers from sending text messages from behind the wheel. House members pushing for the texting-while-driving prohibition said inexperienced...
Kansas Debates Costs of Getting Drunk Drivers Off Roads
Mar 9 2009 // Kansas lawmakers heard testimony on a bill recently that was inspired by the deaths of a mother and her 4-year-old daughter in an accident police believe involved a driver with multiple drunk driving convictions. Kansas...
North Carolina Troopers Issue 9,000 Citation to Teen Drivers
Mar 6 2009 // Highway Patrol troopers in North Carolina have issued nearly 9,000 citations during a campaign aimed at reducing the number of traffic accidents involving teenagers. Thirty-one drivers under age 21 were cited for driving...
Arkansas Panel OKs Restrictions for Teen Drivers
Mar 5 2009 // Tears rolled down Arkansas State Sen. Jimmy Jeffress’ face after a House of Representatives committee voted without dissent to put in place new restrictions for teen drivers. “I appreciate it, and I think when...
New Jersey Says Ban on Cell Phones while Driving Works
Mar 3 2009 // New Jersey transportation officials say a year-old state law banning cell phone use while driving has resulted in nearly 109,000 summonses issued in the past 11 months. That’s almost double the amount of tickets...
Seatbelt and Drunk Driving Laws Advance in Arkansas
Mar 2 2009 // Lawmakers in Arkansas’ General Assembly approved a bill that will stiffen the state’s seatbelt law and the House of Representatives has passed a measure extending the amount of time a judge can consider...
Arizona AG: Drivers Caught By Photo Radar Can Be Prosecuted
Mar 2 2009 // Responding to a request from the Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS), Attorney General Terry Goddard provided a legal analysis that drivers caught by photo radar at speeds more than 20 miles per hour over the limit...
