Latest Personal Auto Headlines
All the headlines from our Personal Auto Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Insurance Premium Relief Programs Have Saved Oklahoma Drivers over $164M
Jul 30 2020 // Refunds, dividends, credits, or other appropriate premium adjustments automobile insurance companies have offered to their customers due to the COVID-19 pandemic have saved Oklahoma drivers $164 million, the state...
Michigan Drivers Got Nearly $95M in Premium Refunds in April, May, June
Jul 29 2020 // Michigan motorists are being refunded nearly $95 million in car insurance premiums due to a drop in driving and crash claims during the coronavirus pandemic, regulators said. The amount paid back varies by insurer. It...
Suspected Drunken Driver Lands Inside Apartment in Grand Forks, N.D.
Jul 28 2020 // A suspected drunken driver crashed into a Grand Forks, N.D., apartment building, punching a hole in the wall of a first-floor apartment bedroom and landing in the kitchen. The tenants fortunately were not home at the time...
Average Age of Cars Americans Are Driving Nears 12 Years: IHS Markit
Jul 28 2020 // Americans are hanging on to their cars and trucks longer, pushing the average age of vehicles on the road to the highest level in nearly 20 years even before the coronavirus hit, according to new data from IHS Markit...
North Carolina Road Test Waived for Adult Drivers License Applicants
Jul 23 2020 // Road tests still aren’t being performed by examiners from the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles due to COVID-19. So now certain adults are exempt from passing one to obtain a regular license. The DMV...
Profit-Driven Automakers Race to Next Level of Not Quite Self-Driving Cars
Jul 15 2020 // Autopilot, ProPilot, CoPilot: Automakers have many names for new systems that allow for hands-free driving, but no safety or performance standards to follow as they roll out the most significant changes to vehicle...
Massachusetts Sues Uber, Lyft to Classify Drivers as Employees
Jul 15 2020 // Massachusetts on Tuesday followed California in suing Uber Technologies Inc and Lyft Inc. over allegedly misclassifying their drivers as independent contractors instead of employees entitled to extensive benefits. The...
Updated Minnesota Driver’s Manual Provides Guidance for Legal Gun Owners
Jul 8 2020 // Minnesota public safety officials updated the state’s driver’s manual to give motorists who are legally carrying firearms some guidance on what to do if they are stopped by police, including instructions to...
Car Crashes Became Deadlier During Lockdowns Across Globe
Jul 6 2020 // Coronavirus lockdowns led to reductions in traffic and fewer car crashes this spring, but as drivers sped up on quieter roads, the collisions became deadlier in several cities, a Reuters analysis shows. In New York City,...
California Insurance Department Says Premium Relief Has Saved Drivers $1.2B
Jul 6 2020 // California automobile insurance companies have agreed to provide $1.21 billion in savings to drivers, the state insurance department says. Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara in May issued an order requiring insurers to...
New Indiana State Law Bans Use of Handheld Phone While Driving
Jul 2 2020 // Using a handheld cellphone while driving is now illegal on Indiana roads under a new state law that took effect this week. The move aimed at combating distracted driving went onto the books on July 1 after being approved...
TuSimple Launches Self-Driving Truck Network with Berkshire’s McLane, UPS
Jul 2 2020 // U.S. technology company TuSimple on Wednesday launched a self-driving freight network with UPS and Berkshire Hathaway Inc. supply chain unit McLane that it said should operate nationwide by 2024 and start running some...
Cellphone While Driving Ban Goes into Effect in Idaho
Jun 30 2020 // Effective July 1 using a handheld phone while operating a moving motor vehicle in Idaho is prohibited. Idaho drivers will receive warnings until Jan. 1, 2021. The American Property Casualty Insurance Association is...
Phone Use While Driving a 1st Offence in South Dakota on July 1
Jun 30 2020 // Drivers in South Dakota who use their cellphones can be pulled over and ticketed purely for that offense starting July 1. A new state law taking effect July 1 makes it a Class 2 misdemeanor to use a cellphone while driving...
Car Crashes Became Deadlier During Lockdowns Across Globe: Reuters Insight
Jun 30 2020 // LONDON – Coronavirus lockdowns led to huge reductions in traffic and fewer car crashes this spring, but as drivers sped up on quieter roads, the collisions became deadlier in several cities, a Reuters analysis...
Insurance Dept: Required Premium Relief Has Saved California Drivers $1.2B
Jun 30 2020 // California automobile insurance companies have agreed to provide $1.21 billion in savings to drivers, the state insurance department says. Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara in May issued an order requiring insurers to...
Starting July 2, Michigan Drivers Will Have New Insurance Choices
Jun 29 2020 // Michigan drivers who renew or buy car insurance face a choice starting July 2: stick with unlimited medical coverage, go with less or — for seniors with Medicare — opt out entirely. The decision, a signature feature of...
Canada’s Supreme Court Allows Class Action Seeking Employee Status for Uber Drivers
Jun 26 2020 // OTTAWA— Canada’s Supreme Court on Friday ruled in favor of a driver in a gig economy case that paves the way for a class action suit calling for Uber Technologies Inc. to recognize drivers in Canada as company...
California Wants Judge to Force Uber, Lyft to Classify Drivers as Employees
Jun 25 2020 // California plans to ask a state court judge to force Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. to classify their ride-hail drivers as employees rather than contractors, ratcheting up the tension over a new gig worker...
Wisconsin to Insurers: Give Restaurants 10-Day Notice on Expiring Delivery Coverage
Jun 22 2020 // Wisconsin Insurance Commissioner Mark Afable has asked insurers that provided coverage under personal auto policies for food delivery services during the COVID-19 pandemic to help restaurants by giving the businesses at...
