Latest Virginia Headlines

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

Main Street Group Contributes to Virginia Big ‘I’ Building Fund

May 16 2006 // The Independent Insurance Agents of Virginia (IIAV) is thanking The Main Street America Group for contributing $50,000 to the building fund for development of the new IIAV Insurance Career Institute in Richmond. “As...

Fairmont, W. Va. Agent Pleads Guilty to One Embezzlement Count

May 13 2006 // Shawn Edwin Linger, of Fairmont, W.Va. has pleaded guilty to one felony count of embezzlement, according to Insurance Commissioner Jane L. Cline. Linger admitted to taking more than $18,000 in premium payments made to his...

W.Va. Spouses Ask High Court for Assurance of Lifetime Benefits

May 13 2006 // West Virginia lawyers for spouses of people who died from work-related injuries and illnesses, including four victims of January’s Sago mine disaster, have asked the state Supreme Court in Charleston, W.Va. to ensure...

W.Va. Nonprofit’s Reimbursements 11 Times Higher Than Premiums

May 13 2006 // A Fairmont, W.Va. nonprofit group paid $47,334 in premiums to a state-run insurance agency over two years and was reimbursed more than 11 times that amount for three claims, state documents show. The bulk of the...

W.Va. Officials, Cline, McGraw Oppose Federal Insurance Proposal

May 5 2006 // Two state officials in Charleston, W.Va. say state insurance requirements would be undermined by federal legislation that would give small businesses greater flexibility in offering health insurance to employees. The...

Enrollment in W.Va.’s High-Risk Health Insurance Plan Growing

May 2 2006 // More than 200 West Virginians who have had difficulty obtaining health insurance in the regular market are now insured through AccessWV, the state’s high-risk health insurance plan, according to Insurance...

Virginia Schedules First ‘Distracted Driver Awareness Day’ for May 3

May 1 2006 // The Virginia Department of Transportation, Drive Smart Virginia and GEICO are partnering to take action to help “reduce the use” of cell phones and other driver distractions by creating the first annual...

Virginia Court Rules Against City in Polluted Water Insurance Claim

Apr 23 2006 // The Virginia Supreme Court ruled that the city of Chesapeake cannot recoup from its insurer $2.4 million in legal costs stemming from lawsuits over allegedly contaminated tap water. The court unanimously ruled that the...

W.Va.’s Reversal of Workers’ Comp Policy Could Increase Rates

Apr 17 2006 // The sole workers’ compensation insurer in West Virginia says it will seek a rate increase as a result of Gov. Joe Manchin’s reversal of a state policy that limited benefits to widows and widowers of people who...

Southeast states lagging in legal system fairness rankings by Chamber of Commerce

Apr 17 2006 // Southeast states didn’t fare well in the latest U.S. Chamber of Commerce ranking of states’ civil justice systems. North Carolina came in as number 10 in the top 10 favorites; while West Virginia was at the...

W.Va. Schedules April Workers’ Comp Informational Meetings

Apr 5 2006 // Informational meetings describing West Virginia’s transition to the National Council on Compensation Insurance system of workers’ compensation have been scheduled in eight locations from April 10 to 20,...

Public Entity Business Product Introduced in S.E.

Apr 5 2006 // A new public entity business product to provide workers’ compensation for cities, towns, counties, and water and sewer districts has been announced by Key Risk Insurance Company. Coverage is available in North...

Workers’ Comp Widow’s Issue Going to W.Va. Supreme Court

Apr 4 2006 // The West Virginia Supreme Court will decide next month whether the state’s workers’ compensation insurer can cut off benefits to widows and widowers when their deceased spouses would have reached retirement...

Case Law Watch

Apr 3 2006 // Auto-Liability Fields v. American Central Insurance Co. (La. App., 2nd Dist., March 8, 2006) Undated named driver exclusion endorsement sufficient to defeat coverage: Lensing was involved in a June 18, 2003, auto accident...

U.S. to Virginia: Don’t Count on Feds If Flu Pandemic Hits

Mar 28 2006 // The federal government cannot be relied upon to protect Virginia from a potential flu pandemic, and no state is fully prepared to handle such an outbreak, Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt told Virginia...

W.Va. Commissioner Joins ‘Insure U’ Education Program

Mar 28 2006 // An ambitious national public education program on insurance issues, under the banner of Insure U, has been joined in by West Virginia Insurance Commissioner Jane L. Cline and 19 other state insurance...

W.Va.: $1.89M in workers’ comp claims outstanding

Mar 20 2006 // The West Virginia Insurance Commission released statistics indicating more than $1.89 million in workers’ compensation payments are outstanding from employers in the state. The commission mailed out notices asking...

Progressive drives into W.Va.

Mar 20 2006 // The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies has announced it is now offering commercial auto insurance in West Virginia. While Progressive’s commercial coverages are available directly to consumers by phone and over...

W.Va.: $1.89M in workers’ comp claims outstanding

Mar 19 2006 // West Virginia Insurance Commissioner Jane L. Cline issued a reminder to West Virginia employers last week saying they will be subject to penalties and repercussions if they fail to pay workers’ compensation...

News Currents

Mar 19 2006 // Progressive drives into W.Va. The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies has announced it is now offering commercial auto insurance in West Virginia. While Progressive’s commercial coverages are available directly...