Latest Virginia Headlines

West Virginia Lowers Workers Comp Rates

Aug 11 2010 // Workers’ compensation costs for many employers in West Virginia will drop later this year. Insurance Commissioner Jane Cline’s office recently approved new loss cost rates that are an average 2.9 percent lower...

Aon Consulting Makes Two Appointments in Virginia

Aug 11 2010 // Aon Consulting has named Shelly Blackstone as vice president of business development in its Richmond, Virginia office. Additionally, Paul J. Mack has been promoted to health and benefits practice leader. In her new role,...

West Virginia Says Upper Big Branch Monitors Not Modified

Aug 10 2010 // State mine safety officials say testing shows that methane monitors taken from a West Virginia coal mine where 29 were killed in an explosion were not tampered with. The monitors were taken from a mining machine believed...

State Farm Lowers Rates in West Virginia

Aug 4 2010 // State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., the largest insurer of autos in West Virginia and in the nation, is decreasing its overall rate level in West Virginia an average of 0.2 percent effective Aug. 30. After this...

Some States Cheered by Virginia Healthcare Decision

Aug 3 2010 // Nearly half of all U.S. states are fighting President Barack Obama’s healthcare reforms and those that have taken the battle to court were heartened Monday by a judge’s decision to let Virginia proceed with its...

Grand Jury Weighs Monitor Shutdown at Massey West Virginia Mine

Aug 2 2010 // A federal grand jury looking into an explosion that killed 29 workers at a Massey Energy Co. coal mine in West Virginia heard testimony last week about possible illegal tampering with a mine safety monitor, the Wall Street...

October Hearing Set on Virginia Workers’ Comp Premiums

Aug 2 2010 // Virginia regulators are planning to hold a hearing in October on proposed adjustments in premiums charged for workers’ compensation insurance. The State Corporation Commission said Friday that it has set an Oct. 26...

Federal Judge Lets Virginia Challenge to Obama Healthcare Law Proceed

Aug 2 2010 // A U.S. judge Monday refused to dismiss a challenge by the state of Virginia to President Barack Obama’s landmark healthcare reform law, a setback that will force his administration to mount a lengthy legal...

West Virginia Firefighters Threaten to Strike Over Liability Insurance

Aug 2 2010 // Volunteer firefighters in West Virginia are threatening to stop answering calls if the Legislature doesn’t exempt their supervisors from liability for injuries to firefighters. West Virginia law states that a...

Murphy to Lead ProMutual’s Entrance into Virginia Market

Jul 29 2010 // Boston-based medial professional liability insurer ProMutual Group will begin selling coverage in Virginia through its member company, ProSelect Insurance Co. Tom Murphy has been hired to manage the distribution network,...

State to Provide Liability Insurance for West Virginia Firefighters

Jul 28 2010 // The state agency that provides insurance for 160 state agencies will provide temporary liability coverage for West Virginia volunteer fire departments that are facing loss of coverage. The state’s Board of Risk and...

Massey Settles Lawsuit Over Miner’s Death for $2.1 Million

Jul 21 2010 // Massey Energy has settled a lawsuit filed by the family of a contract worker killed at one of the company’s West Virginia coal mines. Boone County Circuit Court records show Massey paid the family of Steven Cain $2.1...

Virginia Police Crackdown Nets 6K Tickets, Arrests

Jul 21 2010 // A weekend enforcement effort by the Virginia State Police on Interstates 81 and 95 resulted in more than 6,000 summonses and arrests. More than half of the tickets were for speeding. State police also reported stopping 628...

West Virginia Firefighters Threaten Strike Over Liability Insurance

Jul 21 2010 // Volunteer firefighters in West Virginia are threatening to stop answering calls if the Legislature doesn’t exempt their supervisors from liability for injuries to firefighters. The West Virginia State Fireman’s...

Jul 19 2010 // Researchers hope the project could revolutionize mobility. Do you ever feel like you’re driving blind? Have you ever passed through a stop sign and swore you never saw it? Or nearly sideswiped a car while changing...

Federal Disaster Aid for West Virginia Tops $3M

Jul 19 2010 // Federal disaster grants totaling more than $3 million have been approved to help businesses and residents slammed by storms and flooding in southern West Virginia last month. The Federal Emergency Management Agency says...

Jul 19 2010 // Researchers hope the project could revolutionize mobility and challenge long-held assumptions about perceived limitations. Do you ever feel like you’re driving blind? Have you ever passed through a stop sign and...

Insurance Professionals of Central Virginia Elects New Officers

Jul 15 2010 // Tina Carroll, a State Farm agent, has been named president of The Insurance Professionals of Central of Virginia for the group’s 2010 to 2011 year. The group’s other newly elected officers are Vice President...

Virginia Start-Up Hilb Group Acquires North Carolina, New York Agencies

Jul 14 2010 // The Hilb Group, a Virginia insurance brokerage launched in 2009 by the founder of what became one of the world’s largest brokerages along with his son, has added its first two partners as it begins building a...

Researchers Building Car for Blind Drivers

Jul 7 2010 // Could a blind person drive a car? Researchers are trying to make that far-fetched notion a reality. The National Federation of the Blind and Virginia Tech plan to demonstrate a prototype vehicle next year equipped with...