Articles by Jim Sams

Sams is editor of ClaimsJournal.com, the online resource and daily newsletter for property/casualty insurance claims professionals. ClaimsJournal is a member of the Wells Media Group. Sams can be reached at jsams@wellsmedia.com

Catalytic Converter Thefts Down by Half as Precious Metal Prices Drop

The number of insurance claims filed for catalytic converter thefts plummeted this year after rising dramatically in 2021 and 2022. National Insurance Crime Bureau data shows that as of Sept. 30, the number of claimed catalytic converter thefts averaged 2,675 …

New York No-Fault Fraudster Pleads Guilty, Agrees to Pay $40M in Restitution

A man whom federal prosecutors in New York say was the mastermind behind a $40 million automobile insurance fraud scheme pleaded guilty on Friday to bribery, health care fraud and identify theft charges. Alexander Gulkarov, 37, owned medical clinics in …

Ohio Supreme Court Upholds Escape Clause in Progressive Auto Liability Policy

Acuity and Progressive Specialty Insurance Co. disputed who should pay after a 16-year-old boy borrowed a friend’s car and crashed it into a utility pole in Streetsboro, Ohio. The driver was insured by Acuity through a policy issued to his …

Louisiana Courts Still Tidying Up After Storm of McClenny Moseley Lawsuits

In December 2022, before much was known about how McClenny Moseley & Associates in Houston was able to set up shop in New Orleans and sign-up thousands of Louisiana clients in less than a year, US District Court Judge James …

Bad-Faith Payouts Are Penalties, Not Insurance Benefits, Florida Supreme Court Says

Randy Willoughby’s lawyers turned a $10,000 uninsured motorist policy into a $4 million bad-faith settlement with his auto insurer. Then they won a $30 million jury verdict against the co-owner of the truck that crashed into him. Now, Willoughby’s counsel …

Texas Court: Immunity Doesn’t Protect Local Governments From Administrative Penalties

Political subdivisions in Texas can’t use governmental immunity to evade administrative penalties for failing to timely pay workers’ compensation benefits, a state appellate court ruled Tuesday. A panel of the 3rd District Court of Appeals in Austin upheld a trial …

Texas Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Challenge to Public Adjuster Law

Insurers and the Texas Department of Insurance hope to persuade the state Supreme Court to block a constitutional challenge to a law that prohibits roofing contractors from acting as public adjusters on their customers’ damage claims. The high court heard …

Illinois Court Ruling Allows Zurich to Proceed With Subrogation Action in $3 Million Builder’s Risk Claim

Zurich American Insurance Co. may pursue a subrogation lawsuit against a subcontractor that it says forced it to pay a nearly $3 million builder’s risk claim by designing a defective stormwater detention system during construction of an academic building at …

Kentucky Clarifies Matching Law While Florida Insurers Get Limits on Replacement

Matching requirements for roofs and interior furnishings have been a tough issue in the property insurance industry for years. Recent developments show how insurers and regulators in different Southeast states are managing the mandates. In Kentucky last week, the state …

Ohio Supreme Court Upholds Escape Clause in Progressive Auto Liability Policy

Acuity and Progressive Specialty Insurance Co. disputed who should pay after a 16-year-old boy borrowed a friend’s car and crashed it into a utility pole in Streetsboro, Ohio. The driver was insured by Acuity through a policy issued to his …