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

Analytics Company Says Law Firms Using Google Searches to Drive Litigation

National law firms are investing $10 million to $12 million annually each to direct Google searches to websites that they control in an effort to find new clients to file lawsuits against insurance companies, according to 4Warn, a New Hampshire-based …

Court Says Fear Created by Data Breach Suffices for Class-Action to Proceed

Former customers of Injured Workers Pharmacy whose personal information was stolen by hackers and allegedly used to file a fake tax return may pursue a class-action lawsuit against the company, a panel of the 1st District Court of Appeal ruled …

Anti-Stacking Provision Limits Liability Coverage for Fatal Illinois School Bus Crash

An insurance policy that covered seven vehicles, each with a $1 million per-accident limit, doesn’t provide $7 million in liability coverage for a fatal crash that involved only one of the covered vehicles, an Illinois appellate court ruled Thursday. A …

Florida Police: Theft Ring Targeted Luxury Cars Using Fake VINs, Phony Insurance

Florida law enforcement pushed back this week against a nationwide surge in auto thefts, announcing that 23 people were arrested for their alleged participation in a crime ring that forged vehicle identification numbers for stolen luxury vehicles. Arrest warrants have …

Travelers Must Pay $2M for Yacht Lost in Irma: Florida Law Bars ‘Technicality’ Denials

Travelers must pay a $2 million claim by the owner of a 92-foot-long yacht that was sunk by Hurricane Irma because Florida law does not allow insurers to deny claims based on inconsequential technicalities. A panel of the U.S. 11th …

TransUnion: Police Gave Out Fewer Tickets as Highway Death Rate Climbed

At the same time as traffic fatalities increased and motorists’ driving habits deteriorated, law enforcement officers were issuing fewer citations for traffic violations, data analytics company TransUnion says in a new report. TransUnion gathers traffic violation data from the courts …

7th Circuit: Insurer Must Defend Firm Sued for Selling Facial Recognition Program to Chicago Police

An ambiguous coverage exclusion prevents a liability insurer from dodging the cost of defending a data broker that was sued after selling the Chicago Police Department access to a facial recognition database that reportedly contained 3 billion images extracted from …

Report: McClenny Moseley Filed More Insurance Lawsuits Than Any Other Law Firm

A $2 million fine, sanctions by federal courts and state bar orders that prevent its partners from practicing law do not change the fact that McClenny Moseley Associates filed more lawsuits in 2022 than any other US law firm. That …

NC Supreme Court: Injured Trucker Due Benefits, Despite Tardy Claim

An injured truck driver described as “pretty tough” by her doctor after she finally sought treatment more than a year after a back injury was eligible for total temporary disability benefits despite the late notice, the North Carolina Supreme Court …

Single Voicemail Enough to Violate Telephone Consumer Protection Act

A single voicemail message left on a cellphone without permission is enough to allow an individual to proceed with a class-action lawsuit alleging violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991, a panel with the 6th Circuit Court of …