Oklahoma News

Oklahoma Commissioner: Severe Weather Damaged at Least 1,100 Insured Homes

Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John D. Doak announced that more than 1,100 homeowners insurance claims have already been filed following severe weather that marched across the state on Wednesday, March 25. “Tornadoes are a devastating act of Mother Nature that Oklahomans …

Storms Sweep Through Oklahoma with Tornadoes, Hail

Oklahoma Attorney General Pruitt announced that Oklahoma’s Emergency Price Stabilization Act is now in effect for 25 Oklahoma counties after Gov. Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency due to tornadoes, severe storms, straight-line winds and flooding that hit the …

Arkansas, Oklahoma, Warned of Hail, High Wind-Packing Storms

While there has been a curious lack of tornadoes throughout the country’s midsection, that may soon change, according to federal weather forecasters. A cold front approaching Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri is expected to bring hail, strong winds and the possibility …

Oklahoma Man Pleads Guilty to Workers’ Comp Charges

A Tulsa County man pleaded guilty to two felony counts of workers’ compensation fraud after charges were brought by Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt’s Workers’ Compensation, Social Security and Insurance Fraud Unit. Joseph Max Hutton, 20, a first-time offender, was …

Wildfire Spreads in Western Oklahoma, Homes Evacuated

Emergency personnel say about a dozen people have been evacuated from their homes because of wildfire that has burned 37 square miles in rural western Oklahoma. Woodward County emergency manager Matt Lehenbauer said on March 17 that the fire is …

Parents Awarded $1.5M in Oklahoma Teen Drunk Driving Case

Parents of a 17-year-old Oklahoman who was killed in a traffic accident in 2012 have been awarded $1.5 million in a civil case settlement. The Oklahoman reports that Donna and Duane Kerns have settled with Woodshed Liquor Store, which sold …

Transportation Network Company Insurance Bill Passes Oklahoma Senate

A bill addressing the insurance requirements of transportation network companies (TNCs), or rideshare organizations, and their drivers has passed the Oklahoma Senate by an overwhelming majority vote of 40-3. SB 436, the Transportation Network Act of 2015, sets coverage requirements, …

Anti-Texting-While-Driving Measure Clears Oklahoma Senate

A measure making it illegal to text and drive is now one step closer to becoming law in Oklahoma. Senate Bill 821, authored by the Senate Public Safety Committee, would make it illegal to operate a motor vehicle while using …

Oklahoma Commissioner Warns Insurers on Denial of Earthquake Claims

With the dramatic increase in the number of earthquakes in Oklahoma — which some say are at least partly attributed to waste water injection wells related to the practice of hydraulic fracturing in oil and gas drilling — Oklahoma Insurance …

Midwest, Plains Likely to See Economic Growth: Report

Economic growth lies ahead for nine Midwestern and Plains states despite pullbacks in the energy sector, according to a monthly report released on March 2. The overall Mid-America Business Conditions Index climbed to 57.0 in February from 54.8 in January, …