United States News

USLI Expanding with Retail Agent Distribution; No Longer Exclusively Wholesale

After years of doing business exclusively though wholesale brokers, United States Liability Insurance Group (USLI) is expanding its distribution to work directly with retail insurance agencies. “We are expanding our distribution to include retailers on a selected basis,” Chairman, CEO …

AIG’s Cassano Says U.S. Bailout Too Generous to Goldman

The former head of the AIG unit that nearly crippled the insurer said the 2008 taxpayer bailout of up to $182 billion was too generous to customers like Goldman Sachs. Goldman Sachs, in turn, insisted it simply followed its agreement …

Does iPhone Insurance Cost Too Much?

Absent-minded iPhone users can now insure their devices against loss or accidents. But with a $12 monthly fee and a $199 deductible for the latest model, it might make more sense to just learn to be careful. Asurion, an insurer …

Tower Completes Acquisition of OneBeacon’s Personal Lines Business

Tower Group Inc. has completed its acquisition of the personal lines business of OneBeacon Insurance Group for $167 million. The completed transaction includes the acquisition by Towers of Massachusetts Homeland Insurance Co., York Insurance Co. of Maine and two management …

U.S. Launches Pre-Existing Condition Health Insurance Plan

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced today the launch of a Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan (PCIP) that will offer coverage to uninsured Americans who have been unable to obtain health coverage because of a pre-existing health …

Financial Crisis Panel Hears from AIG’s Cassano, Goldman’s Lewis

The former head of the American International Group unit that precipitated a $182 billion bailout pledge from taxpayers stood by a 2007 proclamation that the insurer would not lose even a dollar on a portfolio of securities that included subprime …

Special Reuters Report: Oil Spill a Gusher for Lawyers; Litigation May Take Years

BP payout should far exceed what Exxon spent on Valdez The company’s $20 billion fund may not be enough Accountability may take years if not decades to assess Many federal laws allow civil, criminal liability From a legal perspective, BP’s …

More Oil Spills to Come, Says Professor

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is not simply a random accident. There will be more of these spills to come, as the days of easy oil are over, says an anthropologist at Washington University in …

Great American Insurance Named ‘Healthiest Company,” Top Workplace

Cincinnati, Ohio-based Great American Insurance Group has been recognized as one of the “Healthiest Companies in America” and one of Cincinnati’s 2010 Top Workplaces. For the second consecutive year, Great American Insurance Group received the “Healthiest Companies in America” Award …

Neal Bill, HR 3424, Proponents and Opponents Trade Salvoes

When U.S. Representative Richard Neal (D-MA) introduced, or more properly reintroduced, HR 3424, a bill aimed at closing what its proponents describe as a “loophole” in the U.S. tax code, he ignited, or more properly reignited, a longstanding controversy. Essentially: …