West News

People Moves: Buckner in Utah Appoints Peterson Director of Partnerships

Buckner appointed Kevin Peterson as its new director of partnerships. Peterson joins Buckner from WCF Insurance, where he was most recently senior vice president of middle market. Before that, he spent over 20 years at Nationwide, holding various roles across …

California Commissioner Invites Input on Final Phase of Wildfire Modeling Regulation

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has invited public input as he begins the final phase of approving a “first of its kind” catastrophe modeling and ratemaking regulation that “will help restore options for all Californians and prepare for the reality …

Freeway Drives Six New Franchises in Southeast, California

Freeway Insurance, a division of Confie, a large personal lines agency and brokerage in the United States, has expanded with six new franchises in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and California. In south Florida James Ospina will head the office in Boynton …

People Moves: The Liberty Company Names Gaston Managing Director, Entertainment and Johnson Vice President, Producer

The Liberty Company named Erin Gaston managing director, entertainment and Alex Johnson vice president and producer. Gaston, who is based in California, previously served as managing director at Momentous Insurance Brokerage, a Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC. She will service …

Wildfires Are Growing Under Climate Change, and Their Smoke Threatens Farmworkers

As wildfires scorched swaths of land in the wine country of Sonoma County in 2020, sending ash flying and choking the air with smoke, Maria Salinas harvested grapes. Her saliva turned black from inhaling the toxins, until one day she …

Chevron to Pay $550 Million Settlement to Richmond, California

Chevron Corp. is to pay Richmond City Council $550 million over 10 years, the city said in a statement, in a settlement that saw it drop a proposed ballot on a new tax on the oil major’s Richmond refinery. Richmond …

Oregon Roofing Materials Supplier Fined $92K for Repeated Fall Hazard Exposure

The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division fined a building materials supplier $92,226 for repeatedly failing to protect workers from potential fall hazards. The citation issued to ABC Supply Co. Inc. followed an inspection of a jobsite in Salem where …

Hundreds Able to Return Home After Fleeing Wildfire Along California-Nevada Line

Hundreds of people were allowed to return home this week after being forced to flee a wildfire west of Reno that also shut down Interstate 80 along the California-Nevada line. About 170 firefighters continued to work to secure the perimeter …

Judge Bars Insurers From Going After Defendants Who Agreed to $4B Maui Wildfire Settlement

A Maui judge’s ruling resolves a critical roadblock to finalizing a $4 billion wildfire settlement: Insurance companies who have paid out more than $2 billion in claims can seek reimbursement only from the settlement amount defendants, who victims blame for …

Californians Facing Higher Rent Because of Rising Insurance Rates

Like single-family homeowners in California, landlords are facing higher insurance premiums, too. And they’re passing along some of those costs to their tenants. Many insurance companies have stopped writing policies in the state because of increased wildfire risks, but that’s …

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