P/C Underwriting Income Up $40B in 2025, Say Verisk and APCIA
Verisk and the American Property Casualty Insurance Association released preliminary 2025 underwriting results for the property/casualty industry, with a $40 billion increase over the prior year. For private U.S. P/C insurers, the underwriting gain for 2025 was $63 billion compared …
High Levels of Cancer-Causing Benzene in European Cooking Gas, Study Finds
Domestic gas supply in several European cities contains high levels of benzene, an odorless substance that can cause cancer, according to research released on Wednesday. Gas samples taken in UK homes contained 37 times more benzene than North American gas, …
After 62 Years, Florida Appeals Court Drops the Expert Witness Rule on Attorney Fees
Just over three years ago, Florida lawmakers effectively ended one-way attorney fees, disincentivizing much of the costly property insurance claims litigation that had plagued the industry. But fees can still be awarded to either side in a lawsuit, in a …
EXPLAINER-Can US Government Be Held Liable for LaGuardia Airport Collision?
Investigators are probing the potential causes of Sunday’s collision between an Air Canada Express plane and a fire truck at LaGuardia Airport in New York. The two pilots were killed. Air Canada said 39 of the 76 passengers and crew …
Pinnacol Assurance in Colorado Paying $15M Dividend for Colorado Members
Colorado workers’ compensation provider Pinnacol Assurance announced it will distribute a $15 million general dividend to its members in 2026. Pinnacol members can expect to receive dividend checks starting March 25. More than 46,000 members in the state will receive …
People Moves: ALKEME Names Stradling CFO; Machut and Quintero Join Alliant
ALKEME Insurance Appoints Stradling as Chief Financial Officer ALKEME Insurance named Ryan Stradling chief financial officer. Stradling has experience scaling organizations through execution, strategy and data-driven decision-making. Stradling has experience across the insurance, healthcare, and SaaS industries, where he has …
Harvard Faces Pressure From Two New Trump Administration Probes
The Trump administration said Monday it has initiated two new investigations into Harvard University over alleged antisemitism on campus and racially discriminatory admissions practices. The inquiries, launched by the Department of Education’s civil rights division, are the latest effort from …
Meta, Google Lose Case Over Social Media Harm to Kids
A Los Angeles jury on Wednesday found Meta and Alphabet’s Google negligent for designing social media platforms that are harmful to young people, in a $6 million verdict that will serve as a bellwether for numerous similar cases. The jury …
Chaucer, Ceto Launch Lloyd’s Marine MGA, Underwriting With Real-Time Vessel Data
Chaucer Group, the London-based specialty re/insurance group, and Ceto AI, the maritime technology specialist, announced the launch of a new marine managing general agent (MGA), operating as a Lloyd’s coverholder. Under the arrangement, Ceto is authorized to bind marine hull …
Florida OIR Grants Permit to Startup Sypher Insurance and Takeouts for Others
Sypher Insurance Exchange, the startup property insurer that the Florida Association of Insurance Agents invested in two years ago, has won a permit to operate from the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. The Tampa-based reciprocal now has until mid-May to …
Peak Re Names Swiss Re’s Kuk as CEO, Succeeding Co-Founder Hahn
Peak Reinsurance Co. Ltd., the Hong Kong-based reinsurer that specializes in emerging markets, announced that Victor Kuk will become chief executive officer, effective April 20, 2026, subject to regulatory approval. Kuk is succeeding Franz-Josef Hahn, co-founder and CEO of Peak …
Groups Push for Federal Court Rule to Disclose Litigation Funding
The Lawyers for Civil Justice and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform are seeking a federal rule to require the disclosure of third-party litigation funding. Currently, the matter is handled in federal courts with mixed results. According …
Gulf Energy Industry Will Take Years to Recover From Iran War
It took just days for the Iran war to hobble oil fields, refineries and gas plants across the Persian Gulf, but it could take years to restore their full potential as the conflict drags on. More than three weeks of …
Vortex Weather Launches Parametric Hail Product
Vortex Weather Insurance announced the formal launch of direct sales for its HailSafe parametric hail insurance product. Previously available only through third-party vendors, HailSafe can now be purchased directly from Vortex by brokers and weather‑exposed businesses, including open car lots, …
Texas to Ban Smokeable Hemp on March 31
New state rules that eliminate natural smokeable hemp products and increase licensing fees will go into effect at the end of the month. Hemp industry leaders say these new regulations will eliminate a majority of their inventory and force those …
People Moves: Maryland Appoints Two Associate Insurance Commissioners
Maryland Insurance Commissioner Marie Grant appointed Megan Mason as associate commissioner of life and health and Giri Govada as associate commissioner of operations and technology. Mason will oversee the agency’s life and health division, which is composed of the rates …
SoftBank’s Son Says Ohio Data Center to Be $500 Billion Project
SoftBank Group Corp. is developing a data center-focused project in Ohio so massive that Chief Executive Officer Masayoshi Son said it would channel $500 billion into a single campus. “We are going to do the largest construction project in the …
Valero Port Arthur Refinery Has Fire at Diesel Hydrotreater
Valero Energy Corp. responded to a fire in a unit at its Port Arthur refinery in Texas on Monday, adding pressure to a US fuels market that’s already seen prices skyrocket due to the Middle East war. A fire broke …
California Sues Department of Energy Over Sable Oil Pipeline Restart
California Attorney General Rob Bonta said on Monday he has sued the U.S. Department of Energy to stop it from using a Cold War-era law to restart the long-disputed Sable Offshore pipeline system linking the Santa Ynez offshore platform to …
High-Grade Borrowers Jump Back Into Bond Market After Halt
The US investment-grade bond market reopened Monday following a three-session pause in activity, as concerns over the Iran conflict ease. Six firms raised a combined $7 billion from high-grade debt offerings, after President Donald Trump said he would postpone strikes …



