Latest Insurance News

Billboards at the GW Bridge?

By MIKE KELLY YOU PROBABLY know this scene all too well. It is a morning rush hour, a weekday. You're behind the wheel of your car and weaving through the river of North Jersey traffic heading toward the upper deck of the George Washington Bridge. You round the bend near Fort Lee - and stop. Another day, another traffic jam. You spend the next 30 minutes staring at the trunk of the car inches from your front bumper. Well, fellow drivers, not to worry. This boring scene is about to cha...

Leaping Lizards Over the GWB

By ALFRED P. DOBLIN I HAVE GREAT NEWS for you unless you are the mayor of Fort Lee: New Jersey hasn't saved a bundle on auto insurance, but it has sold billboards above the tollbooths at the George Washington Bridge. On Wednesday, Geico, the lizard-loving insurance company, is scheduled to unveil mammoth billboards above the upper-deck tollbooths to the GWB. Another billboard will top the lower-level tollbooths and three smaller signs will be displayed on approach roads. Fort Lee Mayor Ja...

Welcome to (Company Name Here) North Jersey

By GIOVANNA FABIANO, STAFF WRITER The news that drivers crossing the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee will soon get slapped with a huge advertisement for Geico car insurance has some wondering what other New Jersey spots might go the way of corporate sponsorship. What's next? Will we one day fly out of Newark Liberty Mutual Airport? Marc La Vorgna, a Port Authority spokesman, says, "No way." "At no time are we considering renaming any landmark facility like the George Washington B...

General Casualty to Be Sold

Jan. 5--General Casualty Insurance Cos. of Sun Prairie -- one of Dane County's largest employers -- will become part of an Australian insurance group in an acquisition valued at more than $1 billion. QBE Insurance Group, Sydney, has agreed to buy Winterthur U.S. Holdings, the Sun Prairie-based parent company of General Casualty and Unigard Insurance Group of Bellevue, Wash., for $1.16 billion.....We are unable to display this entire news item because this article's licensing expires after a c...

Deer-Car Crashes Often Not Covered

Many U.S. car owners are not covered for vehicle damage from deer crashes, a state insurance commissioner says.Many people are not aware that the collision coverage under an automobile insurance policy does not cover you if you hit a deer, Wisconsin Commissioner of Insurance Jorge Gomez says.Of the $1.1 billion in vehicle damage attributed to deer crashes in the United States each year, the average collision cost for each insurance claim is $2,800, the Insurance Information Institute says.......

Deer Accidents Are Often Not Covered

Insurers in states with high rates of deer-vehicle crashes are trying to get the word out this winter: Check your auto policy."Many people are not aware that the collision coverage under an automobile insurance policy does not cover you if you hit a deer," says Wisconsin Commissioner of Insurance Jorge Gomez.Nationally, 36 million auto owners don't have comprehensive insurance, says the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).....We are unable to display this entire news item b...

Insurance Giant Will Trim Rates on Cars for Missourians: State Farm Says Latest Cuts Will Save Customers $39 Million a Year.

Jan. 4--State Farm said it is cutting car insurance rates an average 6.8 percent in Missouri beginning this month. State Farm is the largest auto insurer in both states, providing coverage for about one in five cars in each. The changes basically reflect lower claims costs over a rolling 10-year trend cycle, said Tara Griffith, a State Farm spokeswoman in Kansas City....We are unable to display this entire news item because this article's licensing expires after a certain amount of time. This...

Alfa Corp. Completes Merger

Jan. 3--Alfa Corp. announced Tuesday the completion of its merger with Virginia Mutual Insurance Co., a move that will take the Montgomery-based insurer into new markets in Tennessee. The merger announcement caps a close five-year relationship with Virginia Mutual, through which Alfa has done business in Virginia and North Carolina. With the deal finalized -- which required regulatory approval in Virginia -- a new company called "Alfa Alliance Insurance Corporation" was created, fully owned b...