Drivers squeezed as auto insurance costs soar across U.S.
Federal rules allow insurers to consider socioeconomic factors when setting rates, leading to the worst increases being borne by the people least able to afford them.
Insurance
Home insurers cut natural disasters from policies as climate risks grow
individuals and families in places once considered safe from natural catastrophes could lose crucial insurance protections while their natural disaster exposure expands or intensifies as global temperatures rise.
Longtime Indianapolis business leader Jerry Semler dies at 86
Semler, who spent almost a quarter-century in executive leadership at American United Life Insurance Co. and served as a board director for a multitude of central Indiana civic, business, charitable and arts organizations, died Monday.
FDIC recommends raising insured deposit limit for businesses
U.S. businesses might be able to secure bank deposit insurance for accounts holding more than $250,000 if Congress agrees with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.’s new proposal.
Department of Insurance calls for grace period for storm-affected counties
The department said those individuals will receive a 60-day extension to make premium payments without risk of penalties or policy cancellation.
IBJ Podcast: Pete The Planner’s frank message on accepting your future demise
Pete Dunn and podcast host Mason King dive into some the big questions that usually come up when one finally addresses this dark elephant in the room: How much life insurance do you need, and what kind?
Trava Security sees big potential in cybersecurity insurance market
The company helps insurance carriers collect the data needed to underwrite insurance policies.
Indianapolis-area insurance broker charged in $4M Ponzi scheme
Former insurance broker Brian Simms of Lebanon was arrested Wednesday after being charged with six counts of wire fraud by a federal grand jury.
Thieves key on hack that leaves Hyundai, Kia cars vulnerable
An insurance industry group said some Hyundai and Kia cars and SUVs are stolen at nearly twice the rate of the rest of the auto industry because their keys lack computer chips for theft “immobilizer” systems.
Indianapolis-based Trava Security lands $4.5M in venture funding
This is the second major funding round for Trava, which was launched by High Alpha in 2020. The company offers cybersecurity risk management and insurance for small and medium-sized companies.
FEMA report: Flood insurance hikes will drive 1M from market
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has updated its flood insurance program to more accurately reflect risk, but also make the program more solvent.
Judge approves $1B-plus deal in deadly Florida condo collapse
The decision by Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Michael Hanzman came a day before the one-year anniversary of the Champlain Towers South disaster in the Miami suburb of Surfside. The collapse killed 98 people, one of the deadliest building failures in U.S. history.
Geico facing $5.2M payout to woman who got HPV after sex in car
A three-judge appeals court panel upheld a county court’s decision affirming an arbitrator’s finding that the woman was entitled to the award.
Former Seven Corners employee sentenced for role in fraud scheme
Maria Caceres, who worked for travel insurance company Seven Corners from 1998 to 2016, pleaded guilty to wire fraud last year. She was sentenced to federal prison Thursday and ordered to repay more than $496,000 to Seven Corners.
Medicare limits coverage of $28,000-a-year Alzheimer’s drug
Medicare officials stressed Tuesday that they did not take cost into account in the coverage decision, but rather whether Aduhelm is “reasonable and necessary” for treating Alzheimer’s patients enrolled in the program.
IRT can’t claim coverage for COVID-related losses, appeals court affirms
Despite the “dire” financial downturn caused by COVID-related business closures, the Indianapolis Repertory Theatre can’t claim loss-of-use coverage under its insurance policy, the Court of Appeals of Indiana ruled.
Indiana town to seek reimbursement from business after fire
Officials in a small central Indiana town plan to seek reimbursement from a straw-storage business after fire crews spent weeks fighting a fire smoldering amid corncobs and straw bales.
For many, home insurance premiums are rising faster than inflation
Since 2017, home insurance premium rates are up 11.4% on average, and insurance experts expect the rates to remain high.
Council committee OK’s $10.1M anti-flooding plan for Mars Hill
If implemented, the projects could remove more than 650 parcels from the federal 100-year floodplain, releasing properties in the southwest-side neighborhood from expensive flood insurance requirements.
City planning $10.1M initiative in Mars Hill to remove 650 parcels from flood zone
Indianapolis’ Department of Public Works is proposing a list of strategies to shrink federal floodplain boundaries, as well as to decrease the severity of water damage in the flood-prone neighborhood.