Latest Business Insurance Headlines

All the headlines from our Business Insurance Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Senate Weighs Broad Coronavirus Liability Shield for Employers

Jun 11 2020 // Senate Republicans are drafting legislation that would let employers choose which government coronavirus safety guidelines to follow in order to be shielded from lawsuits if their customers or workers contract the virus,...

Neptune Flood Expands With Product for Small, Mid-Sized Commercial Lines

Jun 10 2020 // Neptune Flood, a digital flood insurance company. has launched a commercial flood insurance product for small and mid-sized businesses in 48 states.Phase 1 of the rollout makes Neptune Flood available for non-residential...

Commercial Lines Prices Rose 6% in Q1- Except Workers’ Compensation

Jun 9 2020 // U.S. commercial insurance prices climbed more than 6 percent in aggregate during the 2020 first quarter compared to the year, Willis Towers Watson’s pricing survey for the sector.Price increases surpassed 6 percent...

Washington State Issues Workplace Mask Guidance

Jun 5 2020 // Most workers in Washington will be required to wear a mask or face covering at work under new coronavirus workplace safety and health requirements that take effect June 8.With few exceptions, workers must wear some type of...

Mississippi Establishes Small Business Website for Virus Relief Grants

Jun 2 2020 // Mississippi has established a website where owners of small businesses can soon start applying for grants funded by a federal coronavirus pandemic relief package, Gov. Tate Reeves said Friday.The site –...

South Carolina Reopening Committee Leader Wants Business Liability Protection

Jun 2 2020 // The leader of governor’s committee studying how to best reopen South Carolina after the coronavirus said one of the most critical pieces of unfinished business is protecting businesses from lawsuits if they follow...

Georgia Man Accused of Defrauding Employer Over COVID-19

May 27 2020 // A Georgia man faces charges after authorities say he lied to his employer that he had tested positive for COVID-19.Santwon Antonio Davis, 34, is charged with defrauding his employer, the U.S. attorney’s office in...

Massachusetts Begins Phased Reopening, Implements Safety Standards for Workplaces

May 27 2020 // Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker has implemented mandatory safety standards for workplaces to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmissions as the state begins its phased reopening of businesses.All businesses in...

Florida CFO to Focus On Pandemic Business Liability Protections in 2021 Session

May 27 2020 // Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis said he will pursue legislation that establishes liability protections for businesses in the next legislative session slated to start in March 2021.The Florida Department of Financial Services...

Mississippi to Offer $300M in Virus Relief Grants for Small Businesses

May 20 2020 // Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said last week that he expects to sign a bill to create grants for small businesses by using part the state’s coronavirus relief money.The governor’s staff was involved in...

U.S. Employers Shying Away From Using Coronavirus ‘Immunity’ Tests in Reopening

May 19 2020 // U.S. employers have cooled to the idea of testing workers for possible immunity to the coronavirus as they prepare to reopen factories and other workplaces.Blood tests that check for antibodies to the new coronavirus have...

Here’s What Happened to Commercial Insurance Renewal Premiums in April

May 14 2020 // Year over year, all lines of property/casualty insurance business experienced an increase in average premium renewal rate, except workers’ compensation, which saw a premium decrease, according to the April results of...

Debate Over Business Liability in Pandemic Turns to OSHA Regulation, CDC Guidelines

May 13 2020 // Congressional Republicans have made liability protection for employers a nonnegotiable demand in any new coronavirus stimulus, but Senator Lindsey Graham, an ally of President Donald Trump, says that regulators have a role...

Commercial Insurance Rates in Q1 Rise 14%, Even Before Impact of COVID-19: Marsh

May 12 2020 // Global average commercial insurance prices increased 14% in the first quarter of 2020 – but the rate hikes were not due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to insurance broker Marsh in its quarterly Global Insurance...

Small Businesses See Coronavirus Effect Lasting 12-16 Months

May 12 2020 // Eighty-one percent of small U.S. companies surveyed by Veem, a global payments network, expect the new coronavirus pandemic to affect their business over the next 12-16 months, and nearly 90% are bracing for an economic...

Maine’s The MEMIC Group Releases Back-to-the-Workplace Safety Guidance

May 8 2020 // As states begin to lift restrictions on employers in various segments of the economy, MEMIC, a Portland, Maine-headquartered workers’ compensation insurance specialty company, has released an employer guide for...

Brand and Waterman Appointed to New Roles in Zurich’s Commercial Insurance Team

May 8 2020 // Zurich Insurance Group announced it has appointed Ralph Brand as global head of Casualty, Financial Lines and Cyber, and Chris Waterman as global head of Property, Marine and Technical Lines.With these newly created roles,...

Louisiana’s Donelon Asks Commercial Auto Insurers to Offer COVID-19 Relief

May 6 2020 // Louisiana’s chief insurance regulator wants insurers to consider offering premium relief to their commercial auto insurance customers due to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic.Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon...

Zurich North America Adds Chubb/ACE Veteran Wells as U.S. Head of Middle Market

May 4 2020 // Zurich North America has appointed Alexander Wells as U.S. head of Middle Market. He will be responsible for the strategic management and development of Zurich’s Middle Market business. Wells, who is new to Zurich,...

Trump Administration Defends Workplace Safety Record During Coronavirus Crisis

May 1 2020 // U.S. Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia on Thursday defended his department’s handling of workplace safety during the coronavirus pandemic, saying “the cop is on the beat” in response to union criticism about...