Latest California Headlines

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

Hoverboard Bursts into Flames in California Home

Jan 27 2016 // A hoverboard burst into flames in a Petaluma, Calif. home, marking the second such fire in Sonoma County in a week.The Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported that the hoverboard was plugged into an electrical outlet Monday to...

Insurance Department Tally on California Wildfires $1B

Jan 26 2016 // Damage from two destructive Northern California wildfires that killed six and sent thousands fleeing their homes topped $1 billion in insured losses, according to a preliminary estimate by the state’s insurance...

California Insurance Commissioner Calls for Insurance Divestment from Coal

Jan 25 2016 // California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones on Monday asked all insurance companies doing business in California to voluntarily divest from their investments in thermal coal as part of a nationwide call to reduce carbon...

Group Asking Residents Use Drones to Map El Niño Flooding in California

Jan 25 2016 // Forget about selfies. In California, residents are using smartphones and drones to document the coastline’s changing face.Starting this month, The Nature Conservancy is asking tech junkies to capture the flooding and...

California Gas Leak Follows Years of Lax Regulation of Aging Storage Wells

Jan 25 2016 // Long before a natural gas storage well sprung a disastrous leak near Los Angeles, Calif., utilities and national industry groups were raising alarms about the danger of aging underground storage infrastructure.The leaking...

JLT Specialty Names Hernandez Senior Vice President in California

Jan 25 2016 // JLT Specialty USA has named Cari Hernandez senior vice president for its entertainment and hospitality practice.Hernandez will be based in JLT’s Los Angeles, Calif. office, where she will manage the needs of clients...

Doyle Joins Leavitt Group in Central California

Jan 25 2016 // Salinas, Calif.-based Leavitt Central Coast Insurance Services has hired Deana Doyle as a personal agent. Doyle focuses on insurance for home and auto and is licensed in property/casualty and life and health. Doyle worked...

Expert Sounds off on Legal, Insurance Issues of Self-Driving Cars

Jan 25 2016 // Hilary Rowen, a partner in the law firm of Sedgwick LLP in Sacramento, Calif., for the last three years has been analyzing and following the insurance issues relating to the emergence of autonomous vehicles, particularly...

California Construction Company Owner Nabbed for Workers’ Comp Fraud

Jan 25 2016 // The owner of a Northern California construction firm was arrested in mid-January on nine felony counts of workers’ compensation insurance fraud and tax evasion totaling $187,707 in losses.William Huffman, 47, of...

People – West

Jan 25 2016 // Calabasas, Calif.-based Topa Insurance Group has promoted Anthony Manzitto to chief operating officer and executive vice president. He was chief underwriting officer.Manzitto will be responsible for underwriting, human...

China’s Insurance Marketplace Explained in California Symposium

Jan 25 2016 // Few people in the world could probably offer the sort of perspective on China’s developing insurance industry as economist Qixiang Sun.Sun is the dean of the school of economics at Peking University, and director of...

The Changing Surplus Lines Landscape

Jan 25 2016 // The changing excess and surplus insurance landscape was an oft discussed topic at a recent California meeting, with experts describing the challenges and opportunities going forward.“The business that we have and the...

California Commissioner OKs New insurance Products to Fill Ridesharing Gap

Jan 21 2016 // California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones approved a new insurance product by USAA designed to close the gap in insurance coverage for drivers driving for all ridesharing companies.The product is now available to...

California Commissioner Orders Changes to FAIR Plan

Jan 21 2016 // California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones issued an order directing the California Fair Access to Insurance Requirements Plan to make several changes in the wake of last year’s severe fire season.The order...

Britton Gallagher Expands Life Sciences Division in California with Wright

Jan 21 2016 // Britton Gallagher has named Tina Wright an account manager on its life sciences team. Wright will be based in San Diego, Calif. and will focus on developing solutions for issues facing life science clients. Wright has a...

Plan to Burn off Leaking Methane in California Scrapped

Jan 21 2016 // Air quality regulators agreed on Wednesday to scrap a proposal to capture and burn off some of the methane spewing into the air from a subterranean pipeline rupture that has forced thousands of Los Angeles residents from...

EPIC Taps Rappleye as Producer in California

Jan 20 2016 // Edgewood Partners Insurance Center has hired Cameron Rappleye as a property/casualty insurance broker/producer in the Sacramento, Calif. office. Rappleye will be responsible for new business development and the design and...

Grants Now Available to Strengthen Older California Homes

Jan 20 2016 // California homeowners have until Feb. 20 to apply for up to $3,000 in funding for retrofits to protect their homes from catastrophic earthquake damage.The Earthquake Brace + Bolt program today opened the registration...

Former California Insurance Commissioner, Past NAIC President Barger Dies

Jan 19 2016 // Richards D. Barger, a former insurance commissioner and a former president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, died on Sunday.The cause is not yet known. He was 87. Barger, who went by the name Dick,...

Alliant in California Names Novotnaj Director of Health Informatics

Jan 19 2016 // Alliant Insurance Services Inc. has named Kryz Novotnaj vice president and national director of health informatics in its employee benefits group. Novotnaj will be based in the Walnut Creek, Calif. office, and he will lead...