Latest Oregon Headlines

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

Only 20% of Oregonians Insured for Earthquake Risks

Feb 7 2010 // Although Oregon is among the states at highest risk for a major earthquake, only about 20 percent of Oregonians have earthquake insurance, according to a Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS)...

Confie Seguros Acquires Vern Fonk Insurance Services

Feb 1 2010 // New York-based Confie Seguros, a provider of auto insurance with an emphasis on serving Hispanic consumers, has acquired Puget Sound, Ore.-based Vern Fonk Insurance Services Inc. Vern Fonk serves Washington and Oregon.The...

Oregon Emergency Service Volunteers Entitled to Workers’ Comp Benefits

Jan 26 2010 // Emergency service volunteers that are injured while assisting with a state of emergency may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits, according to the state Department of Consumer and Business...

Only 20% of Oregonians Insured for Earthquake Risks

Jan 19 2010 // Although Oregon is among the states at highest risk for a major earthquake, only about 20 percent of Oregonians have earthquake insurance, according to a Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS)...

Oregon Law Gives Consumers More Vehicle Information When Car is Totaled

Jan 13 2010 // The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services is reminding insurance agents and residents that they have new rights if their vehicle is totaled in an accident. New rights when your car is totaledHouse Bill 2190...

Oregon Man Files Lawsuit Over Defective Baby Hammock

Jan 4 2010 // A Gresham, Ore., man has filed a lawsuit against baby product maker Amby Baby Motion following the death of his five-month-old boy in August. The death was the second linked by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission...

Oregon Enhances Death Benefits for Fatal Worker Injuries

Dec 30 2009 // Oregon is enhancing the death benefits available to surviving family members when a worker has a fatality, by expanding the scope of the burial benefit and doubling it to 20 times the state average weekly wage; creating a...

States Get Tough on Distracted Drivers in 2010

Dec 29 2009 // Illinois, Kansas, New Hampshire and Oregon will bring in the new year with new state laws aimed at cracking down on distracted driving, according to the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI).Of the four...

Oregon Announces Insurance Aid for Laid Off Workers

Dec 24 2009 // Oregonians who have been laid off from their jobs can continue to receive help paying for health insurance into 2010. The Insurance Division of the Department of Consumer and Business Services is adopting emergency rules...

Oregon Woman Killed in Nursing Home Fire

Dec 23 2009 // Authorities say a woman who suffered burns in a fire at an assisted living center in Tigard has died.According to Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue, firefighters responded to a blaze at Park Place Assisted Living Center at...

Oregon Fines Farmers Over Re-Rating

Dec 9 2009 // Oregon’s Department of Consumer and Business Services recently fined Farmers Insurance Company of Oregon $10,000 for improperly using consumers insurance scores in calculating renewal rates on thousands of auto and...

Oregon Bridges Unsafe From Earthquakes

Dec 6 2009 // The outlook is not good for Oregon bridges in a major earthquake. A study released recently concludes that U.S. Highway 101 on the coast would be impassable, all connections from the coast to the Willamette Valley would be...

Oregon Proposes Rules for Producers, Crop Insurance Claims Adjusters

Dec 3 2009 // The Oregon Insurance Division has proposed new insurance licensing rules to, among other things, charge agencies a fee for the cost of criminal records checks, as wells as to establishe new requirements for crop insurance...

Study: Workers’ Comp Claim Duration Increases as Benefits Go Up

Dec 2 2009 // A new study of the workers’ compensation benefits in Oregon and New Mexico has found that as the benefits have increased, so have claims durations.The National Council on Compensation Insurance used a...

Oregon Bridges Unsafe from Earthquakes

Nov 18 2009 // The outlook is not good for Oregon bridges in a major earthquake. A study released Monday concludes that U.S. Highway 101 on the coast would be impassable, all connections from the coast to the Willamette Valley would be...

Oregon Fines Providence Health

Nov 11 2009 // The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS) recently fined Providence Health Plans $30,000 for mishandling nearly 7,000 claims, according to an Insurance Division press release.“In this tough...

Agents Program Extends to Oregon

Nov 3 2009 // The Smart Choice Agents Program, which currently serves 3,000 independent agencies in more than 30 states, announces the expansion of the program into Oregon. Kurt Van Sickle has been named the state’s...

Oregon Bans Cell Phones in the Car

Nov 2 2009 // As of Jan. 1, you can get slapped with a $90 fine if you use a hand-held cell phone while driving in Oregon. Will that be enough to encourage motorists to keep their full attention on the road? And how well can the law be...

Oregon Charges Agent Who Dumped Insurance Customer Records in Trash

Nov 1 2009 // The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services has issued a cease-and-desist order against insurance agent Robert Warren Spruill for violating the Oregon Consumer Identity Theft Protection Act and the Oregon...

Oregon’s Gales Names New Partner

Oct 30 2009 // Gales Creek Insurance Services is pleased to announce that their Commercial Lines Manager, Kim Hutchinson, has become a partner in the agency. Kim has been with Gales Creek since 1999, handling national program business...