Latest Personal Auto Headlines

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

Recreational Cannabis Impairs Driving Even When Driver Not High: Harvard Research

Jan 27 2020 // Recreational cannabis use affects driving ability even when drivers are not intoxicated by marijuana, according to a study from a Harvard Medical School hospital.Published in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence journal, the...

Uber in London Failed to Flag Assault Complaints, Monitor Drivers’ Insurance Status

Jan 24 2020 // London’s main transportation regulator has released a scathing document detailing why it moved to ban Uber Technologies Inc. from operating in the city. The regulator lists several safety concerns, including the...

Lyft Hopes New Expert Council Improves Safety for Riders, Drivers

Jan 23 2020 // Lyft Inc is putting together a council of experts to advise the ride-hailing company on its safety initiatives for riders and drivers, it said in a blog post on Tuesday.The Safety Advisory Council will include...

Ransomware Exposure Driving Up Cyber Insurance Costs

Jan 22 2020 // U.S. insurers are ramping up cyber-insurance rates by as much as 25% and trying to curb exposure to vulnerable customers after a surge of costly claims, industry sources said.The changes follow a challenging year of...

Recreational Cannabis Impairs Driving Even When Driver Not High: Harvard Research

Jan 16 2020 // Recreational cannabis use affects driving ability even when drivers are not intoxicated by marijuana, according to a study from a Harvard Medical School hospital.Published in the Drug and Alcohol Dependence journal, the...

Southern California Uber Driver Accused of Raping Passenger

Jan 15 2020 // An Uber driver was arrested on suspicion of raping a woman who said she fell asleep in his car after a night of drinking and woke up to him assaulting her, authorities said.The suspect, Alonso Calle, had contacted police...

Using Game Theory to Determine Who’s Liable: Autonomous Vehicle or Human Driver?

Jan 15 2020 // A recent decision by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on the March 2018 Uber crash that killed a pedestrian in Arizona split the blame among Uber, the company’s autonomous vehicle (AV), the safety...

N.Y. Limo Drivers Face New Safety Rules After Deadly 2018 Crash

Jan 15 2020 // New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and leaders of the state legislature have agreed on a package of limousine-safety laws that would create a new driver’s license for operators, require seat belts, ban defective vehicles...

Test for Self-Driving Shuttles to Run in Columbus, Ohio, Neighborhood

Jan 14 2020 // Self-driving shuttles will do a circuit through a residential neighborhood in Ohio’s capital city as part of a year-long pilot program starting in late January.Three, 12-passenger, disabled-accessible electric...

California Agent Sentenced for Stealing $174K in Premiums from Truck Drivers

Jan 10 2020 // Connie Free, 34, of Moreno Valley, Calif., was sentenced this week to 22 felony counts and one misdemeanor count including grand theft and forgery after reportedly stealing at least $174,000 in insurance premiums from 11...

Oregon Woman Sues Uber for $1M, Alleging Sex Assault by Driver

Jan 10 2020 // A Hillsboro, Ore. woman is seeking more than $1 million from the ride-hailing company Uber, alleging she was sexually assaulted by one of the company’s drivers in 2018.The Oregonian/OregonLive reports the woman filed...

Teens Still Not Driving Like Teens Used To: Viewpoint

Jan 8 2020 // The much-discussed collapse in teenage driving in the U.S. seems to have ended a few years ago. But the less-discussed recovery, which I wrote about last year, seems to be over, too. Newly released data from the Federal...

Farmers Expands Program, Now Insuring Uber Drivers in 14 States and D.C.

Jan 7 2020 // Farmers Insurance has expanded its relationship with Uber by providing commercial automobile insurance to its ridesharing drivers in 12 additional states and the District of Columbia.In addition to the District of...

Report: Impaired Driving Arrests Increased in Minnesota in 2019

Jan 7 2020 // The number of people in Minnesota arrested for driving while impaired grew by nearly 5% last year, partly due to people driving with cannabis, opioids and methamphetamine in their system, according to a state...

Homeland Security Balks at State Laws on Immigrant Drivers’ Licenses, Data Sharing

Jan 3 2020 // The acting secretary of Homeland Security is taking aim at new laws in New York, New Jersey and other states that allow immigrants to get driver’s licenses without proof they are in the U.S. legally, and restrict...

Liberty Mutual to Insure Uber Drivers and Passengers in 7 States, Puerto Rico

Jan 2 2020 // Liberty Mutual Insurance will provide coverage for Uber drivers and passengers throughout New England, South Carolina and Puerto Rico as part of the company’s 2020 auto insurance programs, which became effective on...

Michigan City Ramping Up Enforcement of Ban on Using Handheld Phone While Driving

Dec 31 2019 // Police in Battle Creek, Michigan are enforcing a local ban on the use of a handheld phone while driving.The prohibition has been on the books for months, but signs recently went up at Battle Creek’s city entry...

Ohio Governor Says Distracted Driving Should Be Primary Offense

Dec 23 2019 // Distracted driving should be reason enough to pull someone over in Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine said as he promised a legislative proposal soon to upgrade the offense.DeWine also said it’s time for a cultural recognition...

Personal Auto Insurance Underwriting Performance Has Likely Peaked: Fitch

Dec 17 2019 // Performance in the U.S. personal auto insurance market continues to run favorably in 2019, on par with underwriting profits achieved in 2018, according to Fitch Ratings. However segment results for the industry are likely...

Uber Gains in California Driver Classification But Case Isn’t Closed

Dec 17 2019 // Uber Technologies Inc. beat back an aggressive bid to force it to treat California drivers as employees, but a judge’s ruling may allow a long-running fight over pay and benefits to gain traction in 2020.U.S....