Latest USA Headlines

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

20-Year Sentence Sought for Bond Broker in Insurance Scheme

Apr 15 2009 // Federal prosecutors in New Orleans are seeking a 20-year prison sentence for a woman convicted of participating in a money laundering scheme with a former Louisiana lawmaker.A jury convicted Gwendolyn Moyo last year of...

Survey: Most U.S. Companies Hold Steady on Benefit Plans for Employees

Apr 14 2009 // Despite the pressures of the economic crisis, most U.S. companies continue to view their retirement as a vital part of their workplace relationship with employees, even as they struggle to balance cost and talent...

Capt. Phillips Rescued by U.S. Navy

Apr 13 2009 // U.S. Navy Seals (the Service’s highly trained commando unit) have ended the five-day old hostage crisis, which began with the attempt by Somali pirates to hijack the 17,000-ton Maersk Alabama several hundred miles...

Overall Thefts Cool, But California Remains Top Spot for Vehicle Thefts

Apr 13 2009 // The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) reported that 2008 marked the nation’s fifth consecutive year of declining vehicle thefts in the United States. Although most areas experienced a reduction in vehicle theft,...

Weakened Life Insurers May Get Federal Aid

Apr 10 2009 // U.S. life insurers, already weakened by the global financial crisis, are expected to report their worst-ever quarterly results in the coming weeks, stoking expectations that federal funds will be needed to prevent the...

Somali Pirates Hold American Hostage for Third Day

Apr 10 2009 // U.S. warships stalked a drifting lifeboat where Somali pirates were holding their first American hostage on Friday, apparently hoping to win a promise of safe passage in exchange for the captive.Four pirates have been...

Georgia Charges Tennessee Trucking Insurance Agent with $2.6 Million Fraud

Apr 10 2009 // A Chattanooga, Tenn. insurance agent has been charged with insurance fraud and theft for allegedly adding commissions to policies when he told policyholders that the coverage was being sold on a net basis — with a...

U.S. Lawmakers Seek Ban on Tainted Chinese Drywall

Apr 10 2009 // U.S. Sens. Bill Nelson, D.-Fla., and Mary Landrieu, D.-La., have filed legislation for a recall and immediate ban on tainted building products from China, as more and more people around the country are reporting problems...

Somali Pirates Hijack U.S.- Flagged Container Ship

Apr 9 2009 // Somali pirates hijacked a U.S.-flagged, Danish-owned container ship on Wednesday with 20 American crew on board in a major escalation in attacks off the lawless Horn of Africa nation, officials said.The 17,000-tonne Maersk...

P/C Insurers Profitable in 2008; Take Hit From Catastrophes, Financial Crisis

Apr 9 2009 // Property/casualty insurers remained profitable in 2008 despite taking hits from several catastrophes, the recession and the ongoing financial crisis. P/C insurers earned $2.4 billion in net income after taxes in 2008, but...

US Financial Bailout Watchdog Examining AIG Payments

Apr 8 2009 // The in-house watchdog for the U.S. Treasury Department’s massive financial rescue program is examining billions of dollars in counterparty payments made by bailed-out insurer AIG to major banks, such as Goldman...

U.S. Judge Halts Washington Mutual Fraud Lawsuit

Apr 7 2009 // A federal judge on Monday halted a consumer class-action fraud lawsuit against Washington Mutual Inc, saying it may be more appropriate for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp to handle claims against the failed savings and...

Guy Carpenter: Rates Rising on U.S. Property Catastrophe Reinsurance

Apr 7 2009 // A new industry briefing shows reinsurance rates continuing to increase for the U.S. property-catastrophe reinsurance market for April 1, 2009 renewals.According to Guy Carpenter & Co.’s “Rates Up on...

U.S. Forecaster Lowers Atlantic Hurricane Prediction

Apr 7 2009 // Citing cooler seas and the prospect of a weak El Nino, Colorado State University’s hurricane team lowered its 2009 Atlantic forecast Tuesday to 12 tropical storms, of which six could become hurricanes.The research...

Rising Sea Levels in Northeast Putting Cities At Risk to Storm Damage

Apr 6 2009 // Global warming should lift sea levels along the U.S. Northeast nearly twice as fast as global rates this century, putting New York City at risk to damage from hurricanes and winter storm surges, scientists said.“The...

Business Moves

Apr 6 2009 // CAA, Bridges Group Inc.Austin, Texas-based Combined Agents of America LLC (CAA) has added Bridges Group Inc., based in Kansas, to its roster of agency members. Since 1894, the Bridges Group has served the region...

Business Moves

Apr 6 2009 // AIGAmerican International Group is taking down the most prominent sign at its downtown Manhattan offices. According to a Reuters report, a spokesman said the company had decided to replace the large AIG sign —...

Measurement of Success

Apr 6 2009 // Top 100 Agency ProfileRanking No.: 14 Agency Name: Bollinger Insurance Inc. Headquarters: Short Hills, N.J. Year Founded: 1933 Additional Locations: Princeton, Moorestown, Vineland, N.J.; New York City, N.Y.; Philadelphia,...

An Awakened Washington Promises More Stress for Directors & Officers

Apr 6 2009 // Corporations and their directors and officers are living in fear. Fear of the next financial scandal, the next stock market plunge, the next lawsuit. Fear of bankruptcy. Fear of angry policymakers inside Washington and...

KPMG Hit With Billion-Dollar U.S. Lawsuit Over Audits of Subprime Lender

Apr 2 2009 // Accounting giant KPMG was hit with a billion-dollar lawsuit Wednesday over claims its “grossly negligent audits” helped trigger the collapse of a top subprime mortgage lender at the start of the U.S. housing...