| Marine insurers are cancelling policies for vessels and oil-shipping rates amid the widening military conflict in Iran that has destroyed three tankers and stranded 150 ships in the Strait of Hormuz, reports Reuters (3/2/26, Chow). Travelers scrambling to leave the Mideast are learning that travel insurance doesn’t cover the cost of flights home or hotel stays, reports Bloomberg (3/5/26, Ha)
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| A Delaware judge ruled that Meta Platforms’ insurers do not have a duty to defend it against thousands of lawsuits that allege its technology harms children, reports the Insurance Journal (3/3/26, Simpson).
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| State Farm will issue $136 million in dividends to Louisiana auto policyholders after stronger than expected U.S. underwriting results, reports the Insurance Journal (2/27/26, South Central News). Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Co. is set to acquire Louisiana Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. for $46.7 million in cash in a deal that would convert the mutual to a stock company and fold it into larger regional operations, reports IBA magazine (3/3/26, Araullo).
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| High-profile federal officials and Gov. Jeff Landry visited coastal Louisiana together in connection with an effort to accelerate Army Corps of Engineers projects focused on flood protection and dredging, reports the New Orleans Times-Picayune (2/27/26, Smith)
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| The chief U.S. District Judge in New Orleans asked prospective jurors about their feelings toward insurers and their own car-accident histories during jury selection for a massive federal fraud trial involving faked wrecks, reports the New Orleans Times-Picayune (3/3/26, Finn). The trial of two New Orleans attorneys accused of orchestrating one of the largest auto-insurance schemes in Louisiana history started this week, reports the Times-Picayune (3/4/26, Simerman). Sixty-three people have been charged in the case, and many have already pleaded guilty, reports WVUE/Fox 8 (3/2/26, McCoy). Prosecutors say the fraud was so extensive it may have driven up premiums across Louisiana. Meanwhile, a Louisiana contractor was arrested on fraud and forgery charges and sent a cease-and-desist letter by Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple, reports the Insurance Journal (3/2/26, South Central News).
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| State Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple is working with a national panel of insurance commissioners to determine a benchmark premium discount for homeowners who install fortified roofs designed to withstand storm damage, reports The Daily Advertiser (3/4/26, Vice). The Louisiana Department of Insurance will partner with the National Insurance Crime Bureau to combat the marketing tactics of third-party litigation funders, reports the Insurance Journal (3/3/26, Amacher
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| A bill to be introduced in the spring legislative session would require new homes to have fortified roofs, features that “more than” pay for their cost over their lifetimes, IIABL CEO Ben Albright notes in a story by Fox 8 (3/4/26, Truong). The goal is to boost competition and bring down premiums by reducing storm claims
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| Lawmakers
in California, Hawaii and New York blame fossil fuel companies for the impact
of climate-related disasters on insurance costs and want the energy firms to
shoulder those costs, reports The Guardian (2/8/26, Noor).
Proposals in those states would permit them to sue energy firms on behalf of
resident for their role in higher costs.
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| An economic analysis asserts the cost of property insurance in Florida is now 14.5 percent lower than it would have been without passage of significant reforms in 2022 and 2023, reports the Insurance Journal (2/12/26, Rabb). The savings resulted in a $4.2 billion jump in Florida business activity and more than 29,000 jobs, the analysis concludes.
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| Fitch Ratings said it does
not expect autonomous cars to have any “meaningful impact” on insurers or their
credit ratings over the next decade, reports the Insurance Journal (2/11/26, Hemenway). The launch of an artificial
intelligence tool for insurance shopping rattled the stocks of U.S. insurance
brokers this week, reports Bloomberg (2/10/26, Hughes).
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