A United States Postal Service employee has been indicted on federal fraud charges for allegedly collecting augmented workers’ compensation benefits to which she was not entitled, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Illinois announced last month. Graciela Venegas, 66, …

Advocate Aurora Health, an Illinois-based hospital system, violated federal law when it refused to accommodate a nurse’s religious beliefs and fired her for failing to receive a COVID-19 vaccination, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit …

Inszone Insurance Services announced its further expansion in Texas through the acquisition of Bierschwale-Rees Insurance, a long-established independent insurance agency based in Fredericksburg, Texas. Bierschwale-Rees Insurance traces its roots to 1903, making it one of the oldest continuously operating insurance …

Insurers have paid more than $22.4 billion on tens of thousands of claims from the Los Angles wildfires that broke out a year ago on Jan. 7. The claims data, which comes from the California Department of Insurance, shows the …

Ryan Specialty Underwriting Managers (RSUM), the underwriting management division of Ryan Specialty, announced the rebranding of Leopanthera to Ryan Financial Lines, effective January 1, 2026. A London-based Lloyd’s coverholder, Leopanthera specializes in underwriting diversified financial lines on a worldwide basis. …

CRC Group, the independent broker and underwriting specialty insurance distributor, announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Euclid Transactional, a global provider of transactional insurance solutions. New York City-based Euclid Transactional is a managing general agency that specializes …

Upstate New York-based independent agency Lawley announced that Witkin Scott Associates has joined its organization effective January 1, 2026. As part of this partnership, all associates of Witkin Scott will join Lawley and relocate to its main office in Buffalo. …

Insurance Journal has opened its annual Agency Salary Survey, inviting retail insurance agency professionals across the property/casualty sector to participate. The survey is open to agency owners, principals, producers, account managers, CSRs, and support staff, offering a comprehensive look at …

This year, many of the world’s most powerful artificial intelligence companies face a pitched battle over government regulation on their home turf—California. And even President Donald Trump’s threat to punish states that regulate AI may not stop the fight. California …

CRU Group, a North American claims adjusting and services firm based in Dallas and Toronto, is expanding its flood insurance line with the appointment of Danny Sewell, who is based in Florida. CRU Group has “supported our Canadian clients in …

The U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search for a 77-year-old woman who went overboard on a cruise ship near Cuba on New Year’s Day. Crews searched for eight hours over 690 square miles (1,787 square kilometers) for the woman, …

A small private plane with only the pilot on board crashed at Provincetown Municipal Airport on Cape Cod on Sunday. The pilot was pronounced dead at the scene. According to officials of the Massachusetts seaside town, the plane crash took …

Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence chatbot Grok has created sexualized images of people including minors on the social media platform X in response to user prompts in recent days, drawing rebuke from officials such as the French government. Grok created and …

UK insurance broker Howden agreed to buy M&A protection specialist Atlantic Group as the City firm presses ahead with a rapid expansion in the key US market. Atlantic Group’s founders — Richard French, Joe O’Brien and David Haigh — will …

Valais public prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation into the operators of Le Constellation Bar in Crans Montana, Switzerland, after a fatal fire that broke out on New Years Eve. Following the initial investigation conducted by the Valais public prosecutor’s …

The UK just wrapped the warmest and sunniest year ever recorded. The average temperature for the UK in 2025 was 10.09C, the warmest since modern weather observation started in 1884, according to new data released by the UK Met Office. …

Surging renewable output overwhelmed Europe’s power grid in 2025, driving electricity prices below zero more often than ever before. Negative power prices are underscoring how rapid growth in renewable generation is colliding with stagnant demand and persistent grid constraints in …

The U.S. military operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and flew him out of the country early Saturday also disrupted Caribbean travel at a busy travel time for the region. No airline flights were crossing over Venezuela that day, …

Markets may have shrugged off the audacious U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, but some investors warn that geopolitical risks are perhaps being underestimated after Donald Trump threatened further action in the Americas. Investors held their nerve on Monday, …

The Trump administration has transformed the Environmental Protection Agency in its first year, cutting federal limits on air and water pollution and promoting fossil fuels, a metamorphosis that clashes with the agency’s historic mission to protect human health and the …