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Super Bowl Sunday might be the darling of live television events, but Chris Rogers and Jim Hawley get paid to confront the realities that defy its good-time vibe.
Rogers is risk-control director for Chicago-based Aon Corp.’s national entertainment group, which counsels arenas, stadiums and other public venues on how they can improve safety at their events and in the process avoid disasters or getting sued. Get the full story »
CNA Surety Corp. said Friday that it has rejected a $375 million buyout offer by its majority owner, CNA Financial Corp. A special committee of CNA Surety’s board said the $22-per-share bid by CNA Financial Corp. “substantially undervalues” the company, but the committee said it was open to more discussions with CNA Financial. Get the full story »
First-quarter results of Northbrook-based Allstate Corp. and other property insurers are likely to include higher catastrophe losses due to the winter storms that have swept much of the country.
Winter storms are the third-biggest cause of catastrophe losses, behind hurricanes and tornadoes, according to the Insurance Information Institute. Get the full story »
Reducing costly re-admissions to hospitals is the goal of a new initiative being rolled out this year by Illinois’ largest health insurer and the state’s hospital lobby.
By 2014, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois and the Illinois Hospital Association say they hope to reduce re-admissions by 33 percent. In 2009 there were more than 50,000 re-admissions to the approximately 200 hospitals in the state. Get the full story »
What was supposed to be a light-hearted look at a link between car accidents and astrology has turned into a public-relations misstep for Allstate Insurance.
The Northbrook-based insurer issued an apology Saturday for a study it released two days earlier that rated the safest drivers based on their Zodiac signs. Get the full story »
Don’t call them aggressive drivers. Call them “resourceful” drivers, and that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re the worst on the road.
Virgos, known for being practical, industrious and perfectionists, were 700 percent more likely to be in a car accident in the last year than passionate, determined Scorpios, according to Allstate Insurance, which recently compared claims data against the revised astrological calendar. Get the full story »
Countrywide Financial, a unit of Bank of America Inc., conducted a “massive fraud” over its mortgage-backed securities, according to a lawsuit brought by investors, including TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Co., New York Life Insurance Co. and Dexia Holdings Inc., Bloomberg News reported Tuesday on its Web site. Get the full story »
Bob Benmosche will continue as chief executive of bailed-out insurer American International Group Inc., having made sufficient progress in his treatment for cancer, the company said Monday.
AIG said last October that Benmosche was receiving aggressive chemotherapy for an undisclosed cancer but that he intended to remain CEO into 2012, health permitting. Benmosche said in a statement his doctors believed he could continue working for 12 to 18 months. Get the full story »
Government auditors say taxpayers might be repaid in full for the bailout of insurance giant American International Group Inc.
The Government Accountability Office said in a report Thursday that the final cost of the rescue depends increasingly on the strength of AIG’s business and its stock price. Get the full story »
The recapitalization deal for bailed-out insurer American International Group is done and all but certain to close on January 14, a person familiar with the situation said on Friday. Get the full story »
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois has dropped a plan to require health plan subscribers to get prior approval before getting access to a broad range of outpatient mental health services, amid intense criticism.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois upset mental health providers and their patients throughout the state in recent weeks with a requirement that preferred provider organization, PPO, health plan subscribers first call the insurer to get prior approval before being able to get most outpatient mental health counseling, psychotherapy or other outpatient medical health services. Get the full story »
Chicago-based Hub International Ltd. is expanding its California operations with the Tuesday acquisition of Sander A. Kessler & Associates, Inc., a Santa Monica, California-based insurance brokerage firm.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Founded in 1956, Kessler is one of the largest, independent full-service insurance agencies in California.
The transaction will significantly expand Hub California’s presence in the Los Angeles area. Kessler currently arranges insurance programs for a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, seafood, meat processing, security guards, recycling, and the solar industry. Get the full story »
Three years after they relaxed the dress code for employees at their Bloomington headquarters, the State Farm Insurance Cos. are tightening it up a bit again. As of this week, shorts are forbidden. Get the full story »
