Monthly Archives: <span>September 2015</span>

Insurance Industry Labor Study Reveals Continued Focus on Hiring

According to the latest iteration of the Semi-Annual U.S. Insurance Labor Outlook Study conducted by The Jacobson Group and Ward Group, 65 percent of companies polled intend to increase staff in 2015. This is the second highest rate in the …

Study Ponders Whether There Will be Fewer, Weaker Atlantic Hurricanes in the Future

A new but controversial study asks if an end is coming to the busy Atlantic hurricane seasons of recent decades. The Atlantic looks like it is entering in to a new quieter cycle of storm activity, like in the 1970s …

Apple, Google Add to Smart Dashboard Auto Technology

Playing deejay with voice commands will get easier for more Americans this fall as some best-selling cars get updated with software that integrates smartphones into the dashboard. With the 2016 model year, Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto will turn …

More Corporate Board Candidates Decline Job Due to Risks

A spot on a corporate board can be a plum post. It means compensation, usually stock, and often cash. Other perks include invaluable connections to fellow board members and executives, along with a profile boost in one’s given industry. But …

Amtrak Service Could be Disrupted if Required Safety System Not Installed by Dec. 31

Amtrak passenger service that runs on tracks owned by freight rail companies may be curtailed unless Congress extends a Dec. 31 deadline to implement a safety system that was mandated seven years ago. December 2018 would be “more realistic” for …

Car Seat Safety Lacking for Older Kids

Booster seat-aged children are twice as likely to suffer serious injury or death in a car crash than younger children but a new study shows they may be less likely to have car seats inspected for proper use. Less than …

BP Wants Restitution on Some Gulf Oil Spill Business Claims

Attorneys for BP told a federal appeals court last week that the company should be able to seek restitution of some of the money it paid in economic damage claims to businesses and individuals under a settlement arising from the …

Wind Shear, Dry Air Curb Atlantic Storm Activity at Season Peak

The day during the Atlantic hurricane season when a tropical storm or worse is most likely to be swirling around the basin may come and go with a whimper. The best the Atlantic probably will come up with by Thursday, …

NICB Reports Insured Metal Theft Claims Continue to Decline

Continuing a recent trend, the National Insurance Crime Bureau reports that insured metal theft claims in 2014 were down 8 percent from 2012 levels. In 2012, a total of 13,731 metal theft claims were processed. The number dropped to 13,632 …

Fracking Boom Linked to Increasing Wastewater Spills

Carl Johnson and son Justin are third- and fourth-generation ranchers who for decades have battled oilfield companies that left a patchwork of barren earth where the men graze cattle in the high plains of New Mexico. Blunt and profane, they …