Monthly Archives: <span>July 2018</span>

NFPA 921 for Dummies: How to Play the Fire Cause and Origin Game and Win

Every year, property insurers write checks totaling nearly $15 billion in response to fire losses, large and small. Fire claims average nearly $50,000 and are the most expensive type of claim filed, followed by hail claims at $11,000. Claims professionals …

Coastal Texas Town Still Recovering 10 Months After Hurricane Harvey

Hurricane Harvey battered Deven Bhakta’s Port Aransas hotel until it was uninhabitable. The Austin American-Statesman reports the Category 4 hurricane’s 130 mph winds blew out windows and stripped parts of the roof off the three-story Holiday Inn Express, while the …

Victims of Food Truck Blast Reach $160M Settlement With U-Haul

Several victims of a 2014 food truck explosion have reached a $160 million settlement with U-Haul, which was accused of refilling the truck’s old and damaged propane tanks, lawyers announced Wednesday. One plaintiff will receive more than $69 million; a …

Pennsylvania Region’s Mine Disasters Highlighted

In 1907, 240 coal miners went to work at the Darr Mine in Van Meter, and only one came home. Nearly one century later, nine miners went to work in the Quecreek mine in Somerset County, and all nine were …

Housing Extended for 1,700 Puerto Rican Hurricane Evacuees

A judge ordered federal emergency officials to extend vouchers for temporary hotel housing for nearly 1,700 Puerto Rican hurricane evacuees, saying ending the program could cause irreparable harm. Saturday night’s decision came shortly after civil rights group LatinoJustice PRLDEF filed …

White Paper Reveals Impact of Attorney Involvement on Workers’ Comp Claim Costs

Injured workers who hire attorneys to handle their workers’ comp claims tend to stay on temporary disability longer, according to a newly released white paper by CLARA Analytics, an artificial intelligence and data science company that specializes in machine learning …

Fraud News: Separate Scams Involving Chiropractor, Attorney and Farmer

N.J. Chiropractor Gets Prison Term for Medical Fraud Ring Role A chiropractor involved in a medical fraud ring that bilked nearly $4 million overall from several insurers is now headed to prison. John Langeraap received a three-year sentence Friday. The …

Penn. Hospital Cuts Opioid Scripts, Considers New Ways to Ease Pain

The culture of clinicians treating pain as a fifth vital sign, targeting pain-free living through a prescription regimen, is acknowledged as a driving factor behind the rise of opioid addiction. The American Society of Addiction Medicine found 4 in 5 …

Dry Weather, Wildfire Risk Prompts Fireworks Cancellation Across the Country

Fire danger across much of the country has prompted cancellation of July 4 fireworks displays. In northern Arizona, Prescott’s fire chief says he’s canceling the town’s Fourth of July fireworks show as much of the Southwest deals with extreme to …

Firework Sales Soar Despite Dangers

At least eight people lost their lives in fireworks mishaps in 2017 while another 12,900 ended up in hospital emergency rooms with injuries. A Florida man who lived with his sister in a mobile home was killed when the home …