Global natural disasters cost $520 billion of consumption loss annually, 60 percent larger than asset losses that are commonly reported, the World Bank said in a report. The estimate is based on the impact of disasters such as floods, windstorms, … Source: Claims Journal

Tornadoes touched down in the upper Midwest and northern Arkansas on Tuesday, killing at least two people, as a spring-like storm system posed a risk to 45 million people. Compact but strong storms known as supercells raked parts of the … Source: Claims Journal

Fewer auto adjusters, more product liability claims and changes to crash investigations are just some of the changes that may occur as self-driving cars take to the road, according to Kevin Quinley, founder and principal of Quinley Risk Associates. In … Source: Claims Journal

Every year, more than 170 billion cell phone texts are sent and received. Each year, an average of 3,000 people die and 450,000 are injured in motor vehicle accidents involving distracted drivers. Ten percent of all drivers who are 15 … Source: Claims Journal

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., the largest U.S. property/casualty insurer, said annual profit fell 94 percent on car insurance claims costs. Net income dropped to $400 million from $6.2 billion in 2015, when results included one-time gains in the … Source: Claims Journal

People have triggered five out of six wildfires in the U.S. over the last two decades, tripling the length of the wildfire season and making it start earlier in the East and last longer in the West, a new study … Source: Claims Journal

Former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura and the estate of “American Sniper” author Chris Kyle are fighting over legal bills that mounted during Ventura’s defamation lawsuit. Attorneys for Kyle’s widow say Ventura lost his lawsuit and should reimburse the estate more … Source: Claims Journal

Guidewire Completes Acquisition of ISCS Guidewire Software, Inc., a provider of software to the Property & Casualty (P&C) insurance industry, announced it has completed the acquisition of ISCS. The company also announced the immediate availability of Guidewire InsuranceNow, a cloud-based, … Source: Claims Journal

Commercial vehicles and private cars will soon be communicating with each other in New York, Florida and Wyoming as part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Connected Vehicle Pilot Program. According to the DOT, the program will serve as a … Source: Claims Journal

Every year, thousands of children in the U.S. are injured in winter-related activities, regardless of whether they live in warm or cold climates. Tracy Zaslow, M.D., director of the Children’s Orthopaedic Center Sports Concussion Clinic at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles … Source: Claims Journal