Pipeline Insurance

"The insurer was recognized by the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, which is a national benchmarking survey and report on corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ equality in the workplace. Sun Life has a long history of supporting LGBTQ rights, having participated in 13 employer briefs against the Defense of Marriage Act in 2013, as well as various state laws prohibiting same-sex marriage. The insurer also hosts several diversity and inclusion networks, such as Gays, Lesbians and Others Building Equality (GLOBE), Black Excellence Alliance (BEA); American Asian Heritage Association (AAHA); Women’s Leadership Network (WLN); and Hispanic Organization for Leaders and Achievers (HOLA)."

"A mix of rising drunk driving incidents, distracted driving, and gridlocked highways has given California the dubious honor of hosting the nation’s worst drivers. Five of the 10 worst driving cities in the US are in California, with Sacramento topping the list, accompanied by Riverside, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Bakersfield. Meanwhile, the states following California in the bad driver race are Minnesota, Utah, South Carolina and Washington. Rhode Island, on the other hand, has America’s best drivers."

"Harassment allegations in the workplace are no shoulder-shrug matter especially for those at the helm of a company. An evolving culture of transparency is forcing directors and officers (D&O) to grab the bull by the horns and tackle harassment allegations head-on. It’s up to company leaders and management to establish and maintain a safe environment in the workplace."

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"Where do you stand on the gun debate? It’s an issue that has divided the US with many firmly of the belief that it is their constitutional right to own a firearm for protection; and others believing it has led to a surge in gun-related deaths across the country. Now, the world’s leading insurance market has found itself embroiled in the controversy. Lloyd’s of London has been criticized for providing what some have dubbed murder insurance to gun owners across the USA by potentially footing the bill in cases where an insured has shot someone."

"A California woman has been sentenced to three years in prison for fatally hitting a pedestrian and then trying to collect money from her insurance company for the damage. Belen Guadalupe Sicairos, 24, pleaded guilty Monday to the felony hit-and-run causing death and the felony insurance fraud. Prosecutors said that Sicairos was driving in Santa Ana at about 2am in November of 2015 when she hit 35-year-old Jorge Luis Lopez-Lobato. Sicairos fled without stopping to help Lopez-Lobato, who died at the scene, according to an Orange County Register report. Later that day, Sicairos filed a claim with Alliance United Insurance Company. In the claim, she stated that vandalism had caused the damage to her car but it had actually occurred when it struck Lopez-Lobato. Sicairos also filed a police report claiming vandalism."

"Massachusetts made the top of the list as America's healthiest state, while Mississippi was declared the unhealthiest. Looking at data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Medical Association, and the Census bureau, the rankings took into account everything from obesity and smoking to community and environmental factors, such as child poverty and air pollution, to public policies like immunizations, and health outcomes like cancer deaths and diabetes."

"An arrest warrant has been issued for a California man after the deaths of two of his employees allegedly revealed that he’d been defrauding his workers’ compensation provider. Osvaldo Ceron and Ernesto Hurtado were electrocuted last year while working for Valencia Tree Trimming. An investigation into their deaths allegedly revealed that the company’s owner, Carlos Valencia, had misclassified their jobs to appear less risky than they were. In that way, he scammed California’s insurance fund for workers’ comp out of about $100,000, prosecutors claim. The Riverside County District Attorney’s Office has filed felony charges against Valencia in the case. According to the Desert Sun, Valencia misrepresented both the classification and pay rate of the workers to the State Compensation Insurance Fund (SCIF)."

"The Southern California wildfires have forced hundreds of thousands of evacuations as they swept between Los Angeles and San Diego County. The fires have burned hundreds of thousands of acres and killed at least 54 horses. A fire in Los Angeles County killed 29 horses at a ranch in Sylmar, according to an Associated Press report. The Padilla family, which owned the ranch, told the Los Angeles Times that when they returned to their property a day after being forced to evacuate, the ranch had been destroyed and nearly half of the 60 horses housed there had been killed in the blaze. About 25 racehorses were killed in San Diego County when a wildfire destroyed eight barns and a training center, according to the Associated Press. Other horses, in the surrounding pastures at the time, remain unaccounted for."

"A New York man has been convicted of participating in a massive scheme to fraudulently obtain car insurance policies and vehicle registrations. According to New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman, Jean Mythro Davilmar, 68, was part of a fraud ring that obtained thousands of dollars worth of discounted insurance coverage on more than 100 vehicles over an eight-year period. Davilmar was found guilty of 29 felony counts related to the fraud. According to Schneiderman, t...he fraud ring registered cars with phony companies in order to obtain commercial insurance. They falsified documents and made fraudulent statements to government agencies and insurance companies. In order to obtain lower commercial insurance rates, they falsely said that the vehicles would be used in the service of 'low-risk' occupations like delivery services. When a policy was canceled for non-payment, the fraudsters simply transferred the vehicle to another phony company and got new coverage." See more

"The fire that destroyed six homes and damaged a dozen others in Bel-Air last week was caused by a cooking fire at a nearby homeless encampment, Los Angeles fire officials said Tuesday. For a 'number of years,' homeless people had been living in a camp along Sepulveda Boulevard, where the road passes underneath the 405 Freeway, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Peter Sanders said. Investigators who went to the encampment found evidence that people had been cooking and sleeping in the area, but did not find anyone there, Sanders said. The department has no suspects, he said."

"A Texas pilot who survived a 2012 crash into the Gulf of Mexico has admitted that the crash was staged to commit insurance fraud. Theodore Robert Wright III pleaded guilty last week to conspiring to commit wire fraud and conspiring to commit arson, according to the Associated Press. Wright could face up to 40 years in federal prison for the crimes. Wright became a minor celebrity in 2012 when he ditched his Beechcraft Baron in the Gulf of Mexico and shot video of the adventure on his iPad. However, authorities began to suspect that Wright had intentionally crashed the craft in order to collect an $85,000 insurance payout nearly twice what he’d paid for the plane."