GEICO has agreed to pay $6 million dollars for giving misleading and discriminatory quotes to consumers as part of a settlement with the California Department of Insurance. 

The Consumer Federation of California filed a petition against the insurance giant alleging it violated civil rights and insurance laws by targeting unmarried, low- and moderate-income motorists with higher lowest-limit quotes.

According to the CDI, Geico's website misrepresented bodily injury liability limits of $100,000/$300,000 as being as the lowest-limits quote to some customers when in fact they were not. California law requires insurers to offer a minimum limits policy of $15,000/$30,000.

The federations also alleges GEICO only gave these incorrect quotes to certain customers based on education, occupation and gender.

“Consumers are entitled to a fair estimate that does not misrepresent material information, and discloses fully what they are getting for their money,” said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. “Insurers must adhere to the letter of law when developing quotes, whether in person or through an online system.”

The settlement also requires that GEICO stop discriminatory quoting, offer a quote for a $15,000/$30,000 policy to certain consumers for the next three years, and submit audits of their website every six months for the next three years. If Geico fails to comply with the agreement, they will have to pay an additional $6 million. 

NBC7 reached out to GEICO for comment, but calls were not immediately returned.
 

Smoke and fire were pummeling out of a two-story Carlsbad apartment building Monday when firefighters arrived on scene, fire officials said. 

Oceanside and Carlsbad fire officials responded to the fire on the 2600 block of Via Eco at approximately 1:40 p.m. Monday. 

The downstairs unit had smoke and fire showing when crews arrived and a second alarm response was requested. 

Crews were able to knock down the fire and contain it to one unit, officials said, so the second alarm was canceled. 

There were no reported injuries. There is no word on what may have caused the fire. 

No further information was immediately available. 

The Westgate Hotel in downtown San Diego is celebrating its 45th anniversary by offering room rates at $45 for a second night stay.

The deal is for a deluxe room that normally costs $299. The hotel is offering the discounted rate for those who have already paid the full price for one night and then stay an additional night.

Patrons can take advantage of the deal through Dec. 30.

When the Westgate opened on Aug. 29, 1970, it was the most expensive hotel built in the United States, costing $14.5 million. At the time, room rates started at $26 and $65 for a suite.

Many notable people have stayed at the Westgate. They include President Gerald Ford, New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Bette Davis, Sean Connery, Meryl Streep, Mel Gibson, Brooke Shields and Kate Hudson.

You can reserve a room by visiting the hotel’s website or calling 800-522-1654.

A pursuit of a stolen car ended in Mission Valley when the suspect crashed the car and tried to run away, San Diego Police (SDPD) said. 

The incident happened Monday afternoon when officers were first trying to find a stolen car. 

When they spotted the car and tried to pull it over, the driver fled north down Hotel Circle Drive in Mission Valley, near Interstate 8, and officers pursued him for a short period of time. 

The suspect ended up crashing the car into a pole and got out, fleeing on foot. 

Officers chased down the suspect on foot and took the driver into custody around 2 p.m. near the Town and Country Hotel in Mission Valley. Traffic could be seen backing up in the area. 

No injuries were reported. 

A 73-year-old man from Del Mar is the first confirmed locally-acquired case of West Nile Virus in San Diego County during 2015, announced the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency Monday.

On August 2nd the man was admitted to the hospital after experiencing symptoms of encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain that is related to viral and bacterial infections.

After the California Department of Public Health Viral and Rickettsial Disease Laboratory performed tests, they confirmed the man had contracted West Nile Virus.

Carried by mosquitoes, West Nile Virus is transmitted to humans when a mosquito feeds on an infected bird and then bites a human.

Staff from the County Department of Environmental Health Vector Control Program performed tests around the Del Mar man’s house to check for potential sources of mosquito breeding and notified nearby residents.

While this is the first confirmed human infection in 2015, 95 dead birds and 18 batches of mosquitoes have been identified as infected by the Vector Control Program. This is a significant increase from last year, where only 41 dead birds and 6 mosquito batches were confirmed positive in 2014.

Last year 11 county residents were diagnosed with disease and two died. However, 80 percent of people who are infected with West Nile experience no symptoms. Twenty percent of people who do get sick have mild symptoms such as nausea, fever, fatigue, headache and swollen glands.

Serious neurological complications only occur in one out of 150 cases. The risk of life threatening complications greatly increases in people over the age of 50 and people with weakened immune systems.

“The late summer is when we expect West Nile virus to peak, and there were cases diagnosed through October last year, so people need to protect themselves from this potentially deadly disease,” said Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., County public health officer.
Country officials recommend that residents prevent mosquito breeding by dumping containers inside and outside the home that can hold still water, such as plant saucers, rain gutters, garbage cans and buckets, because mosquitoes breed in stagnant water.

If residents have unused swimming pools or ponds the Vector Control Program is providing free mosquito-eating fish to help control the mosquito population.

Additionally, officials recommend staying inside during peak mosquito activity, around dusk and dawn. Insect repellant that contains DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus or IR3535 is best to keep mosquitoes away when spending time outdoors.

Dead birds and green swimming pools should be reported to the Control program at (858) 694-2888 or by emailing vector@sdcoounty.ca.gov.
 

Family members of a Mexican woman who drowned when a panga sank off the coast of California are suing the U.S. government claiming Customs and Border Protection officers used excessive force.

Graciela Lopez Franco, 32, of Arandas, Jalisco died on June 18 after a panga and a CBP boat collided.

The lawsuit filed this week by Franco’s parents claim federal agents rammed the panga on purpose, causing the smaller boat to break apart.

CBP officials have said the boat was carrying 20 people who were suspected of trying to enter the U.S. illegally.

The lawsuit claims the CBP officers did not identify themselves as law enforcement or give any direction in English or Spanish to the passengers of the boat.

The suit also alleges the officers fired weapons either into the air or into the motor of the panga.

“After maneuvering within inches of the panga and disabling its motor, defendants then rammed the vessel, causing it to break apart and spill its occupants into the sea,” the lawsuit alleges.

On the day of the incident, CBP spokesperson Jackie Wasiluk said the boat was spotted off the coast of Encinitas and did not yield so officers fired warning shots.

Supervisory Marine Interdiction Agent, in the San Diego Air and Marine Branch of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Christopher Hunter and CBP Marine Interdiction agents Arian Linscott and Craig Jenkins are named as defendants.

When asked for a statement, a CBP spokesperson said, "CBP does not comment on pending litigation."

Franco’s Parents, Trinidad Lopez Hernandez and Marta Franco Jimenez, are named as plaintiffs in the case.

For BuyAutoParts.com, the odometer just rolled past 999,999.

The Mira Mesa-based business said on Aug. 24 that it processed its 1 millionth order.

Sales representative Juan Aguayo fielded the order from customer Kevin Bales, who needed an air conditioning compressor.

The business provided it for free.

BuyAutoParts was established in 1987; it has been offering parts online for more than 10 years. The business reported $45.87 million in revenue in 2014, with 126 local, full-time employees as of March 1.
 

One of the Americans credited with thwarting the Paris-bound train gunman was invited to the French premiere of "Straight Outta Compton."

Anthony Sadler, 23, said he was invited by Ice Cube, one of the founding members of N.W.A., hours after he was awarded France's highest honor for his role in disarming the suspected attacker. 

"It was a great honor to meet the French president, I never thought that I would be in that position," Sadler said. "He's a really nice man and I appreciate everything he did for us. It's a great honor bestowed upon us and I appreciate that."

Sadler is due to fly home to California on Tuesday in time for school next week at Sacramento State University.

Whoops! A 12-year-old who was visiting a Taiwanese museum accidentally put his fist through a 350-year-old Italian painting worth $1.5 million while trying to break a fall, according to reports.

Video released by organizers of the "Face of Leonardo: Images of a Genius" exhibition showed the priceless stumble.

Insurance is likely to reimburse the owner of Italian master Paolo Porpora's "Flowers," according to Focus Taiwan News.

The museum will not ask the boy's family to cover restoration costs.

A parked car caught on fire inside the garage of an Encinitas home Tuesday, but residents reacted quickly when they noticed the strange smell of smoke in the air.

Encinitas Fire Department Fire Marshall Anita Pupping told NBC 7 the fire sparked just after 7 a.m. at a garage in the 500 block of Hygeia Avenue. Residents called 911 when they smelled smoke.

When crews arrived on scene, a resident was hosing down the flames. Firefighters took over and were able to quickly knock out the car fire.

Pupping said the blaze was contained to the garage and did not spread to the attached home. A second vehicle parked next to the car that caught fire was also spared from fire damage.

No one was injured, officials said.

Pupping said the cause of the fire is under investigation.

Fox News chief Roger Ailes said Tuesday that Donald Trump owes the network's Megyn Kelly an apology for an unprovoked Twitter attack that "is as unacceptable as it is disturbing," but Trump isn't backing down.

The Republican presidential front-runner-turned-TV-critic had welcomed Kelly back from a vacation Monday night by tweeting that he liked her show better while she was away. Trump said Kelly "must have had a terrible vacation" because "she's really off her game." He retweeted a message that referred to her as a bimbo.

"Megyn Kelly represents the very best of American journalism and all of us at Fox News Channel reject the crude and irresponsible attempts to suggest otherwise," said Ailes, the Fox News Channel chairman. "I could not be more proud of Megyn for her professionalism and class in the face of all of Mr. Trump's verbal assaults."

Trump, in a statement, said he disagreed with Ailes and that he doesn't think Kelly is a quality journalist. "Hopefully in the future I will be proven wrong and she will be able to elevate her standards to a level of professionalism that a network such as Fox deserves."

In a news conference later Tuesday in Dubuque, Iowa, Trump again refused to apologize to Kelly, saying, "She should probably apologize to me, but I just don't care."

Trump has been attacking Kelly ever since her tough questioning of him during the first GOP presidential debate, seen by 24 million people on Fox on Aug. 6. A day after the debate, he said Kelly had "blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever."

That led to a private, clear-the-air conversation between Ailes and Trump two weeks ago, but that clearly hasn't led to peace.

In his tweets, Trump repeated his contention that Kelly, host of a prime-time Fox News show and one of the network's biggest stars, was sent on an unplanned vacation that ended Monday. Fox said her time off had been scheduled long before the debate. Trump also tweeted that Kelly was afraid to confront a guest, Dr. Cornel West, and that she had "no clue" on immigration.

Ailes again backed Kelly for her questioning during the debate, which he said was tough but fair.

"Donald Trump rarely apologizes, although in this case, he should," Ailes said. "We have never been deterred by politicians or anyone else attacking us for doing our job, much less allowed ourselves to be bullied by anyone and we're certainly not going to start now."

Some of Kelly's Fox colleagues also came to her defense. Bret Baier, who moderated the debate with Kelly and Chris Wallace, tweeted that "this needs to stop." Brian Kilmeade said on "Fox & Friends" that Trump's comments bothered him personally.

"We are all friends with Donald Trump, but he is totally out of bounds reigniting that fight," Kilmeade said. "I don't know if he's trying to get ratings out of that or poll numbers, but he's not going to be successful."

An Olympic gymnastics coach was arrested early Monday morning in Indianapolis on suspicion of child molestation, a spokeswoman for the Marion County Prosecutor's Office told NBC News.

The spokeswoman, Peg McLeish, said that Marvin Sharp has not formally been charged, and that her office is sharing its investigation with federal authorities.

NBC affiliate WTHR reported that the investigation began with a complaint from a female gymnast at Sharp's Gymnastics Academy. On Sunday evening, detectives searching for child pornography removed computers and other electronic devices from Sharp's home, the station reported.

In a statement, USA Gymnastics told WTHR that it "is cooperating with law enforcement's active investigation" of Sharp.

According to the academy's website, Sharp opened the facility 14 years ago and has sent over 100 athletes to national championships.

In 2008, Sharp's gymnasts participated in the academy's first Olympic games. According to WTHR, two of them, Samantha Peszek and Bridget Sloan, won silver medals in Beijing.

An El Cajon woman was injured when a man drove his car into the front of her home early Tuesday.

The driver of a Toyota Corolla smashed through a wrought-iron fence in the front yard of the home near N 1st Street and Broadway at approximately 1 a.m.

The home is situated at the end of street but instead of making a turn, the vehicle went straight into the house.

El Cajon Police responded and administered a field sobriety test on the driver.

He was taken into custody and will likely face charges of driving under the influence, police said.

The resident suffered minor injuries and was picked up by a relative.
 

Napa Valley Wine Train's CEO has apologized for kicking off a group of black women from the train for laughing too loudly, promising diversity training for his employees and inviting the group back to be his guests on the train.

"The Napa Valley Wine Train was 100 percent wrong in its handling of this issue," Anthony Giaccio said in a written statement Tuesday. "We accept full responsibility for our failures and for the chain of events that led to this regrettable treatment of our guests."

When a day of wine and fun was abruptly cut short for 11 members of The Sisters on the Reading Edge Book Club, one of the women, Antioch author Lisa Renee Johnson, took her frustration to social media, detailing the group's experience aboard the train.

Johnson's posts created a social media firestorm, with a growing group of people discussing a boycott of the Wine Train on Twitter, Facebook and Yelp, where the business was harshly criticized for what many saw as a racist act.

The social media backlash prompted the Wine Train to hire well-known PR figure Sam Singer, who spoke to media at length Monday.

Johnson posted a photo of a woman she claims was annoyed by their laughter because the train was "not a bar." The complaint resulted in the group getting kicked off the train.

"We were truly kicked out because we were 'laughing while black' ... It was racially charged," Johnson, who hashtagged her experience as #LaughingWhileBlack, told NBC Bay Area. Johnson said Wine Train CEO Tony Giaccio had personally apologized to her Monday, but added that "it wasn't authentic."

"In order to solve the problem, you have to first admit there is one," she said. "They are apologizing for the bad experience, but not because of the role they played in the whole experience. They are not saying 'we are the bad actors.'"

Giaccio told Johnson he pledged to learn from the incident and offered additional diversity training for employees. He also invited club members, their family and friends to be his guest and fill an entire train car.

"He said 'this is not how we want the Wine Train to be portrayed,'" Johnson said.

According to Johnson, at one point, the train's maître d'hotel came by and asked the group to tone it down so that other passengers didn't feel uncomfortable.

"Facebook Family, we have a problem!" Johnson wrote at 12:54 p.m. "We sipped wine, enjoyed each other's company but our trip is being cut short. We are a group of 12 ... if we all laugh at the same time it's loud! When we get to St. Helena they are putting us off the train."

Her next photo showed the book club members waiting to be escorted off the train. "We are in purgatory," her caption read.

When the train reached St. Helena, four police officers were waiting by the track. "WOW! They paraded us through 6 cars and none of us are even drunk ... the police were waiting," Johnson wrote.

A Change.org petition strongly criticized how an 83-year-old grandmother was ejected from the train as well. Video footage shows some of the women crying as they leave the train.

"A trip which was to be an enjoyable day of sisterhood, turned into a day of humiliation," the petitioner Toni Battle wrote. "To see an elder leaning on her cane by the train as if it's 1954 Alabama, spoke volumes regarding your business practices.“

A message on the Wine Train’s Facebook page Saturday that was later taken down said:

"following verbal and physical abuse towards other guests and staff, it was necessary to get our police involved. ... When these celebrations impact our other guests, we do intervene."

"We erred by placing an inaccurate post on our Facebook site that was not reflective of what actually occurred," Giaccio wrote in a letter to the group. "In the haste to respond to criticism and news inquires, we made a bad situation worse by rushing to answer questions on social media. We quickly removed the inaccurate post, but the harm was done by our erroneous post."

Giaccio also wrote an apology letter to the group, which underlined some of the management's shortcomings: "Clearly, we knew in advance when we booked your party that you would be loud, fun-loving and boisterous--because you told us during the booking process that you wanted a place where your Club could enjoy each other's company. Somehow that vital information never made it to the appropriate channels and we failed to seat your group where you could enjoy yourself properly and alert our train's staff that they should expect a particularly vibrant group."

The letter talked about the lack of sensitivity shown when the group was asked to disembark from the train, marching past all the other passengers: "While that was the safest route for disembarking, it showed a lack of sensitivity on our part that I did not fully conceive of until you explained the humiliation of the experience and how it impacted you and your fellow Book Club members," Giaccio wrote.

A 35-year-old driver caused quite a splash in Spring Valley Tuesday when she accidentally crashed into a backyard swimming pool.

California Highway Patrol (CHP) officials said the accident happened around 10:40 a.m. in the 400 block of Broadview Street.

CHP Officer Kevin Pearlstein said the woman was in her 1999 Mitsubishi Montero SUV, waiting at the intersection of Elkelton Boulevard and Paradise Valley Road. As the light turned green, the driver turned left onto westbound Paradise Valley Road and lost control of the SUV.

She veered to the right and slammed through a wooden fence, crashing into a swimming pool in the backyard of a home, Pearlstein said. The front of the SUV was submerged in the water.

The driver was pulled from the car by firefighters. She sustained minor injuries and was taken to a local hospital. No one else was injured in the collision, CHP officials confirmed.

The crash is under investigation, but Pearlstein said alcohol or drugs are not suspected as factors.
Investigators said the roadway was wet and slick due to Tuesday’s summer rainfall, which may have contributed to the crash. Initially, investigators said the driver may have also been driving over the speed limit.

From sandy SoCal beaches to Hollywood studios, Southern California has shaped and been shaped by its surfing culture.

Here is a timeline of 100 years of surfing history in the region.

A special thanks to surf historian Matt Warshaw, the author of Encyclopedia of Surfing, for his help in contributing to this report.

The Carlsbad City Council approved a controversial retail development Tuesday after protesters gathered at City Hall to ask officials to deny it.

The project, a fancy outdoor shopping center slated for 2016 construction, overlooks the Agua Hedionda Lagoon where the Carlsbad strawberry fields once grew.

If the council hadn't approved the project, it would have been put it on a special elections ballot, or they could have delayed the decision.

A ballot measure in Carlsbad could cost between $450,000 and $550,000, a city spokeswoman said.

"I think that the people of Carlsbad need to vote on this. I think the city council's fair, but I also believe that Caruso is underestimating the people that don't agree with this, and I say, 'Time to meet the family,'" said Carlsbad resident Sue Igoe.

Many residents gathered at City Hall to make a public comment, so the 4 p.m. meeting went late into the night. A decision was not made until after 10 p.m.

The shopping center will now be built on about 30 acres, leaving some 170-acres of the fields preserved, according to the developer.

Developer Rick Caruso said he plans nature trails, amphitheaters, places for people to enjoy the view and an outdoor classroom.

The retail portion of the project would include a "farm-to-table" restaurant.

The project got before the City Council for a vote without the typical extensive environmental review, known as CEQA.

The developer was able to bypass that process, which allows for a substantial public input and often involves concessions or mitigations to be made by the developer. He did that by running a signature drive. Caruso gathered enough citizen signatures for the council to simply sign off on the project.

If successful, the same strategy may be used by other developers hoping to skip the lengthy and time-consuming CEQA process.

"I can't speak to what other developers might do," said Bryce Ross with Caruso Development Corp. "We've done everything the right way. We provided the city with a comprehensive environmental analysis. The city did their own impartial review of that analysis and found it to be consistent with the city's planning and development standards."

Opponents believed if they could put it to a vote, they would have been able to stop it at the ballot box, which would send the developer back to the beginning of the process.

Stocks dived at the close on Tuesday, erasing a huge rally — and any hope that the worst of the Wall Street turmoil was over, NBC News reported.

The market soared in early trading as investors shook off fears of a slowing Chinese economy and a further plunge in Asian stocks. The Dow Jones industrial average climbed as much as 442 points, or 1.9 percent.

But the gains slowly faded in the afternoon, and a last-minute sell-off left the Dow down 204. That came on top of a turbulent Monday, when the Dow plunged almost 1,100 points in the morning and closed down more than 500.

And analysts caution that the markets may not calm down anytime soon.

The city of San Diego has opened a new, temporary fire station in Skyline as it seeks to quickly reach emergencies in one of the city’s most underserved areas.

On Tuesday, San Diego Fire Engine Company 51 moved into its new facility, which includes a double-wide mobile home for the firefighters and a sprung steel structure for the engine, at 7180 Skyline Drive.

The crews will stay in the temporary structures until a permanent station can be built, though SDFD officials say they have no target date for construction until city funds become available.

While $1 million already has been earmarked for architectural and engineering design work on a permanent station, another $12 million will be needed to build the facility.

The Skyline location helps serve the area left uncovered by Fire Station 12 on Imperial Avenue to the west and Fire Station 32 on Briarwood Road to the east, according to Lee Swanson with SDFD.

In 2011, consulting firm Citygate Associates identified 19 neighborhoods – many of them south of Interstate 8 – that were underserved by firefighters. Skyline was part of that list.

“Today’s station opening is a significant improvement in emergency response for the Skyline Hills and surrounding neighborhoods,” Fire Chief Javier Mainar said. “We are grateful to the Mayor and City Council for their support of public safety and making this station possible.”

A ribbon-cutting for the station was held two weeks ago, but more construction had to be completed before crews could move in.
 

"Jackass" star Steve-O will face five criminal charges after he climbed a crane in Hollywood to protest SeaWorld and drew dozens of emergency responders to a construction site earlier this month.

The city of Los Angeles will also seek financial restitution for the cost of the police and fire response, said Frank Mateljan, spokesman for the City Attorney's Office.

Steve-O, whose legal name is Stephen Glover, was charged Monday with one count each of creating a false emergency, use of unregistered fireworks, storing fireworks without a permit, possession of fireworks without a permit, and trespassing, Mateljan said.

The charges stem from the Aug. 9 incident and a subsequent search of Glover's house, he said.

Glover's representative didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

The 41-year-old scrambled up a crane at least 100 feet high on Sunset Boulevard, inflating a large killer whale balloon emblazoned with "SeaWorld Sucks" and lighting fireworks when he reached the top, police said.

Glover, known for his outlandish stunts in the "Jackass" TV show and movies, later climbed down and was taken into custody.

Because the first responders were not sure whether he needed to be rescued, five ambulances, a helicopter and more than 80 firefighters went to the scene, Fire Department spokeswoman Margaret Stewart said the next day.

She said resources were stretched thin because firefighters were called around the same time to rescue the operator of a harbor crane who was stricken with a medical emergency.

Prosecutors are working with police and fire department officials to determine how much restitution will be sought, Meteljan said Tuesday.

Glover's arraignment was set for Aug. 31.

The performer was cited last year for another protest against the theme park. Glover said his demonstrations are in response to controversy over the 2013 documentary "Blackfish," which criticized SeaWorld's treatment of killer whales.