Analysis
Green Deal: Green living
With the Energy Act imposing new energy‑efficiency standards on commercially and privately let properties by April 2018, what do the changes mean for the insurance industry?
Europe: Driving up M&A activity
Following the spectacular rise in value of merger and acquisitions in the European insurance sector during the first half of the year, Edward Murray looks the drivers behind the increase in activity.
Loss Adjuster Listings 2013
More about the companies in the 2013 loss adjuster listings.
Loss Adjusting: Insight Report: state of play for loss adjusters
Based on comprehensive front-line input from more than 150 claims professionals working at insurers and broking firms, the Loss Adjusters Insight Report 2013 provides detailed operational insights on the UK’s nine most commonly used adjusting firms.
Industrial deafness: The new whiplash?
As fraudsters and claims management companies begin to feel the impact of whiplash reform, is industrial deafness becoming insurers’ new problem area?
Legal Update: Basis clauses: Insurers stealing a march on the law to make basis clauses a footnote in history
Peter Fitzpatrick explains how basis clauses can often harshly forfeit a policy, and why market forces could see them disappear long before they are formally outlawed.
High net worth: Staying on top
With an increasing number of direct players entering the high net worth arena, how can brokers stand out from the crowd and retain their traditional position as leaders of the market?
Europe: Ready for the digital challenge?
It is difficult to overstate the impact of the digital revolution. To take one metric, the number of global mobile phone subscriptions is now 6.8 billion, according to UN agency The International Telecoms Union. It predicts that this figure will…
Underwriting Property: Going for gold
Cited as a key factor in the British cycling success at the London 2012 Olympics, the philosophy of marginal gains can also be applied to underwriting.
Terrorism: Global threat
How has the insurance industry adapted to the steady rise in terrorism and civil unrest across the world in the past decade?
Directors’ & Officers’: Much aD&O about nothing
Despite some predicting an uncertain period for the directors’ & officers’ sector following a government discussion paper and a high-profile claim refusal, unconcerned market insiders explain why education is their current priority.
Europe: Disaster area?
More people than ever before are being exposed to natural disasters due to the increase in global urbanisation, according to a recent report from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
Legal Update: Whiplash Claims: Lack of action by government on small claims limit gives time for constructive talks
Alistair Kinley says the government’s latest motor measures have little connection to insurance claims and whiplash and there is a failure to implement Transport Select Committee recommendations.
International: Europe: Changing the channel
A recent study suggests insurers are failing to take advantage of digital channels. How can they harness the benefits on offer?
Pet Insurance: Paws for thought
The cost of pet insurance claims has skyrocketed in the past five years, prompting some insurers to withdraw from the sector altogether. How can those that remain respond to the difficult market conditions?
High Street Brokers: Word on the street
While many had expected the increase in alternative methods of buying insurance to signal the demise of high-street brokers, they are still going strong. What are they doing right?
Europe: Changing the channel
In a competitive market such as insurance, industry players need to keep up with their customers to target the most effective channels for communication and engagement.
Motor Insurance: Jumping the gun
Motor insurers’ over-eagerness to reap the anticipated benefits of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act has resulted in a sharp drop in rates. With unprofitability increasing, where does the sector go from here?
Opportunistic Fraud: Zero tolerance
With opportunistic fraud attracting little public attention compared with large-scale organised fraud, the insurance sector is battling to change attitudes to such crime and develop methods to catch its perpetrators.
Europe: Should we stay or should we go?
Earlier this month, Conservative backbencher Adam Afriyie called on the government to bring forward the referendum on the UK leaving the European Union from 2017 to October 2014.
Roundtable: Legacy systems: Knowing when to move on
How can insurers improve their approach towards the daunting but essential task of keeping their IT platforms up to date?
Legal Update: Product Recall: No room for horsing around when it comes to product recall insurance
Jim Sherwood says the furore surrounding a zebra toy found to contain a carcinogen emphasises the importance of being protected by robust product recall cover.
Whiplash: Choosing the right path
Several ideas have been suggested to alleviate insurers’ whiplash woes – but which method represents the best solution for all parties?
Private Investigators: Watching the watchmen
Three insurers were named among the firms being probed by the Information Commissioner’s Office for their use of rogue private eyes, but how will the wider industry be impacted by the investigation?