Articles by Harry Curtis
Insurers argue furlough deductions permitted by policy wordings
Insurers finished their submissions to the Supreme Court on the issue of whether or not furlough payments are deductible from Covid-era business interruption claims payouts this morning (12 February), hitting back at arguments advanced yesterday by…
Supreme Court hears arguments on Covid claim furlough deductions
The Supreme Court heard arguments from both policyholders and insurers yesterday (11 February) as to whether furlough payments are deductible from Covid-era business interruption claims payouts.
AIG completes $2.1bn Convex stake acquisition
AIG has completed its $2.1bn (£1.5bn) acquisition of a 35% minority stake in specialty insurer Convex.
Non-violent cargo thefts could ‘move needle’ for marine rates
The International Union of Marine Insurance has sounded the alarm on a worldwide increase in non-violent cargo theft being carried out by criminals posing as logistics providers.
Q&A: Tim Rayner, Verisk
Verisk’s new CEO of general insurance for the UK and Ireland sits down with Harry Curtis to discuss plans to encourage cross-pollination between the company’s GI and specialty businesses.
Five cyber claims trends to watch in 2026
Brokers and lawyers have highlighted several key trends to watch out for in relation to cyber claims, speaking at an event held by law firm Stewarts last week.
Insurers remain reticent to pay at-the-premises Covid BI claims
Policyholders whose cover for Covid-related business interruption in 2020 was contingent on there being a case of the disease at the insured premises are still fighting for payouts, attendees at an industry event heard last week.
FCA rejects calls for further Covid BI interventions
The Financial Conduct Authority has rejected calls for further interventions on Covid business interruption claims, sayings its current position “continues to be appropriate”.
Chief claims officer lifts the lid on how Allianz caught £93m of fraud
Allianz chief claims officer Matt Cox has told attendees at the ITC London conference that the insurer was able to create a “hostile environment” for fraudsters without damaging customer experience through using voice analytics technology.
Turk outlines how Lloyd’s can grow in ‘knife edge’ market
Lloyd’s chief of market performance Rachel Turk has highlighted areas in which she thinks the market can continue to grow in a pricing environment that she characterised as “softening” but not yet “soft”.
Q&A: Tom Hughes, IUA
Tom Hughes, appointed director of underwriting at the International Underwriting Association last year, outlines the company market body’s priorities from an underwriting perspective for 2026.
Is Beazley set to reject Zurich in hopes of a better offer?
Analysts have suggested that while Zurich’s public proposal to acquire Beazley for around £7.7bn is attractive, shareholders may feel they can hold out for a higher offer.
Zurich submits proposal to acquire Beazley
Zurich has submitted a proposal to acquire Beazley outright for a price of 1280p per share, which values the specialty insurer at approximately £7.7bn.
PWC’s Bichard replaces Cliff as Lloyd’s CFO
Lloyd’s chief financial officer Alexandra Cliff is set to leave her position and be replaced by Jim Bichard, who is currently head of PWC’s global insurance practice.
PRA cuts frequency of meetings with insurers
The Prudential Regulation Authority has said it will cut the frequency of regular supervisory meetings with insurers in a Dear CEO letter published on Thursday.
Axa hires Dunn from Zurich as Commercial CUO
Axa UK Commercial has appointed Zurich’s Caroline Dunn to succeed David Ovenden as chief underwriting officer.
Axa XL's McGovern named LMA chair
Sean McGovern, Axa XL’s UK and Lloyd’s CEO, has succeeded Andrew Brooks as chair of the Lloyd’s Market Association.
AIG boss Zaffino to be succeeded by Aon’s Andersen
AIG chairman and CEO Peter Zaffino is set to retire as CEO later this year, handing the reins of the insurer to former Aon president Eric Andersen.
M&A brings down reinsurance costs for UK insurers
The 1 January reinsurance renewals saw widespread price reductions as supply exceeded demand, including in the UK where recent M&A activity meant less reinsurance was purchased.
Regulator urged to act to avert Covid BI lawsuit wave
Law firm Stewarts has written to the Financial Conduct Authority to ask it to issue urgent ‘stop the clock’ guidance on Covid business interruption claims, in order to avoid a wave of lawsuits in the new year.
AIG appoints Everest’s Clifford as international commercial CEO
AIG has appointed Adam Clifford as CEO for international commercial insurance, effective 5 January, in its latest move to rejig its general insurance leadership team.
Dual moves to insure developers’ biodiversity liabilities
The UK could act as a proving ground for insuring ‘natural capital’, Dual’s Simon White has said following the MGA’s launch of a product designed to help developers meet biodiversity net gain obligations.
Broker calls narratives around cyber insurance availability ‘rubbish’
Narratives about public bodies such as local authorities being outside of cyber insurers’ appetites are outdated, according to Ed Ventham, director at specialist broker Assured.
Pool Re scheme spurs Axa to include terrorism cover in SME policies
Axa is planning to add terrorism cover to its SME products by the second half of next year, as a result of a Pool Re scheme that will offer insurers “significant” discounts to reinsure SME terrorism risk.