Editor's comment: What’s on your wish list?
A J Gallagher is aiming to become a top-three retail broker with its £233m acquisition of Giles, but to achieve this market commentators have said it will need to put efficiency and synergies on its wish list, as its combined operation is estimated to comprise roughly 70 offices and 3100 staff.
And with school holidays over, a certain period of festivity only 103 days away and the party political conference season just around the corner, Gallagher won’t be the only one thinking about its wish list for 2014. Those going to Glasgow, Brighton and Manchester will be hoping politicians start taking notice of the matters keeping insurance bosses awake at night, with regulation, floods, whiplash and the cost of motor cover sure to be on that list.
Steve White, chief executive of the British Insurance Brokers’ Association, recently met with Tim Luke, senior adviser on business, trade and innovation, at Number 10’s Policy Unit and a spokesman for the body told Post this week: “The cost of regulation is a big issue. The Financial Services Compensation Scheme would be up there for our members. It’s wrong, and it’s not just that they are paying for others but also the impact it is having on growth. We would say to the government it should be helping us to grow the economy.”
Meanwhile, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has opened a consultation into the draft flood insurance clauses of the Water Bill. The clauses outline insurance flood obligations for the industry and state Defra has power to: require the provision of flood cover for ‘registered premises’; set out factors that the regulations can specify are to be taken into account to determine the prescribed number of registered premises a relevant insurer must issue with insurance; specify how a relevant insurer’s share of insurance business should be calculated; and share information with insurers to determine their share of insurance business. The market will hope to see the Bill finalised and be able to move on with Flood Re.
And the industry eagerly awaits the news of the Ministry of Justice’s response to the whiplash consultation. Many insurers are pushing for news of a reduction to the three‑year limitation period for claims, a shorter time period for claimants to confirm their intent to make a claim and a government-approved scheme for medical practitioners to provide reports.
This might all be a lot to ask, but if you don’t ask you don’t get – though don’t forget someone is watching to see if you’ve been naughty or nice.
Stephanie Denton, editor
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