News
Reinsurers turn to M&A to stay relevant as challenging market forces bite
Global reinsurers have turned to mergers and acquisition deals over the last year in order to remain relevant in the face of challenging market conditions, but S&P maintains a neutral view on this trend.
CMC regulatory burden should fall on insurers too, argues legal sector
Claimant lawyers have slammed the financial watchdog’s proposal to regulate claims management companies, arguing it unfairly penalises practicing firms and that insurers should be made to take a share of the burden too.
Beat Capital snaps up Paraline syndicate
Venture capital firm Beat Capital Partners and Bermuda-based insurance holding company Paraline are to merge.
Rising star: Stephen Southern, Insure the Box
Southern cut his teeth in a sales role at the AA, now he is compliance monitoring officer at Insure the Box
ABI calls for regulatory certainty as no-deal Brexit advice published by government
A regulatory deal is urgently needed to address Brexit contract issues for the insurance sector, the Association of British Insurers has said.
Construction industry to assess insurance access post-Grenfell
The Construction Industry Council has launched a survey to assess the impact of the Grenfell fire on insurance cover for the construction sector.
Losses expected as Hawaii bunkers down for cat 4 Hurricane
The insurance and reinsurance industry is braced for losses as category 4 Hurricane Lane continues to track towards the islands of Hawaii.
Four family members sentenced for ‘crash for cash’ claims worth over £40,000
Four men have been sentenced for carrying out a series of ‘crash for cash’ frauds, and then claiming against fraudulent insurance policies.
Ardonagh Group reports income boost of 9.1% at H1
The Ardonagh Group has reported income growth of 9.1% as both income and profit climb in the first six months of 2018.
Analysis: How Amazon could make waves in claims
With talk abound of a possible Amazon entry into insurance distribution, what could an Amazon entry into claims look like?
Ecclesiastical sees premium up at H1 but profit and COR take a hit
Ecclesiastical saw strong premium growth in the first half of 2018 but pre-tax profit took a 54% nose dive.
Insurance businesses among FSCS list of in default firms
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has declared nine firms, including three insurance businesses, in default, possibly opening the door for consumers to be compensated for any losses incurred.
Updated: Partner Re firms fined €1.5m for Solvency II breach
The Central Bank of Ireland has fined two Dublin-based subsidiaries of Partner Re €1.54m (£1.35m) for breaches of the European Union regulation on solvency requirements.
One insurance scam seen every minute in 2017
Over half a million attempts at insurance fraud were detected in 2017, equivalent to one fraud every minute.
Liiba urges Prime Minister to rethink post-Brexit equivalence regime for brokers
The London and International Insurance Brokers’ Association has written to the Prime Minister raising concerns over the government’s planned equivalence regime for brokers post-Brexit.
Hannover Re names Swiss Re's Henchoz to replace CEO Wallin
The CEO of Hannover Re, Ulrich Wallin, is to step down and retire from the reinsurance giant in 2019 and will be replaced by Swiss Re’s Jean-Jacques Henchoz.
Regulation of CMCs to cost £16.8m
The cost of regulating claims management companies could be £16.8m with the bill falling on the firms themselves, according to the Financial Conduct Authority.
Allianz names Ageas’ Dyson as CFO
Allianz has appointed Fernley Dyson as chief financial officer, with effect from 1 January 2019.
Japanese flood losses pegged at $4bn
Insured losses from the June and July flooding in western Japan could total up to $4bn (£3.2bn), according to catastrophe modelling firm Air Worldwide.
2018 H1 insured disaster losses below average at $20bn
Global insured losses from natural catastrophes and man-made disasters during the first half of 2018 were $20bn, 33% below the ten-year average of $35bn, according to Swiss Re Institute's preliminary sigma report.
Zhong An eyes international expansion with latest Softbank investment
Zhong An will look to expand its business outside China, following an undisclosed investment in subsidiary Zhong An International by Softbank’s Vision Fund.
Lloyd’s managing agents call for greater ILS use
Some 80% of Lloyd’s managing agents would like to see insurance-linked securities become a permanent fixture in the reinsurance and insurance market.
Insurtech sees its Facebook chatbot pilot flop
US-based start-up Next Insurance has found that its SME customers are not interested in buying insurance through a Facebook chatbot.
Majority of brokers ‘do not have a succession plan’
One in 10 brokers plan to leave the industry in the next year, yet almost 90% do not have a succession plan in place.