Standard & Poor’s (S&P)
S&P warns of mass insurer downgrade
Allianz, Aviva and Axa are among 15 insurers placed on negative watch by Standard and Poors.
Groupama on negative watch
Groupama and its subsidiaries have been placed on negative watch over the possible weakening of its financial profile.
Motor insurers in recovery but face rocky road ahead
Underwriting performance among UK motor insurers looks set to improve in the year ahead following substantial price increases, however, despite predicted improvements it is not thought levels will reach breakeven
Guernsey’s outlook “stable” despite global economic storms, says S&P
Ratings service Standard & Poor’s has reaffirmed its view of Guernsey’s financial and economic stability after giving the territory the highest rating possible against its newly revised technical scoring methodology.
Q3 market movements take toll on insurers' capital adequacy, S&P says
Recent financial developments, combined with marking-to-market of insurers' investments, has depleted European insurers' balance sheets, according to a report by Standard and Poor's.
Groupama CEO Azéma sacked after Fitch and S&P action
A senior rating analyst has played down fears a raft of major European insurers could be on the end of downgrades in the wake of the European Union debt crisis.
Standard & Poor upgrades Swiss Re to AA-
Standard & Poor has upgraded Swiss Re from A+ to AA- following the firm success in derisking its asset portfolio, convertible perpetual capital instrument with Berkshire Hathaway and stabilised its net income.
Swiss Re upgraded to 'AA-'
Standard & Poor's Ratings has raised its long-term counterparty credit and insurer financial strength ratings on Swiss Re and its core subsidiaries to 'AA-' from 'A+'. The outlook on all of these entities is stable.
Market moves: All change at Zurich and Willis
Following a slow period, large insurers made a number of key appointments this week, including major moves at Zurich, Allianz and RSA.
LV gets first S&P rating
Standard & Poor’s has assigned BBB+ ratings to LV and Highway insurance - the core operating entities of Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society.
S&P lowers ratings for Mapfre and core subsidiaries
Spanish insurer Mapfre has had its insurer financial strength and long-term counterparty credit rating downgraded to 'AA-' from 'AA' by Standard and Poor’s following its sovereign downgrade of Spain last week.
Litmus appoints Shipperlee from S&P
Insurance consultancy Litmus Analysis has taken on former Standard & Poor’s and AM Best insurance analyst Stuart Shipperlee as a partner.
German insurers face endurance test, says S&P
German insurers are being tested by challenging conditions in the financial markets, according to Standard and Poor’s.
News analysis: Insurance industry feels the shockwaves of the economic meltdown
It has been hard to escape the doom and gloom of the volatile stock market and wider economic woes over the past week.
Fitch adds to Groupama's woes
Fitch Ratings has downgraded Groupama SA's and four of its core insurance subsidiaries' insurer financial sStrength ratings to 'BBB' from 'A-'.
Italian insurance credit fundamentals remain strong
The credit fundamentals of Italian insurers remain strong despite concerns over sovereign risk.
Sevice poll result
Are brokers prepared to switch for lower quality service at a cheaper price?
Groupama actions fail to avert S&P rating action
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has lowered its long-term counterparty credit and insurer financial strength ratings of Groupama SA and its related subsidiaries to 'BBB' from 'BBB+', and removed them from Credit Watch with negative implications.
Exporting to the US: pitfalls and potential
Exporting to the US could be a solution to Europe’s economic problems but as Pat Drinan explains brokers looking to help out firms venturing into this market need to watch their own back as well as their clients.
Service quality poll result
Find out what the industry made of the S&P research showing less than a quarter of insurance buyers would switch to a broker with a lower quality service even for 20% less premiums.
European insurance buyers rate specialist brokers for providing personalised service
European insurers buyers rate the 'big 3'brokers for their depth of resources and buying power, but it is the specialist brokers that are viewed as providing personalised service.
Maritime insurer Skuld reports record 9th year of underwriting surplus
Norwegian maritime insurer Skuld has reported underwriting surplus of $13m for the first six months of 2011.
Munich Re transfers European windstorm risks to capital markets
Munich Re has acquired coverage for European windstorm risks with volume of $150m from Queen Street III Capital, which in turn has placed a catastrophe bond for this amount on the capital markets.
S&P downgrades Groupama IFS rating
The insurer financial strength rating of Groupama has been downgraded from ‘A-‘ to ‘BBB+’ by Standard & Poor’s because of its “material exposure to Greek government bonds”.