Europe
$20bn of natural disaster insured losses in first half of 2013
Global natural disaster losses during the first half of 2013 on both an economic and insured basis were each below the recent 10-year (2003-2012) averages according to Impact Forecasting.
79 killed in Spanish train crash
A train derailed near the town of Santiago de Compostela in North-western Spain on the evening of 24 July killing at least 79 people and injuring up to 131.
Solvency II voted biggest regulatory challenge by EMEA insurers
Over 90% of insurers in Europe, the Middle East and Asia view Solvency II as the biggest regulatory challenge facing their organisation, according to a study by the Economist Intelligence Unit.
Post magazine - 25 July 2013
In this week's Post, the Financial Stability Board's listing of global systemically important insurers has raised concerns over a "lack of clarity" on why implicated firms are on the list and the costs that will be generated by an enhanced supervisory…
Plum in Northern Ireland move to grow footprint
Plum Underwriting is expanding its underwriting footprint by beginning to write non-standard and mid-net worth household risks in Northern Ireland.
Editor's comment: The end of guilt by association?
When they were young, insurers got in with the wrong crowd.
AIR appoints COO
Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide has appointed Bill Churney to the position of chief operating officer.
Industry agrees to 75% payout for mesothelioma scheme
Employer’s liability insurers have agreed to pay 75% of civil compensation for mesothelioma victims that cannot trace their insurer after debate in the House of Lords.
Redomiciling: Insurer’s paradise?
With continued uncertainty over Solvency II, could more firms be tempted to follow the lead of Randall & Quilter and split their tax and regulatory domiciles?
Protect Your Bubble launches in Ireland
Specialist gadget insurer Protect Your Bubble launched today in the Republic of Ireland.
Regulation needed to boost cyber take up in Europe says Horton
The introduction of European Union data breach notification legislation is needed to spur the uptake of cyber policies in Europe, according to Beazley’s chief executive Andrew Horton.
'Competitive headwinds' challenge Beazley growth expectations
Beazley chief Andrew Horton believes the firm can continue to achieve profitable growth, despite the influx of new capital in the reinsurance market and broker-led quota-share agreements.
Barker appointed as Marsh chairman
Jane Barker, a non executive director at Marsh, will become chairman on 1 August.
QBE's property, casualty and motor CUO Bathia departs
Ash Bathia, chief underwriting officer of QBE’s property, casualty & motor division is leaving the company.
Italian aggregators achieve steady growth in H1
Policies brokered by Italian aggregators in the first sixth months of 2013 were up 58% over the same period of 2012, according to research by CP Consulting.
Le Prevost promoted to the board of JLT Insurance Management
JLT Insurance Management (Guernsey) has appointed Shaun Le Prevost to the board of the company.
Allianz denies it represents a systemic risk
Allianz has accepted the Financial Stability Board’s decision to name it as a global systemically important insurer but has denied it poses a systemic risk.
Insurance Europe questions methodology used to create list of G-SIIs
Insurance Europe has questioned the methodology used to create the list of insurers identified as potentially posing systemic risk to the financial system saying it has not been sufficiently tailored to the insurance business model.
Generali accepts G-SII designation
Italian insurer Generali has acknowledged its designation as a global systemically important insurer by the Financial Stability Board.
Generali, Prudential and Ping An among list of global systemically important insurers
The Financial Stability Board has published the list of global systemically important insurers with views to developing a policy framework to address the risks these firms they are thought to present.
QBE Europe appoints Zurich’s Joe Gordon as COO
Joe Gordon has been appointed chief operations officer at QBE European Operations.
Ferma warns against compulsory schemes for catastrophe insurance
The Federation of European Risk Management Associations has told the European Commission that any new insurance solutions for catastrophe risks should be market based and respect freedom of choice for insurance buyers.
Cunningham Lindsey unveils new international CEO
Loss adjuster Cunningham Lindsey has promoted Rupert Travis as chief executive of its International division.
Europe: Accordant accounting
The IASB has published its latest proposals for consistent accounting for insurance companies but the industry will have to act quickly to make its voice heard, David Foster says.