Germany
Lloyds Bank completes €300m German life insurer sale
Lloyds Banking Group has completed the sale of life insurer Heidelberger Leben to a combination of Hannover Re and Cinven, a private equity group.
Equinox Global bolsters Hamburg & New York units
Equinox Global has named Dagmar Böhning as underwriting manager at Equinox Global in Hamburg, Germany and Joe McNamara as vice president of credit and political risk in New York.
Hannover Re enters talks to buy Heidelberger Leben
Hannover Re is poised to buy Lloyds banking group’s German insurance arm for a fee of €400m, according to media reports.
German health cover purchases soar after rule change
Purchases of health insurance in Germany have swollen after state rules on waiting periods have been abolished.
Europe: Continental catastrophes
An EC Green Paper proposing harmonisation of catastrophe insurance across Europe has faced strong criticism from the market. Edmund Tirbutt explains why.
Talanx achieves 10% increase in GWP in H1
German insurance giant Talanx Group achieved a 10% increase in gross written premiums in the first half of 2013 to €15bn.
Europe: Aggregation domination
Research suggests that the use of aggregators in Europe is growing but can the continent replicate the price comparison success seen in the UK? Mark Sands investigates.
Kiln hires senior accident and health underwriter in Germany
Kiln has appointed Claudia Alaimo as senior accident and health underwriter for Europe.
Renewables market could triple insurance spend by 2020
The renewable energy industry could triple its annual insurance spend by 2020 to mitigate risks to projects, according to a new report sponsored by Swiss Re.
Hiscox launches online insurance platform in Germany
Hiscox started offering insurance in Germany via a direct and online insurance offering.
Hiscox expands in Germany with online platform
Hiscox has launched a new direct and online insurance offering in Germany, aimed at businesses with up to €2.5m annual revenue in knowledge-based professions including IT, management and business consulting.
Ergo's 'AA-' financial strength rating affirmed by Fitch
Germany-based insurers Ergo Life and DKV have had their insurer financial strength ratings affirmed at 'AA-' by Fitch.
Generali downgraded to A- by S&P due to Italian exposure
Generali has had its rating downgraded from A to A-.
Post Audio Supplement - 11 July 2013
Too busy to read the magazine or website? Want a quick update on the latest news?
European floods to cost insurers £3.3bn
The insurance industry will faces losses of €4bn (£3.3bn) following flooding across Central Europe are, with most of the claims coming in Germany.
Generali takes control of Germany’s second-largest insurer
The Generali Group has struck a deal to purchase a minority stake in Generali Deutschland, taking it beyond a 95% holding and triggering a full buy out.
Europe: Cracking the whip
The UK has been dubbed the whiplash capital of Europe but what can it learn on the continent as it looks to crack the problem? Tim Evershed investigates.
Solicitors offered unrated insurer carriers despite solvency concerns
Déja vu as Balva-like unrated carriers on brink of taking market.
Losses from European floods could hit £4.5bn
Industry-wide insured losses on recent flooding in central and eastern Europe is expected to hit between $3.5bn (£2.4bn) and $4.5bn (£3bn), according to estimates by Swiss Re.
German floods to cost industry €2bn
Claims from last month's flooding in Germany alone are expected to cost insurers nearly €2bn, German trade association GDV said on Tuesday.
Towers Watson appoints Frederik Koencke to head crisis management for EMEA
Frederik Koencke has been appointed as the first Towers Watson crisis management group managing director for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region.
Groupama sees thousands of flood claims as France declared natural disaster zone
Groupama has received around 16 500 flood claims following devastating floods in southwest France.
Penny Black's Insurance Week - 27 June 2013
Penny loves to moan and complain, so she was thrilled this week to hear of one complaint a telematics firm received from an elderly customer who was unable to install their new black box.
German floods could cost insurers €5.8bn
Historic floods in Germany are likely to generate insured losses of between €4bn and €5.8bn, according to catastrophe modeller AIR.