Home insurance
Hastings looks to suppliers and fraud detection to staunch claims inflation
Hastings is hoping that investment in its anti-fraud capabilities and supplier partnerships secured in the tail-end of last year will mitigate the impact of claims inflation on its bottom line.
ABI calls for annual government flood defence spending to rise to £1.2bn
Jon Dye, the chair of the Association of British Insurers, has called for government flood defence investment to rise to at least £1.2bn a year.
Blog: Meatballs, Billy Book cases and Hemsaker: Can Ikea make flat pack household insurance a success?
As Ikea teams up with Swiss Re to enter the household insurance market, content director Jonathan Swift reflects on how the Swedish furniture giant could disrupt the sector with its own brand of flat pack cover.
Restructuring costs weigh on Ageas' 2019 profits
Ageas UK saw its profitability slump by 21% last year, reporting full-year profits of £60.3m compared to £76.7m in 2018.
Post Office switches from BGL panel to Ageas home insurance partnership
Post Office Insurance has teamed up with Ageas on an exclusive five-year deal for home insurance.
Blog: Insuring the essential - why assistive technologies should be the next focus for insurers
There are 14 million disabled people living in the UK and, for many, assistive technologies – devices and software that support their day-to-day activity – are a real lifeline writes Johnny Timpson, protection specialist at Scottish Widows.
180 Years of Post - The history of direct insurance in the UK: How Direct Line and Churchill took on the establishment and ended up as merger partners
As Post celebrates 180 years, Post content director Jonathan Swift explores the birth of direct insurance in the UK and how two key early movers Direct Line and Churchill went from rivals to merger bedfellows in a deal that literally 'shook up insurance'.
FSCS reveals £12.4m cost of Qudos and Lamp failures
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has forecast that the failures of Qudos Insurance in December 2018 and Lamp Insurance in May last year will cost £12.4m this financial year.
Go Compare urges 28 day cooling off period for auto-renewals
Go Compare has called for a doubling of the cooling off period for auto-renewals from 14 to 28 days during which time insurers should take “all reasonable steps” to make customers aware their insurance has been auto-renewed.
Analysis: 5G ready: Super signal surge
Powerful 5G smart tech devices are expected to be rolled out this year. They are anticipated to overtake 4G in terms of reliability and innovation, as well as increasing data speeds, resulting in faster downloads and increased capability for digital…
Government bolsters fund for flood-hit farmers by £2m
The government has added £2m to a fund to help farmers who suffered "uninsurable" damage during last year’s floods.
Government flood review should focus on improving under-insurance as insurers will resist floodplain extensions
Insurers will support the government's investigation into insufficient insurance cover in the recent Yorkshire floods but will resist any attempts to widen Flood Re to cover recent floodplain developments, the Association of British Insurers has said.
Environment Secretary opens review into insurance cover after recent Yorkshire floods
The government is set to investigate the extent to which those affected by the recent flooding in Yorkshire did not have sufficient insurance cover.
Analysis: Revisiting 'Flood Re Plus' for businesses
The idea of a Flood Re Plus scheme has been mooted by Airmic as a solution for those businesses that struggled to obtain flood cover
Blog: From disruption to collaboration - why insurtechs need to change the narrative in 2020
The coming year is set to be something of a watershed for insurtech. Craig Foster, CEO at Leakbot, believes far from disrupting the insurance sector, insurtech is beginning to define it and providers now have a crucial role.
Blog: Will the FCA ban automatic price rises in 2020?
The regulator has noted concern that competition isn’t working well for all consumers in the house and motor markets but Tony Tarquini, director of insurance for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Pegasystems, believes a ban on automatic price rises…
Analysis: What's on the horizon for 2020?
For an industry that strives to understand and manage risk, uncertainty is not something that is relished. But with some market hardening, a final report from the Financial Conduct Authority on pricing practices and the possibility of Brexit all on the…
Trade Voice: The ABI's James Dalton on why GI pricing will be a priority in 2020
James Dalton, director of general insurance policy at the Association of British Insurers, reveals what the trade body will be focusing on next year and why.
Loyalty a top priority among consumers when choosing an insurer
The biggest opportunity for insurers to improve their performance is in relation to customer loyalty, which ranked above price as a decision driver when it comes to picking a provider, according to research by the Chartered Insurance Institute.
Consumers are ready for auto-switching, says Go Compare CEO Crummack
Consumers are ready for greater use of auto-switching services across many areas of household bills including home and car insurance, Go Compare CEO Matthew Crummack has said.
A-Plan breaks £100m revenue barrier and set to open 100th office
A-Plan will be opening its 100th office within the next two months, CEO Carl Shuker told Post.
This week in Post: hanging by a thread
This week, Transport for London has revoked Uber’s licence to operate in London, causing fear among the capital residents who often rely on the app-based service to get them home safely after a night on the town.
Fitch negative on UK home and motor insurance markets for 2020
Fitch has declared a negative outlook for insurers in the UK home and motor markets in 2020 citing high claims inflation and a weak pricing environment.
Floods and dual pricing warnings push up home premiums: Consumer Intelligence
Average home insurance premiums have climbed at a rate higher than inflation over the past six months, Consumer Intelligence research has found.