Insurance news

• Programme transformer Clear Blue gets A- rating

  11-12-2015 22:48
  Programme transformer start-up Clear Blue has secured its A- AM
  Best rating and will now line up to compete with leading fronting
  carrier State National in the growing segment of the P&C
  market.
  As previously revealed by The Insurance Insider, the Pine
  Brook-backed company will front reinsurance capacity for programmes
  and offer access to US business that reinsurers could not otherwise
  reach.
  Led by former AmTrust and Bank of America executive Jerome
  Breslin, Clear Blue will operate as a 100
  
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• Beazley receives Solvency II green light

  11-12-2015 20:42
  London-listed carrier Beazley has become the latest insurer to
  secure approval for its Solvency II internal model.
  In a statement released today (11 December) Beazley said that
  the Central Bank of Ireland had approved for the insurer to use its
  internal model to calculate the group solvency capital requirement
  (SCR).
  Solvency II comes into effect on 1 January 2016.
  The news comes almost a week after UK regulator the Prudential
  Regulation Authority (PRA) approved the internal models of 19
  insurer
  
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• Towers Watson gets 72% support for Willis deal

  11-12-2015 18:34
  Towers Watson shareholders have overwhelmingly voted in favour of
  the firm's takeover by Willis, at a ratio of nearly three votes
  to one.
  An 8-K filing by the company showed that 72 percent of votes at
  the extraordinary shareholders' meeting today (11 December)
  approved the merger. Towers Watson said that 25 percent voted
  against the plans, while 3 percent abstained.
  Meanwhile, 79 percent of votes were cast in favour of the
  specified compensatory arrangements between Towers Watson and its
  named.
  
  Read more

• Fitch turns negative on Towergate ratings over debt and cash flow

  11-12-2015 17:18
  
  Ratings agency says there is ‘significant execution risk’ with broker’s turnaround plan
  
  Read more

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• Cathedral CEO and CFO exit Lancashire

  11-12-2015 16:41
  
  Katie Marriner Postonline Lancashire Holdings has announced the forthcoming departures of Cathedral Capital CEO Peter Scales and chief financial officer John Lynch on 31 March 2016.
  
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• Cathedral’s chief executive and finance head to leave

  11-12-2015 16:09
  
  Moves a result of continuing integration with parent company Lancashire
  
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• Shareholders approve Willis-Towers Watson deal

  11-12-2015 15:31
  The shareholders of Willis and Towers Watson have voted through
  the $18bn merger between the two companies, confounding widespread
  expectations that Towers Watson investors would shoot the deal
  down.
  Investors in the two firms were invited to vote on the proposal
  at extraordinary shareholder meetings held today (11 December). The
  companies now expect the deal to close in early 2016, subject to
  regulatory approval.
  No figures were given for the percentage of shareholders from
  either company that
  
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• Lancashire confirms Cathedral exec departures

  11-12-2015 15:31
  Lancashire today (11 December) confirmed the departure of
  Cathedral CEO Peter Scales and CFO John Lynch, as previously
  revealed by The Insurance Insider.
  On 7 December, this
  publication reported the pair had been dismissed from the
  group, with sources indicating that more executives may follow.
  However, sources have said that Lancashire is fighting to keep
  active underwriter John Hamblin and other key staff, and is now
  confident that it can do so.
  The departures of Scales and Lynch sent Lancashi
  
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• Julie Page to leave Marsh following Jelf restructure

  11-12-2015 15:24
  
  The bulk of Page’s commercial and consumer unit will transfer to Jelf
  
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• Julie Page to leave Marsh in the New Year

  11-12-2015 14:36 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Her exit as CEO of Marsh's UK Commercial and Consumer Division follows management changes at Jelf.
  
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• Buncefield Anniversary: A look at the explosion and the fallout from it 10 years on

  11-12-2015 13:19
  
  Stephanie Denton Postonline The explosion at the Buncefield oil depot on 11 December 2005 was the largest explosion ever in Europe during peacetime. Safeguards failed and as a result a fuel tanker overflowed.
  
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• IFB strategy approved by ABI council

  11-12-2015 12:25
  
  Peta Fuller Postonline The Insurance Fraud Bureau's strategy plans were officially signed-off today (11 December) giving the green light to stretching its mandate from organised motor to property and liability fraud.
  
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• Rural Insurance growth keeps firm on track for £100m target

  11-12-2015 12:15
  
  Peta Fuller Postonline Harrogate-based agricultural specialist Rural Insurance saw its revenue grow 13.3% in the past six months, staying on track to become a £100m business over the long-term.
  
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• IFB to expand investigations into property and liability

  11-12-2015 12:05
  
  Ben Fletcher said IFB would continue to maintain focus on motor amid expansion
  
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• More flooding predicted as Cunningham Lindsey reports 20% major commercial losses

  11-12-2015 11:29
  
  Katie Marriner Postonline Thirty-five per cent of the claims so far received by loss adjuster Cunningham Lindsey in the wake of Storm Desmond are commercial, of which 20% are deemed major losses.
  
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• Broking Break – Your Top Five

  11-12-2015 11:25 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  In a busy week for insurance which stories did your clicks put in the top five most read?
  
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• Quiz of the week - 11 December

  11-12-2015 11:00
  
  Katie Marriner Postonline Test your knowledge of the week's insurance news, with the Post insurance quiz of the week.
  
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• Quizzical questions: 11 December 2015

  11-12-2015 10:36 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Test your knowledge of the week's news with our topical news quiz.
  
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• Sompo confirms it won't increase Scor stake

  11-12-2015 10:28
  Sompo Japan Nipponkoa has announced that its board has voted to
  suspend a plan to increase its holding in French reinsurer Scor.
  It follows reports in Nikkei Asian Review yesterday (10
  December) that the Japanese investment giant had decided to abandon
  plans to raise its stake from 9 percent to 15 percent.
  Sompo said today: "Sompo Holdings hereby announces that it
  has determined, at the meeting of the board of directors held
  today, to change such plan and to suspend...
  
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• Fosun suspends trading after chairman reported missing

  11-12-2015 10:28
  Chinese conglomerate Fosun suspended trading in its shares today
  (11 December) after reports surfaced that its chairman Guo
  Guangchang had gone missing.
  Rumours of Guo's disappearance first appeared yesterday
  after financial publication Caixin published a story citing
  unconfirmed reports that Guo had been taken off a Hong Kong to
  Shanghai flight by police on arrival.
  China is in the midst of a corruption crackdown, with several
  top executives across the country's financial services industry
  havi
  
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• Former OIM exec to launch MGA

  11-12-2015 10:28
  Jason Anthony, the former managing director of AJ Gallagher-owned
  managing general agency (MGA) OIM Underwriting, is to return to the
  market with MGA Mutual, a new underwriting agency backed solely by
  market investors.
  Aiming to launch after 1 March when his non-compete with AJ
  Gallagher expires, the MGA will focus on a relationship with one
  core carrier and three or four others, and will begin writing UK
  SME policies, including property, cyber, terrorism and drone
  insurance.
  Anthony raised the
  
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• AIG staff shock as top bosses are latest culled

  11-12-2015 10:19
  
  Top level executive join UK boss Jacquelene McNamee in leaving the insurer
  
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• Legal & General to stop quarterly reporting

  11-12-2015 09:48
  
  Katie Marriner Postonline Legal & General is to stop quarterly reporting in 2016, the company has confirmed through a note to the London Stock Exchange.
  
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• Giles consolidator on verge of winning backing for new wave of M&A

  11-12-2015 09:48
  
  Nicolas Sarkozy’s half brother is a partner at private equity firm considering investment in PIB
  
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• Facebook opens Messenger app to insurance transactions

  11-12-2015 09:27
  
  Millennial customers are looking for new avenues of communication 
  
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• Berkshire launches small business insurer with A++ rating

  11-12-2015 01:08
  Berkshire Hathaway's new online small business insurance
  platform has secured an A++ financial strength rating from AM
  Best.
  The venture will operate as Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance
  Company‎ and marks the investment conglomerate's latest
  foray into the primary market.
  The new carrier will write workers' compensation and
  business owners' package policies for small companies.
  "Back office operations and investment management will be
  supported by affiliated Berkshire Hathaway companies,"
  
  Read more

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