Insurance news

• WR Berkley hires more former Chubb execs for HNW unit

  27-04-2016 23:56
  WR Berkley has continued to build-out its high net worth (HNW)
  platform in the US with a trio of hires as it looks to take
  advantage of the fall-out from the Ace-Chubb combination.
  The insurer announced this morning (27 April) that it had hired
  Kevin Hogan as senior vice president (SVP) and COO, Susan Vella as
  SVP for customer experience, and Christoph Ritterson as SVP of
  marketing.
  All three join from Chubb, where they were executives in its
  personal lines...
  
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• Mortgage unit helps sustain Arch underwriting performance

  27-04-2016 23:56
  Strong performance in Arch's mortgage business helped the
  (re)insurer to a steady set of Q1 underwriting results.
  Operating profits of $145.7mn broadly kept pace with the
  $149.8mn reported in the prior-year period.
  But net income slid from $277.9mn to $149.3mn as the company was
  hit by lower investment gains and FX losses.
  The Bermudian booked gross written premium (GWP) growth of 6.1
  percent to $1.39bn.
  The increase was driven by strong top-line growth in its
  mortgage business and a modest...
  
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• FCA targets thousands of firms in proactive engagement push

  27-04-2016 18:29
  
  The Financial Conduct Authority wants to reach up to 3,000 firms in the next 12 months through its live and local regional programme, which runs until March next year.
  
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• ILS could make London global centre for cyber risk insurance

  27-04-2016 17:26
  The push to make London an insurance-linked securities (ILS) hub
  could eventually position the city as the global centre for cyber
  risk insurance, according to BNY Mellon.
  The UK government is aiming to publish draft regulations for a
  new ILS framework later this year.
  In a report released today (27 April), BNY Mellon said that the
  framework could potentially allow new and emerging risks such as
  cyber to be transferred to the capital markets.
  The company examined cyber cat bonds...
  
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• Analysts quiz Everest Re over expenses hike

  27-04-2016 17:26
  Everest Re has come under fire from analysts after an increased
  expense ratio impacted the Bermudian carrier's first quarter
  combined ratio.
  Underwriting expenses increased by 1.2 percentage points to 5.9
  percent in Q1 this year. However, CEO and president Dominic Addesso
  stressed that the expense ratio remained better than the industry
  average.
  On a Q1 earnings call, Morgan Stanley's Kai Pan highlighted
  the traditional competitive advantage the company enjoyed from low
  expenses, and queried Add
  
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• Government looking at Flood Re for SMEs, says Cameron

  27-04-2016 15:22
  
  Prime Minister confirms government is looking at a flood insurance solution for small businesses.
  
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• Government looking at a Flood Re style for SMEs, says Cameron

  27-04-2016 15:22 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Prime Minister confirms government is looking at a flood insurance solution for small businesses.
  
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• Munich Re issues Q1 warning

  27-04-2016 14:10
  Munich Re CEO Nikolaus von Bomhard has warned attendees at the
  reinsurer's annual general meeting (AGM) today (27 April) that
  first quarter profits would be "well below" its
  expectations.
  The carrier benefited from low major losses in the period, but
  von Bomhard explained that volatile capital markets had caused
  equities in particular to lose value. "We will be posting
  writedowns," he added.
  Keefe Bruyette & Woods (KBW) analyst William Hawkins said he
  thought the carrier's first quarter prof
  
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• FCA goes on tour

  27-04-2016 13:43
  
  Regulator aims to talk face-to-face with around 3,000 firms as it meets businesses, including brokers, across the UK.
  
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• RMP and Ecclesiastical launch insurance product for college sector

  27-04-2016 12:48
  
  RMP’s broker networks will distribute a new insurance and risk management offering for further education colleges.
  
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• Gordon Brown unveiled as keynote speaker at Biba

  27-04-2016 11:35
  
  Former Prime Minister to address the conference in Manchester.
  
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• Volvo to run self-driving car trial in London in 2017

  27-04-2016 11:30
  
  Volvo is to start trials of autonomous cars on roads around London next year.
  
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• AXA nets trio of fraudsters using fundamental dishonesty defence

  27-04-2016 11:08
  
  AXA said it exposed three fraudsters who staged or exaggerated traffic accidents, after proving that their evidence was fundamentally dishonest.
  
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• Fraudsters convicted using ‘fundamental dishonesty’ defence

  27-04-2016 11:06
  
  Three cases brought by Axa have seen fundamental dishonesty rulings from judges, something the insurer says shows the judiciary’s increasing appetite to make these findings.
  
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• One Call expands commercial division

  27-04-2016 11:00
  
  Decision sees business lines arm rebranded and new staff join.
  
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• Scor's profits dip as top line grows in Q1

  27-04-2016 10:52
  European reinsurer Scor saw its net profits fall 2.9 percent to
  EUR170mn in the first quarter of 2016, despite recording a strong
  3.3 percent return on invested assets.
  The return was just 0.2 points lower than in the same period of
  last year.
  The overall group top line increased by 5.1 percent to EUR3.3bn,
  boosted by a strong performance in its life division.
  Scor Global Life's gross written premium (GWP) was up 10.5
  percent, while its technical margin remained broadly...
  
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• CSC passes another hurdle in Xchanging acquisition

  27-04-2016 10:52
  Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) announced yesterday (26 April)
  that it had received approval from the UK's Financial Conduct
  Authority to acquire software services provider Xchanging.
  The deal is now conditional on the German regulator Bafin
  confirming it has no objections to the proposed acquisition.
  The firm satisfied US takeover regulations in February, and
  achieved a green light from the European Commission in March.
  CSC became the sole bidder for Xchanging after insurance
  software speci
  
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• Volvo CEO calls for more government help as it outlines autonomous driving trial in London

  27-04-2016 10:43
  
  The Association of British Insurers’ has hailed Volvo’s autonomous driving trial in London next year as “really exciting” and potentially “transformational,” while the motor manufacturer itself has called for more government help to speed up adoption.
  
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• In-depth: Break into cyber

  27-04-2016 10:30
  
  Larry Ferguson investigates why some brokers aren’t selling cyber and learns why they should be. He finds out how, with expertise and effort, cyber policies can be explained and sold to clients
  
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• Former PM Gordon Brown to headline Biba 2016

  27-04-2016 10:24
  
  Former British Prime Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown will be a keynote speaker at the British Insurance Brokers’ Association 2016 conference.
  
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• Faking injury 'as unacceptable as drink driving' - poll

  27-04-2016 10:12
  
  Faking injury on an insurance claim is worse than buying stolen goods and as unacceptable as drink-driving according to a poll for Aviva.
  
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• Expertise from A-Z - Personal injury reform: Brave new world?

  27-04-2016 10:02
  
  Claims management companies are to come under the remit of the Financial Conduct Authority. What effect will this have on the sector?
  
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• Expertise fom A-Z - Personal injury reform: Brave new world?

  27-04-2016 10:02
  
  Claims management companies are to come under the remit of the Financial Conduct Authority. What effect will this have on the sector?
  
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• Video: Expertise from A-Z with Sarah Mallaby

  27-04-2016 10:00
  
  As regulation of claims management companies is relinquished by G
  government and handed to the Financial Conduct Authority, what lies ahead for insurance companies?
  
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• The only way is ethics, says UK Broker Awards winner

  27-04-2016 10:00
  
  Event hailed as opportunity for brokers of all sizes to fly the flag on quality.
  
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• Expertise from A-Z - Personal injury reform: Shaking up the compensation culture

  27-04-2016 10:00
  
  Three years after reforms, the underlying problems with the compensation system are still prevalent. What can be done to provide tangible change?
  
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• Brightside appoints Graham Donoghue as non-executive director

  27-04-2016 09:37
  
  Graham Donoghue, formerly chief product officer and director of MoneySuperMarket, has joined Brightside Group as a non-executive director.
  
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• Almost 60% believe personal injury reforms unfair

  27-04-2016 09:31
  
  Proposed changes to compensation from accidents were considered unfair by 57% of adults according to a survey commissioned by Access 2 Justice.
  
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• New phone app locks phones while driving

  27-04-2016 09:19
  
  A new phone app that stops you checking your phone while driving could help cut motor insurance premiums.
  
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• 60% say whiplash crackdown unfair - poll

  27-04-2016 08:46
  
  Nearly 60% of people think the government’s crackdown on whiplash claims is unfair, according to a survey commissioned by Access2Justice, which is campaigning against the plans.
  
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• Axis grows reinsurance top line by 21% on QS and multi-year deals

  27-04-2016 07:35
  Gross written premiums (GWP) in the reinsurance segment of Axis
  climbed by more than 20 percent in Q1 driven by an increase in
  proportional business in marine, liability and motor lines, as well
  as a higher number of multi-year policies.
  Reinsurance premium increased by $230mn to $1.3bn compared to
  the first three months of 2015.
  Axis said the top line growth was affected by an increase in the
  number of policies that had been written on a multi-year basis in...
  
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• Analysts raise questions over AIG SME joint venture

  27-04-2016 07:35
  AIG's joint venture (JV) with Hamilton and Two Sigma in the
  US small-to-medium-sized enterprise (SME) space has been met with a
  mixed response from equity analysts.
  Citi's Todd Bault suggested the JV looks like an
  "interesting template for how future InsureTech will be
  done".
  He said the vehicle would benefit from fund manager Two
  Sigma's data science, Hamilton's underwriting and business
  plan, and AIG's global scale.
  "This to us is a promising template for how InsureTech will
  proceed in the...
  
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• Alibaba joins China Taiping for Chinese online health insurer

  27-04-2016 06:10
  
  Alibaba has raised 1bn yuan (£100m) for a fledgling online health insurer Alibaba Health Insurance.
  
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• WR Berkley grows top and bottom line in Q1

  27-04-2016 01:07
  Specialty insurer WR Berkley managed to grow its premium base and
  profitability in the first quarter of the year as the group also
  saw its combined ratio improve.
  Operating income increased to $114.7mn, up 8 percent from the
  $105.9mn it reported for the same period in 2015.
  The result, which equates to $0.89 per share, beat Wall Street
  analysts' consensus estimate of $0.85.
  The group also saw an increase in its top line as gross written
  premium grew by almost...
  
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• RenRe misses as specialty reinsurance underwriting deteriorates

  27-04-2016 01:07
  RenaissanceRe reported operating profits that almost halved to
  $66.3mn for the first quarter as its bottom line was hit by
  deteriorating underwriting performance in its specialty reinsurance
  business.
  At $1.51 a share, operating profits were well below Wall Street
  analysts' consensus forecasts of $2.69 a share.
  The Bermudian's CEO Kevin O'Donnell said that while its
  cat reinsurance segment had benefited from low loss activity, the
  carrier had experienced an "unusually large aggregation"
  of event
  
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