Insurance news

• Spinnaker to enter Louisiana with Acadian deal

  25-05-2016 22:00
  Programme and fronting start-up Spinnaker has signed up Acadian
  Managers as its exclusive Louisiana programme administrator as it
  continues to build out its underwriting and distribution platform.Under the agreement, Acadian will underwrite and market
  Spinnaker's homeowners and dwelling fire products through its
  network of over 250 agents.The Louisiana business will be written on the Dave Ingrey-headed
  insurer's AM Best A- rated paper on an exclusive basis.In a statement, Acadian said it plans t
  
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• Gable ponders sale and admits Solvency II compliance "is not possible"

  25-05-2016 20:53 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Liechtenstein-based unrated insurer says anticipated losses for 2015 could be up to £14m.
  
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• Gable 2015 loss estimate widens to between £13m and £14m

  25-05-2016 19:13
  
  Gable has warned that its 2015 loss will be £6m worse than previously estimated because it will receive a lower payout under an insurance policy than it had expected.
  
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• Gable mulls sale as raising enough Solvency II funds 'not possible'

  25-05-2016 18:46
  
  Gable has launched a full strategic review of its business after determining that it is “not possible” to raise the additional capital it needs to comply fully with Solvency II in its current form.
  
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• Brokers and insurers warned of soft market perils amid Gable crisis

  25-05-2016 18:45
  
  Insurers and brokers today received a stark warning about the perils of current market conditions as crisis-hit Gable revealed further losses and that it doesn’t have the money to meet Solvency II.
  
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• Crisis-hit Gable suffers 23% share price crash

  25-05-2016 18:32
  
  Gable’s share price crashed 23% following the annoucement that it can’t ratise the money to hit Solvency 2 requirements and revelations of further losses in the business. 
  
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• Gold plating 'not in the spirit of Solvency II': McGavick

  25-05-2016 17:57
  The need for harmonisation around the application of Solvency II
  across Europe is of vital importance, according to XL Catlin CEO
  Mike McGavick.
  Speaking during a panel session at the International Insurance
  Conference hosted by Insurance Europe in Dublin today (25 May),
  McGavick said that standardisation was essential.
  "This is terribly important because perhaps standardisation
  can end the gold plating that is already starting to work its way
  into the system through the regulators in individual
  
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• Simply Business hackathon creates ‘Tinder for insurance’

  25-05-2016 17:52
  
  Simply Business has created an app that allows commercial insurance customers to swipe through a short question set to generate an indicative quote.
  
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• Chubb appoints marketing boss Ruth Polyblank as SME head

  25-05-2016 14:05
  
  Current head of marketing and customer strategy Ruth Polyblank has been appointed to a new role as head of SME for UK and Ireland at Chubb.
  
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• Motor Insurance World 2016: Cars as ‘complex as aircraft' and repairs should be licenced, say manufacturers

  25-05-2016 14:03
  
  Increasing complexity of vehicles should require increasing regulation around repairs, particularly as the sector heads towards a driverless future, according to key experts from major motor manufacturers.
  
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• Motor Insurance World 2016: Biba expects EU decision to mitigate Vnuk

  25-05-2016 13:53
  
  Graeme Trudgill, the executive director of the British Insurance Brokers' Association, says he expects the European Union to soon come up with a new definition of "vehicle" that will close the Pandora's box opened by the Vnuk ruling.
  
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• 'Ghost broking' courier sentenced for defrauding Liberty in £89,000 scam

  25-05-2016 13:48
  
  A 33-year-old courier from Epsom has been sentenced after he admitted to setting up over 100 bogus car insurance policies for his unsuspecting customers and defrauding victims and Liberty Insurance out of a combined £89,000.
  
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• Epsom ghostbroker sentenced for £89,000 fraud

  25-05-2016 13:19 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Renan Gomes admitted to setting up over 100 fraudulent car insurance policies.
  
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• WR Berkley placed on negative watch by Fitch

  25-05-2016 12:57
  Fitch Ratings has placed WR Berkley on negative rating watch due
  to an expected increase in the carrier's financial
  leverage.
  The decision was a result of WR Berkley's recently announced
  issuance of $290mn of subordinated debentures, Fitch said yesterday
  (24 May).
  The carrier's financial leverage ratio subsequently
  increased to 36.1 percent from the reported level of 33.4 percent
  on 31 March 2016.
  Fitch had previously warned that an increase in the financial
  leverage ratio beyond 35 percent woul
  
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• Towergate launches regional specialty arm

  25-05-2016 12:57
  Towergate has appointed Martin Joyce to lead a newly created
  regional specialty business at its underwriting arm, it announced
  yesterday (24 May).
  The division will primarily focus on financial lines, including
  professional indemnity, directors' and officers' and
  crime.
  Joyce joins Towergate from Dual, where he helped build the
  financial lines business in the company's corporate risks unit.
  He has previously held roles at American International Group and
  Allianz.
  He will be based in Manchester a
  
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• Swiss Re highlights top emerging risks for (re)insurers

  25-05-2016 12:57
  Future emerging market crises, internet localisation and
  prolonged low interest rates have been identified by Swiss Re as
  the top emerging risks with the highest potential impact on the
  (re)insurance industry.
  The reinsurer's Sonar report, released today (25 May),
  examined emerging and developing risks and their potential impact
  over time.
  It listed nine risks that could prove disruptive within the next
  three years, which also included a crisis of trust in institutions,
  human-induced earthquakes
  
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• ABI: UK winter flood loss bill to hit £1.3bn

  25-05-2016 12:57
  The total insurance bill for the UK floods that hit the country
  in December and January is expected to reach £1.3bn ($1.9mn),
  according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI).
  The ABI said 85 percent of claims from the floods caused by
  Storms Desmond, Eva and Frank have been partially or fully paid so
  far, totalling more than 15,000 claims at an average cost of
  £50,000 each.
  Insurers are also spending nearly £27.5mn on alternative
  accommodation for affected families while
  
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• DFT confirms it will amend Road Traffic Act to cover driverless technology and invites insurers to consult on legislation

  25-05-2016 12:50
  
  A government minister has called for the insurance industry to participate in a consultation over regulations surrounding the cover of autonomous vehicles.
  
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• IBIS 2016: Caliber Collision leaves door open for possible European entry

  25-05-2016 11:35
  
  Caliber Collision has refused to rule out an emergence into the European collision repair market as it continues to ramp up acquisitions in the US, delegates were told at the IBIS Global Summit 2016.
  
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• In or out? Time to decide over EU vote

  25-05-2016 10:30 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  With the referendum over the UK’s future in the EU looming, Insurance Age gauges how the European insurance community views the vote
  
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• Alec Finch: Open to persuasion on the EU referendum

  25-05-2016 10:25 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  WBN members shared their views on Brexit – here Finch gives his opinion.
  
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• InsurTech Futures: AIG launches crowdfunding product

  25-05-2016 10:00 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Product created for crowdfunding investment industry to protect against fraud.
  
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• Motor insurers' COR hits 102% despite premium increase

  25-05-2016 09:46
  
  Motor insurers’ combined operating ratio (COR) was 102% in 2015 according to figures released by Deloitte.
  
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• Aro Underwriting launches on PowerPlace

  25-05-2016 09:45 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  MGA adds property owners products to the software platform.
  
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• AXA to take firmer stance with brokers asking for higher commission

  25-05-2016 09:14
  
  AXA is going to take a stronger stance by saying no to brokers that do not put forward a “compelling” case when looking for increased commissions, AXA commercial intermediary managing director Jon Walker said.
  
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• Lack of trust between consumers and insurers is fuelling fraud - AXA

  25-05-2016 09:13
  
  Up to one third of Britons have committed insurance fraud, a report commissioned by AXA has found.
  
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• Motor insurance premiums rose to £13.9bn in 2015

  25-05-2016 09:00 via insuranceage.co.uk
  Industry net combined ratio increased to 102%.
  
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• AA 'in talks' to sell Irish business

  25-05-2016 08:41
  
  The AA has confirmed it is in talks to sell its Irish business.
  
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• Aviva pledges 30% of executive committee will always be women

  25-05-2016 08:27
  
  Aviva has pledged that 30% of its executive committee will always consist of women.
  
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• Allianz creates digital Asia analytics hub

  25-05-2016 08:15
  
  Global giant Allianz has launched an innovation venture in Singapore for Asia.
  
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• Live blog: Motor Insurance World 2016

  25-05-2016 08:00
  
  For the first time ever, Post's hugely-popular conferences - Motor Claims and Insurance Telematics come together under one roof for one super charged event designed to address the challenges shaping motor insurance in 2016 and beyond
  
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• Blog: Motor Insurance World 2016 - as it happened

  25-05-2016 08:00
  
  For the first time ever, Post's hugely popular conferences - Motor Claims and Insurance Telematics - came together under one roof for one super charged event designed to address the challenges shaping motor insurance in 2016 and beyond.
  
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• Blog: Every click you make

  25-05-2016 08:00
  
  The Insurance Fraud Bureau plays an important role as the central hub for sharing insurance fraud data and intelligence. However, there are new technologies that can help insurers detect during the online quotation process behaviours that may be indicative of cheating
  
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• Towergate makes hire from DUAL to lead regional specialty arm

  25-05-2016 07:55
  
  Towergate Underwriting has hired Martin Joyce to lead its newly formed regional specialty business.
  
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• Majority of December storm claims settled

  25-05-2016 04:00
  
  85% of insurance claims made for flooded homes and businesses in the December storms has been fully or partly paid out, the Association of British insures (ABI) said.
  
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• Eiopa widens stress test to include more carriers

  25-05-2016 01:48
  The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (Eiopa)
  has today (24 May) launched an EU-wide stress test, which will
  include a larger number of small and medium-sized insurers.
  The EU watchdog increased the participation target from a 50
  percent share of each national market in terms of gross life
  technical provisions to a 75 percent share.
  Eiopa said that the launch date for the exercise was brought
  forward by a week to allow participating insurance companies more
  time to complete.
  
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• AGCS hires combined FI and D&O head

  25-05-2016 01:48
  Allianz Global Corporate and Specialty (AGCS) has appointed Terry
  Fitzgerald as head of an amalgamated financial institutions (FI)
  and commercial directors' and officers' (D&O) unit, the
  carrier announced today (24 May).
  Fitzgerald will add the financial institutions remit to his
  current brief as head of commercial D&O liability
  insurance.
  He joined the company in 2012 as head of commercial D&O,
  prior to which he served as a senior underwriter in financial lines
  at Chubb for around 9
  
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• Net combined ratio for motor insurance to rise to 104% this year

  25-05-2016 01:00
  
  Motor premiums have risen to £13.9bn but the sector remains a loss-maker for many insurers, according to figures from Deloitte.
  
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• NCR for motor insurance to rise to 104% this year

  25-05-2016 01:00
  
  Motor premiums have risen to £13.9bn but the sector remains a loss-maker for many insurers, according to figures from Deloitte.
  
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