Insurance news

• Willis shakes off merger class actions

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Willis and Towers Watson have largely avoided the repercussions of
  five shareholder class actions brought in the wake of their $18bn
  tie-up.
  The suits were filed amid a protracted takeover battle that saw
  Towers Watson shareholders threaten to block an offer from the big
  three broker.
  Faced with a backlash from Towers Watson investors, Willis was
  forced to increase its initial $4.87 per share special dividend to
  $10 to get the deal across the line at a shareholder vote in...
  
  Read more

• Weather risk returns to cat bond market

  02-08-2016 19:22
  A weather cat bond is being pitched to insurance-linked securities
  (ILS) investors for the first time since the late 1990s, sister
  publication Trading Risk reported last
  week.
  The transaction is a private cat bond being offered by Allianz
  Risk Transfer, Nephila's fronting partner.
  It is looking to raise $70mn of weather reinsurance from the ILS
  market through a new Market Re transaction - the private bond
  platform run by JLT Capital Markets.
  The deal would provide parametric cover that triggers.
  
  Read more

• UK company plans near fruition for CV Starr

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Hank Greenberg's CV Starr is close to setting up a
  UK-domiciled insurance company, in an initiative that had been
  designed to give the insurer the opportunity to passport into
  European Union (EU) countries.
  CV Starr, which has previously accessed London market and UK
  business via a branch of its Bermuda company, is in the latter
  stages of its application for a rating from AM Best.
  Greenberg told The Insurance Insider
  that he had always planned to establish a UK subsidiary...
  
  Read more

• Travelers still waiting on $519mn asbestos decision

  02-08-2016 19:22
  US insurance giant Travelers has revealed that it is still waiting
  on a court decision in a long-running dispute with its reinsurers
  over a $519mn asbestos payout.
  The firm claims it is owed the money over an almost $1bn
  settlement it reached with the now defunct Western MacArthur, which
  was formerly known as Western Asbestos Company.
  After reaching the agreement, Travelers subsidiary United States
  Fidelity & Guaranty (USF&G) pursued its reinsurers, which
  included Ace and Munich Re, for
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Tom starts to line up next priorities

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Claims and insurance tax calculations are contenders to be the
  next focus of the Target Operating Model (Tom), according to
  Lloyd's director of operations Shirine Khoury-Haq.
  Speaking to The Insurance Insider
  after the launch of the Tom Blueprint last week (28 July),
  Khoury-Haq said that discussions with the Tom board on which areas
  to focus on after the initial four priorities would depend on how
  long the market takes to adopt the first initiatives.
  "As money and time frees up,...
  
  Read more

• Sompo Canopius divests UK direct business

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Lloyd's (re)insurer Sompo Canopius has sold almost all of
  its direct-to-consumer business to UK insurance broker A-Plan,
  The Insurance Insider understands.
  The deal, which excludes motor, will see most of Sompo
  Canopius's direct staff of around 60 in Worcester transfer to
  A-Plan.
  Following the deal, Sompo Canopius will retain control of the
  business's underwriting, with A-Plan handling the marketing of
  the products.
  A-Plan currently services more than 500,000 clients in the UK,
  providing access
  
  Read more

• Safe Auto up for sale

  02-08-2016 19:22
  US auto carrier Safe Auto has been under auction for a number of
  months, The Insurance Insider can
  reveal.
  Sources told this publication that the process was
  well underway and that JP Morgan was handling the sale.
  The identities of the bidders are not currently known.
  Ohio-based Safe Auto, which was founded in 1993, had a
  policyholder surplus of $157mn at year-end 2015.
  Last year the company generated pre-tax operating income of
  $13.8mn, a figure which was 37 percent down...
  
  Read more

• Q2 losses impact reinsurer third party platforms

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Third-party investors in reinsurer sidecars and asset management
  platforms took a share of second quarter catastrophe losses, which
  in turn impacted the fee income of the managing carriers.
  RenaissanceRe was the exception as its DaVinci Re sidecar posted
  improved Q2 results on a turnaround in investment gains and managed
  to keep its combined ratio relatively steady despite taking $9.4mn
  of cat losses.
  As the sidecar's profit improved RenaissanceRe also boosted
  its fee income, which rose to $19.8
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Lloyd's puts index on backburner

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Lloyd's has halted its development of a market loss index as
  it swings its focus squarely towards adapting to a post-Brexit
  reality.
  A Lloyd's spokesperson said the Franchise Board remained
  "committed to the project and the fundamental idea behind
  it".
  He continued: "However, the Corporation is conscious that
  we must prioritise our resources appropriately and focus on our
  preparedness for a changing environment."
  The index of loss performance, which had already seen its
  mid-2016 launch target sl
  
  Read more

• Kinsale IPO shows investor appetite for specialty

  02-08-2016 19:22
  The long-awaited IPO of US specialty insurer Kinsale last week
  demonstrated that despite pricing pressure investors' interest
  in the sector remains high with the right names.
  Shares in the excess and surplus lines (E&S)
  specialist closed at $18.27 when trading ended on Friday (29 July),
  up 14 percent on its initial $16 listing price and more than 30
  percent up on the bottom end of its $14-$16 range.
  The Kinsale offering, which raised $106mn of proceeds, has been
  compared to...
  
  Read more

• Karfunkels pump $200mn into ACP Re to shield AmTrust

  02-08-2016 19:22
  The Michael Karfunkel Family 2005 Trust is to inject $200mn into
  Tower Group acquisition vehicle ACP Re to cover legacy liabilities
  at the Bermudian carrier after it experienced larger than expected
  adverse reserve development.
  In a statement issued last week the Karfunkel family said the
  cash contribution would significantly increase the company's
  liquidity and enable the resolution of policyholder
  liabilities.
  As a result, AmTrust and National General Insurance's shared
  $250mn stop loss reinsu
  
  Read more

• ILW payout bears Jubilee loss for Validus

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Validus recovered almost three-quarters of its Jubilee oil field
  loss from an industry loss warranty (ILW) payout, the carrier's
  second quarter results showed.
  It recouped $44.2mn of the $59.4mn Jubilee claim, as the event
  is set to surpass an industry loss of $1bn. Last year, Validus bore
  a heavier burden from the Pemex disaster as the industry toll was
  not enough to trigger an ILW recovery.
  Validus also ceded $36.6mn of a gross $73.5mn loss from the
  Canadian wildfire to...
  
  Read more

• Icat and Canopius capacity behind Insureon MGA

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Icat and Sompo Canopius are providing capacity to Insureon's
  new managing general agency (MGA) targeting coastal homeowners'
  insurance and small business risks, The Insurance
  Insider can reveal.
  Insureon Underwriting Managers (IUM) was launched last month (20
  July) by the Ted Devine-headed retail agency, wholesale broker and
  MGA platform after securing over $3bn of aggregate limit capacity
  from unspecified Lloyd's syndicates.
  And according to sources, cat-focused Icat's Syndicate 4242
  and Sompo
  
  Read more

• Guy Carp's Askew appointed QBE Canada boss

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Insurance giant QBE has hired former reinsurance broker Peter Askew
  as its new head of Canada.
  The freshly-appointed Canadian boss joins from Guy Carpenter
  where he has been since 2009 and held the role of managing
  director.
  At the reinsurance broker the executive worked across clients
  from a number of lines including specialty, agriculture as well as
  personal and commercial.
  Before joining Guy Carpenter he also held roles at both Benfield
  and Aon Re before the two merged.
  QBE said...
  
  Read more

• Enstar believed to be frontrunner for IRB book

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Acquisitive legacy-to-live carrier Enstar is thought to have
  taken the lead in negotiations to take on the London-based run-off
  book of Brazilian reinsurance giant IRB-Brasil Resseguros
  (IRB).
  The Insurance Insider understands that
  the former state-owned reinsurer has been holding discussions with
  a number of legacy carriers for at least the last two years.
  But with the pressure of Solvency II now beginning to mount, IRB
  is believed to be looking in earnest to offload the book in a bid
  to...
  
  Read more

• Endurance accuses Sawgrass of delay tactics

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Endurance has accused its part-owned subsidiary Sawgrass of using
  delay tactics in a dispute over access to information about the
  mutual's book of Florida homeowners' business.
  In a bid to block Endurance from gaining access to the renewal
  data, Sawgrass asked a Florida district court to issue an
  injunction.
  The John Charman-led firm was accused of trying to
  "destroy" the Floridian's business by selling its
  renewal rights to a competitor.
  However, Endurance has fought back, accusing the mutual o
  
  Read more

• Contrasting cat fortunes at Swiss Re and Scor

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Continental reinsurers Swiss Re and Scor were both impacted in
  the second quarter by heavy industry cat losses.
  But while French reinsurer Scor was able to keep its
  underwriting above water, its larger neighbor Swiss Re sank into
  the red with a combined ratio that topped the 100 mark in its
  P&C reinsurance division.
  Swiss Re said the unit posted an underwriting loss of $42mn for
  the period, as higher-than-expected catastrophe losses pushed its
  combined ratio up by 8.1 percentage...
  
  Read more

• Cincinnati Re adds property, casualty and cat modelling heads

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Cincinnati Financial has announced a trio of managing director
  appointments as it looks to build out its recently-launched
  reinsurance platform.
  Philip Sandercox has joined Cincinnati Re as head of specialty
  casualty reinsurance, with Erin Skala taking the position of head
  of property reinsurance, and Wendy Hayes named head of catastrophe
  risk analytics.
  Sandercox will oversee the strategic direction, underwriting and
  marketing of the reinsurer's assumed specialty casualty
  portfolio, Cincinnati
  
  Read more

• Chubb enters new $250mn personal lines QS

  02-08-2016 19:22
  Chubb has confirmed it has entered into a new quota share for
  its North American personal lines business that will see it cede
  around $250mn a year.
  Speaking on the company's Q2 earnings call, chairman and CEO
  Evan Greenberg said the deal would improve Chubb's expense
  ratio but declined to provide any further comment on the
  arrangement in response to questions from analysts.
  Asked if the deal would enable Chubb to seek growth, or just
  improve the profile of its...
  
  Read more

• PPI claims to rise again as FCA proposes deadline extension

  02-08-2016 17:59
  
  Shares in Lloyds, RBS and Barclays fall as banks brace for escalating mis-selling claims after decision by City regulatorThe cost of the payment protection insurance scandal, which has already reached £37bn, is likely to escalate after the financial regulator extended its proposed deadline for claims by customers mis-sold policies by more than a year.The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) stunned the industry on Tuesday by proposing a deadline of June 2019, rather than the spring 2018 cutof
  
  Read more

• Emerald Life launch travel insurance for LGBT community

  02-08-2016 17:26
  
  Emerald Life has launched into the travel insurance market with a first-time product to close the ‘insurance gap’ face by the LGBT community.
  
  Read more

• EC Insurance Group appoints Forrest Smith and Guiry as CEOs for subsidiaries

  02-08-2016 17:19
  
  EC Insurance Group has appointed two new CEOs for its insurance subsidiaries, ECIC and ECIS, following a decision to separate the roles.
  
  Read more

• Geddes ‘proud’ of Direct Line for Business as growth continues

  02-08-2016 17:07
  
  Direct Line Group is putting ‘extra effort’ into its commercial business as gross written premium for Direct Line for Business increased by 8% in the first half of 2016.
  
  Read more

• Emerald Life launches travel cover for LGBT community

  02-08-2016 16:28
  
  Product launch follows the news that only 33% of LGBT people who regularly holiday abroad have a travel policy.
  
  Read more

• ANV increases its Lloyd's underwriting capacity for M&A insurance

  02-08-2016 16:27
  
  ANV Global Services, has increased in its Lloyd’s underwriting capacity for mergers and acquisitions insurance.
  
  Read more

• Zurich teams up with smart tech company

  02-08-2016 16:25
  
  Zurich hopes the partnership will bring smart tech into British homes
  
  Read more

• Greenlight Re offloads legacy US construction book

  02-08-2016 15:21
  Greenlight Re has completed a loss portfolio transfer for its
  underperforming book of US construction business, with the
  counterparty believed to be Fairfax's legacy vehicle
  Riverstone.
  The reinsurer said in its second quarter results that it had
  struck a deal with a "highly regarded run-off specialist"
  effective from 1 April.
  Disclosures from Fairfax Financial's Q2 results indicated
  that the Canadian firm's run-off segment had agreed to reinsure
  a portfolio of construction defect exposures in v
  
  Read more

• AmTrust Q2 profits up on investment returns

  02-08-2016 15:21
  US specialty carrier AmTrust beat Wall Street's earnings per
  share estimate of $0.71 by 10 cents this morning after it boosted
  its second quarter operating profits by 7.5 percent year-on-year to
  $140.3mn.
  The elevated profits were driven by significantly higher
  investment returns and an increased top line.
  Gross written premiums jumped 23.5 percent to $2.07bn for the
  quarter, while net earned premiums rose 22 percent to $1.18bn.
  Net investment income, excluding net realised gains and losses,
  was
  
  Read more

• PPI claims - all you need to know about the mis-selling scandal

  02-08-2016 14:32
  
  Now that the City watchdog has extended the claims deadline those annoying PPI calls are unlikely to stop anytime soon. Neither are the bank payoutsThe City regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, has announced a June 2019 deadline for customers to make claims for the mis-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI). Related: PPI claims to rise again as FCA proposes longer deadlineContinue reading...
  
  Read more

• Direct Line shares jump on H1 results

  02-08-2016 14:11
  Shares in UK personal lines carrier Direct Line jumped more than 9
  percent in early London trading, despite profits falling 3.6
  percent year-on-year for the first half of 2016.
  The carrier's profits fell to £323.6mn ($428.5mn) after
  the volatile investment climate affected its bottom line.
  The positive share price reaction is probably because the figure
  was well ahead of the £263mn analyst consensus.
  Direct Line shares were trading up 9.38 percent as of 11:23am
  BST at 388.40p.
  Invest
  
  Read more

• ANV grows M&A insurance capacity

  02-08-2016 14:11
  ANV Global Services has increased its Lloyd's underwriting
  capacity for M&A insurance to $40mn per risk.
  The line also offers limits of EUR40mn ($45mn) and £30mn
  ($40mn) per risk, marking an increase of 10 million in each
  currency.
  Five carriers are backing for the risk, with ANV Syndicate 1861
  providing the majority of capacity.
  ANV Global Services is the international managing general
  underwriter for the ANV Group.
  With offices in Barcelona and London, ANV's M&A team
  focuses prim
  
  Read more

• More than a dozen organisations support ABI proposals on fire prevention

  02-08-2016 13:51
  
  Over a dozen organisations have supported proposals put forward by the Association of British Insurers to ensure sprinklers are installed in more high-risk buildings.
  
  Read more

• Watford purchases dormant US carrier

  02-08-2016 13:04
  Watford Specialty Insurance Company (WSIC) has acquired a
  previously dormant insurer that holds admitted insurance licences
  in all 50 US states and the District of Columbia for an undisclosed
  amount.
  The company has been renamed Watford Insurance Company (WIC),
  and has been re-domiciled to New Jersey, where WSIC is based.
  WIC's prior liabilities are fully reinsured by a 100 percent
  quota share arrangement with The Hanover.
  However, The Hanover will have no liability for, or interest in,
  business
  
  Read more

• Lockton hires Aon aviation CEO

  02-08-2016 13:04
  Independent insurance intermediary Lockton has hired Peter Schmitz
  to lead its aviation practice.
  He will be based in the broker's South Florida operation in
  Miramar.
  Schmitz joins the company from Aon, where he served as CEO of
  global aviation specialty for more than nine years from 2007.
  Prior to that he spent 16 years at Marsh as chief operations
  officer of the US aviation specialty segment.
  Lockton said the hire was aimed at expanding its aviation
  business into areas including...
  
  Read more

• InsurTech Futures: Zurich teams up with Cocoon on smart tech home product

  02-08-2016 12:11
  
  Insurer says initiative is part of its investment in innovation and future technologies.
  
  Read more

• XL Catlin appoints Americas political risk chief

  02-08-2016 11:53
  XL Catlin has hired Richard Abizaid as regional product leader for
  its Americas political risk and trade credit team.
  He will be based in Washington DC and will coordinate operations
  across the continent.
  Abizaid joins the company from Zurich, where he previously
  served as senior vice president and head of the Americas credit and
  political risk division.
  Prior to that he led the carrier's Asia Pacific political
  risk underwriting team in Singapore.
  He has also held positions with the US...
  
  Read more

• More mutual mergers expected: Swiss Re

  02-08-2016 11:53
  Swiss Re has predicted that the mutual insurance market will
  undergo further consolidation as member-owned carriers try to
  benefit from economies of scale.
  Speaking to The Insurance Insider, the
  reinsurance giant's senior economist Kulli Tamm said mutual
  mergers would give member-owned insurers the ability to optimise
  their balance sheets and position themselves for growth.
  She added that an increase in the number of
  member-owned insurers being converted into stock companies was
  unlikely.
  The ec
  
  Read more

• Ebix tenders improved $475mn bid for Patriot National

  02-08-2016 11:53
  Insurance software provider Ebix has upped its offer for
  industry technology firm Patriot National to $475mn.
  In a statement released yesterday (1 August), the company said
  the Patriot board had decided to enter into discussions with Ebix
  and would allow it to commence due diligence proceedings.
  Patriot shares closed up 20.3 percent at $9.49 in New York
  yesterday following the news.
  On 15 June, Ebix made an unsolicited offer to acquire 100
  percent of Patriot National's outstanding stock for $9.5
  
  Read more

• GWP grows for Direct Line

  02-08-2016 11:47
  
  The insurer reports strong growth in motor but says operating profits are down following lower investment income.
  
  Read more

• PPI claims to rise again as FCA proposes longer deadline

  02-08-2016 11:30
  
  Shares in Lloyds, RBS and Barclays fall as banks brace for escalating mis-selling claims following decision by City regulatorThe cost of the payment protection insurance scandal, which has already reached £37bn, is likely to escalate after the the Financial Conduct Authority extended its proposed deadline for claims by customers mis-sold policies by more than a year.The FCA has now set the proposed deadline in June 2019, instead of the spring 2018 cutoff it had previously suggested.Continu
  
  Read more

• PPI claims to rise again as City regulator proposes longer deadline

  02-08-2016 11:30
  
  Shares in Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays fall as banks brace for escalating mis-selling claimsThe cost of the payment protection insurance scandal, which has already reached £37bn, is likely to escalate after the the Financial Conduct Authority extended its proposed deadline for claims by customers mis-sold policies by more than a year.The FCA has now set the proposed deadline in June 2019, instead of the spring 2018 cutoff it had previously suggested.Continue reading...
  
  Read more

• Ageas partners with Norris & Fisher on council insurance

  02-08-2016 11:27
  
  Broker to have delegated underwriting authority of the scheme.
  
  Read more

• Industry must ‘look past the hype’ of blockchain

  02-08-2016 11:12
  
  PwC UK insurance leader Jonathan Howe says technology will not be the best solution for all insurance processes
  
  Read more

• FCA: PPI complaints deadline should be June 2019

  02-08-2016 11:00
  
  New consultation launched on PPI complaints handling rules
  
  Read more

• Driving test consultation is a missed opportunity, insurers say

  02-08-2016 10:50
  
  Proposed changes to the driving test are a missed opportunity to ensure the safety of drivers and increase insurance compliance, insurers have said.
  
  Read more

• Insurance Europe responds to EIOPA IPID consultation

  02-08-2016 10:46
  
  Insurance Europe has responded to the publication of a European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) consultation regarding the format of a standardised insurance product information document (IPID).
  
  Read more

• ERS in the black as H1 2016 COR hits 99.8% on back of £7.3m profit

  02-08-2016 10:45
  
  Lloyd’s motor insurance specialist ERS has reported a profit of £7.3m in it the first half of 2016, the result of continued underwriting and volume growth.
  
  Read more

• Profits up to £7.3m at ERS

  02-08-2016 10:33
  
  Syndicate says results reflect continued discipline in underwriting and volume growth.
  
  Read more

• FCA considers deadline on PPI complaints

  02-08-2016 10:33
  
  Regulator to consult on feedback from previous consultation.
  
  Read more

• City regulator proposes 2019 deadline for PPI claims

  02-08-2016 10:16
  
  Shares in Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays fell as banks brace for escalating mis-selling claimsThe Financial Conduct Authority has extended its proposed deadline for payment protection insurance claims by more than a year in a move that may force banks to set aside more money for the scandal.The FCA said it intended to impose a deadline on new claims to draw a line under the PPI affair, which has dogged the industry for a decade and cost the banks more than £30bn. Continue read
  
  Read more

Follow @Insurance_UKnws on Twitter!