Insurance news

• Swiss Re faces Ogden reserves adjustment

  07-03-2017 22:14
  Swiss Re appears to have been caught off guard with its
  reserving policies after the government last week cut 3.25
  percentage points from the discount rate shaved off lump-sum bodily
  injury compensation.
  A Swiss Re spokeswoman said that until the 27 February rate cut,
  the company had been reserving at 2.5 percent but noted the rate
  cut could also change its assumptions about periodic payment
  orders.
  "We will not comment at this stage on any of our findings
  until these...
  
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• PIH to enter Florida, seek investments after strategic review

  07-03-2017 18:59
  The owner of Louisiana-focused homeowners' carrier Maison
  Insurance, 1347 Property Holdings (PIH), has opted to enter the
  Floridian market and said it is looking at "alternative
  investments".
  The company made the announcement after completing a review it
  began in October following "recent events in coastal and
  wind-exposed property markets" where Maison operates.
  The review considered potential M&A candidates,
  "business combinations" and asset sales. But the company,
  which went public in a 2
  
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• 'Unknown impact' of discount rate cut to hit later in the year

  07-03-2017 16:18
  
  Direct Line expects the "unknown impact" of the government's decision to cut the Ogden Discount rate to be felt later in the year when reinsurance costs are renegotiated.
  
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• Reinsurers to push for 50% rate rise post-Ogden

  07-03-2017 15:37
  UK excess-of-loss (XoL) motor reinsurers are targeting rate
  rises of 50 percent off the back of a projected £5bn ($6n) hit
  from changes to the Ogden rate, as they look to secure rapid
  payback after the shock loss.
  The surprise 3.25 percentage point cut to the rate looks set to
  create an isolated hard market, which is also likely to be evident
  to a lesser degree in other impacted liability lines, amidst a
  broader soft market.
  Analysts and industry insiders...
  
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• Insider View: Cobalt's delay

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Cobalt's deferral of its targeted Lloyd's inception date
  beyond 1 April is a clear demonstration of the mounting difficulty
  of forming any true start-up on Lime Street.
  The Shariah-compliant insurer has been in discussions with
  carriers about the provision of the reinsurance capital it needs to
  launch for months, and it came very close with at least one of
  those firms.
  But if you think about it, the drawn-out nature of the Funds at
  Lloyd's arrangement is the most natural...
  
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• Industry hopes for swift Ogden rethink

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Insurers are hoping for a short stay in negative discount rate
  purgatory as a consultation with Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip
  Hammond gets underway.
  While the consultation will consider how the rate will be set in
  future, that hasn't killed hopes of a last-minute reprieve from
  the rate cut.
  Hiscox Insurance CEO Steve Langan said: "We are cautiously
  optimistic that they will actually backtrack on the Ministry of
  Justice announcement."
  Others are hopeful of a speedy change to the rate-setting
  
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• Hancock uncertainty revives AIG CEO replacement talk

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Doubts over the future of AIG president and CEO Peter Hancock
  have stirred debate over who might feature on a shortlist of
  potential candidates to replace him.
  As previously reported, the struggling insurance giant's
  board of directors is expected to discuss the fate of Hancock this
  month after a dreadful set of fourth quarter results heaped renewed
  pressure on the executive.
  If it is decided a successor should be sought, it is conceivable
  attention will focus on an industry outsider...
  
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• Catalina eyes $1bn valuation

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Catalina's owners are looking to capitalise on the
  "legacy moment" via a bid process that they hope will
  allow them to crystallise their gains and secure a $1bn
  valuation.
  As revealed earlier this month, investment giant Apollo and the
  two Canadian pension funds that own Catalina along with management
  have retained Barclays Capital (BarCap) to hold a process that will
  usher in changes in the shareholder register.
  Catalina is 38 percent owned by Apollo, with 29 percent held by
  La...
  
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• World Bank pandemic cat bond to be completed this year

  07-03-2017 15:37
  The World Bank's Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) is
  on track to be completed this year, according to Michael Bennett,
  head of derivatives and structured finance at the organisation.
  The facility is designed to respond to outbreaks of infectious
  diseases.
  Investors have been asked to offer their input on the PEF deal,
  which was launched last June with the aim of raising $500mn of
  insurance cover, Bennett said at the Sifma IRLS conference in Miami
  (28 February).
  The World Health...
  
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• UK liability reinsurers to capitalise on Ogden rate impact

  07-03-2017 15:37
  The cut in the Ogden rate could trigger rate increases of more
  than 20 percent in wider casualty reinsurance lines, market sources
  told The Insurance Insider.
  Reinsurance sources said the major 1 July renewal will be the
  crunch point for reinsurers of UK employers' liability (EL) and
  public liability business, as both opportunism and the need to
  cover increased claims costs came into play.
  "For cedants reinsurance costs could double," said one
  reinsurance broker.
  It was suggested those that alre
  
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• The Hartford still on the hunt for specialty acquisitions

  07-03-2017 15:37
  The Hartford remains on the acquisition trail as it looks to
  further expand its specialty insurance operations, The
  Insurance Insider understands.
  According to banking sources, the US insurer has been evaluating
  M&A opportunities domestically and internationally after its
  curtailed involvement in the Ironshore sale process in the second
  half of last year.
  It has been suggested the carrier may have taken a look at a
  business with a significant London presence.
  Indeed, the company is believed
  
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• Swiss Re Corporate Solutions sets up in Malaysia

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Swiss Re Corporate Solutions has opened an office in Kuala
  Lumpur, Malaysia, appointing Juerg Stoll as country head for the
  region.
  The office became operational on 1 March, with Stoll, formerly
  Swiss Re Corporate Solutions country head for Japan, moving to
  Kuala Lumpur to head the business.
  Stoll will report to Jonathan Rake, the South East Asia head at
  the commercial lines carrier.
  A statement by the global insurer today said that the unit would
  service large and upper mid-sized...
  
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• Report highlights Hong Kong failings

  07-03-2017 15:37
  A Hong Kong government advisory group has claimed the region is
  "facing a serious challenge" as a (re)insurance hub and
  recommended a series of regulatory and legislative changes to make
  it more attractive.
  In a report published on 7 March, the Hong Kong Financial
  Services Development Council (FSDC) said the region was lagging
  behind its Asian competitors in many areas as a major insurance
  centre, and highlighted the rapid growth in (re)insurance business
  in Singapore by comparison.
  The FSDC rec
  
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• Reinsurers heading for asymmetrical £5bn Ogden loss

  07-03-2017 15:37
  The impact of the Ogden rate change will be more unevenly
  distributed through the reinsurance market than many other losses,
  with some reinsurers having bet heavily on UK motor reinsurance
  while others eschewed the market entirely.
  No market share data is publicly available for the UK motor
  reinsurance market, however sources have pointed to some of the
  carriers that are likely to be most heavily impacted by the
  asymmetrical loss.
  With a loss of £5bn-£7bn
  ($6.1bn-$8.6bn) projected fo
  
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• Ogden change makes Lloyd's concerns a reality

  07-03-2017 15:37
  The UK government's unexpectedly large reduction in the
  Ogden discount rate last week has brought into focus Lloyd's
  concerns about reserving in the motor insurance market.
  The motor market has struggled for profitability for several
  years, and Lloyd's warned in its 2015 annual report that a
  change to the discount rate used to determine large awards in
  bodily injury claims could compound reserve issues already
  threatened by high claims cost inflation and claims settled by
  periodical payment orde
  
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• Ogden: A two-decade strait jacket

  07-03-2017 15:37
  The decision of Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary Liz Truss
  to push the discount rate to minus 0.75 percent stems from a 1999
  House of Lords ruling that predates the dotcom crash, the
  subsequent bull market and the ensuing credit crisis - and that
  critics say has little relevance today.
  The Wells vs Wells ruling, which refined the 1996
  Damages Act, assumed that victims of life-altering accidents would
  be risk-averse investors.
  Well before the era of ultra-low and even negative...
  
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• New Liberty sidecar may drive disintermediation

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Liberty Mutual's new sidecar may lead the way for further
  (re)insurance disintermediation, although many primary insurers may
  not be able to follow, said a Standard & Poor's (S&P)
  insurance analyst at the Sifma IRLS conference in Miami.
  Limestone Re was one of the first sidecars to provide
  reinsurance capacity as well as retro protection to its
  sponsor.
  The multi-year deal could reduce Liberty's broking
  requirements in years to come, and will also establish links to
  capital providers out
  
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• Insider View: Novae at the crossroads

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Novae has had a difficult run, with the Ogden rate change
  capping a period that has seen the departure of its respected CFO
  and a profits warning that telegraphed a significant book value
  drop.
  The extent to which the last six months has looked a little
  shaky for the small-cap insurer reflects the contrast with the
  surefootedness that the company has shown over the last two or
  three years.
  People have got used to Novae as a success story. Issues...
  
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• Cobalt syndicate start date deferred

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Shariah-compliant insurer Cobalt is set to miss its 1 April
  projected start date at Lloyd's as it continues work to secure
  capital support for its proposed syndicate on acceptable terms,
  The Insurance Insider understands.
  The proposed Cobalt Syndicate 1438, which was given in-principle
  approval in October 2016, has not been granted formal approval as
  it is yet to secure the reinsurance capital it needs to meet its
  Funds at Lloyd's (Fal) requirements.
  A previous arrangement put forward by takaful
  
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• Citizens anticipates growth after Demotech downgrades

  07-03-2017 15:37
  Florida Citizens Property Insurance is expecting an increase in
  business as a result of Demotech's warning that local insurers
  with less than $25mn surplus may be downgraded, according to its
  chief financial officer Jennifer Montero.
  "There is a possibility if there isn't a home for these
  policies with the downgraded companies, they will come back to
  Citizens," she said on 28 February during a panel discussion
  at the Sifma IRLS conference in Miami.
  Citizens budgeted for small growth this year...
  
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• Carriers hope for quiet budget

  07-03-2017 15:37
  UK insurers are hoping for a relatively quiet Budget on 8 March,
  following a year of disruption caused by Brexit, hikes in the
  insurance premium tax (IPT) and the Ogden rate upset, according to
  major consultancies.
  While none of the experts this publication spoke to were
  expecting any announcements from Chancellor Philip Hammond which
  would affect the (re)insurance industry, they were also unwilling
  to rule anything out, given the number of surprises in recent
  Budgets.
  Last March, the government
  
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• Direct Line to insure Tesla drivers

  07-03-2017 15:26
  
  Direct Line will now insure Tesla drivers as part of a developed partnership between the two companies.
  
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• Be Wiser to recruit 200 in Swindon

  07-03-2017 15:03
  
  The broker said staff numbers at the branch have gone from zero to 100 in its first year.
  
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• Succession planning: People business

  07-03-2017 13:26
  
  Keeping clients and staff informed is an important part of any succession plan, writes Sam Barrett
  
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• Brokers given powerful new tool to personalise online trading

  07-03-2017 13:24
  
  Fresh! Insurance Group one of the first brokers to reap benefits 
  
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• AIG names Gallo CIO as Fasano steps down

  07-03-2017 13:05
  
  AIG has appointed Martha Gallo as chief information officer replacing Philip Fasano, who has left the company to pursue other opportunities.
  
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• Sentiment survey open: Share your views today

  07-03-2017 13:03
  
  The survey covers everything from rates and unrated insurers to personal lines business and broker call centres.
  
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• Sompo Canopius adds heavy industry capacity

  07-03-2017 12:22
  Sompo Canopius has agreed a deal with Travelers Syndicate 5000 to
  add capacity to its mining coverage.
  The deal will take the carrier's total mining capacity to
  $30mn as of 1 March.
  Sompo Canopius' head of heavy industry, Spencer Pearce, will
  write the cover through a consortium at Lloyd's.
  Pearce noted that Sompo Canopius had recently bolstered its
  mining offer with the appointment of Andy Fynn as senior mining
  engineer.
  Pearce joined the company from AIG in September to launch...
  
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• Opinion: Catalina's buy-in

  07-03-2017 12:22
  Legacy companies do not belong in the public markets.
  At least that seems to be the view of Catalina. The run-off
  carrier has confounded market gossips - who had long been
  whispering about an IPO - andinstructed BarCap to run a process that will see bidders
  invited to present proposals to buy into the firm.
  Catalina seems invariably to be paired with its larger peer
  Enstar, which is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
  And so many...
  
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• Middle Eastern commercial insurance pricing hardens

  07-03-2017 12:22
  Insurance executives expect prices in Middle Eastern commercial
  lines insurance to stable or harden over the next year, a survey of
  regional carriers has found.
  The Schanz-Alms MENA Insurance Pulse, which polled executives at
  40 Middle Eastern insurers, found that 70 percent of insurance
  executives expect commercial lines pricing to remain stable or
  improve, compared to 58 percent in 2016.
  Three quarters of the executives quizzed said they expected to
  see premiums to increase faster than GDP gro
  
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• Insurers push government to scrap latest IPT hike

  07-03-2017 12:16
  
  Latest IPT hike dubbed ‘raid on the responsible’
  
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• Video: Aviva, AIG, XL Catlin and Zurich discuss importance of brand within insurer marketing strategies

  07-03-2017 12:00 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Insurers are becoming more sophisticated in their quest to deliver 'brand value' given the growing number of marketing channels available to deliver their messages.
  
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• Aviva, AIG, XL Catlin and Zurich discuss importance of brand within insurer marketing strategies

  07-03-2017 12:00
  
  Insurers are becoming more sophisticated in their quest to deliver ‘brand value' given the growing number of marketing channels available to deliver their messages.
  
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• Sompo Canopius boosts heavy industry through Lloyd’s consortium

  07-03-2017 11:09
  
  Sompo Canopius’s heavy industry team has secured additional capacity for its mining cover from Travelers Syndicate 5000 at Lloyd’s.
  
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• Coalition of insurance groups urges government to scrap planned IPT rise

  07-03-2017 10:55
  
  A coalition of trade bodies and charity groups has urged the government to scrap any planned rise to the insurance premium tax ahead of tomorrow’s budget.
  
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• Confidas offers unlimited contents on MNW

  07-03-2017 10:49
  
  The wholesale broker has enhanced its Home Max household product.
  
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• DLG takes Ogden profit hit

  07-03-2017 10:29 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Broker business NIG "stabilising” and direct commercial grows GWP but adjusted discount rate takes a chunk from group profits.
  
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• Direct Line profit falls 30% in wake of Ogden rate cut

  07-03-2017 10:23
  
  Direct Line has seen full year pre-tax profits fall by 30% owing to a hit from the discount rate reduction.
  
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• Discount rate impact slashes Direct Line Group profit

  07-03-2017 09:14
  
  Insurer’s performance would have improved without discount rate impact
  
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• Direct Line Group unveils deal with car maker Tesla

  07-03-2017 08:25
  
  Car maker Tesla becomes appointed representative of Direct Line
  
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• Legal Update: Robotic surgery - cutting through the insurance implications

  07-03-2017 08:00
  
  With advances in robotics and artificial intelligence taking hold of the medical industry, do the benefits of robot-assisted surgery outweigh the risks - especially for insurers?
  
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• Aviva's Lindsey Rix on building trust and demystifying insurance

  07-03-2017 08:00
  
  Let's be honest: insurance isn't the most exciting subject and it's often seen as a grudge purchase, something we have to have just in case the worst happens.
  
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• Sydney hailstorm brings IAG to within A$126m of natcat allowance

  07-03-2017 03:32
  
  Sydney's dramatic hailstorm on 18 February has cost Australian insurer IAG at least A$160m (£99m) in claims so far.
  
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• Flood program reforms come up for scrutiny in Congress

  07-03-2017 02:29
  The US National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) goes under the
  congressional microscope this week as lawmakers get set to rewrite
  its operating rules with an eye toward opening the sector to
  private carriers and preventing its $24.6bn debt from getting any
  bigger.
  Calling NFIP "poorly designed, costly and in desperate need
  of fundamental reform", US Representative Jeb Hensarling, the
  chairman of the House Financial Services Committee has made the
  issue a "major focus" for 2017. He has pointed out
  
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• AIG replaces CIO Fasano with Gallo

  07-03-2017 02:29
  AIG's chief information officer Philip Fasano has left the
  insurance giant to "pursue other opportunities", it
  announced in a statement today.
  The exec will be replaced by the company's former chief
  auditor Martha Gallo.
  It news comes as AIG looks to ramp up investment in technology,
  with the firm's CEO Peter Hancock known to be taking a keen
  interest on overhauling a number of legacy systems.
  In a statement, Hancock said: "Technology investment and
  implementation remains a key priority as...
  
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