Insurance news

• Pensions and Brexit drive Bank of England costs up 10%

  12-05-2017 18:16
  Central bank annual outgoing to hit £632m as it makes allowance for pension volatility
  
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• Insurance veteran Brian Duperreault to step into AIG hot seat

  12-05-2017 18:12
  The man who retired twice poised to take over one of the industry’s toughest jobs
  
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• Huge cyber attack ravages NHS as hackers demand payment

  12-05-2017 17:59
  
  Emergency services restricted as hackers disrupt technology across NHS in cyber attack
  
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• Fresh warning to holidaymakers about bogus food complaints

  12-05-2017 17:48
  
  Portugal joins countries clamping down on fake food poisoning claims prompted by no-win, no-fee law firmsBritish holidaymakers in Portugal have been told they face prosecution if they lodge bogus food poisoning claims against hotels. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has updated its travel advice to urge visitors to only pursue genuine complaints. It said fake cases could lead to legal action in the UK or Portugal.Continue reading...
  
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• LV= exploring GI sale to Allianz: report

  12-05-2017 17:18
  Mutual insurer LV= is in talks with Allianz over a sale of its
  general insurance (GI) arm, according to a report.
  Sky News reported today LV= had been approached by Allianz
  regarding the acquisition of a minority stake in the operation.
  The broadcaster said discussions remained embryonic, but that
  any deal could value the GI business at more than £1.0bn
  ($1.3bn).
  Banking sources told this publication that a sale process has
  been underway for some time and that LV= has...
  
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• Lloyd's broker AG prepares for sale

  12-05-2017 17:18
  Marine specialist broker AG, formerly known as Alston Gayler, is
  gearing up for a possible sale, The Insurance
  Insider can reveal.
  Sources told this publication that the intermediary, led by
  Robert Alexander, is expected to put itself up for sale in the
  second half of this year.
  The firm is the latest in a slew of small to mid-sized brokers
  to explore a sale.In March, The Insurance Insider
  revealed that Lark Insurance had appointed Fenchurch Advisory to
  explore a...
  
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• Gossmann resurfaces as Sovag board member

  12-05-2017 17:18
  Former Darag CEO Arndt Gossmann has been appointed to the
  management board of Russo-German insurer Sovag to assist the
  carrier's restructuring efforts.
  In a statement today, the company said Gossmann and former Sovag
  board member Dr Gerd Meyer have been named as members of the
  management board. The duo has been given a mandate that runs until
  2018 to turn around the Hamburg-based insurer.
  Gossmann's return to the industry comes just over two months
  after he stepped down as head...
  
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• ABI and LMA call for radical overhaul of Ogden

  12-05-2017 17:18
  Two trade bodies have called for the revamped Ogden discount rate
  to be based on the long-term average yield from a low-risk
  investment portfolio and for the rate to be reviewed every three
  years.
  In responses to the UK government's consultation on how to
  reform the injury compensation regime, the Association of British
  Insurers (ABI) and the Lloyd's Market Association (LMA) argued
  that the existing framework fails to reflect how claimants invest
  their compensation.
  In its official response, see
  
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• Week in Post: Bonsai trees, jelly beans and the thousand-yard stare

  12-05-2017 15:10
  
  The majority of the Post team started the week as ‘virgins’ of the British Insurance Brokers’ Association annual conference. This morning, I see most of them have the same look in their bloodshot eyes. War veterans call it the thousand-yard stare.
  
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• Allianz rumoured to be in talks to buy LV= GI unit stake

  12-05-2017 15:09
  
  A deal could value entire LV= GI unit at over £1bn, report suggests
  
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• Allianz in talks over acquisition of LV GI unit: Sky News

  12-05-2017 15:08
  
  Allianz Group is reportedly in early talks for the purchase of LV’s general insurance division.
  
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• Allianz and LV decline to comment on potential stake sale report

  12-05-2017 14:52
  
  Story suggests Allianz has made an approach to the mutual business.
  
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• ABI calls for dual rate for personal injury payments in Ogden rethink

  12-05-2017 13:42
  
  The Association of British Insurers has suggested changes to the way the personal injury discount rate is set, calling for a dual-rate system for calculating lump sum payments in personal injury claims.
  
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• Henderson managing director exits

  12-05-2017 13:37
  
  No replacement being sought for departed Henderson managing director
  
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• Horwich Farrelly to focus on defendant insurance work after closure of claimant arm Zest Legal

  12-05-2017 13:26
  
  Horwich Farrelly has unveiled plans to shut its claimant legal arm, with the 42 staff impacted expected to be redeployed elsewhere in the business.
  
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• ABI reveals its preferred new discount rate framework

  12-05-2017 13:08 via insuranceage.co.uk
  
  Trade body calls for break from linking to one investment asset and that a panel of experts be brought together to help set future rates.
  
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• #BibaFever: B-B-Q: What brokers and insurers want from the next government

  12-05-2017 13:07
  
  Delegates at the British Insurance Brokers’ Association conference have asked the next government for some stability.
  
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• Senior Aon construction execs in departure lounge

  12-05-2017 12:48
  Aon is parting company with a number of its senior construction
  executives as it executes an ongoing headcount reduction across its
  management ranks, The Insurance Insider
  can reveal.
  According to sources, the departures include Henry Lombardi,
  global chief broking officer of Construction Services Group (CSG),
  which is part of Aon Risk Services (ARS). New York-based Lombardi
  is thought to have taken retirement.
  The executive joined Aon in 2009 with the firm's acquisition
  of specialist constructi
  
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• Opinion: relevance vs discipline

  12-05-2017 12:48
  Paul Clark, the BCG partner and author of the London Matters
  report, warned this publication last week that if London scales
  back its underwriting as a cycle management tool it places itself
  at risk of becoming ahighly profitable niche.
  In doing so he brought into focus a fundamental conflict that
  every carrier in the sector must grapple with.
  In a challenged market, (re)insurers are all faced with a choice
  between bolstering their market presence in the hope of securing...
  
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• Catalina strategic process launched

  12-05-2017 12:48
  Legacy heavyweight Catalina has lit the touch-paper on its
  strategic process, with interested parties invited to submit
  indicative proposals by the end of the month, The
  Insurance Insider can reveal.
  In early March this publication revealed that Catalina and its
  owners, including investment giant Apollo,had brought Barclays Capital in to explore a change to its
  ownership. It is understood that JP Morgan's New York
  office has also been mandated.Investor memoranda have now been sent out to parties
  
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• Allianz P&C Q1 profit falls on cat losses

  12-05-2017 12:48
  An increase in catastrophe and large losses pushed operating
  profit at Allianz's P&C unit down 12.7 percent in the first
  quarter to EUR1.3bn ($1.4bn).
  The earnings matched consensus expectations for the division,
  which reported a combined ratio of 95.6 percent for Q1 2017, 2.3
  percentage points worse than in the prior-year period.
  The loss ratio was 2.4 points worse at 67.2 percent, with
  catastrophes accounting for 1.1 points, compared with 0.2 points a
  year earlier. The expense ratio remain
  
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• Three more senior underwriting departures from ERS

  12-05-2017 12:47
  
  Insurer confirms staff exits one week after the news of underwriting director Mark Bacon leaving.
  
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• Allianz UK sees discount rate hit in Q1 2017

  12-05-2017 12:11
  
  Insurer's operating profit falls to £37.5m, while COR comes in at 96.7%.
  
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• #BibaFever B-B-Q: Bonus catch-up edition and series in full

  12-05-2017 12:10
  
  Experts from the sector reveal their wishlists for what the next UK government should do.
  
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• Horwich Farrelly closes claimant arm

  12-05-2017 12:08
  
  Business confirms new strategy focusing on defendant work as it reports increase in annual turnover.
  
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• LeapFrog targets private equity gains in Africa and Asia

  12-05-2017 12:01
  Founder of emerging markets specialist believes capitalism can be a force for good
  
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• Growing law firm exits claimant business amid 'turbulent' market

  12-05-2017 11:34
  
  Law firm to concentrate on defendant work as it exits claimant arm by closing off new business 
  
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• AIG plans to name Brian Duperreault as CEO: WSJ

  12-05-2017 10:27
  
  AIG will reportedly name Brian Duperreault as CEO, with a formal with an announcement expected imminently.
  
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• Allianz UK reserves and profit take discount rate hit in Q1

  12-05-2017 10:25
  
  Changes to the Ogden discount rate had a £58.3m impact on Allianz’s existing reserves and resulted in a £10m slump in profits during the first three months to March.
  
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• Allianz UK restates 2016 profit after big Ogden hit

  12-05-2017 10:15
  
  ‘Deeply regrettable’ Ogden rate cut also hits Allianz UK’s Q1 2017 results
  
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• Allianz's global P&C profits fall 12.7% in Q1

  12-05-2017 09:45
  
  Munich-headquartered insurer Allianz saw global property and casualty pre-tax profits decline 12.7% to €1.26bn (£1.01bn) in the first quarter of 2017.
  
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• South Korea video games maker Netmarble jumps on debut

  12-05-2017 08:02
  Country’s largest listing in 7 years attracts investors to mobile game market
  
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• Blog: Automated claims aren't outlandish

  12-05-2017 08:00
  
  Digital advances will allow insurers to automate smaller claims, predicts Graham Gibson, chief claims officer at Allianz, warning that technological agility and customer focus will be key to survival.
  
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• There should be more bitching about energy switching

  12-05-2017 06:00
  Price cap proposals are an admission that moving supplier isn’t the only answer
  
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• Bill to preserve and reform NFIP emerges in House

  12-05-2017 03:15
  A measure extending the National Flood Insurance Program for
  five years may soon emerge in the US House of Representatives,
  where Republican leaders are circulating an outline of a bill to
  prevent the programme from expiring in September.
  Among major provisions, the measure would require the use of
  reinsurance or other risk-transfer mechanisms by the programme,
  known as NFIP, to bolster its financial strength, according to a
  summary. In addition, the bill would encourage more private
  carriers to
  
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