Insurance news

• NatGen ensnared by latest Wells Fargo scandal

  28-07-2017 22:34
  A Wells Fargo plan to refund $80mn to consumers hit by redundant
  auto insurance charges may not affect carrier National General
  Holdings, which provided the bank with lender-placed cover for
  vehicles used as collateral for loans.Any premiums that resulted from duplicate coverage were promptly
  returned to the bank, New York-based NatGen said after reports
  surfaced late yesterday indicating the lender had charged hundreds
  of thousands of auto loan customers for insurance they did not
  need.Wells Fa
  
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• Diamond in advanced talks to buy Hartford VA unit

  28-07-2017 22:34
  Bob Diamond's investment fund Atlas Merchant is in advanced
  talks to buy The Hartford's long-for-sale variable annuity
  run-off book for around $3.5bn, according to reports.
  The Insurance Insiderreported yesterday that Atlas Merchant was among the two
  likeliest acquirers of the under-auction business, along with
  Resolution, havingrevealed in March this year that it was among the bidders.
  Reuters reported last night that the former Barclays CEO has
  prevailed in the sales process, with a deal poten
  
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• Oak Hill deal places Epic value near $1bn

  28-07-2017 18:39
  Oak Hill Capital Partners has acquired a controlling stake in US
  retail P&C intermediary Epic Insurance Brokers from fellow
  private equity house The Carlyle Group in a transaction that sets
  the firm's worth at nearly $1bn.
  The deal values Epic at $977mn, according to Amy McDowell, a
  spokeswoman for the company.
  The investment "will enable Epic to continue its aggressive
  organic growth strategy", she added.
  The transaction also gives San Francisco-based Epic the muscle
  to make "strategic acqu
  
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• Brokers are not in regular contact with customers

  28-07-2017 17:58
  According to a survey from Ecclesiastical brokers have only just started using social media to do business.
  
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• Finn replaces Turner at helm of Maxum

  28-07-2017 16:48
  Marshall Turner, head of The Hartford's recently acquired US
  excess and surplus lines platform Maxum Specialty, is to retire,
  The Insurance Insider can reveal.
  Sources told this publication that Turner is making way for
  Kevin Finn, who retains his existing role of head of small
  commercial product management in addition to becoming head of
  Maxum.As part of the management revamp, it is further understood that
  Tracy Wade - currently head of sales and product - will be elevated
  to...
  
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• IRB prices IPO at bottom of range: Reuters

  28-07-2017 14:54
  Brazilian reinsurer IRB Brasil Resseguros priced its IPO on the
  São Paulo Stock Exchange at the bottom of the indicative
  marketing range as banking sector shareholders cut their holdings.
  Reuters reported that the shares priced at 27.24 reais ($8.64),
  the low point of a range stretching to 33.65 reais.
  Based on the 73.5 million shares IRB sold the offer was worth
  just over 2bn reais ($635.5mn) and accounted for about 23 percent
  of the company's share capital. It values the...
  
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• IBM terminates £55m digital transformation deal with Co-op

  28-07-2017 13:46
  IBM has terminated its £55m contract to upgrade Co-op Insurance’s IT systems.
  
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• Finn replaces Turner as Maxum CEO

  28-07-2017 13:03
  Marshall Turner, president and CEO of The Hartford's recently
  acquired US excess and surplus lines platform Maxum Specialty, is
  to retire, The Insurance Insider can
  reveal.
  Sources told this publication that Turner is making way for
  Kevin Finn, previously head of small commercial product
  management.
  As part of the management revamp, it is further understood that
  Tracy Wade - currently head of sales and product - will be elevated
  to chief operating officer.
  The Hartford picked up Maxum last year.
  
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• Dale Underwriting to launch contingency SPA

  28-07-2017 13:03
  Dale Underwriting Partners has been granted in principle
  approval from Lloyd's to establish a contingency and specialty
  property business special purpose arrangement (SPA),
  The Insurance Insider can reveal.
  Managed by Asta, the SPA will support a portfolio of contingency
  and specialty property business led by Tom Phillipson, who joins
  Dale from Swiss Re in September.
  Asta and Dale are working towards securing formal approval to
  commence underwriting business from 1 January 2018.
  Phillipson becom
  
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• This Week in Post: Vnuk is a four letter word

  28-07-2017 12:44
  When my toddler says ‘fox’, it sounds very rude. I mainly laugh at it but I’m also a bit scared that the next time she spots a fox in our local park, she will point at it, proudly shouting ‘F***! F****!’
  
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• TfL settles first claims from Croydon tram crash at £900,000

  28-07-2017 12:11
  Exclusive: Transport for London has paid £900,000 to settle seven personal injury claims from the Croydon tram crash last year, with 69 claims outstanding.
  
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• InsurTech Futures: Allianz partners with start-up Flock on drone insurance

  28-07-2017 11:59 via insuranceage.co.uk
  The first product will be a mobile app for pay-as-you-fly drone insurance.
  
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• H1 results: Gallagher broking momentum continues with profit rise

  28-07-2017 11:59
  Gallagher broking organic growth beats rivals that have reported so far
  
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• Quizzical questions: 28 July 2017

  28-07-2017 11:57
  Test your knowledge of the week's news with our topical quiz.
  
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• Revenues up at Gallagher for H1 2017

  28-07-2017 11:56
  Broker's net earnings and adjusted Ebitdac also rose compared to H1 2016.
  
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• NFU Mutual wins court case against fraudulent law firm

  28-07-2017 11:49
  NFU mutual has won a court victory against law firm, Barber & Co, after the company suspected the fraudulent handling of a claim.
  
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• Brokers still unsure on Flood Re distribution

  28-07-2017 11:31 via insuranceage.co.uk
  Biba welcomes the commitment to intermediaries but brokers are unsure how it will work in practice.
  
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• Vnuk amendments would remove access to justice, lawyers warn

  28-07-2017 11:01
  Removing off-road vehicles from the scope of motor insurance could eliminate injured people and bereaved families from the justice system, lawyers have warned.
  
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• AstraZeneca boss Pascal Soriot's 'pivotal' year is turning out horribly | Nils Pratley

  28-07-2017 10:53
  Firm’s share price has crashed after a key cancer drug flopped in trials, leading £13m-a-year CEO to insist: ‘I’m not a quitter’This year would be “pivotal” for AstraZeneca, its chief executive, Pascal Soriot, has said for ages. It would mark the moment when the firm would display the new wonders from its laboratories. The march towards annual revenues of $45bn (£34.5bn) by 2023, the target set when Pfizer’s takeover offer was rebuffed three
  
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• Opinion: Long live reinsurance?

  28-07-2017 10:35
  It doesn't seem that long ago that the industry was calling
  time on the reinsurance market as a credible source of income.
  With property catastrophe rates having plummeted to near-record
  lows and a glut of excess capacity frustrating any attempts at
  hardening, reinsurance executives conceded the good times were
  over, and set about battening down the hatches for a period of
  ultra-low returns.
  Capital redeployment went into full swing and diversification
  strategies were rolled out.
  The insurance m
  
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• Oak Hill takes controlling stake in Epic

  28-07-2017 10:35
  New York-based Oak Hill Capital Partners has acquired a
  controlling stake in US retail P&C intermediary Epic Insurance
  Brokers from fellow private equity house The Carlyle Group.
  The investment remains subject to relevant regulatory approvals
  and is expected to close in the third quarter. The financial terms
  of the transaction were not disclosed.
  Carlyle originally took amajority position in Epic in December 2013 as the private
  equity giant sought to gain a foothold in the insurance
  intermed
  
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• Alliant sued for targeting Wells Fargo brokers

  28-07-2017 10:35
  Alliant faces yet another accusation of poaching brokers, this time
  from Wells Fargo.
  In legal papers filed late Wednesday (26 July) in a Delaware
  state court, the San Francisco-based bank claimed Alliant is using
  confidential information shared with prospective buyers of Wells
  Fargo's insurance services group to identify and recruit sales
  executives in cities across the US.
  It said Alliant CEO Tom Corbett has directly participated in the
  recruiting efforts.
  Alliant competitor USI agreed to buy
  
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• Co-op Insurance tech upgrade hits trouble as IBM pulls out

  28-07-2017 10:22
  Co-op Insurance now considering alternatives for technology upgrade
  
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• Flux steps in on Swinton Norwich closure

  28-07-2017 10:11
  Adrian Flux to take over lease of Swinton call centre earmarked for closure in move that could save 146 jobs in the area.
  
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• Blog: Building on blockchain

  28-07-2017 07:00
  Blockchain is gaining popularity among insurers, who will need to figure out how to integrate it with legacy systems, says Michael Clifton, senior vice-president, global insurance strategy and ventures at Cognizant.
  
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• Validus surpasses consensus in Q2

  28-07-2017 00:40
  Validus joined a number of its peers in exceeding second quarter
  analyst estimates with operating earnings of $1.09 per share -
  topping expectations of $0.99 per share and the prior-year result
  of $0.69 per share.
  The carrier's net operating profits grew by 52.8 percent
  year-on-year to $88.5mn for the period, while net income was 6.4
  percent higher at $101.1mn.
  Validus generated a 9.3 percent operating return on equity in
  the three months to 30 June, representing a 3.1-point improvement
  versus..
  
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• The Hartford tops estimates despite pensions noise

  28-07-2017 00:40
  US nationwide insurer The Hartford bested Wall Street forecasts
  for core second quarter earnings by more than 10 percent, but fell
  to a small net loss as it absorbed a pre-announced $488mn pension
  charge.
  The Hartford's shares gained 1.4 percent in after-market
  trading after the results were posted late today.
  However there was again no news on the fate of its run-off
  variable annuity business Talcott Resolution, which is currently
  under auction with a price tag of around $3.5bn.
  The...
  
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• PartnerRe swings to Q2 profit on non-life uptick

  28-07-2017 00:40
  PartnerRe credited its non-life underwriting result as it reported
  a $97mn second quarter operating profit to follow a $66mn loss in
  the year-ago period.
  The Bermudian reinsurer, which is owned by Exor, said its
  non-life combined ratio improved dramatically to 87.7 percent from
  108.3 percent.
  The 20.6-point improvement helped the non-public reinsurer to
  deliver an annualised operating return on equity of 6.4 percent
  compared to a negative return of 4.3 percent last time round.
  PartnerRe said the
  
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• AJG matches forecasts as organic revenues up 4.2%

  28-07-2017 00:40
  AJ Gallagher met Wall Street expectations with second quarter
  profit of $1.03 a share while organic revenue climbed 4.2 percent
  at the firm's broking operations.
  Securities analysts had forecast the company would report earnings
  of $1.03 per share, according to MarketWatch.com.
  The 4.2 percent organic growth followed a 2.2 percent uptick in
  the prior-year period.
  AJ Gallagher credited international growth of 5.5 percent for
  lifting its organic revenue gain beyond the 3.5 percent mark set by
  its
  
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