Insurance news

• Aspen drafts in McKinsey to slash costs

  01-08-2017 23:14
  Aspen has brought in consulting firm McKinsey & Company to
  advise it as the Bermudian embarks on an efficiency drive, the
  (re)insurer's CEO Chris O'Kane has told investors.
  Speaking on an analyst call after the company's second
  quarter results fell far short of predictions from Wall Street,
  O'Kane said he was looking to build "Aspen 2.0".
  He said the carrier's executives had been busy working on
  the efficiency project for the past three months.
  "We call this initiative Aspen 2.0...
  
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• Holiday scams down to cuts to legal aid | Letters

  01-08-2017 20:24
  False tummy bug and whiplash claims are a direct result of the withdrawal in the 1990s of legal aid from personal injury work, writes Sally HughesFalse tummy bug and whiplash claims (Why Britain has gone wild for holiday sickness scams, G2, 1 August) are a direct result of the withdrawal in the 1990s of legal aid from personal injury work, and the creation of the whole money-spinning “no-win, no-fee” nuisance claim business. Legally aided personal injury claims were only funded
  
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• XL analysts remain bullish despite sell-off

  01-08-2017 20:04
  Equity analysts remain bullish on the outlook for XL Group after
  the stock dropped 4 percent last week despite posting
  consensus-beating second quarter results.
  The carrier reported Q2 operating net income of $0.96 per share
  while the Wall Street consensus forecast called for $0.88 a share.
  The result was more than double XL's $0.37 prior-year earnings,
  but investors punished a deterioration in the accident year ex-cat
  loss ratio amid concerns over further top-line growth.
  But analysts who cover
  
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• JLT Specialty US hires O'Brien as Midwest leader

  01-08-2017 20:04
  JLT Specialty USA has recruited Michael O'Brien as an executive
  vice president based in the broker's Chicago office.
  O'Brien will lead the group's business development
  efforts in the Midwest region.
  He joins the company from Aon, where he most recently served as
  managing director specialising in business development across the
  intermediary's corporate insurance operation, as well as in the
  health and benefits unit.
  O'Brien's specialty areas include real estate,
  technology, construction, the publ
  
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• Alesco replenishes energy ranks

  01-08-2017 20:04
  AJ Gallagher's wholesale arm Alesco Risk Management Services
  has made a quartet of hires in its energy division.
  David Hallows and Charlotte Clayton will join Alesco from
  Willis, while William Holden is moving to the specialty broker from
  Price Forbes and Rob Neighbour is arriving from THB.
  Hallows, Neighbour and Holden will become partners at Alesco,
  while Clayton will become an associate.
  The hires come after Alesco suffered a number of senior staff
  resignations over the last six weeks.
  Nawaf.
  
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• In Person: Towergate Advisory's Joe Thelwell

  01-08-2017 17:24
  The CEO of Towergate Advisory reveals how the business has transformed and talks about his broking roots
  
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• AA fires executive chairman for ‘gross misconduct’

  01-08-2017 17:05
  The AA has fired its executive chairman Bob Mackenzie for "gross misconduct".
  
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• Direct Line results strengthened by weaker than expected Ogden hit

  01-08-2017 16:39
  Direct Line’s strong H1 results were in part helped by the insurer taking a smaller hit from the change to the Ogden rate than expected.
  
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• Lord Justice Jackson scales back fixed recoverable costs proposal

  01-08-2017 16:35
  Lord Justice Jackson has recommended extending fixed recoverable costs for fast-track legal cases and a new fixed cost intermediate track for claims worth up to £100,000.
  
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• AA sacks executive chairman for gross misconduct

  01-08-2017 16:21
  Replacements named as AA sacks executive chairman
  
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• Zurich narrows down German legacy med-mal bidders

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Zurich has reached the second stage in the disposal of its
  EUR400mn ($470mn) German legacy medical malpractice book, having
  selected three run-off carriers to participate in the next round of
  bids, The Insurance Insider
  understands.
  Sources told this publication Darag and Catalina had progressed
  to the second round with at least one other carrier, thought to be
  Swiss Re.
  This publication reported in May that Zurich had appointed KPMG
  to advise on the disposal of its German legacy medical malprac
  
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• Phillipson SPA highlights entrepreneurs' path to Lloyd's

  01-08-2017 15:29
  The news that Dale Underwriting Partners is sponsoring a special
  purpose arrangement (SPA) syndicate for a group of contingency and
  property underwriters led by Tom Phillipson offers fresh evidence
  that Lloyd's is using the vehicles to foster entrepreneurial
  talent.
  Last week The Insurance Insider
  revealed that managing agent Asta, Dale and the underwriters had
  secured in-principle approval from Lloyd's to establish the
  SPA, with a January launch targeted.
  The Phillipson SPA is the second planne
  
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• Opinion: Epic growth valued

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Oak Hill's acquisition of Carlyle Group's majority stake
  in Epic Insurance Brokers is the latest deal in what seems to be a
  near-constant churn of ownership among private equity-backed
  intermediaries.
  But at first glance the price paid for the holding in the San
  Francisco-based firm looks to be at the high end of the range, even
  in a frothy segment that has seen frenzied activity in the last few
  years.
  The exact terms of the transaction are not known, although...
  
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• New ILS record threatens traditional model, says Willis

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Willis Towers Watson Securities has said the record $6.3bn of
  non-life cat bond issuance in the second quarter may spell the
  beginning of the end for traditional property cat reinsurance.
  "We very well may look back and see Q2 2017 as the death
  knell of the traditional property cat reinsurance model," it
  said in its latest quarterly market report.
  The firm noted that the insurance-linked securities (ILS) sector
  still had a long way to go to expand in the middle...
  
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• Markel adds State National growth engine

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Markel views its proposed acquisition State National as a strong
  growth engine, with the fronting specialist well-positioned to take
  advantage of secular trends in the P&C sector driven by
  alternative capital and InsurTech.
  Richie Whitt, co-CEO at the Richmond, Virginia-based US
  specialty insurer, said State National offers its clients a conduit
  to transfer risk to capital providers in a "very
  cost-effective and capital-efficient manner".
  "Given the changes that are occurring in our industry
  
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• Low Q2 cats mask continued worsening of fundamentals

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Low levels of catastrophe losses flattered second quarter
  results at risk carriers, as market conditions continued to apply
  upward pressure to core loss ratios amid softening reserve
  releases.
  Most carriers registered an improved headline underwriting
  performance year-on-year, as a modest cat quarter followed a heavy
  one in the corresponding period last year, with 14 of 18 companies
  also besting analysts' forecasts.
  Nine of the 14 beat consensus estimates by 10 percent or more,
  with these outper
  
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• LabCorp sues AIG and Liberty over Facta lawsuit cover

  01-08-2017 15:29
  US healthcare diagnostic firm LabCorp has initiated legal action
  against AIG Specialty and Liberty Mutual after the insurers refused
  to pay out on a $10mn policy over the company's loss of a class
  action suit.
  According to documents filed in the Court for the Middle
  District of North Carolina on 19 July, LabCorp is pursuing AIG, the
  primary carrier, for breach of contract for failing to pay out
  under a specialty risk protector policy after mediation between the
  parties failed...
  
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• ILS assets lift AlphaCat and RenRe results

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Third party capital bolstered growth for both Validus asset
  manager AlphaCat and Bermudian carrier RenaissanceRe in the second
  quarter.
  AlphaCat posted $3.1bn of assets under management at 1 July, up
  from $2.9bn at the end of the first quarter and $2.5bn a year
  earlier.
  However, gross premiums written by the AlphaCat vehicles were up
  by only 7 percent year-on-year to $105.7mn.
  After growing its platform in the past year, AlphaCat's fee
  income in the second quarter reached $6.2mn, compared to...
  
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• Hull underwriters lose bid to take Kairos banker to English court

  01-08-2017 15:29
  A cohort of hull underwriters led by Aspen have lost their
  appeal to sue the banker of Turkey-based Kairos Shipping in an
  English court to recoup a $22mn payment for a ship that was later
  judged to have been scuttled.
  A judge last week (27 July) blocked the appeal on the basis of
  EU rules governing where a case can be heard.
  The so-called Brussels Regulation grants legal jurisdiction to
  courts in the EU member state in which the party...
  
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• Hiscox CEO pledges commitment to Lloyd's Brussels

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Hiscox CEO Bronek Masojada confirmed that his company intends to
  use Lloyd's Brussels for its European big-ticket business,
  while utilising its Luxembourg hub for its growing retail offering
  on the continent.
  Speaking to this publication following the firm's half-year
  results announcement, Masojada said Hiscox will set aside EUR50mn
  ($59mn) to capitalise its Luxembourg hub, which will support its
  existing Hiscox Europe retail unit.
  The carrier's European big-ticket business will then be
  written
  
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• Epic expects Oak Hill deal to fuel further expansion

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Epic Insurance Brokers president Pete Garvey is looking for
  acquisitions that would represent a strategic fit for the
  fast-growing business after principal financial backer Carlyle
  Group agreed to sell its majority stake to Oak Hill late last month
  in a deal valuing the firm at nearly $1bn.
  In addition to expanding in those areas where it currently
  operates, Garvey told The Insurance
  Insider: "We have our eyes on other segments
  that we're not in."
  Garvey declined to specify any particular...
  
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• Challenges seen as UK regulators expand accountability rules

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Insurers and intermediaries face upheaval as the UK's
  financial regulators prepare to roll out conduct and accountability
  rules originally devised for bankers in the aftermath of the
  financial crisis.
  The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation
  Authority (PRA) last week launched coordinated consultations about
  the introduction of the Senior Managers and Certification Regime
  (SM&CR) for most financial services companies under their
  auspices.
  The SM&CR will impose signi
  
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• BHSI opens Dublin office

  01-08-2017 15:29
  Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance (BHSI) has opted to
  establish a new office in Dublin as part of the expansion of its UK
  and Southern Europe division.
  The new base will be led by former MS Amlin Ireland underwriting
  and distribution manager Cormac McNamara, who has been hired as
  BHSI's P&C manager in the country.
  The company did not specify whether the office will be a
  capitalised entity or if the move was related to the UK's
  decision to leave the...
  
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• Advisers see notification issues from Part VII rulebook

  01-08-2017 15:29
  The regulatory requirements surrounding Part VII portfolio
  transfers look set to increase under proposals from the Financial
  Conduct Authority (FCA).
  Carriers and their advisers have two weeks to respond to an FCA
  consultation about a planned Part VII protocol.
  The prospect of Brexit has led to an increase in the volume and
  complexity of these transfers, which can now take up to two
  years.
  The legacy market in particular has previously flagged concerns
  over further delays to Part VII transfer...
  
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• Aviva victory on dishonest hotel fall man's £1.5m claim

  01-08-2017 14:37
  Aviva victory means they are now pursuing court costs from dishonest man
  
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• Homelyfe appoints Peter Barrett as chairman

  01-08-2017 14:10
  Insurtech company Homelyfe has hired ex-Genworth Financial managing director, Peter Barrett as chairman of the business.
  
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• Towergate unveils London specialty MGA platform

  01-08-2017 13:25
  Towergate Underwriting has launched a London market specialty MGA
  platform and selected political violence as its entry market.
  The underwriting arm of the UK broker Towergate said today it
  had created Geo Specialty - a London market delegated authority
  underwriting business backed by Lloyd's syndicates.
  AmTrust is understood to be among the Lloyd's carriers
  providing paper to the Towergate underwriters.
  The first market to go live on the platform is political
  violence, with others following thr
  
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• Alesco brokers set to join Bishopsgate

  01-08-2017 13:25
  Four energy brokers from AJ Gallagher (AJG)'s Alesco division
  are to rejoin their former boss David Ross at the Bishopsgate arm
  of his Ardonagh holding company, The Insurance
  Insider can reveal.
  The publication reported last
  month that Nawaf Hasan, a managing director who led
  Alesco's Middle East energy team, was leaving the broker, which
  is AJG's energy-focused London market wholesale business.
  Gerard Maginn, the head of Asia for the energy team, also resigned.Two energy market sources said Has
  
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• Towergate reveals London specialty unit, Geo Specialty

  01-08-2017 13:20
  The first product covers political violence and its development is the first step in building a "strong" London underwriting business.
  
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• CII reveals rebrand

  01-08-2017 13:13
  The refreshed branding reflects a new strategy.
  
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• Go Compare to invest in new businesses following strong results

  01-08-2017 12:11
  Go Compare is looking to invest in tech businesses after revealing strong H1 results.
  
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• Direct Line raises dividend as pre-tax profits beat estimates

  01-08-2017 11:42
  Shares in insurer jump on the payout news as first-half profits rise to £341m
  
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• New Towergate London specialty unit launches

  01-08-2017 11:30
  Towergate London specialty unit’s first product coverage ‘far more comprehensive’ than Pool Re
  
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• Go Compare sees profit rise in H1

  01-08-2017 11:22
  Go Compare saw its profit before tax rise 1.7% in H1, to £39.6m from £34.5m for the same period last year.
  
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• Opinion: Investor irrationality

  01-08-2017 11:16
  Rationality is not always equity markets' strongest suit.
  Publicly traded companies often experience unexplained or thinly
  justified swings, leaving analysts and the media grasping for
  narratives that provide some form of explanation for the
  movements.
  In (re)insurance these swings can be exacerbated by
  investors' inattention to the minutiae of the sector.
  Trading in Floridian carriers in the run-up to Hurricane Matthew
  last September vividly illustrated this phenomenon.
  As the storm approached,
  
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• Direct Line releases £49mn of Ogden reserves

  01-08-2017 11:16
  UK general insurer Direct Line said more favourable than
  expected bodily-injury claims trends allowed for the release in the
  first half of £49mn ($64.4mn) of reserves it had set aside to
  deal with the cut in the Ogden discount rate.
  In the carrier's first-half results released today it said
  case reviews conducted over the last quarter had revealed
  lower-than-feared additional costs.
  However, it added it continued to assume a negative 0.75 percent
  Ogden rate in the near future. It released.
  
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• Boorman joins Neon as financial lines head

  01-08-2017 11:16
  Specialty (re)insurer Neon has hired Charles Boorman as its new
  head of financial lines business.
  The underwriter joins the carrier from Probitas Syndicate 1492,
  where he previously held the same role for just over a year,
  according to LinkedIn.
  Prior to that he spent 10 years with QBE, latterly also as
  financial lines head. Before joining QBE he spent six years at Aon
  specialising in commercial directors' and officers'
  business and private equity.
  Neon also announced it has recruited Ian...
  
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• Insurers in call for clarity over autonomous and assisted technology

  01-08-2017 10:30
  Insurers have highlighted the potential dangers of the ambiguities surrounding autonomous driving and driverless technology.
  
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• Insurers in call for autonomous and assisted technology

  01-08-2017 10:30
  Insurers have highlighted the potential dangers of the ambiguities surrounding autonomous driving and driverless technology.
  
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• Direct Line Group posts growing profit

  01-08-2017 10:24
  Insurer reveals rising profits and GWP, despite £49m discount rate hit.
  
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• Profits up at Go Compare

  01-08-2017 10:22
  The aggregator saw adjusted operating profit grow to £17.5m for the six months ended 30 June 2017 following Esure demerger.
  
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• Direct Line reports increase in profit despite home taking a hit

  01-08-2017 10:20
  Direct Line Group has reported that its profit before tax has gone up by 14% to £341.4m in the first half of 2017, compared to £298.5m in the first half of 2016.
  
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• H1 results: Gocompare profit rises amid ‘material’ transformation

  01-08-2017 10:07
  Revenue boost helps boost GoCompare profit
  
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• #Insagepeople: 31 July - 6 August 2017

  01-08-2017 09:42
  Keep up to date with the latest people moves.
  
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• H1 results: Direct Line Group grows profit despite home hit

  01-08-2017 09:15
  Profit and GWP boost for Direct Line Group in first half
  
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• Former Genworth boss joins Pen-linked insurtech startup

  01-08-2017 09:11
  Insurtech startup with Pen Underwriting on its panel appoints chairman
  
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• Former Genworth boss joins Pen-backed insurtech startup

  01-08-2017 09:11
  Insurtech startup appoints chairman ahead of launch
  
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• Roundtable: Industrialising insurance innovation: Breaking down silos

  01-08-2017 07:00
  The scalability of digital innovation is a problem for the insurance industry. What can be done to prepare insurers to create initiatives with the ability to ‘build fast and fail fast’?
  
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• Rising Star: Louise Williams, Smartdriverclub

  01-08-2017 07:00
  Having worked for an aggregator, Williams is now a product manager at the broking start-up
  
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• Analysis: The legacy of Grenfell Tower

  01-08-2017 07:00
  How the blaze that killed at least 80 people promises to be one of the most complex claims in recent years
  
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