Insurance news

• Shares drop in US and Bermuda P&C sector on Irma fear

  05-09-2017 20:20
  Shares of property and casualty (re)insurers in Bermuda and the
  US dropped as projected losses from Hurricane Harvey continued to
  mount and Irma emerged as a Category 5 hurricane bearing down on
  the Caribbean.
  Validus and Aspen fell as much as 7 percent in midday New York
  trading. Everest Re and Renaissance Re followed closely with losses
  of about 6 percent each while Axis Capital was not far behind,
  losing as much as 5.7 percent.
  The declines followed early double-digit...
  
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• Irma fears batter Florida P&C shares

  05-09-2017 20:20
  Florida P&C carriers fell sharply in early New York trading
  today amid the prospect of Hurricane Irma slamming into the
  Sunshine State later this week.
  Shares in Heritage fell as much as 15.4 percent while HCI
  dropped by up to 13 percent and Universal fell by over 16 percent,
  and Federated National and United both lost around 10 percent.
  The declines came amid market jitters over the mounting crisis
  involving North Korea, with most major equity indices giving up
  ground...
  
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• Fitch: Harvey unlikely to impact pricing

  05-09-2017 20:20
  A benign first half of the year for catastrophe losses means
  Hurricane Harvey is unlikely to impact reinsurance pricing, Fitch
  Ratings said at its pre-Monte Carlo briefing this morning.
  However, rates in the US could be flat to slightly up for
  loss-affected lines, it said.
  One way Harvey could impact the sector is if it leaves
  reinsurers close to exhausting their catastrophe budgets for the
  year. Given the erosion of profitability in recent years, Fitch
  said there was not enough...
  
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• Exin Re CEO departs amid pay dispute

  05-09-2017 20:20
  Exin Re CEO Marc Maupoux has resigned after staff at the
  Zurich-based reinsurer went unpaid for months, and is currently
  engaged alongside other staff in official proceedings to recover
  the money, as Matt Fairfield's insurance group readies a
  counterclaim.
  A number of other senior staff including chief operating officer
  Pieter Fierz have also resigned and filed with the relevant
  authorities claiming months of unpaid remuneration, as Exin Re
  prepares to name ex-Alterra executive Adam Mullan CEO a
  
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• Co-op trials Facebook car insurance chatbot

  05-09-2017 18:15
  Co-op Insurance is trialling the UK’s first car insurance chatbot via Facebook Messenger.
  
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• Meet the Leeds Expo panellists: Mark Thomas

  05-09-2017 17:31
  Lorica’s branch sales director explains why some insurers are “slick” and talks about why he is excited that the Broker Expo coming to Leeds for the first time.
  
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• General insurance complaints jump in first half

  05-09-2017 17:15
  Upheld rate for general insurance complaints holds steady
  
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• Texas habitational losses to hurt London D&F market

  05-09-2017 16:59
  The London property direct and facultative (D&F) market is
  braced for a slew of claims stemming from Texan habitational
  accounts in the aftermath of Harvey.
  Habitational cover is essentially buildings insurance for
  commercial residential properties and can include hundreds of
  properties per account.
  Sources told this publication the business segment, which
  typically includes flood cover, will undoubtedly be pushed into the
  red after years of rate reductions.
  "Texas habitational accounts are
  
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• Reinsurers face non-standard auto Harvey pain

  05-09-2017 16:59
  Devastation caused by Harvey-related flooding is set to trigger
  a sharp deterioration in Texas personal auto underwriting results,
  which had already been driving some reinsurers away from the
  business.
  With the prospect of tens of thousands of cars damaged or
  treated as total losses in the state, loss ratios for personal auto
  business are expected to surge this year.
  That would come after significant deterioration in 2016,
  according to previous analysis
  published by The Insurance Insider.
  Of the
  
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• Property binders market tries to unravel Harvey impact

  05-09-2017 16:59
  The London binders market is expecting a mixed claims experience
  from Hurricane Harvey due to a Texan market which is hugely
  fragmented in terms of MGAs, coverages and capacity providers.
  Sources suggested that commercial all-risk policies on the open
  market would take more flood losses than the binders market,
  although even then flood risk is usually sub-limited.
  The typical property binder - commercial or
  homeowners' - would exclude flood as a peril unless
  specifically written in, although suc
  
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• PI insurers rethink policies after Grenfell

  05-09-2017 16:59
  Almost three months after the devastating fire at Grenfell
  Tower, professional indemnity (PI) underwriters and their advisers
  are reviewing their policy wording and demanding more information
  on proposal forms to weed out areas that could leave their firms
  exposed.
  The 14 June fire in the Kensington council block killed at least
  80 people and left hundreds homeless, sparking a criminal
  investigation as well as a judge-led public inquiry that will take
  many months to conclude.
  From an insurance p
  
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• Opinion: Don't wait for Harvey to boost energy rates

  05-09-2017 16:59
  From the flood-drenched streets of Houston to the casinos of
  Monte Carlo, one question on every energy underwriter's mind
  right now is what impact Harvey will have on rates.
  The storm has battered downstream assets in Texas.
  It will take months for the true scale of the business
  interruption claims to emerge.
  The optimists point to healthy captive retentions amongst
  refinery owners and lengthy waiting times - one to two months - for
  loss of earnings cover to kick in....
  
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• Novae changes course on US cat treaty exit

  05-09-2017 16:59
  Novae has rehired the US property cat reinsurance team that it
  agreed in June to transfer to Fidelis and reversed its decision to
  exit the class, The Insurance Insider
  understands.
  Team head Jonathan Gray, his deputy Vicky Baxter and class
  underwriter Lucy Forcey had allagreed to join Richard Brindle's start-up Fidelis in the
  summer, with the go-forward book set to transfer with them.
  However, it is understood that following the agreement of its
  £478mn ($618mn) sale to Axis in...
  
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• NFIP ran a $1.4bn deficit even before Harvey: CBO

  05-09-2017 16:59
  The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which is now
  projected to face Hurricane Harvey-related losses of as much as
  $10bn, underestimates annual claims by $1bn even in years without
  major catastrophes, a new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) study
  shows.As a result, the NFIP undercharges its roughly 5 million
  policyholders by about $1bn and runs at an annual deficit of about
  $1.4bn, the CBO said in the study released last Friday (1
  September).
  The Federal Emergency Management Agency-run pr
  
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• Livecat trading trigger points for Harvey rise

  05-09-2017 16:59
  Demand for industry loss warranty (ILW) cover on Hurricane Harvey
  has moved up to higher trigger levels as fears grow over the extent
  of private market flooding claims.
  On Monday 28 August, three days after the Category 4 storm hit
  Texas, cover for $10bn triggers was being quoted.
  By Friday 1 September, however, no sellers were willing to offer
  cover below an industry loss of $20bn, said Patrick Gonnelli,
  partner and global head of insurance-linked securities distribution
  and trading at...
  
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• High retentions shield reinsurers from Harvey

  05-09-2017 16:59
  The bulk of US nationwide insurers are not expected to attach
  their catastrophe treaty reinsurance covers as a result of
  Hurricane Harvey, although the market is monitoring some companies
  more closely for possible cessions.
  The flood-driven nature of the loss will lessen the burden for
  cat treaty reinsurers, although the $1bn cover for the National
  Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is expected to be Harvey's first
  treaty market casualty.
  The $1bn limit was spread out across a $4bn stretch of claims
  
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• Harvey raises spectre of Lloyd's 2017 underwriting loss

  05-09-2017 16:59
  Lloyd's exposure to Hurricane Harvey through binders and cat
  treaty business is prompting questions about whether the market
  could be set to record its first full-year underwriting loss since
  2011.
  Lloyd's last reported a full-year combined
  ratio of more than 100 percent in 2011, when severe weather in
  Australia, earthquakes in New Zealand and Japan, tornadoes in the
  US and flooding in Thailand contributed to the market making an
  overall loss of £516mn ($667mn).
  Its combined ratio for the
  
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• Harvey losses to create complex legal challenge

  05-09-2017 16:59
  Determining the root cause of Hurricane Harvey losses and
  identifying whether claims should fall to the private sector or the
  state will create a huge legal conundrum in the wake of the storm,
  lawyers have said.
  Lawyers will need to identify which losses are wind-related and
  which are caused by flooding, with residential flood largely picked
  up by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and coverage in
  the commercial market for the peril patchier and often
  sub-limited.
  From an insurance...
  
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• Harvey likely to drive short-term NFIP extension

  05-09-2017 16:59
  Dealing with the aftermath of Harvey and working on how to keep
  the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) in business past the
  end of this month will likely take centre stage as Congress returns
  from its August recess.
  A rapid extension of the current flood programme, without major
  changes, was lined up last week as Harvey's victims struggle to
  recover.
  President Donald Trump made an emergency request for $7.85bn in
  aid for Texas and Louisiana, mostly in the form of...
  
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• Harvey has minimal impact on cat bond market

  05-09-2017 16:59
  The impact of Hurricane Harvey on the secondary cat bond market has
  been minimal, with no bonds triggering and only a slight dip in the
  Swiss Re cat bond pricing index, according to sister publication
  Trading Risk.
  The cat bond market dropped 0.42 percent in
  the week Harvey was heading for the Texas coastline, far less than
  the 1.5 percent fall that followed Hurricane Matthew in October
  last year.
  Concerns were initially raised about five to eight cat bonds
  considered...
  
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• Energy market weighs the cost of Harvey

  05-09-2017 16:59
  Harvey will cause substantial losses in the energy market,
  though the upstream sector appears to have escaped major
  claims.
  Losses in the upstream energy market have been
  "benign", a senior underwriter said.
  The storm, which made landfall close to Rockport, near Corpus
  Christi, turned older, smaller oil platforms into
  "matchwood", but the source said such structures tend to
  be uninsured as they stand little chance in a major hurricane.
  Another underwriter said a big client in the
  Gulf of Mexico.
  
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• $15bn-$20bn Harvey: first act or final word?

  05-09-2017 16:59
  The impact of Hurricane Harvey on the US commercial property
  market and treaty reinsurance space will depend heavily on the way
  a potentially above-average Atlantic storm season still in its
  early stages plays out.
  Predicting the loss quantum for private insurers from Hurricane
  Harvey with any degree of confidence is impossible at this stage,
  as waters are yet to recede and flood is a poorly modelled peril
  even in the US.
  "The only thing we can say with any certainty...
  
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• Top cyber insurers revealed in Insurance Times survey

  05-09-2017 14:58
  New Insurance Times survey highlights the top cyber insurers offering the broadest coverage to SMEs
  
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• Subscriber special: Broker's rating guide to insurers' cyber products

  05-09-2017 14:58
  New Insurance Times review highlights the top cyber insurers offering the broadest coverage to SMEs
  
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• Reinsurers to pay out 75-100% of NFIP cover: RMS

  05-09-2017 13:47
  The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is expected to burn
  through between 75 percent and 100 percent of its $1bn reinsurance
  placement following Hurricane Harvey, according to RMS.
  The modelling firm has estimated that losses accrued by the
  National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) will be between $7bn and
  $10bn.
  The$1bn reinsurance programme is triggered once the NFIP has paid
  $4bn in claims. Once $4bn has been reached, the Federal Emergency
  Management Agency (FEMA) shares the cost of the c
  
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• PCS launches cyber industry loss tracking service

  05-09-2017 13:47
  Property Claim Services (PCS) has established a cyber loss tracking
  service, marking its second specialty insurance loss index.
  The loss aggregation service has been developed in collaboration
  with reinsurance broker Capsicum Re and will provide a third-party
  view of cyber industry loss estimates.
  It will cover worldwide cyber events with insured losses of at
  least $20mn.
  The index can be used to facilitate reinsurance and alternative
  risk-transfer transactions such as ILWs, PCS said.
  "We believ
  
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• AJ Gallagher acquires Swedish broker

  05-09-2017 13:47
  Arthur J. Gallagher (AJG) has expanded its presence in the
  Scandinavian market with the acquisition of Gothenburg-based
  commercial lines broker Nordic Försäkring &
  Riskhantering.
  In a statement today, AJG said the transaction broadened the
  company's coverage of Sweden to Gothenburg, a manufacturing
  hub. Nordic Försäkring itself recently acquired rival
  broker Dahlkvist, a transport and construction intermediary.
  Nordic Försäkring was set up in 1991 and focuses on
  
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• Direct Line tops the poll for new GI complaints

  05-09-2017 12:10
  Direct Line, Aviva and Ageas are among the firms to have the most new general insurance complaints made about them to the Financial Ombudsman in H1.
  
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• Servca launches wholesale medical malpractice policy

  05-09-2017 11:57
  Policy is underwritten by Lloyd's and London market ‘A’ rated capacity.
  
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• Ensurance UK launches with construction focus

  05-09-2017 11:54
  The MGA will offer home build and construction and engineering products to brokers.
  
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• Join our live webinar on diversity

  05-09-2017 11:33
  Post has teamed up with the Chartered Insurance Institute for a webinar on diversity and inclusion in the industry.
  
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• Construction and engineering MGA Ensurance launches in UK

  05-09-2017 11:06
  Construction and engineering managing general agent Ensurance has launched in the UK this month.
  
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• Direct Line Group most complained about insurer

  05-09-2017 11:04
  Figures from the Financial Ombudsman also put Aviva, Ageas, Axa and RSA into the top five most complained about providers.
  
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• Ingenie to expand telematics footprint, announces tie-up with Ageas’ Back Me Up

  05-09-2017 11:02
  Exclusive: Young driver and telematics specialist Ingenie is poised to branch out into non-motor products and expand its underwriting footprint to older UK drivers.
  
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• XL Innovate leads $2.75mn funding for Pillar

  05-09-2017 10:32
  XL's venture capital fund XL Innovate has led a $2.75mn seed
  funding round for construction smart sensor firm Pillar
  Technologies.
  Pillar Technologies captures, measures, and distributes risk
  data on construction sites with a series of smart sensors.
  The funding from XL Innovate, Hyperplane VC, and Techstars
  Ventures will to scale the manufacturing of its sensors, and expand
  the team building its real-time risk management software platform
  for construction companies and contractors.
  Martha Notar
  
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• Wade joins TigerRisk UK capital markets business

  05-09-2017 10:32
  TigerRisk has appointed Lime Street veteran Michael Wade as
  non-executive chairman at its UK capital markets and advisory
  business.
  Wade served as The Crown Representative for Insurance at the UK
  Cabinet Office between 2013 and 2015, according to his LinkedIn
  profile.
  He has also been a key force in the development of a London hub
  for insurance-linked securities through his work as an adviser to
  the current and former Chancellor.The ILS regulatory framework has been presented to the UK...
  
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• Starr names Owen as A&H head

  05-09-2017 10:32
  Starr Companies has appointed Laura Owen as head of accident and
  health (A&H), based in London.
  As this publication previously reported, Owen waspreviously head of A&H at Hamilton at Lloyd's , but
  left the firm in June.Owen is a direct and facultative specialist, known well in the
  professional sports underwriting world, having moved across from
  CNA Hardy.
  She has also previously worked at Syndicate 1206 and Syndicate
  718, according to underwriting sources.
  In January, Owen joined the Llo
  
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• Irma has 75-80% chance of US landfall: JLT Re

  05-09-2017 10:32
  Category 4 Hurricane Irma now has a 75 percent to 80 percent
  chance of US landfall, JLT Re has warned.
  In a hurricane update published late on Monday, JLT Re said
  Irma's forecast had shifted further west from the previous day,
  and the storm will now most likely made landfall in Florida, at a
  probability of 50 percent to 60 percent.
  "Unless interaction occurs with Cuba or Hispaniola, Irma is
  likely to make US landfall as a major hurricane,&quot...
  
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• Canadian floods cause $180mn insured loss

  05-09-2017 10:32
  Flooding in eastern Ontario and western Quebec in April and May
  this year generated more than C$223mn ($180mn) in insured losses,
  the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) has said.
  Between 5 April and 7 April, a pair of low-pressure systems led
  to major flooding in southern Quebec and wind damage across parts
  of Ontario and Quebec.
  The floods, which were coupled with strong gust winds, caused
  over C$106mn in insured damage, the IBC said, citing data from
  CatIQ.
  Between 5...
  
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• Rising Star: Lauren Peel, Aviva UK digital

  05-09-2017 07:00
  Lauren joined Aviva through a graduate scheme and she has gone from strength to strength in its digital arm
  
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• Analysis: Repair costs

  05-09-2017 07:00
  The questionable practice of marking up at-fault repairs continues, despite resistance in some quarters. Will this status quo ever be challenged?
  
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• XL Catlin hires former AIG underwriters in Asia

  05-09-2017 05:12
  Global insurer XL Catlin has recruited two experienced members of staff from AIG in Asia.
  
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