UK-based domestic insurance group HomeServe has sold its loss-making emergency repair services unit for £11 million. HomeServe Emergency Services (HES) was acquired by Midlands-based LDC, the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group. The division posted a loss for the first half of this year, and HomeServe was reportedly keen to sell it off, reducing [...]
Shareholders of US-based PartnerRe have approved the acquisition of French rival Paris Re. PartnerRe announced the approval to acquire the France-listed, Swiss-based firm at a Special General Meeting. Decisions approved by the shareholders included issuing PartnerRe common shares in connection with transactions to acquire Paris Re, increasing the size of the board of directors from [...]
insurance4carrental.com has announced it is now able to act as an introducer for van hire daily excess insurance. The product “Loss damage waiver excess reimbursement insurance – Van Daily Policy” comes from insurance4carhire group (part of Towergate) and is underwritten by AIG UK. Only vans within the UK are allowed to take advantage of the [...]
Keoghs has announced it is bolstering its Counter-Fraud Services (CFS) division with the appointment of Ted Sheils as a partner. Sheils formerly led the Manchester fraud team with legal firm Weightmans, and specialised in the investigation of fraud rings. In his new post he will be responsible for dealing with complex and high value claims [...]
Independent insurer Amlin has announced the appointment of Simon Clarke as managing director and principal officer of Amlin Singapore. Clarke brings almost three decades of experience to his new post, including time as the chief executive officer of Asia Pacific, Facultative within Guy Carpenter, part of Marsh. He has also served as Marsh’s Marsh Global [...]
Bluefin has expanded its professions division, opening a new Manchester office, and has appointing Julia Whittle as accounts manager for the division. The Axa-owned broker said Whittle will be based in the company’s new office, and will be briefed to target new business in the north-west. Mark Westgarth, managing director of Bluefin’s professions division said: [...]
The UK branch of Australian insurer IAG posted its first half results this week, with pre-tax profit more than doubling. Gross written premiums for the unit increased marginally from £361 million in the same period last year to £364 million this year. Pre-tax profits rocketed from AUS$51 million a year ago to AUS$105 million, despite [...]
Aviva has named and shamed the ten worst parking spaces in the UK. The motor insurance provider asked drivers across the country to nominate their nightmare parking spaces where they feel most likely to end up denting their car. Topping the terrible-for-parking charts came Alton Business Centre in Hampshire. Aviva said: “If you’re first in [...]
Ireland-based insurer Quinn Group has launched a new TV advertising campaign promoting its commercial insurance to Irish SMEs. Research by Quinn found many small businesses in Ireland are unaware of the firm’s commercial insurance arm. “We have over one million customers in Ireland and the majority of them do not have an appreciation of the [...]
Pearl Group has appointed Ron Sandler as its new chairman. The post is part time and Mr Sandler will continue as chairman of Northern Rock, his role with the state-owned bank having commenced only last year. Previously he has served as chief operating officer at NatWest and chief executive of Lloyd’s of London, where he [...]
LV=’s buildings insurance claims are to be handled through a new business model, the insurer has announced. As part of the changing model LV= is to outsource its buildings claims validation and subsequent building repairs suppliers. Building repairs will be handled by Eastwell and Rok, with Davies Group handling claims validation and management. The changes [...]
Setanta Insurance is the fastest growing vehicle insurer in Ireland, selling an average of one insurance policy every 15 minutes since it was established two years ago. Setanta’s written premiums exceed €35m, and it presently has more than 65,000 policyholders. In July Setanta forecast it would hit 100,000 policyholders by the end of the year. [...]
Lloyd’s of London has reported a jump of almost 40% in half-year profit, despite “turbulent financial markets and challenging insurance conditions”. Robust underwriting results and a modest rebound in investment returns fuelled the surge, allowing the market to post pre-tax earning of £1.32 billion for the first six months of 2009, up from £949 million [...]
New research from the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) shows the extent to which uninsured drivers blight some of the UK’s largest conurbations. According to the MIB, 13% of vehicles in the Greater London area are being driven without insurance, followed by 12% across Merseyside and 10% in Greater Manchester. West Yorkshire and the West Midlands [...]
LV= has commissioned a report by criminologists which reveals that a quarter of burglary victims subsequently were subject to ID fraud as a direct result of their home being burgled. So-called ID burglary is thought to cost the country an estimated £150m per year. Seventy-four percent of burglaries now involve the theft of credit cards, [...]
University students can potentially save hundreds of pounds by checking whether their belongings are covered on their parents’ home insurance policy, Sainsbury’s Finance said this week. The supermarket financial provider said some home insurance policies cover members of the family living away from home, and advised students to check whether this is the case on [...]
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has confirmed that it is going ahead with plans to introduce a fast-track system for compensation claims arising from motor accidents. The new measures should be in place by April of next year, broad agreement to the changes having already been by reached by interested parties. According to the MoJ, [...]
Equity Red Star has expanded its presence in the North West with the opening of a Manchester city centre office. The move follows the establishment of a Leeds office last autumn and the Lloyd’s syndicate says further regional expansion is to be expected next year. The firm’s head of distribution and operations, David Grant, comments: [...]
