QBE has appointed John Neal, currently chief underwriting officer of the group’s European operations, to the newly created position of chief executive officer, global underwriting operations. The move follows a restructure of the Australian insurer into three main operating divisions: the Americas, Europe and Australia Asia Pacific. Mr Neal will take up the position, based [...]
Allianz’s head of microinsurance has concluded that “conventional thinking won’t work if microinsurance is to succeed during the next decade”. Answering questions on microinsurance markets in India, Indonesia and Africa, Michael Anthony said the tsunami of December 2004 brought with it the realisation that the poorest people, who have no access to insurance services, are [...]
Health Insurance magazine has awarded Heath Lambert Employee Benefits (HLEB) the Best Healthcare Trust Intermediary Award 2010. The award was given in recognition of HLEB’s pioneering endeavours with a global drinks giant. The ceremony was held at London’s Grosvenor House and was attended by 800 insurance and intermediary professionals. HLEB Wellbeing Director Karen Gamble was [...]
Aon has reported its results for the third quarter including net income of $144m, equating to $0.51 per share. This is an improvement of 20% on the corresponding period last year when the firm made net income of $120m ($0.41 per share). However, it is a decline on Q2 2010, when Aon earnt net income [...]
John Spencer, chairman of the Motor Accident Solicitors Society (MASS), has responded to a press release issued by the ABI earlier this week, entitled “Dysfunctional and Disproportionate: ABI reveals how motorists are being taken for a ride by high legal costs”. Spencer expressed his incredulity at the ABI’s complaint, without reservation, regarding the high legal [...]
Commercial specialist, Evolution Underwriting, has promoted Hannah Forde to the role of underwriting assistant. Ms Forde joined Evolution in 2007 as group administrator and is being supported by the company in developing a career in underwriting. Commenting on the move, the firm’s chief executive officer, Paul Upton, says: “As we broaden and grow our business [...]
Technology that enables a vehicle to automatically alert incident managers when involved in a collision is being launched by accident management company, Incident Support Group (ISG). ISG Sense uses impact sensors, telematics and black box technology to enable a vehicle to contact the firm, and other interested parties, when subject to impact. In addition to [...]
Eighty-one per cent of those convicted of uninsured driving are men and 42% of all uninsured drivers are under 26, according to research from Confused.com. The price comparison site suggests that a vicious circle is now occurring as spiralling insurance costs for young drivers actually encourage uninsured driving. The firm’s recent price index revealed that [...]
The impact on Britain’s motorists of legal costs in personal injury claims following a road accident has been revealed by the Association of British Insurers (ABI). Lawyers fees now add an extra £40 a year to the average motor insurance premium, according to the ABI’s analysis of over 50,000 low-value road accident personal injury claims. [...]
Global insurance broker Willis Group Holdings plc has announced its financial results for the third quarter and first nine months of 2010. In the third quarter the firm made net income of $64m, equating to $0.37 per diluted share, down from $78m ($0.46 per share) made during the same period last year. It is also [...]
Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited has reported that in the third quarter it made net income of $92.8m and operating earnings per ordinary diluted share of $0.79. This is a substantial decline on the $145.8m net income ($1.40 per share) that the firm achieved in the corresponding period last year. Gross written premiums declined by $75m [...]
The Business Continuity Institute (BCI) has been updating its research on supply chain issues and their impact on businesses, to find that while awareness of supply chain risks is increasing, many businesses remain exposed to high levels of risk. The study also concludes that outsourcing, in particular in IT and manufacturing, often ultimately reduces cost-benefits [...]
Helphire has issued a trading update in which it describes market conditions as having “not been favourable for the Group”. The motor accident assistance company explained that high petrol prices and fewer road miles being driven have led to lower accident rates, meaning that its results for the year to 30 June 2011 will be [...]
The impact of reduced public funding for flood defences will demand a more innovative approach to managing flood risk, the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) has warned. Only £2 billion has been allocated by the Coalition Government for flood defence investment over the four years from 2011 to 2015, compared with £2.15 billion by the [...]
Specialist independent insurance and reinsurance broker Miller has announced it has expanded its facultative capability with the appointment of James Lyndon-Stanford. He brings to Miller expertise in facultative reinsurance of power generation and distribution risks and is to be based in London, collaborating with the firm’s facultative reinsurance operations in Europe and Asia. Prior to [...]
Home insurance that appears to be relatively cheap could in fact be far costlier, according to independent financial research company Defaqto. Defaqto has discovered that many home insurance policies now offer a larger range of optional extras, instead of including them as standard. Homeowners, keen particularly in a challenging economic environment to save money, may [...]
Cornish Mutual is expanding its member services team with the creation of six new roles. Five team leaders and a technical trainer have been appointed to bolster levels of customer service, with the new posts split between the firm’s Truro and Exeter offices. Existing employees, Amanda Booker, Gemma Whyle, Shirley White, and Dawn Hocking have [...]
Australian insurer, QBE, has announced that its acquisition of Secura NV, the Belgium-based specialist reinsurer, has received approval from the Belgian regulator. The deal will complete on 2nd November and Standard & Poor’s has affirmed Secura’s financial strength rating at “A”, with outlook “Stable”, reflecting that of the QBE Group. Secura will form part of [...]
