Beazley, the specialist insurer, and HealthPlan Services (HPS) have announced that the two firms are entering into a strategic partnership. Under the terms of the agreement Beazley’s accident and health insurance customers will benefit from comprehensive business process services provided by HPS. HPS will administer a comprehensive range of services, such as sales, case level [...]
Law firm, Thompsons, is calling on the Government to put rehabilitation at the heart of its civil justice review. Research by the firm shows that all personal injury respondents who had received rehabilitation while off sick believed it helped them return to work earlier than they would otherwise have done. The majority also said that [...]
“UK pet owners are facing a steep increase in pet insurance premiums, driven by rising vet bills pushing up claims inflation.” So finds Datamonitor, which warns that the increase in claims inflation could lead to double-digit rises in premium rates. The business information firm’s analyst, Stephen Ko, explains that advances in technology and more elaborate [...]
The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) is preparing for another rise in its caseload, having estimated a 7% increase for the year to March 2011. In the current financial year, Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) disputes have risen 40%, while the number of cases involving motor and general insurance is broadly similar to previous years, and the [...]
The Treasury wants insurers, banks and other financial services providers to come up with a range of “simple” products that will help consumers become more responsible. In a consultation document published yesterday, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Mark Hoban MP, set out the proposals commenting: “The Government is committed to helping consumers take responsibility for [...]
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has plans to launch a market study into private healthcare, examining the nature of competition in the market. Preliminary research by the watchdog has raised questions about whether the sector, which is currently worth more than £5.5 billion, is working well for consumers. The OFT is therefore proposing to [...]
Aviva UK Health has announced a series of enhancements to its group income protection (GIP) cover, including the introduction of a new escalation rate which will see payments measured against the Retail Price Index (capped at 2.5%). New customers will also benefit from an employee assistance programme, which will be picked up by existing customers [...]
Independent broker Perkins Slade has declared that there is no better time for people to consider taking out private medical insurance (PMI). Perkins Slade has cited the decision of Health Secretary Andrew Lansley to scrap the NHS targets to see a family doctor in 48 hours and the 18 week treatment period. This year the [...]
Europ Assistance has launched a new “signature”, which is being rolled out today across the group’s 36 companies worldwide. “you live we care” is intended to reflect a positioning that highlights support for customers in all of life’s circumstances “from the most routine to the most exceptional”, while the concept of “care” is intended to [...]
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) will shortly be publishing an updated Statement of Best Practice for critical illness insurance. The move is aimed at improving clarity and understanding of Total Permanent Disability (TPD) cover, the industry having already developed a set of standard definitions that will be supporting an education plan that should reduce [...]
The European insurance sector remained stable in 2009, according to figures released today by the CEA (the European insurance and reinsurance federation). Provisional data show gross written premiums in Europe totalling €1,057 billion, having grown 2.9% (at constant exchange rates), compared with 2008. Life insurance premiums, which accounted for more than 60% of all premiums, [...]
Britain’s GPs are apparently too polite to raise sensitive issues with patients, such as obesity and alcohol misuse. According to Aviva’s latest Health of the Workplace study, personal hygiene tops the list of subjects to be avoided, with more than half of GPs surveyed unprepared to raise the topic with patients. The study also indicates [...]
Chubb has established a Healthcare Information Technology Program in the US, aimed at addressing the industry’s liability needs in the light of healthcare reform. Currently, over 1,000 companies supply information technology products and services to the healthcare and medical research industries in the US and Canada, and the sector is poised for additional growth. The [...]
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 [...]
Aviva has launched an online resource for advisers, aimed at making the application process for life, critical illness and income protection insurance smoother. The Adviser Underwriting Centre is available through the “Aviva for Advisers” site and apparently contains everything that intermediaries need to know when helping a client complete a protection proposal. It includes a [...]
The Healthcare Focus Group of the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) is to set up a working group to examine the issue of personal taxation and Private Medical Insurance (PMI). Tax concessions for the over 60s and how the removal of concessions have impacted on PMI sales will be included in the review and the [...]
Munich Re has agreed terms for the acquisition of Windsor Health Group, Inc. in line with its strategic goal of bolstering its presence in the US Medicare market. Munich Re provides global insurance, reinsurance and risk management expertise in the field of healthcare under the brand name of Munich Health. Windsor provides government-sponsored health plans [...]
