Daily Insurance Industry News
 
 
Daily Insurance Industry News
Saturday 04th of July 2009
July 1, 2009

Kwik Fit sees sales rise during battle of the sexes

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Kwik Fit sees sales rise during battle of the sexes

On Monday Kwik Fit Insurance (KFI) enjoyed its second major sales day of the year by hosting a battle of the sexes.
KFI saw some of its best sales figures in a decade and a half, and negotiated substantial savings for its customers.
The firm sold 1300 new car insurance policies, its 5th best car insurance sales [...]



June 30, 2009

Summer heatwave will escalate subsidence risk

by David Masters

Story link: Summer heatwave will escalate subsidence risk

As this summer’s heatwave sweeps across the UK, homeowners have been warned to check that their buildings insurance covers them against subsidence.
Over-50s insurer RIAS said soaring temperatures expected this summer could cause subsidence across a number of areas in the UK, especially in clay soil areas.
At risk towns and cities include Chelmsford, Colchester, London, Milton [...]



June 29, 2009

Greenbee sees rise of house-proud CHAPS

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Greenbee sees rise of house-proud CHAPS

Greenbee Home Insurance has conducted a survey of over 2,000 adults and discovered that over a fifth (23%) of 18-24 year olds are wary of hosting parties at home in case of accidental damage.
The figure is threefold that of those aged 65 and older, of whom only 8% share the concern of potential party damage, [...]



June 22, 2009

Aviva insures home office equipment

by David Masters

Story link: Aviva insures home office equipment

With more than a million people working from home on a regular basis, Aviva has updated its home insurance policy to cover business equipment as standard.
The updated policy covers loss or damage to office furniture and equipment that is used for business purposes, such as computers, printers, filing cabinets, office chairs, photocopiers, and answer machines, [...]



ABI launches contents insurance scheme for Londoners

by Gill Montia

Story link: ABI launches contents insurance scheme for Londoners

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) is starting work on a new scheme aimed at providing low-cost contents insurance to low-income Londoners living in social housing.
The Association has teamed up with insurer Aviva and insurance broker Aon to embark on discussions with London local authorities and housing associations, with the idea of developing tenants’ insurance [...]



June 19, 2009

One in six English homes at risk of flooding

by Gill Montia

Story link: One in six English homes at risk of flooding

With latest predictions on climate change warning of rising sea levels and higher winter rainfall, the Environment Agency has calculated that £20 billion will need to be spent on flood defences in England by 2035.
The government department puts one in six homes at risk of flooding and wants the current annual flood defence budget [...]



June 18, 2009

HomeLet unveil new Tenants policy

by Richard Kilner

Story link: HomeLet unveil new Tenants policy

UK Landlord and Tenant insurer HomeLet has launched a new contents insurance product aimed at tenants, Tenant’s Contents Insurance +, following feedback from its customer base.
HomeLet has recognised that tenants increasingly frequently share the costs of renting with a friend/colleague and the new policy takes account of this by permitting up to three to share [...]



June 17, 2009

MORE TH>N names London bike theft capital

by Gill Montia

Story link: MORE TH>N names London bike theft capital

MORE TH>N has been carrying out city centre research aimed at making cyclists more aware of security.
In its “bike snatch” experiment, which involved unsecured bicycles left in high footfall locations, the insurer found the inhabitants of Liverpool to be the most trustworthy followed by the residents of Bristol.
A cycle left in Liverpool city centre took [...]



June 15, 2009

Home insurance premiums up 25% in Ireland

by David Masters

Story link: Home insurance premiums up 25% in Ireland

Home insurance premiums in Ireland have sky-rocketed this year despite record unemployment and drastic price cuts across other sectors of the Irish economy.
Consumer watchdogs in the country have accused insurers of “crucifying” customers with “totally outrageous” premium rises of 25%.
In the overall economy, prices in Ireland have dropped by nearly 5% in the past year, [...]



June 11, 2009

Flash floods hit Derbyshire, Sheffield and Wales

by Gill Montia

Story link: Flash floods hit Derbyshire, Sheffield and Wales

Insurers can expect claims lines to be busy today as flash floods hit locations in Derbyshire, Sheffield and Wales in the past 24 hours.
According to a BBC report, eleven workers had to be rescued in Dronfield, north Derbyshire, when floodwaters isolated their building.
Meanwhile, in Sheffield parts of the supertram service had to be suspended and [...]



June 9, 2009

Homeowners advised to keep gardens covered

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Homeowners advised to keep gardens covered

Homeowners have been advised to make sure their garden contents are covered by their home insurance policy by moneysupermarket.com’s Steve Sweeney.
The average value of garden items is £700, and many gardens’ contents are worth over £1,000 with sun loungers, trees, smaller plants and barbecues.
However there is a significant shortfall between the average value of contents [...]



One in four cancel home insurance as recession bites

by Gill Montia

Story link: One in four cancel home insurance as recession bites

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has published new research indicating that one in four people have cancelled their home insurance in efforts to survive the recession.
The study was conducted by YouGov on behalf of the ABI and involved 2,000 adults across the UK.
It reveals the extent to which policies are either not being renewed [...]



June 1, 2009

jml provides landlord and household category for Ireland

by Gill Montia

Story link: jml provides landlord and household category for Ireland

jml Insurance Services has extended its offering to residents of the Irish Republic with the introduction a new household and landlord insurance category.
The move follows the launch of a Northern Ireland specialist area on the jml Insurance website last year.
An additional area of the site now offers introductions to companies such as Kay International and [...]



May 19, 2009

Kwik Fit Insurance sees home policy sales soar 42%

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Kwik Fit Insurance sees home policy sales soar 42%

Kwik Fit Insurance has enjoyed strong sales figures for home policies during the last month whilst aiming to expand its presence in the home insurance sector.
The intermediary, which is based in Uddingston, has reported a surge in home policy sales compared to the same period in 2008, with a rise of 42%.
Comparing the year as [...]



May 12, 2009

ABI promotes home insurance in North West

by Richard Kilner

Story link: ABI promotes home insurance in North West

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has launched an initiative in response to the large number of households in the North West who lack home contents insurance.
The campaign comes shortly after the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) published research showing that the recession is affecting home and car owner behaviour and reducing the number who [...]



Recession ravaged consumers cut home and motor cover

by Gill Montia

Story link: Recession ravaged consumers cut home and motor cover

The British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) has published new research showing that consumers are reducing insurance cover as a result of the recession, with home and motor insurance taking the brunt.
In a survey of its members, the body found 23% of respondents had seen their personal lines customers reduce their level of insurance protection since [...]



May 11, 2009

Recession takes its toll on homeowners

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Recession takes its toll on homeowners

More than half of the public are not looking to buy a new home, according to the Home Sweet Home survey by Legal & General.
The survey found that 54% were not presently looking to buy a new home in the future, with almost a quarter of these (23%) citing economic pressures as the reason.
The primary [...]



May 8, 2009

Comparethemarket.com expands its home insurance panel

by Gill Montia

Story link: Comparethemarket.com expands its home insurance panel

Comparethemarket.com has added seven new brands to its home insurance panel, as quote volumes for home cover rise sharply.
Kwik Fit, Endsleigh, Hiscox, Castle, Aim4agreatquote, Insureitall, and Policyshop now form part of the price comparison website’s resource.
The firm’s commercial director, Jeremy Moll, comments: “This year our home insurance quote volumes have increased by 300% and we [...]



May 5, 2009

MSL launches three new assistance products

by Gill Montia

Story link: MSL launches three new assistance products

Legal expenses insurer, MSL, has announced that it will be launching a range of new products at this year’s BIBA exhibition and conference, to be held between 13th and 15th May, in Manchester.
MSL UK & European Breakdown Assistance provides rescue services for motorists including local, national and European recovery. The service is backed by Europ [...]



April 28, 2009

Legal & General team up with Merlin Claims

by Richard Kilner

Story link: Legal & General team up with Merlin Claims

Legal & General and Merlin Claims have signed a three year agreement to enhance the service provided to Legal & General’s household insurance claims customers.
Upon notification by the customer of a claim, the Legal & General and Merlin Claims teams will collaborate with one another in a bid to deliver a more effective and efficient [...]