Taxing times for business, but an opportunity for insurers
15 July 2013
Global business leaders now fear high taxation above all other threats, as the pressure of public scrutiny grows and demands for transparency get louder…
Analysis
Mitigation trumps subsidies when it comes to cat risk
08 July 2013
Governments often step into the insurance market following a natural disaster, setting up state-controlled schemes when insurers are considered to have failed…
Steadfast buys up, and the key party begins
01 July 2013
The Steadfast prospectus, launched on Friday afternoon, has already filled a few newspaper pages, and will fill many more before its likely emergence in August as a listed entity with a mixture of broker ownership…
Did anyone really need Fels’ public inquiry?
24 June 2013
Allan Fels has had a distinguished career in public service and academia. His chairmanship of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission revealed him as a savvy communicator who maintained…
Companies get to grips with risk
17 June 2013
Businesses are prioritising risk management like never before, according to the 11th Aon Australasian Risk Management Benchmarking Survey…
Sidecars have London market in a spin
11 June 2013
Berkshire Hathaway CEO and Chairman Warren Buffett wrote recently – and without irony –that “there are a lot of ways to lose money in insurance, and the industry never ceases searching for new ones”…
Steadfast could face choppy waters before it floats
03 June 2013
Listing on the Australian Securities Exchange will increase Steadfast’s strategic and capital flexibility, giving greater capacity to raise funds for growth, the company says in documents outlining its proposed…
Tough talk begins over TRIA renewal
27 May 2013
With a key piece of post-September 11 legislation nearing expiration, a war of words has broken out in the US over the future of terrorism insurance…
Another set of standards, and more costs for insurers
20 May 2013
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority wants to make risk management in the financial services industry easier by having the same rules across general and life insurers and the banks…
The ups and downs of premiums
13 May 2013
Reports commenting on premium rates are often seen as primarily reflecting the publishers’ best interests. When brokers predict falling rates in a hardening market, insurers can be guaranteed to accuse them of viewing the market through rose-tinted spectacles…
Builders’ warranty: an insurance market failure?
06 May 2013
The builders’ warranty insurance market is a confusing party that few insurers want to attend…
Brokers keep faith in the indirect route
29 April 2013
Recent surveys warning brokers of the dangers posed by an increasing SME movement to the direct market are nothing new…
No let-up in the regulatory squeeze
22 April 2013
Insurers in the Asia-Pacific region face more scrutiny from regulators this year – and the pressure will not ease, according to a report obtained by insuranceNEWS.com.au…
Climate change: a catalyst for extreme weather
15 April 2013
Climate change is already having an impact on extreme weather events in Australia – and scientists warn worse is still to come…
Brokers sweat over rising premiums
08 April 2013
Rising premiums are the biggest external concern for brokers, according to the first Lumley Insurance Benchmark broker survey…
Affordability: the elephant in the room
25 March 2013
For all of the Government’s recent announcements on mitigation works and flood cover, the issue of short-term affordability of insurance remains unsolved…
Younger business-owners pose a problem for brokers
18 March 2013
Brokers must better promote their value or risk losing SME clients, particularly the under-40s and women, a new report warns…
More regulation is coming, and it’s unstoppable
11 March 2013
The insurance industry faces a storm of regulation coming from abroad, along with local pressure from governments over the affordability of cover and discrimination based on risk…
Mitigation funding isn’t all it’s cracked up to be
04 March 2013
While on the surface the Federal Government’s commitment to flood mitigation funding seems to answer some prayers for the insurance industry, it may turn out to be a case of being careful what you wish for…
North Queenslanders caught in a downward spiral
25 February 2013
A spate of natural disasters in north Queensland, from Cyclone Larry in 2006 to Cyclone Yasi in 2011, has really only affected southern Australians via the rising price of bananas…