Rise in coastal properties US industry’s biggest hurricane risk
23 June 2008
Almost three years since Hurricane Katrina devastated properties and, in turn, the insurance industry, little along the US coast has changed...
International
Buffett picks up ING reinsurance arm
23 June 2008
Dutch financial services firm ING Group has completed the sale of its run-off reinsurance unit NRG to Columbia Insurance Company...
Americans reject flood insurance
23 June 2008
Only 17% of Americans have flood insurance, according to a survey by the Insurance Information Institute...
Fitch predicts US underwriting loss
23 June 2008
US property and casualty insurers will suffer underwriting losses this year as the market continues to soften, says Fitch Ratings...
III updates international stats
23 June 2008
The Insurance Information Institute has updated its International Fact Book with the latest statistics on the international insurance industry...
AIG boss bows to pressure and quits
16 June 2008
AIG CEO Martin Sullivan has stepped down from the embattled American insurer...
Willis faces ratings backlash after broker acquisition
16 June 2008
Ratings agencies have reacted with concern to the reliance of major broker Willis on debt to fund its $US2.1 billion ($2.2 billion) purchase of Hilb Rogal & Hobbs...
S&P assigns stable ratings outlook to global insurers
16 June 2008
Standard & Poor’s has assigned a “stable” outlook to most global insurers despite intense competition holding down earnings...
Insurers to ride out the US credit crunch
16 June 2008
Insurers are the least likely financial institutions to bear the brunt of the US subprime mortgage crisis, says a ratings agency official...
Swiss Re calls for public-private risk financing
16 June 2008
Swiss Re has called on governments to use public-private partnerships to prevent natural catastrophes draining public funds...
Industry braces for US flood claims
16 June 2008
Damage to infrastructure from last week’s floods in the US state of Iowa is expected to reach hundreds of millions of dollars...
Future bleak for US bond insurers
16 June 2008
US bond insurers are in dire straits if last week’s ratings downgrades are anything to go by...
Contingent commissions return via the back door
10 June 2008
Three years after the “big three” brokers in the US agreed to stop accepting contingent commissions, a new agreement with government agencies paves the way for…
Ace set to incorporate in Switzerland
10 June 2008
Ace Limited has denied it’s planning to move from its Bermuda headquarters after deciding to change its place of incorporation from the Cayman Islands to Switzerland...
Zurich leads scramble for bank’s insurance assets
10 June 2008
Zurich and US insurer Allstate are the major bidders for the insurance wing of the Royal Bank of Scotland, which is on sale for about £7 billion ($14.5 billion)...
Willis doubles US exposure
10 June 2008
Global insurance broker Willis Group Holdings has bought major US competitor Hilb Regal and Hobbs for $US2.1 billion ($2.2 billion)...
Liberty Mutual establishes Indian JV
10 June 2008
Liberty Mutual is the latest foreign insurer to recognise the potential of the fast-growing Indian market...
UK regulator backs away from compulsory disclosure
02 June 2008
British brokers look to be winning the battle over mandatory commission disclosure...
RBS insurance arm awaits buyer
02 June 2008
First-round offers for the Royal Bank of Scotland’s insurance business are likely to drag on through June after the extension of an initial deadline, media reports have claimed...
Challenges ahead for US commercial, reinsurance: S&P
02 June 2008
Underwriting profitability could suffer as prices deteriorate across US property/casualty lines, says Standard & Poor’s...