Letters: Insurance is paying a price May 11, 2022 [Re: Hiscox sets aside £32m to weather impact of war in Ukraine, May 5] What’s happened with insurer Hiscox is just another example of how the insurance industry is now entering the most prolonged hard market in living memory. After the financial and reputational losses sustained during the pandemic, we are now deep into a [...]
Insurance sector deal-making hits decade high but 2023 outlook remains shaky February 26, 2023 Insurance sector M&A deals surged to a 10-year high in 2022, as the end of Covid-19 drove an uptick in deal-making activity. Insurance companies completed 449 M&A deals last year, marking the highest number of deals for a decade, new data from Clyde & Co shows. The surge in deals, from 418 in 2021 to [...]
EU mulls plans to ban insurers from insuring ships carrying Russian oil May 9, 2022 The European Union is considering banning insurers from insuring ships carrying Russian oil, as another means of draining Russia of the financial resources it needs to continue bankrolling its war in Ukraine. If brought into force, the new sanctions would come as another blow to Russia’s energy export industry, as the EU also weighs up [...]
Serco wins £570m contract to run US public health insurance schemes February 23, 2023 British outsourcing giant Serco has won a $690m (£573m) contract from the US government to administer the country’s public health insurance schemes. Serco will run back-office delivery of America’s public health insurance initiatives in determining whether US citizens are eligible to buy coverage through the government-backed schemes. Serco’s renewed contract, which it first won [...]
UK insurer Phoenix Group undergoes executive reshuffle September 6, 2022 UK Insurer Phoenix Group has hired the Bank of Ireland’s chief operating officer Jackie Noakes as its new chief transformation officer as part of a wider boardroom reshuffle. Prior to this, Noakes held senior roles at both Legal & General and American Express. Andy Briggs, Phoenix Group chief executive officer, said he was confident that [...]
UK motor insurers issued worst performance in a decade last year – and it’s not looking much better for 2023 June 26, 2023 UK motor insurers delivered their worst performance in a decade last year, new data has revealed, as inflation radically jacked up the cost of claims. Car insurers’ net combined ratio (NCR), which shows claims and costs as a proportion of premiums, hit 109.5 per cent in 2022, according to new data from EY released today. [...]
Insurers need more data to properly model climate risk, Bank of England insurance chief says June 8, 2022 The UK’s insurance sector lacks “comprehensive and high quality data” it needs to properly evaluate climate risk, the head of the Bank of England’s (BoE’s) insurance division has said. Speaking at the Association of British Insurers’ (ABI’s) climate summit 2022, Stefan Claus, the head of the BoE’s general insurance division, said insurers are struggling to [...]
EXCL – Sunak should lower national insurance in 2023, argues jobs chief December 28, 2022 With inflation having reached a 40-year high this year and the economy predicted to shrink in 2023, City A.M. zooms in on the volatile, hyperactive UK jobs market by checking in with Paul Farrer, the CEO and founder of London-based recruitment giant Aspire. Sitting down with this paper today, Farrer calls on the new Prime [...]
Hurricane Ian set to cost insurers £27-36bn October 3, 2022 The category 4 storm Hurricane Ian that hit the southwest coast of Florida earlier this month is set to cost insurers $30- 40bn (£27- £36bn), according to new analysis from S&P Global. However, US insurers are currently well positioned to absorb losses in having sufficient reserves to weather any financial hit, the ratings agency said [...]
Insurance trade body seizes control of subsidiary by flooding City association’s board December 22, 2022 The world’s largest insurance trade body has made a push to take control of one of its subsidiaries, following an ongoing spat between the two groups. The takeover bid saw the head of the Personal Finance Society (PFS) hit out at its parent organisation, the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) over claims it had acted “unilaterally” [...]