Broker
Editor's comment - January 2011
Here we go again. Another year, another set of woes. The economy has only improved slightly, premium rates still show no sign of real hardening and insurers still seem hell bent on self-sacrifice in the name of growth. I feel for you brokers, I really do…
Oamps grows UK presence with credit team
Oamps Special Risks has launched a new credit insurance division in the UK, Oamps Credit.
New general insurance technology offering for intermediaries launched
Founding directors, Gregg Taylor and Neil Harkin, have launched What-Insure, a general insurance trading platform for intermediaries.
Number of fraudulent household insurance claims eclipsing motor, warns ABI
Home insurance is now the number one target for insurance fraudsters according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI).
Cullum bags CBE for business and charity work
Towergate Partnership founder and chairman Peter Cullum has been recognised as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's New Year Honours List.
Industry voices worries over VAT rise
Following the rise in the rate of Value Added Tax (VAT) and insurance premium tax (IPT) Peter Hayman, director at travel insurance specialist P J Hayman, has called for the standardisation of tax across all forms of insurance.
Simply Business aims to extend SME reach with new hire
Online insurance broker Simply Business has hired Underwired Amaze to develop an electronic customer relationship marketing programme.
Towergate loses Blanc to Axa commercial lines
Axa has appointed Amanda Blanc as chief executive of its commercial lines business, which includes broker Bluefin.
Giles makes record buy despite fall in results
Giles has made the largest acquisition in its history despite experiencing a drop in turnover and earnings for 2010.
Product review: A comprehensive package for letting agents
This product has been reviewed by brokers and rated from one to five based on the policy’s key benefits.
PMI insurers accused of broker bullying to protect claims data
Private medical insurers (PMI) have been accused of threatening to cut off brokers that “rock the boat” over the issue of claims data transparency.
Reportage - Defining schemes: Spoilt for choice
Coming in such a vast array of shapes and forms, it is difficult to define what schemes actually are. Tony Bloomer argues their ambiguity enables flexibility and innovation and, ultimately, opportunity for the industry.
Fears trade bodies are on IMD2 collision course
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) and the British Insurance Brokers' Association (Biba) could be on a collision course over the revised Insurance Mediation Directive (IMD2).
Your opinions: One in four pay off other driver
Insurance Age welcomes your opinions via email, Linked In, the Broker Forum, Twitter and good old fashioned letters.
Product launch: Schemes target set for 2011
UK General has announced an ambitious new target of delivering 180 new schemes in 2011.
CBI calls for greater female presence in boardrooms
All UK listed companies should have to set targets for the number of women in their boardrooms, according to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).
Ex-Giles duo join forces to launch Amicus
Two former Giles employees have launched a new brokerage, Amicus Insurance Solutions, with the aim of hitting £1m commission by the end of 2013.
Higos reveals three-year plan of acquisition and organic growth
Higos Insurance Services has embarked upon an ambitious growth plan that could see it more than double in size over the next three years.
Reportage - Scheme innovation: Creative sparks
Has the financial crisis forced insurers to become more imaginative with new products and schemes or are they following where brokers lead? Louise Phillips investigates the catalyst for recent innovation in the market.
Moorhouse online arm set to write £50m GWP
Welsh broker Moorhouse's online commercial arm Constructaquote is aiming to write £50m of gross written premium (GWP) by the end of 2013.
Towergate: SME provision deal 'just the beginning'
Towergate Insurance has claimed its deal with Comparethemarket.com to provide insurance to small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) customers is "just the beginning" of its online SME strategy.
Start-up brokers: New Year, new start-up?
What's on your New Year's resolutions for 2011? Get fit, give up the fags, start a new broking business? Malcolm Lee sets out what you need to consider to be a successful start-up broker.
Cullum trade-off for IPO
Peter Cullum will lose his majority shareholding in Towergate Partnership as part of a new equity deal, Insurance Age understands.
Legal expenses: Referral fee free?
Martin Friel looks to the future and imagines a legal expenses market where referral fees no longer exist. What would this mean for brokers and how would the sector adapt to accommodate this change?