Insurer
Liberty to open Leeds office
Liberty Mutual Insurance (LMI) is to open an office in Leeds with the aim of boosting growth in the mid-market commercial lines sector.
XL launches life science insurance solutions
XL Group has launched a new range of insurance solutions for the life science industry.
Board changes at Swiss Re
Robert Henrikson is the Swiss Re board of directors’ choice to succeed Robert Scott on the board once he resigns on reaching retirement age.
Editor’s letter - October 2011
“The government, always keen to jump on a bandwagon, has taken up public concerns over soaring premiums”
Reportage: Do the right thing
Getting the level of payouts, customer service and the time taken to process a claim correctly is a tricky job, but the industry is starting to get the balance right, reports Edward Murray
Power hour: Survive the surge
Claims are seen as the shop window of the insurance industry. However, this sector seldom gets the chance to show its capability outside major surges in claims such as last year’s ‘big freeze’ or the recent riots, writes Martin Friel
The Broker Business Club: Why the mid-market matters
In the first of a series of business lunches being held across the country, Insurance Age has teamed up with Zurich to bring together some of the most senior and influential brokers to discuss the most pressing concerns in their particular markets. The…
Products: F&R unveils oil-fired heating scheme
Grantham-based F&R Associates has unveiled a home emergency scheme for oil-fired central heating systems to be sold under its Cover My Business brand.
Products: Oxygen launches cover for home-working therapists
Oxygen Insurance Brokers has launched an exclusive home insurance scheme for psychological professionals in the UK who see clients at home.
Product roundup: MMA reveals home truths about retendering
MMA’s research into brokers and schemes makes for interesting reading, revealing as it does that brokers’ main reason for changing the holding insurer of a scheme is the promise of more commission. The study also reveals that the most frequent time to…
Products: UK General broadens tradesman product
UK General has been celebrating the signing of a new capacity deal with MMA to broaden its tradesman’s liability offering. The development is the latest step in the company’s strategy of growing its commercial product set following its capacity deal in…
Products: Central Insurance offers new charity policy
Central Insurance has joined forces with Hiscox to launch a new charity policy. It is the first tie-up between the Aberdeen-based broker and the specialist insurer in a move the two claimed was designed to meet the entire spectrum of insurance needs for…
Products: Focus groups lead Exeter Family Friendly to PMI plan
Exeter Family Friendly has unveiled the fruits of its series of focus groups with private medical insurance (PMI) intermediaries dating back to 2010 – a new modular PMI plan named Health Choices for Me.
Products: Arbiters of etiquette launch HNW product
A new player has entered the high net worth sector with the launch of Debrett’s Prestige Insurance providing comprehensive buildings and contents cover “for discerning home owners”.
Gender pay gap wider than ever
Study finds female junior insurance executives get paid more than males but gap remains at senior level
Brokers still pessimistic over commercial market
London Market KPMG survey predicts consolidation and rate hardening
How to… move a scheme
▶ Brokers have long regarded schemes as an opportunity to mine a niche for the benefit of their business. However, once they have taken the time to investigate a market, pull together the product and persuade an insurer to work together in a partnership,…
Sizing up the market
If the accepted wisdom were to be believed, these days, commercial clients simply buy on price and everything that a broker brings to the table, such as risk management and market knowledge, is immaterial. But two recent, separate, surveys of SMEs and…
Market moves: Making moves in the Midlands
The Midlands was the place to be this month with numerous appointments and promotions at all levels, with Commercial Express in particular the source of a few moves. Lorica and Oxford Insurance Brokers also added several employees to their teams.
Right move, wrong time?
Axa’s ambition to grow in the current soft market is high risk but there may be some sound strategic reasons why it is trying, explains Tony Cornell
Data, data, everywhere…
At last, Tony Bloomer might be getting a universal phone charger, but when will the industry have a standard approach to customer data?
OFT continues to target private motor over competition concerns
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has opened a consultation aimed at addressing competition issues in the private motor market.
Andrew Torrance succeeded by former Swiss Re chief at ClimateWise
ClimateWise, the global insurance industry’s leadership group to reduce the risks of climate change, has appointed former Swiss Re CEO John Coomber as its new chairman.
Axa, Allianz and QBE in the frame for HSBC
Allianz and Axa are among the potential bidders for HSBC’s general insurance business, according to reports.