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Study reveals mutuals increase market share
Europe
Online Published Date:
02 March 2007
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807 - 02 March 2007
AM Best reviews ratings
US
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02 March 2007
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807 - 02 March 2007
Oil cos take on risk
International
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02 March 2007
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Aviation
7.2, crash, fatalities
Brazil: a twin-engine aircraft crashed in the Amazon jungle, killing all six people aboard, according to Brazil’s National Civil Aeronautics Board. The Seneca aircraft crashed in dense forest in central Brazil about 25..
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02 March 2007
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807 - 02 March 2007
Natural catastrophes
7.2, floods, fatalities
Indonesia: thousands of residents of Jakarta began returning to their homes as flood waters receded, facing the huge task clearing up streets and homes caked in stinking garbage and mud. The death toll from the floods, the..
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02 March 2007
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Marine
11.2, collision, fatalities
China: three people were killed and 18 others injured in a collision between a hydrofoil and general cargo vessel QD 01
off the coast of Quang Ninh province. Thick fog had obstructed the hydrofoil crew’s view and..
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02 March 2007
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807 - 02 March 2007
Liability, awards and settlements
8.2, inadequate security, judgment
US: an Atlanta jury issued a $1.7mn judgment against the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) over a case in which a woman was kidnapped from a station parking garage and raped. The woman sued,..
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02 March 2007
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Road and rail
6.2, crash, fatality
Hungary: a passenger train crashed into a freight train near the western Hungarian town of Komarom, killing one person and injuring two. The driver of the passenger train died. Part of the freight train was derailed by the..
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02 March 2007
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Property damage and business interruption
6.2, bird flu
International: scientists investigating an outbreak of bird flu in a British flock of turkeys said there might be a link with an outbreak in Hungary in January. The UK government said there was a possible connection, contradicting..
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02 March 2007
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RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd
Much of the increase in RenaissanceRe’s reinsurance gross premiums in 2005 was ‘loss related’ i.e. attributable to the large catastrophes of 2005. This applied to both the company’s property catastrophe and specialty reinsurance portfolios
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02 March 2007
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New civil code expected to boost demand for liability cover
The Lithuanian non-life market is one of the smallest in the region, and in Europe generally, but the substantial increase in income due to compulsory motor third party liability in 2002 makes Lithuania the largest in the Baltic states. In addition, the statistics do not fully reflect the real size of the insurance market as a number of large risks (aviation and property, for example) are placed abroad on a freedom of services basis and the premium income is not recorded locally
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02 March 2007
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Converium gains 16.5% on Scor takeover bid
For the most part, the buoyancy of corporate stock values is only as good as the most recent piece of good news about the company. And the emphasis is very much on recent for as soon as any bit of positive news is ‘priced in’, the stock..
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02 March 2007
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Economic indicators bode well for Latin American insurance sector
Nominal growth figures in Latin America have been strong in recent years, for example compound annual growth over the last five years in the Brazilian insurance market was 14%. Lewis Phillips
of reinsurance broker Benfield’s Industry Analysis Research (IAR) unit, and the author of a recent IAR report on the region, says the low levels of insurance penetration prevalent throughout the Latin American region support the view that these markets have the potential for even stronger growth
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02 March 2007
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Regional insurance markets record strong growth in 2006
Venezuela was the fastest-growing economy in the region, with GDP rising by 10.3%. However, it also had the highest inflation
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02 March 2007
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Fire premiums suffer effects of new pricing regime
The industry will not feel the full force of the current premium war - which has unexpectedly struck fire lines - until April
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02 March 2007
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Strong non-life underwriting results as claims ratio improves
The claims experience improved in most lines, helped most by a 60% drop in weather related losses
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02 March 2007
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European insurers report strong growth in operating profit
AXA promises further growth in 2007 • Allianz profits rise to €10bn • ZFS records 48% surge to €5.9bn
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02 March 2007
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Allianz buys out Russian partner to own majority stake in Rosno
The German insurer says Russia is one of its most important growth markets • ZFS acquires 66% holding in Russian personal lines insurer • Groupama nears completion of Greek deal • Eureko files lawsuit against Poland’s Ministry of the State Treasury
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02 March 2007
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Converium defensive as SCOR pursues “friendly” takeover offer
Hostile bids are very rare in reinsurance and are often thought unlikely to prove successful
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02 March 2007
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MetLife posts record revenue and earnings results in 2006
Earnings boosted by MetLife property sell-off • Asset management lifts Prudential Financial • Manulife income up 21%
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02 March 2007
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Mississippi AG measures to prevent insurer’s withdrawal fail
The state’s governor says he has no authority to force a private company to sell property insurance
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02 March 2007
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807 - 02 March 2007
IT and business continuity: the case for Linux
Choosing the operating system that an organisation uses to run its critical applications remains a tough decision, according to
Sri Sridharan,
vice president of UK based IT solutions services group, Stratus. Mr Sridharan says that Linux is growing..
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02 March 2007
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807 - 02 March 2007
Quinn furious at Irish government action
However, the group will have been encouraged by the findings of two recently published reports into competition in the Irish health insurance market
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02 March 2007
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Converium captures the spotlight
For Converium, the most notable event to report from 2006 was the sale of the US run-off business to Berkshire Hathaway at a loss of $190mn but, as Converium was keen to point out, its liabilities had declined by more than $1bn as a result while its shareholders’ equity had increased by nearly $200mn
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02 March 2007
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APRA takes action against Zurich executive
Asia Pacific
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Swiss Re forms legal entities in Luxembourg
Europe
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16 March 2007
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Guy Carpenter recruits Aon Re executive
US
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16 March 2007
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Automated speech competes with offshore centres
International
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Security
27.2, stolen paintings
France: at least two Picasso paintings with a combined value of €50.0mn were stolen from his granddaughter’s home in Paris. A portrait of the Spanish painter’s daughter, Maya with Doll, and one of his second..
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16 March 2007
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Aviation
22.2, Kentucky crash, court case
US: Comair sued the federal government over last summer’s plane crash in Kentucky that killed 49 people. The Delta regional airline based in the Cincinnati area said the Federal Aviation Administration was..
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Natural catastrophes
20.2, volcano eruption
Colombia: the authorities ordered villages to evacuate after the Mount Nevado volcano in the south-western province of Huila belched ash, and increased seismic activity threatening to trigger larger eruptions. The evacuation..
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16 March 2007
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Marine
20.2, accident, fatality
US: a female tug worker was killed when she became pinched under heavy rope attached to a barge off the coast of Marina del Rey. A male co-worker was seriously injured when the rope swung and hit him. The accident occurred..
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Liability, awards and settlements
20.2, medical negligence, damages
UK: a teenager was awarded £6.6mn damages for a birth injury which left him severely brain-damaged. The boy had cerebral palsy and mental impairment after he was born at the city’s John Radcliffe Hospital..
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Road and rail
24.2, derailment, fatality
UK: an elderly woman was killed and five people were seriously injured when a high-speed London-to-Glasgow train derailed in farmland near the town of Kendal on the edge of England’s Lake District. Firemen working in..
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Property damage and business interruption
21.2, building collapse, fatalities
Turkey: a five-story apartment building collapsed in Istanbul, killing at least two people and injuring more than two dozen others. A city worker who chanced to walk by saw the building swaying and alerted people..
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Royal & SunAlliance Insurance Group
While the radical restructuring has addressed and resolved most of the strategic issues that plunged the group into crisis at the beginning of the decade, the businesses in run-off in the US continue to present significant strategic risks
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Romanian-owned companies struggle to compete with EU peers
In the run-up to EU membership on January 1, 2007, the number of foreign insurers participating in the market increased and while it raised standards of professionalism and supervision, the ex-state insurer Asirom’s market share has fallen from 100% in 1991 to 8% in 2005 and two other Romanian firms have run into capital problems
Online Published Date:
16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Stocks weighed down by US mortgage market concerns
For the most part, broader economic concerns, rather than factors that were directly company or insurance specific, weighed heavily on the stock values of the insurers and reinsurers tracked by WIR
for the fortnight ending March 8.
A number of..
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Chile’s insurers’ earnings surge by 87% to $489mn in 2006
Motor and earthquake lines were the top performers Dominican Republic market braces itself for a 16% insurance tax
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Public sector insurers face up to solvency issues ahead of IPOs
Three of the four public sector insurers sold equity holdings to meet solvency requirements in preparation for listings
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
The threat posed by traffic accidents to insurers’ capital resources
Makato Kawagoe
of the General Insurance Association of Japan (GIAJ) on the Association’s new traffic accident prevention programme and why the GIAJ is addressing the issue with the same seriousness as it does natural catastrophe losses
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16 March 2007
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Swiss Re proposes commercial health insurance market for China
CIRC is taking Swiss Re’s recommendations on board India’s budget raises tax deduction limit for health premiums
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16 March 2007
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Motor results stabilise as insurers get claims under control
EU countries are now committed to reduce the number of road deaths by 50% between 2001 and 2010
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16 March 2007
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Global warming adds to growing risk of hurricane events
Insurers should not get used to light losses from natural catastrophes, warn Munich Re and Swiss Re
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16 March 2007
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EC seeks to improve patient mobility rights
Legislative proposals are expected later this year to ease the path of patients seeking reimbursement for treatment abroad
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16 March 2007
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Fixed annuity sales end 2006 on a low ebb
Throughout 2006 fixed annuities had a hard time competing with bank certificates of deposit and guaranteed variable annuities
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
AIG unit ordered to pay $444mn to end Superior National dispute
Arbitration panel ends eight-years of legal proceedings over workers’ compensation claims AIG results resilient
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Claims blame: quantifying subrogation claims
Subrogation is where one person or entity (usually an insurance company) assumes the legal rights of another person for whom the first entity has paid money on their behalf. So, the insurer who paid out the claim to their insured will subrogate (take legal action) against the entity that actually caused the damage. Tony Levitt
, a partner at forensic accountants and consultants, RGL, looks at the issues that should be taken into account when an insurer settles the original insurance claim to increase the prospect of recovery in a subsequent subrogation action against a third party that caused the damage
Online Published Date:
16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Communication and crisis management
Mark Twain once said, “There are only two certainties in life – death and taxes.” For
Paul D’Arcy,
vice president of Worldwide Marketing at crisis communication infrastructure consultancy, MessageOne, in the world of..
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16 March 2007
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808 - 16 March 2007
Move to speed up cross border mergers
There is a growing concern in Strasbourg that Europe’s insurance sector risks languishing in the ‘second division’ of the global league table
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16 March 2007
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Asia
Life insurers face challenges in Taiwan
Online Published Date:
30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Europe
Aon complete Swedish acquisition
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
North America
Rising cost of healthcare most pressing concern
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
International
Risk management is key rating factor
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Security
13.3, stolen diamonds
Netherlands: a man stole US$28mn worth of diamonds from an Antwerp bank where he had been a trusted customer for a year, using a stolen Argentine passport. Prosecutors say the suspect broke into safety deposit boxes in an..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Aviation
7.3, crash, fatalities
Indonesia: at least 49 people were confirmed dead after a Boeing 737-400 (PK-GZC) with 140 on board - including Australians -crashed and burst into flames at Indonesia’s Yogyakarta Airport. Garuda Airlines said there..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Natural catastrophes
6.3, earthquake
Indonesia: a powerful earthquake flattened hundreds of buildings in western Indonesia, killing at least 70 people and overwhelming hospitals with injured. The magnitude-6.3 quake on Sumatra island was felt in neighbouring Malaysia..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Marine
6.3, capsized boat, fatalities
UK: one fisherman was dead, another missing and three were rescued after their boat, fishing William II
, owned by Guyana Quality Seafood Ltd capsized in the Atlantic Ocean about three miles from land. The..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Liability, awards and settlements
7.3, medical negligence
UK: a high-flying City of London lawyer who claimed more than £5.0mn in damages after being mis-prescribed medication for a minor ailment was awarded £1.43mn in compensation at the High Court. Cathy Horton, 44,..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Road and rail
6.3, derailment
UK: a train derailed in Kent after hitting a tree left blocking the line after high winds. Eight people, including the driver and conductor, were on the early morning train from Kent to Surrey. No-one was hurt. The front of the train..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Property damage and business interruption
9.3, birdflu
Asia: the deadly bird flu virus spread into southern provinces of impoverished, landlocked Laos after outbreaks near Vientiane. Officials planned to cull up to 200,000 fowl to stamp out confirmed and suspected outbreaks in the southern..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Late reports
5.3, mid-air collision, fatalities
Austria: eight people were killed when a light plane and a helicopter collided near the Austrian ski resort of Zell am See. The transport helicopter had seven people aboard and all were killed in the crash as well..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Chubb Corporation
The deal with Harbor Point means that Chubb will refrain from writing reinsurance business directly. However, for a transition period of up two years, Harbor Point has the right to write specific reinsurance business on behalf of Chubb
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
New insurance law likely to give banks intermediary status
Panama continues to have too many insurers for the size of the market and a powerful community of brokers and agents. But while competition is widespread and intense, the market’s results remain good and reinsurers continue to beat a path to the market
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Barclays - ABN Amro merger prompts slight recovery
The stock values of the insurers and reinsurers tracked by WIR
recovered somewhat during the fortnight ending 22 March – but not by much. Once again investors, moving with extreme caution, were propelled by the broader rather than by the..
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Growth in life insurance outpaces non-life in 2006
The local life insurance market rose 26% compared with 3.4% in non-life which saw premiums decline in marine and liability
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30 March 2007
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Profits double for life insurance sector in 2006
Premiums rose just 6% but profits rocketed, according to regulatory data • MetLife plans to expand operations in Chile
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30 March 2007
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Brazilian insurers report income up 13%, driven by life
Motor insurance income down 10% in 2006 • SUSEP notes rise in money laundering cases • Zurich Brasil’s profits down by over half • Local AIG unit says profits up almost 7% • Chubb Brasil records profits up to 27.2mn reales
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Argentina to make environmental cover compulsory
Motor insurance costs rise 10% in Dominican Republic • El Salvador’s insurers record 9% increase in profits • Survey says region’s insurance business is growing fast
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30 March 2007
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GIC foreign premium income may fall under $500mn this year
Boosted by its current level of capitalisation, GIC is confident in its ability to write international business in excess of $3bn
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Legislation to raise FDI unlikely this parliamentary session
The proposal to increase the limit on foreign direct investment from 26% to 49% is being vigorously opposed
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Mutual insurers outperform stock company rivals
Mutuals are showing stronger profits at an average of 22.9% • Fraud investigations save insurers money
Online Published Date:
30 March 2007
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Hannover Re’s results insulated from market softening
Rates increase obtained for seventh successive season • Eureko strikes Turkey deal • AXA buys in Italy
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
Spending controls reduce health insurance deficit
Two years of cost-cutting under “regime general” has resulted in a better diagnosis for France’s health insurance scheme
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30 March 2007
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Insurers say Florida’s legislation to manage rates is “reckless”
Rate cuts filed by some of the state’s largest insurers amount to less than 10%, below the expected reduction of 24%
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30 March 2007
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PXRE’s strategic review ends in merger with Argonaut
A deal with Argonaut to create a new reinsurer breathes new life into PXRE, which ceased writing reinsurance last year
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30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
P&I clubs boosted by successful 2007/08 renewal season
However, broker Aon described last minute 70% increase in the marine passenger sector’s reinsurance tariff as a ‘mugging’
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30 March 2007
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The global rise of insurance fraud: a tale of two countries
Whilst insurers are already doing a lot to beat fraud, using a range of techniques to do so and often at significant financial cost, the Association of British Insurers believes that fraudulent insurance claims still cost more than £1.5bn each year. And, according to Mark Jones, managing director of Conversant Data, an anti-fraud outsourcing provider, there is every reason to believe that insurance fraud costs will continue to rise. Conversant Data’s own research indicates that as many as one in four motor, and almost as many as one in two home, claims contained an element of fraud. Whilst these figures are UK specific, the problem has no constraints or boundaries. Mr Jones says that eastern and central Europe, in particular, represents a huge region being targeted by fraudsters. Mr Jones cites specific examples from Poland where Conversant has recently opened an office
Online Published Date:
30 March 2007
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809 - 30 March 2007
The “what if?” approach to risk management
Preventing an incident developing into a crisis for the business, or allowing it to escalate into a disaster that may result in its downfall is often given too little attention by those responsible for crisis management, according to
Paul..
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30 March 2007
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Motor pool fully active in April
The pool is likely to have a negative impact on private sector insurers which, through selective underwriting, have maintained relatively low claims ratios
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30 March 2007
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UK prudential regulation under scrutiny
Both investigations are likely to be critical of the effectiveness of redress systems available to victims, particularly within a cross border context
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30 March 2007
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