News
Managing general agent Optio Group has acquired Luxembourg-based Circles Group. It is also an MGA and specialises in contingency and special risks insurance. It controls more than £40m in gross written premium. Following the deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, the Circles office will become Optio’s European headquarters.
Posted: 2024-10-07
Gallagher has appointed Simon Collins (pictured) as chief broking officer. He will report to Michael Rea, chief executive officer of Gallagher in the UK and join his executive team. He was previously managing director of Gallagher’s national broking and placement team within its UK and Ireland retail division. The appointment is subject to regulatory approval.
Posted: 2024-10-07
Digital risk processing platform Cytora has teamed up with PriceHubble, which develops data solutions for the property and finance sectors. The partnership will give underwriters access to data such as valuations, market analyses, value forecasts, building simulations and energy performance insights.
Posted: 2024-10-07
Northern Irish broker Hughes Insurance has teamed up with Percayso Inform to implement its data enrichment solutions and enhance its digital pricing capabilities. The technology is designed to reduce fraud and improve conversion rates. Hughes Insurance was established almost 50 years ago and serves over 85,000 customers across the motor, home, van, travel and commercial insurance sectors.
Posted: 2024-10-03
Essex-based insurtech Surewise has acquired Lockton Mobility’s book of business. The acquisition brings over 161 retailers and brokers into the Surewise network, with direct access to mobility scooter insurance, powerchair insurance, wheelchair insurance, stand-alone 2, 3 and 4-year extended warranty insurance products, breakdown cover and a repair network and business insurance for retailers under Surewise’s retail trading brand, Just Mobility.
Posted: 2024-10-03
Independent broker Prosura has purchased Yorkshire-based Donald Schofield (Pontefract) Limited. The deal is Prosura’s second in the past 12 months and puts it on course to hit £6m of gross written premium by the end of the year. Prosura was founded by Jon Newall, following his sale and exit from Lockyer Insurance.
Posted: 2024-10-02
The Insurance Institute of London has announced that Lucy Clarke has been elected as its president for 2024/25. She is president, risk and broking at WTW and has more than 25 years of experience in the insurance sector. Previous roles include being chief executive officer of JLT Global Specialty. She becomes the first woman president of the IIL in its 117-year history.
Posted: 2024-10-02
Open GI has teamed up with artificial intelligence specialist OpenDialog to enable its broker customers to implement generative AI chatbot solutions for their customers. Under the deal, Open GI will offer its brokers access to OpenDialog’s generative AI chatbots via its policy administration platforms.
Posted: 2024-10-01
PIB Group Ltd has acquired Nottingham-based RS Insurance Brokers Ltd, which has a particular specialism in fleet and professional indemnity risks and was formed 45 years ago. As part of the deal, eight employees will move across from RS Insurance Brokers to PIB.
Posted: 2024-10-01
Managing general agent NBS Underwriting has secured additional AM Best A-rated
(Excellent) capacity from Hadron UK Insurance Company Limited. The capacity, introduced via Accelerant’s Risk Exchange platform, will be available across all SME, professional indemnity, property owners, and commercial products.
(Excellent) capacity from Hadron UK Insurance Company Limited. The capacity, introduced via Accelerant’s Risk Exchange platform, will be available across all SME, professional indemnity, property owners, and commercial products.
Posted: 2024-10-01
Figures released by the Association of British Insurers show the market detected £1.1bn worth of fraudulent claims in 2023, up by 4% on the previous year. In total, insurers detected 84,400 fraudulent claims with an average value of £13,000. Exaggerated loss was the most common type of fraud detected.
Posted: 2024-09-30
Insurance provider Berkeley Alexander has teamed up with speciality re/insurer Canopius to launch SafeGuard Protect, which is a modular product providing personal accident, income protection or mortgage or rent protection in the case of an accident, sickness or job loss. The move returns Berkeley Alexander to the ASU market for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Posted: 2024-09-30
Ratings and analytics technology specialist Hyperexponential has found an overwhelming 96% of the market see room for improvement in the pricing technology they currently use. The consultancy’s “2024 State of Pricing” report also found that almost half of respondents (47%) had bought pricing platforms that hadn’t delivered what they promised.
Posted: 2024-09-30
PwC has forecast a 10% drop in motor insurance premiums for drivers in Scotland and a 15% drop for those in Northern Ireland. This follows the change in the personal injury discount rate in these two countries. Following statutory reviews, the rate will change from -0.75% to +0.5% in Scotland, and from -1.5% to +0.5% in Northern Ireland.
Posted: 2024-09-27
A new report from the Lloyd’s Market Association and Aon makes a strong case for investing in Lloyd’s but highlights opportunities to make the process easier and ways in which terminology could be simplified to improve the predictability of set-up and running costs.
Posted: 2024-09-27
Prestige Underwriting has launched a short-term unoccupied property product to protect properties left empty following the death of the owner. The provider said that more than three-quarters of its brokers had seen an increase in the number of families seeking unoccupied property cover. It said probate-related delays were an increasing driver of properties being unoccupied for extended periods.
Posted: 2024-09-26
London-based Verve Risk Services has launched a new captive insurance product and its broker portal, Verve Aura. The micro-captive defender product was developed in collaboration with Michael Maglares & Company. Verve is supported by managing general agent services platform OneAdvent and recently recured investment from BP Marsh.
Posted: 2024-09-26
WTW has appointed Parveen Kaur (pictured) to the newly created position of global leader of operations, strategy execution and data for its digital trading business Neuron. She joins from Leeds Building Society where she was chief customer officer and prior to that she was head of operations at Lloyd’s of London.
Posted: 2024-09-26
Financial lines managing general agent Kayzen Specialty is offering add-in excess layer directors’ and officers’ liability policies that will drop down to offer cover where the primary cover is refusing to pay either due to an exclusion or because of a limitation elsewhere in the policy.
Posted: 2024-09-25
Speciality re/insurance broker McGill and Partners is set to open a new office in Sweden from which it will expand its operations in the Nordic region. The firm has recruited Jon Petursson and Wilhelm Westerstad from WTW as initial hires for the office.
Posted: 2024-09-25
Flood risk specialist JBA Risk Management has joined an international community of around 9,000 firms by achieving B Corporation certification. The accreditation demands firms pursue purpose as well as profit and appraises operations across five areas - governance, workers, community, environment and customers.
Posted: 2024-09-25
PPL has launched an express contract functionality to make it quicker and easier for brokers to bind risks, significantly shortening the time taken to create single contract placements. PPL is a technology company owned by the London & International Insurance Brokers’ Association, the Lloyd's Market Association, the International Underwriting Association of London and Lloyd's.
Posted: 2024-09-24
Specialist marine managing general agent Amphitrite Underwriting London has expanded its cargo team with the appointment of Fadi Faysal as cargo underwriter. He brings experience in both broking and underwriting to the team and has particular knowledge of the Middle East region.
Posted: 2024-09-24
Research from insurance software specialist RDT has found that 61% of insurer and managing general agent technology professionals say their firm is using generative AI, but that human oversight remains central to its successful adoption.
Posted: 2024-09-24
On 1st October, Tom Wilson will become CEO of Lloyd’s broker Tysers and Bob Pybus (pictured) will become CEO of AUB UK Retail. AUB purchased Tysers in 2022. The appointments are subject to regulatory approval. At the same time, Mike Emmett, CEO and MD of AUB Group, will stop acting as interim CEO of Tysers.
Posted: 2024-09-23
London-based incubator specialist Beat Capital Partners, a subsidiary of Ambac Financial Group, will launch proRISE Insurance Services on 1st October. It will offer management and professional liability insurance with a focus on small and medium-sized enterprises. Doug Karpp, former executive at Hiscox and AIG will head up the new managing general agent.
Posted: 2024-09-23
Insurance software provider RDT has become a member of ACORD Solutions Group’s Licensed Integrator Partner programme. As an LIP member, RDT can use ACORD Standards in its solutions, such as ACORD Transcriber, an intelligent document processing solution that automates data extraction and population from any structured or unstructured insurance document.
Posted: 2024-09-23
Research from financial services review site Smart Money People has found that one in six (17%) of Gen Z have no insurance products at all and that they cite cost and complexity as significant barriers. This is despite more than two in five (43%) having lost or had high value items stolen.
Posted: 2024-09-20
Lloyd’s has announced that Sir Charles Roxburgh KCB will take up the post of chair on 1st May 2025 and succeed Bruce Carnegie-Brown after an eight-year term. The appointment is subject to approval and consent from the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority.
Posted: 2024-09-20
Epoq Legal has launched a new legal expenses insurance product featuring LegalAde for businesses, in partnership with Temple Legal Protection. It offers a range of legal contracts and policies suitable for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and access to lawyers who are on hand to check and tailor documents for policyholders.
Posted: 2024-09-20
Independent French broker SAS Verlingue has launched registered Lloyd’s broker Verlingue London Markets Europe to provide placement and capacity solutions for property, casualty, motor fleet and specialist lines risks for its broker partners within the European Union. The new operation will complement the existing Verlingue London Markets operations, which will continue to service business from its UK and International broking partners.
Posted: 2024-09-19
Financial and professional lines managing general agent Spring Insure has secured enhanced A-rated capacity across all its product lines as part of a deal with hybrid fronting insurer, Bridgehaven Specialty UK. Spring Insure is targeting growth of 50% in its gross written premium in the coming 12 months.
Posted: 2024-09-19
Mohamed Choudhary has received a two-year suspended sentence from Inner London Crown Court for selling invalid insurance policies and covering up his own driving offences while applying for cover. The prosecution came after Aviva referred the case to the City of London Police’s Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department.
Posted: 2024-09-19
UK Export Finance has gone live with an online portal that UK firms can use to apply for government-backed export insurance. The export credit agency said the new portal would make it quicker and easier for firms to apply for cover.
Posted: 2024-09-18
Price Forbes Re has appointed Fred Few Brown and Jonathan Gerken as it grows its facultative team across all product lines. They will both be based in London. Few Brown will be responsible for property fac while Gerken will have a focus on terrorism and political violence.
Posted: 2024-09-18
Digital distribution platform solutions provider IS2 has launched an API enabled hosted pricing solution for commercial insurers and managing general agents. The technology makes it easier and faster for providers to sell their cover across multiple distribution channels.
Posted: 2024-09-18
Axa UK has improved its online capabilities and made it possible for customers to notify claims digitally for losses on their motor and home policies. The insurer said the move would create convenience for customers as well as making the claims process more efficient.
Posted: 2024-09-17
CFC has teamed up with Standard Chartered to create an insurance product that provides cover for the risks associated with providing debt financing to carbon credit projects. CFC said it was now focusing on bringing the lender insurance product to more banking institutions to enable them to provide commercial loans to carbon credit projects.
Posted: 2024-09-17
The Lloyd’s Market Association has set up a market-wide consultation on the Computable Binding Authority Agreement model wording that is being developed with the support of Lloyd’s, the London & International Insurance Brokers’ Association, the Managing General Agents’ Association and the International Underwriting Association.
Posted: 2024-09-17
Consumer watchdog Which? wants the Financial Conduct Authority to prevent insurers charging excessively high interest rates to customers who pay monthly. Which? said that new research in this area had found one provider was charging an annual percentage rate of more than 45%. The research covered 49 car and 48 home insurers.
Posted: 2024-09-16
Lloyd’s has announced the 10 insurtechs that will make up the 13th cohort of its Lloyd’s Lab Accelerator programme, which is the first to focus on building resilience in the Middle East and Africa. It also encompasses the themes of ‘data, models and processes’ and ‘new products.’
Posted: 2024-09-16
Carrick UK Holdings Company Limited, which is a subsidiary of non-life legacy insurance business Carrick Group Limited has acquired two Irish captives. They are BMS International Insurance DAC and Seamair Insurance DAC, which are both regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.
Posted: 2024-09-16
Moody's Ratings has changed its outlook for the UK property and casualty insurance sector to stable from negative. The move reflects the impact if rising premiums to absorb claims inflation in personal lines and Moody’s said premium rates in the commercial market were sufficient to support strong insurer performance.
Posted: 2024-09-13
Professional services and technology company Davies has appointed Paul O’Brien (pictured) as the firm’s first group chief AI officer. In this newly created role he will be responsible for advancing the use of AI technology across the organisation and for developing a core strategy for the ethical use of the technology. He was previously chief technology officer of Davies’ Global Solutions division.
Posted: 2024-09-13
Digital distributor Starpeak has teamed up with commercial insurer Peach Pi to create specialist products for the micro/SME sector. The aim is to provide flexible covers that reflect the individual and diverse needs of smaller businesses.
Posted: 2024-09-13
Consultancy MarshBerry has reported 12 merger and acquisition deals in the insurance sector during August and believes there will be an uptick in activity in the coming weeks due to the widely predicted changes to capital gains tax that are expected to be announced at the end of October.
Posted: 2024-09-12
According to the latest Pet Insurance Price Index from Pearson Ham Group, the average price of pet insurance dipped by 0.2% in August, but were still 10% higher than a year ago. August saw cover for dogs fall by 0.3% while it went it by 0.3% for cats.
Posted: 2024-09-12
Compass Insurance has agreed to consider providing full flood insurance cover to customers who fit Flood Technology Group’s flood adaptive platforms to their caravan, lodge or holiday home. The platforms rest on a mechanical jack system that’s designed to detect and react to flood conditions by automatically elevating above the rising water.
Posted: 2024-09-12
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association and the Managing General Agents’ Association have become affiliates, in a move that both organisations said would support a closer working relationship and deliver benefits for their respective members. BIBA’s affiliate membership is offered to organisations where representation with regulators, Government and other industry stakeholders would be of mutual benefit.
Posted: 2024-09-11
WTW has forged a partnership with insurance infrastructure platform Kayna. The agreement will support WTW’s ability to provide insurance solutions to SME clients in the UK and the US through vertical software-as-a-service platforms, which are created for specific industries. It will enable WTW to distribute property, general liability, workers’ compensation, commercial motor and umbrella liability insurance solutions to industry-specific vSaaS platforms.
Posted: 2024-09-11
Independent re/insurance broker BMS Group has named Richard Dudley as group chief broking officer. He will be based in London and joins from Aon where he was global head of climate strategy. Prior to that he headed up Aon’s commercial risk wholesale and specialty operations in London.
Posted: 2024-09-11
Insurance services provider Thomas Miller has launched a managing general agent called Navata. It has been formed out of Thomas Miller Specialty Offshore and will provide cover for renewable energy, power, onshore and offshore oil and gas risks, as well as providing marine insurance products. It is backed by S&P A+ and AA- rated capacity.
Posted: 2024-09-10
Specialist reinsurance managing general agent Connect Underwriting Limited has launched reinsurance MGA BRICS UW, subject to regulatory approval, which will provide capacity to emerging markets. It will seek to attract international markets, enabling reinsurers without a presence in London to access London distribution and business they would not typically see in their local territories.
Posted: 2024-09-10
Insurance provider CFC has named Kathryn Herrington as chief people officer. Most recently, she held the same position at SUSE, a private equity backed B2B software company. She has also worked for a number of investment banks in both London and New York.
Posted: 2024-09-10
Axa UK has appointed Rahul Gumber (pictured) as chief risk officer. He joins from Aviva Canada where he was chief risk officer, having also held the same position at Aviva Ireland. He will take up his post in the new year.
Posted: 2024-09-09
WTW’s latest global construction rate trend report details growing levels of capacity in the construction market which it forecasts will continue during the second half of the year and into 2025. It said growth in energy, utilities and infrastructure projects was underpinning expansion in the construction sector and fuelling insurer appetite for this business.
Posted: 2024-09-09
Oak Reinsurance and Polo Managing Agency Limited have announced that Oak Re Syndicate 2483 has secured Lloyd’s ‘in principle’ approval to begin underwriting from 1st January 2025. PMA is an independent turnkey Lloyd’s managing agency and is a PoloWorks company.
Posted: 2024-09-09
Lloyd’s has reported a profit before tax of £4.9bn for H1 2024. This is up from the £3.9bn reported in the same period last year. The market said its combined ratio had improved to 83.7% (85.2% for H1 2023) and that its gross written premium was £30.6bn, up from £29.3bn.
Posted: 2024-09-06
Allianz UK says its fraud teams have seen a marked increase in fraudulent noise induced hearing loss and fake or cloned businesses claims coming through in the first half of 2024. The insurer said it had saved £37.1m by detecting fraud during this six-month period.
Posted: 2024-09-06
Managing general agent Commercial Express has launched a new product for tattoo and body piercing practitioners. The packaged product offers public, professional, product and treatment liability cover, as well as material damage covers for property and business interruption losses. It is underwritten by BRIT Syndicate 2987 at Lloyd’s and Axis Managing Agency Ltd.
Posted: 2024-09-06
Flood Re has raised concerns that the evidence used to inform planning decisions on flood risk for new developments is often out of date and difficult to access. It also said there was little transparency around how decisions were made and little control in how compliance was ensured. The findings came from research from the Town and Country Planning Authority, commissioned by Flood Re.
Posted: 2024-09-05
Findings from Pearson Ham’s latest price index show that home insurance prices were up by 0.4% in August after their brief decline in July. The research found that the average home insurance premium was just less that £418, which is 26% higher than at the same time last year.
Posted: 2024-09-05
The Clear Group has acquired managing general agent Accelerate Underwriting, which was established in 2015 and controls £19m in gross written premium. The MGA has a focus on non-standard, specialist and niche commercial products, including care homes, guest houses, unoccupied properties, boats and pleasure craft.
Posted: 2024-09-05
Dale Underwriting Partners, which is the trading name of Dale Managing Agency Limited’s Lloyd’s Syndicate 1729, has appointed Ryan Barnes as head of professional lines. He joins from Westfield and will take up the post in January 2025. He will lead Dale’s entry into the international professional indemnity market.
Posted: 2024-09-04
Digital managing general agent Ripe has announced that Alan Thomas will succeed Paul Williams as chief executive officer. Williams is moving to a non-executive role and Thomas joins from Simply Business, where he was CEO. Founder and managing director John Woosey will also move to a NED role.
Posted: 2024-09-04
Specialist Risk Group has acquired Capulus, a managing general agent with a particular focus on motor fleet. The MGA is based in Wales and has a team of 21 people. The deal will enhance the capabilities of SRG's MGA pillar, MX.
Posted: 2024-09-04
Dual UK has acquired International Passenger Protection which was founded in 1990 and is a London-based managing general agent offering cover against insolvency of travel operators or other related suppliers. The deal boosts Dual’s position in the travel financial failure insurance market and is subject to regulatory approval in both the UK and Malta.
Posted: 2024-09-03
DAS UK, which is part of the ARAG Group has inked a deal with Preferred Management Solutions to join its home emergency services panel of suppliers for DAS partners and customers. DAS said Preferred’s digital proposition was a large factor in the appointment.
Posted: 2024-09-03
Paymentshield has improved the quote journey for intermediaries searching out cover for landlord clients. Property data from LexisNexis Risk Solutions now populates the quote application form to provide answers for property type, build year, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, wall type and brick type.
Posted: 2024-09-03
The Financial Services Consumer Panel has released research that shows significant price hikes for consumers at renewal, with average increases of 27% for car, 22% for home, and 13% for travel insurance. The FSCP said the fact that 85% of consumers who negotiated with their provider received a reduction raised questions on the value offered initially.
Posted: 2024-09-02
The Financial Ombudsman Service has said that between April and June 2024 it received more than 2,000 complaints about buildings insurance. It said this was 13% higher than the same quarterly period last year and added that 41% of complaints were upheld.
Posted: 2024-09-02
Digital broker Simply Business, which was established in 2005, has announced that its customer base has surpassed the one million milestone. The firm has more than doubled its customer base in the last five-and-a-half years and offers cover to customers in the UK and the US.
Posted: 2024-09-02
Claims management and loss adjusting firm Sedgwick has calculated that an average of 1kg of CO²e is produced for every £7.80 spent on domestic building repairs. It said the average insurance claim for domestic building repairs is £8,000, equating to a carbon cost of 1,496.6 kg CO2e.
Posted: 2024-08-30
JM Glendinning North Yorkshire, which is part of the JMG Group, has announced the acquisition of Bridlington-based insurance broker C P Bennet Ltd, which was founded in 1929. Its managing director Simon Benson joined the business in 1986 to work for his father who had been with the firm since 1970.
Posted: 2024-08-30
WTW has appointed Gavin Hamilton as a director within its London-based international property team. He joins from Miller Insurance Services LLP, where he headed up the European wholesale and South African property market.
Posted: 2024-08-30
Specialist Risk Group has acquired the ongoing renewal rights of Morton Insurance Brokers, which focuses on the UK private hire and taxi insurance sector. It is based in London and dates back to 1987. The move will bolster SRG’s existing specialist taxi business, Cabsurance.
Posted: 2024-08-29
Ageas has reported total net inflows of approximately £8.6bn for the first six months of 2024, as increase of 14% on the same period last year. This included £3.1bn of non-life inflows, an increase of 23%. Within the group, Ageas UK posted growth of 49%, driven by customer and premium growth primarily in its motor business.
Posted: 2024-08-29
Insurtech Uinsure has added Integra Insurance Solutions to its panel of home insurance providers. Uinsure was established in 2007 and, in addition to home, offers cover for landlords and a range of non-standard property risks as well as providing trades and professions policies.
Posted: 2024-08-29
Cycle insurance specialist Bikmo has penned an agreement with the Association of Cycle Traders to offer a range of covers designed to meet the needs of its members. Available products offer insurance to retailers, manufacturers and suppliers, and hire centres.
Posted: 2024-08-28
Ecclesiastical Insurance has announced that Dave Carey will become the managing director of its intermediary business in February 2025. He joins from Allianz, where he has been managing director of mid corporate UK, for the past 18 months. He replaces Adrian Saunders, who retired earlier this year.
Posted: 2024-08-28
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association has said Tom Downey, chief executive officer of Pen Underwriting, will join the trade body’s network and managing general agents advisory board. He replaces Charles Manchester, who is retiring.
Posted: 2024-08-28
Clear Group has acquired R T Waters Ltd, which was established in 1960. It is led my managing director Trevor Hayter and has a team of seven staff, based in the South East, with a focus on commercial, motor and liability risks.
Posted: 2024-08-27
Northern Irish broker AbbeyAutoline has launched a recruitment drive for school leavers and young professionals to join its apprenticeship programme. It is run in conjunction with Belfast Met and supports people towards Level 2 and 3 NVQ qualifications in Financial Services while working full-time in AbbeyAuotline’s personal lines sales team.
Posted: 2024-08-27
Hiscox Group has paid tribute to its chair Jonathan Bloomer and his wife Judy, who died earlier this week when the 56-metre British flagged yacht Bayesian sank near the port of Porticello, Sicily. There were 10 crew and 12 passengers on board. At the time of writing, five people had died in the tragedy and one remained missing.
Posted: 2024-08-23
Research from Ecclesiastical has found that more than a third (35%) of high net worth clients cannot remember the last time they instructed a valuation for their art and/or collections of jewellery, watches, wines or books. The insurer urged brokers to remind clients about the importance of accurate sums insured.
Posted: 2024-08-23
Swiss Re has reported net income of £1.6bn for the first six months of 2024. This was up on the £1.4bn posted for the same period last year. Its P&C reinsurance net income for the period was £754m, up from £742m. Its combined ratio for its P&C business deteriorated from 81.8% to 84.6%. Its Corporate Solutions business posted a net income of £332m, up from £242m and a combined ratio of 88.7%, which had improved from 89.2%.
Posted: 2024-08-23
The Financial Regulation Authority has said that if insurers cannot demonstrate that their products meet FCA rules and provide fair value, it will take appropriate regulatory action. This comes after the regulator intervened earlier this year in the guaranteed asset protection market.
Posted: 2024-08-22
Specialist Risk Group has acquired Anthony James Insurance Brokers, which was founded in 2009 and supports clients across commercial, corporate, and high-net worth personal lines. Its team of 50 will remain with the business, which will continue to be led by chairman and founder, Steve Boorman, and managing director, Jacob Duckworth.
Posted: 2024-08-22
In a bid to improve market understanding of address-mapping and peril-scoring technologies, AddressCloud has launched a training programme which has been accredited by the Chartered Insurance Institute. The programme will be delivered in conjunction with JBA Risk Management and subsidence specialists Maplesky.
Posted: 2024-08-22
Claims management system provider Synergy Cloud has teamed up with no-code claims automation and customer experience platform Claim Technology to develop a joint solution for the insurer and MGA claims market. The first joint initiative will see Synergy Cloud’s livestream video capability integrated into Claim Technology’s customer self-serve chatbot.
Posted: 2024-08-21
Caravan and leisure insurance provider Compass has launched a new product for beach huts and beach chalets. The policy provides cover for damage incurred as a result of storms, floods, fire, theft, vandalism or malicious damage. It also offers public liability cover. Compass said the average price of a beach hut was currently £49,290.
Posted: 2024-08-21
Cover-More Blue Insurance Services Limited (formerly Blue Insurance Limited), has named Jason Wheelan as managing director. The firm provides travel, car hire excess, pet, and gadget insurance through a number of brands and distribution partners. Cover-More Group is part of Zurich Group.
Posted: 2024-08-21
Brokers want insurers to broaden their risk appetite and make it easier for them to place small fleet risks, according to the latest Broker Barometer survey from Direct Commercial Limited. It found that 60% of brokers reported difficulties in securing small fleet cover and that 92% wanted insurers to adopt a broader risk appetite.
Posted: 2024-08-20
Ardonagh Advisory is to acquire RK Henshall & Co, which specialises in commercial insurance and has a number of schemes in its air underwriting division. The family business was established in 1976 and is based in Sandbach, Cheshire. Directors John Henshall and Allen Simpson will remain in the business.
Posted: 2024-08-20
Travel insurance provider Gigasure has teamed up with Blink Parametric to enable its policyholders to access Blink Parametric’s real-time flight and baggage delay products through an app. Gigasure policies are underwritten by SiriusPoint.
Posted: 2024-08-20
The Broker Investment Group has upped its investment in JPM Group, which is the holding group for BEAM Insurance Solutions. The move builds on the 49% stake BIG acquired in JPM in March 2023. BEAM controls gross written premium of £14m. BIG said it wanted to grow this to £20m in the next three years.
Posted: 2024-08-19
Esure Group has said in-force policy numbers for H1 2024 were just under 2 million. This is a drop of 12.4% on the same period last year. In contrast, the group said turnover was up by 16.8% to £540m. During H1 it migrated its business to a cloud native platform and decommissioned its legacy technology.
Posted: 2024-08-19
Financial service firm MarshBerry reported 11 insurance sector M&A deals in July bringing the total for the year-to-date to 85. This is 9% lower than the previous year, although MarshBerry said it expected to see an acceleration in H2 and forecast that total numbers for the year would get close to 2023’s figure of 151.
Posted: 2024-08-19
Admiral Group has reported profit before tax of £309.8m for the six months ended 30 June 2024. This is an increase of 32% on the same period last year. Insurance revenue was up by 38% to £2.21bn and the number of UK insurance customers increased by 17% to 8.23 million.
Posted: 2024-08-16
The Financial Conduct Authority has fined Martin Sarl £5,021 and banned him from working in the financial services industry for acting without honesty and integrity. He was the only director at Perry Prowse (Insurance Consultants) Ltd, and did not pass on clients’ premiums to insurers , leaving some of them uninsured.
Posted: 2024-08-16
Aviva plc has reported a group operating profit of £875m for H1 2024, up 14% on the same period last year. The carrier said general insurance premiums were up by 15% and now topped £6bn while its undiscounted combined operating ratio was 95.4%, a slight deterioration on the 94.8% recorded last year.
Posted: 2024-08-15
Fintech multinational Acrisure has revamped the leadership team at its UK-based retail broking operation, Eleven Network. The appointments include a new chair, CEO, deputy CEO, and CFO. The appointments are subject to regulatory approval.
Posted: 2024-08-15
QBE has appointed Simon Lascelles (pictured) as its director of underwriting for marine and British marine. He has been with the carrier for a decade and is tasked with expanding the firm’s book of business in the marine market.
Posted: 2024-08-15
Hanover Re announced that H1 group income for 2024 increased by 21% in comparison to the same period last year to reach approximately £1.02bn . It said reinsurance revenue grew by 5.2% to stand at £11.05bn. The carrier said expenditures for large losses amounted to around £485m in the first half-year, a figure within the allocated and booked budget of £686m.
Posted: 2024-08-14
AM Best has removed from under review with developing implications and affirmed the Financial Strength Ratings of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings of “a-” (Excellent) of Accredited Specialty Insurance Company (Gilbert, AZ), Accredited Surety and Casualty Company, Inc. (Orlando, FL) and Accredited Insurance (Europe) Limited (Malta), collectively known as Accredited.
Posted: 2024-08-14
Average home insurance premiums moved -0.2% in July according to Pearson Ham Group’s Premium Price Index for the month. They now sit at £416, which is still 29% higher than at the same time last year. Pearson Ham said the dip may be the start of a more sustained softening in the market.
Posted: 2024-08-13
Partners& has acquired Bickley Chartered Loss Adjusters Ltd, which deals with both domestic and commercial claims, as it continues to expand its proposition and develop its loss adjusting and claims management capabilities. The move follows the acquisition of Kudos Loss Adjusters in 2021.
Posted: 2024-08-13
The Financial Conduct Authority is to add 100 people to its existing team in Leeds and increase the floorspace at its 6 Queen Street office by 5,000 square feet, an additional 35%. The regulator said the enlarged office would be operational later in the autumn. The FCA originally opened its Leeds office in 2022.
Posted: 2024-08-12
Managing general agent Gigasure, which offers travel, backpackers, car and van hire excess insurance has gone live. The business was set up by Ernesto Suarez who previously founded Halo Insurance Services. Gigasure is a member of government trade association Insurtech UK.
Posted: 2024-08-12
Legacy specialist DARAG Group has agreed to sell its North American and Bermuda business entities to the RiverStone Group. The deal is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to complete by the end of the year. DARAG said the move would allow it to focus on its European operations.
Posted: 2024-08-12
Allianz UK has reported gross written premium of £2.21bn for the first half of 2024. This is a 5.5% increase on the same period last year. The carrier said its combined operating ration had improved by 1.9 percentage points to reach 94.6%. Its operating profit for H1 was £174.8m, which was up by 55% on last year.
Posted: 2024-08-09
Beazley has announced that insurance written premiums in the six months to 30th June 2024 were approximately £2.4bn, up from the £2.3bn announced in the first half of 2023. The carrier said profit before tax increased to £572m, almost double the £287m recorded for the same period the previous year. Its undiscounted combined ratio improved to 81% from 88%.
Posted: 2024-08-09
According to the latest Pet Insurance Price Index from Pearson Ham Group, pet insurance premiums for lifetime cover rose by 1.4% in Q2, making them 12% higher than the same time last year. The rise followed a dip in Q1, which some market commentators attributed to the Competition and Markets Authority’s investigation into the market.
Posted: 2024-08-09
The Building Cost Information Service has partnered with Intelligent AI to launch the BCIS Intelligent Rebuild Cost Platform, which collates data from multiple sources to create rebuild cost reports for residential and commercial properties.
Posted: 2024-08-08
London market wholesale broker Evolin has launched a new casualty division supported by three senior hires. Kalani Settle-Rhodes has been appointed head of casualty, Shelley Leake becomes senior broker and Oliver Hitchins takes on the role of account executive. Earlier this year, Evolin rebranded from GAWS of London.
Posted: 2024-08-08
AA Underwriting Ltd has extended its partnership with data specialist Percayso Inform to enhance its capabilities across its private motor business. The move will allow AA Underwriting to access vehicle specific data to inform pricing and underwriting decisions. It builds on last year’s move to implement Percayso’s claims tool for motor.
Posted: 2024-08-08
From September, the home of England Rugby will become Allianz Stadium as part of a sponsorship deal struck by the Rugby Football Union and Allianz. The agreement will support elite men’s and women’s teams as well as providing for community clubs across England.
Posted: 2024-08-07
RSA Insurance has launched its new cloud-based broker and customer claims portal, which is powered by Guidewire. Commercial property is the first line of business to be handled via the portal with other lines scheduled for the remainder of 2024 and 2025.
Posted: 2024-08-07
Brown & Brown (Europe) Ltd has added trade credit insurance specialist CI Group Holdings Ltd to its stable in a deal that sees it acquire 100% of the firm’s share capital for an undisclosed consideration. CI Group provides credit insurance solutions for banks and other commercial lenders and offers access to debtor insurance for UK SMEs.
Posted: 2024-08-07
Paragon International Insurance Brokers, which is a subsidiary of PSC Insurance Group and focuses on professional and financial lines, has acquired UK independent broker Cox Mahon. Magon specialises in professional indemnity for solicitors and property professionals and operates from its Shrewsbury and London locations.
Posted: 2024-08-06
Loss adjusting and claims specialist QuestGates has attracted a minority stake investment from mid-market private equity firm Equistone Partners Europe. Chris Hall, QuestGates’ CEO will remain in place along with the rest of the firm’s management team and its 500-strong workforce.
Posted: 2024-08-06
Insurance technology specialist VIPR Solutions has named Chantal Dawson as its new global head of customer success. She joins from Charles Taylor, where she was strategic client relations director. Based in London she will report to CEO Paul Templar.
Posted: 2024-08-06
Gen Z newcomers to the insurance industry have identified social media, specifically TikTok, as one of the key influential media for joining the industry. Communicating climate commitments was also identified as a key way for the industry to appeal to potential new Gen Z recruits.
Posted: 2024-08-06
Insurance holding company Ambac Financial Group has announced the completion of its deal to acquire Beat Capital Partners, which is a London-based insurance underwriting and managing general agent incubation platform. The deal sees Ambac take a 60% stake in Beat.
Posted: 2024-08-05
Independent Lloyd’s intermediary Lonsdale Insurance Brokers Ltd has entered creditors’ voluntary liquidation. Neil Bennett and Alex Cadwallader, both directors of Leonard Curtis, have been appointed as joint liquidators. The firm had been trading since 1996. It was authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Posted: 2024-08-05
London-based marine risk specialist Insurwave has announced a partnership with Ambrey, which focuses on maritime security risk management. The firms said the deal would give users access to enhanced threat alerts, security and risk data, and exposure management insights.
Posted: 2024-08-05
Geo Underwriting, which is part of Ardonagh Advisory, is to acquire marine insurance specialist Navigators & General which is owned by Zurich UK. Navigators & General’s Brighton-based team will join Geo Underwriting and continue to use the brand that dates back to 1921.
Posted: 2024-08-02
Alan Boswell Group has acquired Priory Insurance Brokers, which is based in Wymondham, Norfolk and operates across personal and commercial lines. The firm was established in 1973 and will continue to trade under its brand for the foreseeable future following its acquisition. It will also keep its staff and premises.
Posted: 2024-08-02
According to findings from Paymentshield’s annual Adviser Survey, less than half (49%) of financial advisers are sometimes missing opportunities to sell general insurance. This figure has fallen each year from the 61% reported in 2020 – the first year of the survey. Paymentshield said the ongoing drop reflected the growing importance of general insurance for financial advisers.
Posted: 2024-08-02
Sheldon Mills, executive director of consumers and competition at the Financial Conduct Authority hopes for a positive outcome from the Consumer Duty some 12 months since it was implemented.
Posted: 2024-08-01
Figures from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme show that it paid out a total of £423m in compensation to customers during 2023/24. This included £160m for customers of failed insurers. Publishing its annual statement, the industry body highlighted its ongoing drive to increase its internal capabilities.
Posted: 2024-08-01
Provisional insurance premium tax receipts for the first three months of the 2024/25 financial year were £2,116m, which is £236m (13%) higher than in the same period last year. This comes on top of the record IPT receipts of £8,146m generated by HMRC in 2023/24, which was £805m (11%) up on the previous year.
Posted: 2024-08-01
Sabre Insurance Group has reported gross written premium of £125.7m for the six months to 30th June 2024. This is up from the £99.5m achieved in the same period in the previous year. The motor carrier said its combined operating ratio had improved to 83.6% from 93.8%.
Posted: 2024-07-31
Data specialist Percayso Inform has signed a deal with Seopa Ltd and will provide vehicle data insights to the firm’s UK aggregators, Quotezone.co.uk and CompareNI.com. The move will give the sites access to car and van valuations at the point of sale for their personal and commercial lines products.
Posted: 2024-07-31
Howden Re has appointed Andy Foot as managing director of marine, energy and terror treaty. He joins from Aon, where he spent 22 years. He will have a particular focus on the London and US markets including the placement of consortia and blinders.
Posted: 2024-07-31
Insurtech Cover Genius, which specialises in embedded protection, has partnered with end-to-end ticketing company Future Ticketing to provide booking refund protection solutions embedded directly in their users’ websites, supporting sports fans, festival goers and live entertainment attendees across the UK and Ireland.
Posted: 2024-07-30
Markerstudy Group aims to acquire Hughes Insurance, subject to regulatory approvals. Hughes was established in 1977 and has more than 250 employees serving around 85,000 customers in the Northern Irish market. It focuses on lines including motor, home, van, travel and commercial.
Posted: 2024-07-30
Aon has reported total revenue of around £2.95bn for Q2, an 18% increase on the same period in the previous year, which includes the impact of acquisitions and organic revenue growth of 6%. It also announced that it has appointed Edmund Reese to serve as chief financial officer.
Posted: 2024-07-30
Allianz has reviewed and refreshed the wordings and limits on its motor trade products. Extended cover now provides comprehensive electric vehicle cover, greener replacements, optional pollution clean-up costs and legal expenses. Enhanced limits are now available for material damage and road risks.
Posted: 2024-07-29
BMS Group has acquired specialist re/insurance broker David Roberts & Partners after agreeing to buy the investment stake held in the intermediary by private equity form Inflexion. Established in 1977, DR&P places more than £620m worth of gross written premium and has a team of almost 400 people based in 25 UK and European offices.
Posted: 2024-07-29
Zurich Insurance Group has invested around £45m in cyber insurance provider Cowbell via Series C Funding. Cowbell said it would use the funding to scale up its operations, develop new products, enhance its cyber resilience services and strengthen its commercial partnerships.
Posted: 2024-07-29
Keoghs has launched Lauri Sonic AI technology, which enables insurers to automate the processing required for credit hire packs. Keoghs said that in-house testing during the past year had shown its technology was 24% cheaper than the Association of British Insurers’ general terms of agreement and 41% cheaper than the commercial rate.
Posted: 2024-07-26
Allianz UK has announced that Bethany Thomas will take up the newly created role of head of sustainability. The centralised position will give her control across the insurer’s commercial, personal, specialty, and central corporate functions and all its brands including Petplan and LV=.
Posted: 2024-07-26
Cowbell has teamed up with technology provider Acturis and is now offering its adaptive cyber product, Cowbell Prime One via the technology platform. The standalone cyber product is aimed at and the SME and mid-corporate market and caters for firms with a turnover of up to £1bn.
Posted: 2024-07-26
Covéa Insurance’s home IHP product is now available to brokers via technology provider Acturis’ personal lines panel. The product has an enhanced pricing model to provide brokers with the most up to date rates.
Posted: 2024-07-25
The Lloyd’s Market Association and the International Underwriting Association have come together to assist underwriters to standardise the way they ask clients for sustainability data. The new sustainability data standard is a set of 22 questions that can be incorporated into existing underwriting processes.
Posted: 2024-07-25
Independent managing general underwriter Carbon Underwriting Limited has secured principal approval from Lloyd’s for the launch of syndicate 5757, effective 1st January 2025. The new syndicate is based on a technology-first model and supports Carbon’s existing syndicate, 4747. Third party managing agent Asta will manage the new syndicate.
Posted: 2024-07-25
A large majority of consumers (84%) perceive “no improvement” in how financial providers treat them following the implementation of the FCA’s Consumer Duty one year ago. Health insurers and pension providers receive the poorest reviews from customers, with over-reliance on live chat functions (30%) and poor customer communications (28%) being the top drivers for consumer dissatisfaction, according to a survey carried out by Smart Money People.
Posted: 2024-07-24
The Connect Group has announced the launch of specialty reinsurer, Stability Re. Stability Re will provide binder capacity to Stability Risk and underwrite specialty and casualty lines including directors’ and officers’ liability, public and product liability, professional indemnity, contingency and cyber.
Posted: 2024-07-24
Travel insurer, Tifgroup, has teamed up with travel app, Air Doctor, to connect travellers to a global network of over 20,000 multi-lingual doctors and specialists worldwide.
Posted: 2024-07-23
Markel has joined forces with mea to improve underwriting processes across its international wholesale operations. mea is a GenAI-powered platform that aims to simplify insurance processes by automating activities using advanced natural language processing and machine learning techniques to extract unstructured data from submission-related documents and turn it into structured data that can be analysed and interpreted.
Posted: 2024-07-23
The Chartered Insurance Institute has announced the appointment of three new group board members, each with a responsibility to provide a membership perspective in discussions and decision making. Known as engagement board members, the three are Ben Rose, engagement board member: London Markets; Roger Jackson, engagement board member: financial planning; and Suzy Middleton, engagement board member: personal finance.
Posted: 2024-07-22
Specialist MGA and broker services platform, OneAdvent, has partnered with risk management and security services company, Solace Global Risk to develop an holistic insurance and risk management offering to clients of its A&H MGA.
Posted: 2024-07-22
For the year ending 31st March 2024, Flood Re reported a profit before tax of £23.8m and saw a 9% increase in the number of policies (288,567) ceded to the scheme. Around a third of claims submitted to Flood Re for storms Babet, Ciaran and Henk included Build Back Better provisions, although usage amongst individual insurers ranged from 4% to 56%.
Posted: 2024-07-18
Findings from the latest Confused.com Car Insurance Price Index in association with WTW show that average comprehensive car insurance premiums fell by 6% in the three months to June 2024 and now stand at £882. This follows the 5% drop registered in the previous quarter. Despite the quarterly falls, premiums still recorded an annual rise of 14% (£106).
Posted: 2024-07-18
Axa Commercial has named Gurinder Aulakh (pictured) as pricing director and Jean-Sébastien Lagacé as reinsurance director. Gurinder joins from Allianz and replaced Jo Scott, who is retiring. Jean-Sébastien, who is a qualified actuary, moves across from Axa Group.
Posted: 2024-07-18
This week, automotive servicing and repair specialist Kwik Fit began offering motor insurance from its website. The brand had re-entered the motor market last year and had been offering policies via comparison sites. The company said a positive response to its return had prompted it to offer cover on a quote and buy basis from its site.
Posted: 2024-07-17
Peter James Insurance will provide a new scheme – Ariel Owners Motorcycle Club Insurance – on an exclusive basis to members of the Ariel Owners Motorcycle Club. The club was formed in 1951 at the Ace Café. The cover includes features such as being able to ride another club member’s classic Ariel.
Posted: 2024-07-17
During the last financial year (2023/24), disgruntled travel insurance policyholders took 4,466 complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service. This was up from the 3,745 complaints made the previous year. The only time the figure had been higher in the past 10 years was in 2020/21, when disruption caused by COVID-19 caused a spike in disputes.
Posted: 2024-07-16
The Association of Consumer Support Organisations is pushing the new Labour Government to make good on its pre-election rhetoric and investigate the private motor insurance market. ACSO said the latest figures from the Compensation Recovery Unit demonstrated the need for a fresh look at the market.
Posted: 2024-07-16
The government has begun its review into the Personal Injury Discount Rate, which is used to help calculate the amount of compensation people suffering life-changing injuries should receive. The PIDR was last set on 15th July 2019 at -0.25% in England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rate.
Posted: 2024-07-16
The Motor Insurers’ Bureau has partnered with police officers from Greater Manchester, Merseyside, West Yorkshire, Cheshire, and Humberside Police to crack down on uninsured vehicles along more than 100 miles of the M62. This followed a successful multi-force collaboration on the M4 in April.
Posted: 2024-07-15
Pool Re has selected to work with Clearwater Analytics to support its investment accounting and reporting processes. Pool Re, which is the UK’s government-backed terrorism reinsurer, has around £7bn in funds.
Posted: 2024-07-15
DUAL Europe has signed a strategic partnership with VHV Allgemeine Versicherung AG, part of the VHV Group. It has also made seven senior appointments, including naming Christian W Müller as head of engineering and construction for Europe. He brings 25 years of experience to the business.
Posted: 2024-07-15
Data from the CII demonstrates that professional brokers help to minimise the gap between how consumers expect to be treated by insurers and their actual experience. It found that brokers are doing more to build consumer loyalty and confidence than price comparison sites, banks and building societies, and even insurers themselves.
Posted: 2024-07-12
Co-op insurance has launched a new product for tenants to provide cover for personal belongings. It includes accidental damage tenants’ liability cover. Market research from Co-op Insurance found that 30% of UK renters had no insurance for their belongings, even though a fifth said their value exceeded £5,000 and a third expected to be in rental accommodation for at least five years.
Posted: 2024-07-12
Commercial re/insurance software provider AdvantageGo has forged a strategic alliance with FortifyData, which specialises in providing cyber risk management solutions. The deal will see users of AdvantageGo’s Underwriting Workbench get access to cyber vulnerability and security-rating data from FortifyData.
Posted: 2024-07-12
Managing general agent Commercial Express has launched its Leisure & Park Home Product which offers cover via three schemes underwritten by SCOR, Canopius, and Ascot Group's Syndicate 1414 at Lloyd's. The product covers properties such as static caravans, log cabins and chalets.
Posted: 2024-07-11
According to research from MarshBerry, the first half of 2024 saw 71 announced insurance distribution M&A transaction deals in the UK, involving 37 unique buyers. This was slightly down on the previous year in which there were 75 deals during the same period. The deals involving personal lines businesses in H1 jumped to almost a quarter, up on a longer-term average of less than 15%.
Posted: 2024-07-11
Aviva plc has secured the necessary approvals and completed its acquisition of Probitas Holdings (Bermuda) Limited for consideration of £249m. The deal was first announced in early March and includes Probitas Managing Agency, which is the managing agent of Lloyd’s Syndicate 1492, the corporate member Probitas Corporate Capital Limited and all other subsidiaries.
Posted: 2024-07-11
Sedgwick has this week launched a sustainable damage management solution for the UK market. Following a scientific assessment of damage extent, recovery options prioritise sustainability, including a greater emphasis on restoration, more energy-efficient drying, the use of resilient repair materials and the repurposing and recycling of waste streams.
Posted: 2024-07-10
Ardonagh Advisory has acquired Rollinson Smith Insurance Brokers, a community broker servicing Shropshire, Staffordshire, West Midlands and North Wales, with additional reach throughout London and other areas of the UK.
Posted: 2024-07-10
Pet insurance pricing has returned to moderate growth, halting the reductions seen in the first quarter of the year, according to Pearson Ham Group’s latest pet insurance price index.
Posted: 2024-07-09
Seventeen Group has acquired Midlands-based Gen2 Broking, led by Jon Nottingham, Paul Masters and Paul Dudley. Gen2 controls £5M GWP and has focused on corporate clients in the Midlands region and beyond.
Posted: 2024-07-09
The National Insurance Awards are open for entries. Celebrating excellence in the field, the National Insurance Awards highlight the very best in general insurance provision and management in the UK.
Posted: 2024-07-09
AbbeyAutoline has acquired Down Insurances as part of its expansion plan to strengthen its position as Northern Ireland’s largest insurance broker. It is the second acquisition by the firm within a week, following the purchase of Lisnaskea-based Martin Carey Insurance’s customer book of business.
Posted: 2024-07-08
The insurance and financial services sector has responded to last week’s landslide general election win for Labour and the start of a new government led by Sir Keir Starmer.
Posted: 2024-07-08
Partners& has added SEP Insurance, specialists in commercial vehicle, courier, and taxi risks, to its portfolio of services for commercial clients. With locations in Bootle, Chester and Southport, the move extends the presence of Partners& across the North of England where it already operates in Bolton and Leeds.
Posted: 2024-07-05
Global broking company Brokerslink has launched a dedicated trade credit insurance practice in response to increasing demand from its network of independent brokers.
Posted: 2024-07-05
Pearson Ham Group’s latest Premium Price Index for June reveals that home insurance prices have risen on average by 34% compared to 12 months ago, following a 0.7% rise in June, as the average home insurance premium now nears £425. It means that over the past two years, competitive home insurance premiums have now increased by almost 63%.
Posted: 2024-07-04
Law firm Keoghs and insurer Hastings Direct have won the UK’s largest ever fundamental dishonesty case, putting a stop to a potential claim of £6.6m.
Posted: 2024-07-04
AbbeyAutoline has acquired Martin Carey Insurance as part of the company’s aims of strengthening its position in Northern Ireland and expanding its commercial insurance portfolio.
Posted: 2024-07-03
Digital risk processing platform Cytora has announced plans to integrate Autoaddress’ Address Capture into its underwriting productivity tool. The integration aims to enhance the firm’s address capture capabilities and improve data quality for over 250 countries, streamlining the underwriting process for insurers.
Posted: 2024-07-03
Insurance professionals believe there should be greater transparency and automation in claims processes according to a recent RDT tech poll. The research highlights a call for change within the industry, driven by rising claims costs and inefficiencies in current systems.
Posted: 2024-07-02
The Bspoke Group has announced the appointment of Adrian Ewington as managing director of the mid and high net worth specialist MGA Bspoke Private Clients.
Posted: 2024-07-02
Healthcare, security and travel risk management specialist Healix has announced the renewal of its contract with RSA Insurance for a further three years. The renewal marks the latest stage in the partnership between the two firms, in which Healix provides services for RSA’s enhanced Accident and Health (A&H) product, launched in March.
Posted: 2024-07-01
The International Underwriting Association has published details of a dedicated company market support programme for the adoption of new digital processing services in the London Market.
Posted: 2024-07-01
Atlanta Group, which is the personal lines broking business of The Ardonagh Group, has completed its merger with Markerstudy. The deal was announced in September 2023 and now serves a combined customer base of more than 8 million people.
Posted: 2024-06-28
Non-standard motor specialist Quote Detective has formed a partnership with intelligence provider Percayso Inform, which will give the provider access to credit bureau and CUE information. Quote Detective said the tie-up would enable it to better understand and cater for its specialist market.
Posted: 2024-06-28
Specialty managing general agent Optio Group has named Deepak Soni as its chief executive officer. He joins from Axa Insurance Co where he spent 9 years in a number of different roles overseeing its SME, direct-to-consumer, delegated authority, and specialty lines businesses.
Posted: 2024-06-28
American International Group, Inc has agreed to sell its global individual personal travel insurance and assistance business to Zurich Insurance Group for approximately £475m in cash and an additional earn-out consideration. The deal includes the Travel Guard business and its servicing capabilities, but excludes Japan and AIG’s joint venture arrangement in India. It also excludes travel coverages offered through AIG’s accident and health business.
Posted: 2024-06-27
Marsh McLennan has urged the re/insurance industry to increase its efforts to expand, develop and diversify its talent base. The call comes ahead of Marsh McLennan’s Rising Professionals’ Global Forum in London, which brings together more than 800 of the industry’s next generation of leading talent.
Posted: 2024-06-27
The Chartered Insurance Institute and the Association of British Insurers have both said they support the broad and non-prescriptive approach taken by the Financial Conduct Authority in relation to developing and implementing regulation to support equality, diversity and inclusion.
Posted: 2024-06-26
Commercial and consumer property and casualty re/insurer Sompo has appointed Allan Mirley as head of distribution, insurance for the UK. Based in London, he will oversee Sompo’s distribution across both the regions and the London Market. He joins from Axa XL where he was head of UK broker management.
Posted: 2024-06-26
BMS Group has named Ali Trauttmansdorff as its chief people officer with immediate effect. The firm said her appointment would support future M&A activity. She joins BMS’s executive committee and has responsibility for ensuring there are sound onboarding, integration and talent management processes in place as BMS brings new colleagues into the business.
Posted: 2024-06-26
Commercial fleet insurtech Flock has partnered Admiral Pioneer, which is part of Admiral Group and helps to seed, launch and/or scale businesses. Under the deal, Admiral Pioneer will provide Flock with support to expand its offering and support a wider range of fleet customers.
Posted: 2024-06-25
WINT Water Intelligence, which specialises in water management and leak prevention solutions has teamed up with speciality insurer HSB. Under the deal, HSB will distribute WINT’s water management solutions to customers. WINT will provide a performance warranty, backed by HSB, that pays in the event damage occurs from pipe’s monitored by WINT.
Posted: 2024-06-25
Specialty re/insurer Chaucer has appointed Hayley Spink (pictured) as group chief operating officer. She will join Chaucer in Q4 and will replace David Bendle who is retiring at the end of the year. She is currently chief operating officer at Apollo Syndicate 1969.
Posted: 2024-06-25
Private equity investor Perwyn has acquired Atec Group, which comprises digital personal lines broker Ceta and managing general agent Arkel, from Kester Capital. The group focuses on specialist home and leisure products in the UK wholesale and retail personal lines market and supports more than 340,000 policyholders.
Posted: 2024-06-24
Results from Prestige Underwriting’s Non-Standard Survey show that, across the market, 79% of brokers believe there are insufficient insurers offering capacity for non-standard business. This rises to 85% for personal lines brokers.
Posted: 2024-06-24
Seventeen Group has acquired East Pennine Insurance Consultants, which was founded in 1985 and controls gross written premium of £6.1m. The company has a team of nine and trades as Fletcher Smith in Sheffield and North East Insurance Brokers in the North East.
Posted: 2024-06-24
Managing general agent Rockstone has recruited Graham Amato, an experienced Lloyd’s and company market practitioner, to spearhead the growth of its new sports personal accident insurance product, which covers both amateurs and professionals.
Posted: 2024-06-21
Digital risk processing platform Cytora has teamed up with market intelligence and commodity pricing forecaster ChAI. The partnership will give Cytora access to price forecasts across a range of commodities – metals, energies, plastics and agricultural.
Posted: 2024-06-21
Insurtech Pikl has formed a new partnership with Prestige Underwriting, backed by Aviva, that will see it move its UK MGA capacity for vacation and short-term rentals to this new facility.
Posted: 2024-06-20
Niche commercial insurer Peach Pi has teamed up with specialist broker Practice Cover to create a bespoke scheme for healthcare and veterinary surgeries. Peach Pi is a trading style of NPA Insurance, which is owned by The National Pharmacy Association.
Posted: 2024-06-20
Premium Credit’s latest Insurance Index has found that 20% of SMEs are experiencing a growing problem with late payment of invoices. This is down on the 28% recorded last year and the 24% noted in 2022, but highlights the perennial issue late payment has on cashflow for SMEs.
Posted: 2024-06-20
Technology is making it easier to create counterfeit documents and not-for-profit fraud prevention service Cifas said that in 2023, insurers saw a 20% rise in false application cases when compared to the previous years.
Posted: 2024-06-19
Insurance provider World Nomads has launched its annual multi-trip travel insurance product in the UK and Ireland as part of an underwriting partnership with UK provider Collinson. The policy offers two levels of cover and targets independent travellers who want insurance for a wide range of sports and activities.
Posted: 2024-06-19
Matthew Hill, who took up the reins as CEO of the Chartered Insurance Institute earlier this year, has stressed the importance of value for the insurance industry – both in the products it offers and the proposition it presents to potential recruits.
Posted: 2024-06-19
Market intelligence provider Defaqto has launched Matrix 360, which seeks to provide a comprehensive view of the insurance product landscape. It will include information on product, functionality, price, service, claims, consumer feedback, marketing, and sales as well as providing users with macro data.
Posted: 2024-06-18
Howden has announced that Paul Hipson (pictured) will take up the newly create role of head of London broking, within the corporate and commercial pillar of Howden UK and Ireland. He will lead the firm’s existing London broking team, which has a focus on property, casualty and motor business.
Posted: 2024-06-18
Insurance focused Send Technology Solutions Ltd has named Chris Newton (pictured) as its new chief technology officer. He joins from Immersive Labs, where he was the vice president of engineering. Prior to that he was head of engineering at Just Eat.
Posted: 2024-06-18
AM Specialty Insurance Group has acquired US-based managing general agent Pinpoint Insurance Services, which specialises in providing excess and surplus insurance solutions. In addition, AM Speciality has established Pinpoint UK in London. Darren Powell will lead the UK operation as chief underwriting officer from September 2024.
Posted: 2024-06-17
The Financial Conduct Authority has cancelled Down Insurances Limited’s Part 4A permission. The company was initially authorised by the FCA in 2012. The regulator said it had cancelled the company’s authorisation because it had not supplied a number of obligatory returns.
Posted: 2024-06-17
Prestige Underwriting has increased the non-standard product portfolio it has on the Applied Systems platform. Brokers using the technology will now be able to access Prestige’s non-standard motor product via the platform.
Posted: 2024-06-17
Jaguar Land Rover has announced that it is investing £1m to support policing against the wave of organised criminals targeting the company’s vehicles. The move follows last year’s creation of Jaguar Insurance and Land Rover Insurance to support owners who were struggling to get affordable premiums. It has provided more than 46,000 quotes with average premiums of £183 per month.
Posted: 2024-06-14
Jensten has snapped up Hastings-based Chris Knott Insurance Consultants, which has a team of 19 and controls gross written premium of £6.1m. The firm has a focus on its niche motor scheme, which caters for classic cars and owners club vehicles.
Posted: 2024-06-14
Allianz Trade has supported an integration between musePay, the buy-now-pay-later offering from Muse Finance and Xero, which is a business platform. Businesses using the platform can now offer musePay’s buy-now-pay-later option to customers. Allianz Trade will provide credit insurance for receivables.
Posted: 2024-06-14
Pearson Ham Group’s Pet Insurance Price Index has reported that lifetime cover for the top 5 priced pet policies fell by 1% in May. On an annual basis, it means that although premiums are still 11% higher than last year, the year-on-year rate of increase is down from the peak of 21% reached in February.
Posted: 2024-06-13
Insurance technology specialist Acturis has partnered with Digital Mailing Solutions. The deal sees Acturis integrate the DMS IntriMail software solution into its platform, enabling users to send personalised mail directly from their system.
Posted: 2024-06-13
Digital risk exchange InsureX has announced that Michael Watson has joined the business as non-executive chairman. Watson is the founder and outgoing chairman of Canopius and a former member of the Council of Lloyd’s.
Posted: 2024-06-13
Allianz has announced plans to grow the engineering workforce at Allianz Engineering Inspection Services to more than 800 and to make it the biggest engineer surveyor team in the UK. It aims to do this over the coming four years.
Posted: 2024-06-12
Managing general agent HB Underwriting has launched a new product called employer protect. It is for people using local authority direct payments or NHS personal health budgets to employ a personal assistant, which means they need to provide employers’ liability insurance. The product is available via the bluescape web portal designed by Total Systems.
Posted: 2024-06-12
The Chartered Insurance Institute has teamed up with insurance innovation training provider EDII in a move to help members identify and access new education and development programmes. EDII’s Digital Mind programme has been benchmarked to align with the CII’s Professional Map, a competency framework detailing the knowledge and behaviours professionals need to succeed in their roles.
Posted: 2024-06-11
UK appointed representative network Momentum Broker Solutions has agreed to sell a 40% stake in the business to Australian broking business AUB Group Ltd. Momentum has 100 AR partners and controls around £90m in premium.
Posted: 2024-06-11
Managing general agent Devonshire UW Ltd and its affiliate Devonshire UW Europe GmbH have secured Lloyd’s approval to write business in Europe. Devonshire specialises in underwriting transactional risk solutions and it can now serve client throughout the Nordics, Germany, France, Spain, Benelux, Poland, Italy and CEE countries.
Posted: 2024-06-11
Aviva analysis has found that more than a third (35%) of its flood claims happen in June, July and August. The insurer said that July and August each accounted for 12% of total flood claims, only exceeded by December (17%).
Posted: 2024-06-10
Andy Bord (pictured) will relinquish his role as chief executive officer of Flood Re at its annual general meeting next month. Stuart Logue, the current chief financial officer will become interim CEO, effective from 18th July, while a search is conducted for a permanent successor.
Posted: 2024-06-10
Gary Whipps has been jailed for two years after pleading guilty to 39 counts of fraud by false representation at Chelmsford Crown Court. Having sourced insurance for amusement park and equipment operators, he changed premium details on the original documents of 26 clients and then kept the difference for himself - £46,125.
Posted: 2024-06-10
Allianz has launched a new three-tier home insurance product for UK customers, which is available through its website or via price comparison websites. The product offers bronze, silver and gold levels of cover.
Posted: 2024-06-07
Seventeen Group has acquired Wisemans Insurance Services Limited based in Ashford, Surrey and North West Risk Solutions based in Manchester. Wisemans is a general brokerage and Seventeen said it weas going to maintain and grow its Ashford office. North West Risk Solutions has a focus on real estate and construction.
Posted: 2024-06-07
US-based insurance holding company Ambac Financial Group has acquired a 60% controlling stake in Beat Capital Partners Limited, a London-based insurance underwriting and managing general agency incubation platform. The deal is valued at approximately £220m of which around £31m is shares of Ambac common stock.
Posted: 2024-06-07
Aviva has announced a 39% increase in the number of claims it declined for fraud in 2023. The insurer said it had identified 11,000 suspect claims with a combined worth of £116m during the year. Fraudulent motor claims for injury and vehicle damage accounted for 66% of the total.
Posted: 2024-06-07
Ardonagh Advisory has snapped up BP Insurance Brokers, which is a Blackpool-based personal lines specialist that was established in 1958. Following the deal, managing director Barry Pimlott will continue to lead the 44-strong team.
Posted: 2024-06-06
Lloyd’s has approved Crux Risk Services as a coverholder. The managing general agent specialises in delegated authority terrorism underwriting. Initial capacity is led by Chaucer and the binder broker is BMS. Crux is a client of MGA accelerator DA Strategy, which provides it with appointed representative licensing.
Posted: 2024-06-06
Polo Insurance Managers has appointed Mel Carvill (pictured) as chairman. The business is part of PoloWorks, which is a Lloyd’s and London Market services business which also includes Polo Commercial Insurance Services, Polo Managing Agency and PoloPartners. Polo Insurance Managers specialises in establishing and managing captives.
Posted: 2024-06-06
Defaqto has established an interactive portal for insurance customers. It will collect data from customers on satisfaction levels with quote and buy experiences, mid-term adjustments, claims renewals and complaints handling. It will also gather information on their likelihood to renew and recommend, their switching behaviour and their purchase preferences.
Posted: 2024-06-05
Average home insurance premiums rose 0.4% in May, in relation to the previous month and now top £420. The annual rate of increase has dropped from a peak of 42% earlier in the year to now sit at 37%. In contrast, motor premiums were down by 2.5% in May, when compared to the previous month. On an annual basis prices were up by 19%, down from a peak of 47% in Q4 2023.
Posted: 2024-06-05
HDI Global has appointed Stephanie Ogden (pictured) as CEO of HDI Global UK & Ireland. She takes up the role from Richard Taylor on 1st September. Taylor will remain with the business until the end of the year when he retires, although he is set to continue working in a consultancy role.
Posted: 2024-06-05
Prestige Underwriting has forecast that the level of financial stress among UK consumers will grow and drive an increase in the number of people who fall into the non-standard customer segment in the coming six years.
Posted: 2024-06-04
Jensten has received regulatory approval for its acquisition of Melville Burbage and Henry Seymour & Co. Melville Burbage serves more than 5,000 clients and has a focus on construction, non-profit, and professional services. Henry Seymour & Co, operating under its Salon Gold brand, caters for salons, clinics, gyms, spas, and mobile or freelance therapists.
Posted: 2024-06-04
Apollo Syndicate Management Ltd has launched the first captive Lloyd’s syndicate under the market’s revised captive syndicate model. Apollo has launched captive syndicate 1100 in partnership with a global client.
Posted: 2024-06-04
The Association of British Insurers has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Gibraltar Insurance Association as the two organisations seek to forge higher levels of mutual understanding and cooperation.
Posted: 2024-06-03
NSM Insurance Group, which is an international speciality insurance provider based in the US, has signed an agreement to buy UK-based InsurEVO, which operates AllClear Travel insurance and InsureandGo. The deal is subject to regulatory approval.
Posted: 2024-06-03
RSA has appointed Indhira Mani as its new chief data officer. She will be based in Glasgow and have responsibility for leveraging data and AI to drive innovation, enhance customer experiences, and contribute to the strategic growth of the insurer.
Posted: 2024-06-03
Consumer champion Which? has said insurers cause customers distress and inconvenience in almost two-thirds of cases in which the Financial Ombudsman Service has upheld final complaint decisions.
Posted: 2024-05-31
Ansvar Insurance has launched a new product called Care and Welfare, which is aimed at care homes, organisations offering wraparound childcare solutions, and providers of care-related services. Ansvar is part of the Benefact Group, a charity owned, international family of specialist financial services companies.
Posted: 2024-05-31
Brown & Brown (Europe) Ltd has named Carolyn Callan as chief executive officer of its UK retail sector. She joined the business last year as managing director. In addition, Stuart Grieb will take up the newly created role of chief commercial officer for the UK retail business.
Posted: 2024-05-31
MX, which is the managing general agent of Specialist Risk Group, has announced it is working on a new motorsport underwriting proposition that will be called MX Motorsport. It will underwrite all classes of motorsport business on a global basis supported by A-rated capacity.
Posted: 2024-05-30
International intermediary group Howden has partnered with software provider AutoRek to help it improve the efficiency of its back-office processes through automation. In particular, Howden said the move would help it streamline its insurance broker accounting operations.
Posted: 2024-05-30
According to the latest Direct Commercial Limited Broker Barometer, 85% of broker clients have reported delays across haulage and commercial motor claims. The research found that 53% of policyholders blamed brokers and/or insurers for the delays despite many being due to supply chain factors.
Posted: 2024-05-30
Claims services provider McLarens has promoted Jon Clark to chief operating officer. He joined the firm in 2020 and previously served as vice president of corporate development. He will be responsible for enhancing existing service areas as well as developing new ones and overseeing the company’s investment strategy.
Posted: 2024-05-29
Vessel Protect, which is Pen Underwriting’s marine war risk insurance specialist, has enhanced its underwriting capabilities with the appointment of James Kent as senior business development underwriter. In recent months, Pen has upped the war risk limits available for individual vessels and cargoes. It has also increased its presence on the Lloyd’s trading floor.
Posted: 2024-05-29
Blenheim Underwriting is looking to expand its portfolio of niche liability business through its delegated authority and reinsurance relationships. To do this, the firm has hired David Barber as a senior liability treaty underwriter on Syndicate 5886. He joins from Fortegra and previously headed up the liability division at Chaucer.
Posted: 2024-05-29
The Financial Conduct Authority has sanctioned four firms to recommence their sales of guaranteed asset protection insurance after the regulator had stepped in to demand operators in the market improved the fair value they offered.
Posted: 2024-05-28
Broker 1st Central and law firm Keoghs have worked together to successfully bring tort of deceit claims in five trials at Manchester County Court that resulted in damages awarded totalling more than £140,000, which included £60,000 in exemplary damages.
Posted: 2024-05-28
Axa has announced that it has become a partner of UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 for an undisclosed amount and will sponsor the football tournament that takes place in Switzerland from 2nd to 27th July 2025.
Posted: 2024-05-28
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme has confirmed that insurance providers and insurance distributors will not have to make a contribution towards the industry funded body for 2024/25.
Posted: 2024-05-24
Aviva has reported a 19% jump in its UK general insurance gross written premium for Q1 2024 in comparison to the same period last year. Within that, personal lines GWP rose by 27% while commercial GWP was up by 10%. The discounted combined operating ratio for Aviva’s UK insurance business was 93.9%, an improvement on the 95.1% recorded last year.
Posted: 2024-05-24
Re/insurer Canopius has announced that Andy Haste will take up the post of group chairman on 1st July this year. He will take over the role from Michael Watson, who will stand down but continue to support Canopius in an advisory capacity.
Posted: 2024-05-24
Allianz UK has welcomed Hanna Kim (pictured) to the business as chief risk officer and promoted Jason Howes to the newly created role of chief transformation officer. Both are set to take up their positions on 1st June. Kim was previously group chief risk officer at Hiscox.
Posted: 2024-05-23
US-based parametric specialist NormanMax Insurance Holdings has launched Syndicate 3939, managed by Apollo. It has begun underwriting and offers parametric re/insurance solutions globally for hurricanes, tropical cyclones, typhoons, and earthquakes to address the natural disaster protection gap.
Posted: 2024-05-23
Partners& has appointed Rebecca Merry (pictured) as managing partner for schemes. The role is effective from 1st June and stretches across all the intermediary’s schemes including photography, electrical contracting, recruitment, gyms, art and performing arts.
Posted: 2024-05-23
Embri, which offers an embedded insurance platform providing solutions for the high-end luxury retail sector, has launched. The platform enables retailers to offer customers cover in their online and in-store purchasing journeys.
Posted: 2024-05-22
Specialist insurance provider CFC has named Kate Della Mora (pictured) as its first CEO of CFC Canada. She joins from Marsh Canada. At the same time, CFC has opened its first physical office in the country, which is located in Toronto.
Posted: 2024-05-22
Flood Re is promoting flood resilience in domestic properties by exhibiting its flood resilient garden (pictured) at this week’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show. The garden is not just a temporary exhibit and after the show, it will find a permanent home at Howbery Business Park, allowing the public to explore its features and learn about flood resilience year-round.
Posted: 2024-05-22
Hedron Network has appointed Nick Jones (pictured) as a specialist consultant to support member brokers grow their business. He joins from Focus Oxford Risk Management Ltd, part of Partners&. Hedron launched its growth consultancy service in 2023 and has since engaged with almost a third of partner brokers on their growth plans.
Posted: 2024-05-21
Insurance intelligence provider Concirrus has appointed Ruth Polyblank as director of product strategy. She joins from Mastercard where she had global responsibility for identifying new insurance opportunities. At Concirrus, she will develop new solutions to meet the market’s evolving needs.
Posted: 2024-05-21
Direct Line Group has appointed Lucy Johnson as managing director of motor and Dhruv Gahlaut as chief strategy and investor relations officer. Lucy will join the business in June and Dhruv in September this year. The announcement follows the three new c-suite appointments at the beginning of May.
Posted: 2024-05-20
Swiss Re has announced it is looking for options to withdraw from its B2B2C white labelling business iptiQ. The decision follows a strategic review and the carrier said it did not have a timeframe or preferred option for its exit.
Posted: 2024-05-20
Arch Insurance has launched its specialist property owner’s insurance product on Applied Systems Europe’s commercial e-trading panel. The move means intermediaries using the Applied Epic broker management system can now quote and bind directly with the carrier.
Posted: 2024-05-20
Brown & Brown (Europe) Ltd has acquired Garratts Insurance Brokers Limited, which is a Preston-based family business that dates back to 1877, as well as the business and assets of Clacton-based BNF Insurance Services.
Posted: 2024-05-17
The Broker Investment Group has made a strategic investment in Deva Risk Group, which has four offices and 29 staff controlling gross written premium of £11m. Deva, named after the Roman word for Chester, was created in 2016 as the holding company for the buyout of Chester-based Daulby Read. It has since made four acquisitions of its own.
Posted: 2024-05-17
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association wrapped up its two-day conference in Manchester with a commitment to return to the city with the event for the next two years. In 2025, it will take place on the 14th and 15th of May. In 2026, it will be held on the 13th and 14th of May.
Posted: 2024-05-17
Addressing his first conference as CEO of the British Insurance Brokers’ Association, Graeme Trudgill told the audience at the two-day Manchester event that he wanted to drive positive change through co-operation. He called for regulatory stability and urged the industry to help close the protection gap through innovation.
Posted: 2024-05-16
Managing general agent Generation Underwriting, which is part of the WF Risk Group, has launched a digital e-trade platform to help it expand its distribution, particularly among regional brokers. The platform, built by SchemeServe, will initially offer residential and commercial property owners policies.
Posted: 2024-05-16
Ardonagh Specialty will rebrand its reinsurance business to Price Forbes Re. The new brand will apply to Inver Re in London and Bermuda and Equinox Re in the US. The move builds on the group’s work to simplify its brands in 2023 and Price Forbes will become the group’s main brand for wholesale businesses.
Posted: 2024-05-16
Arch Insurance International has launched a regional event insurance product. It provides traditional indemnity protection for cancellation, as well as a parametric option providing cover on an agreed value basis. The product is available via Arch IQ, a new quote and bind platform. Cover extension options include civil commotion, computer system failure, key person, national mourning and terrorism.
Posted: 2024-05-15
Jensten Group is to split its wholesale division. The Jensten London Market unit, headed by David Skinner, will report to the core broking trading division under Rob Organ (pictured). Jensten Underwriting, will now operate as a standalone business unit.
Posted: 2024-05-15
Non-standard property specialist Ceta Insurance, which is part of the Atec Group, has gone live on IS2’s Atlas Platform, a digital trading and distribution platform for the schemes market. The move gives Ceta more control on pricing and enables it to distribute products across multiple channels.
Posted: 2024-05-15
1st Central, which is part of First Central Insurance and Technology Group has entered the home insurance market. The buildings and contents cover is available directly or via Confused.com. It will be made available on other comparison sites in the near future.
Posted: 2024-05-14
Applied Systems has announced a 48% jump in the gross written premium traded on its commercial lines e-trading platform in the 12 months to March 2024. It said the number of brokers using its Applied Epic broker management system had increased by more than 20%.
Posted: 2024-05-14
Research commissioned by Allianz Commercial has identified inflation and the cost of living, the state of the UK economy, and cash flow as the top three threats to SMEs. The insurer also highlighted the top three specific business challenges as energy bills, competition and the late payment of invoices.
Posted: 2024-05-13
Addept Group has acquired Policywise Limited with plans to rebrand it as Addept Insurance Services and provide a range of ancillary products on a wholesale basis. Addept was established by Richard Finan, a founder and former director of Arc Legal Assistance.
Posted: 2024-05-13
Data from Premium Credit shows that 55% of SMEs are using credit to pay for their insurance cover. This is up from 51% the previous year. The research showed that 27% of firms had reduced their level of cover in the past year, slightly up on the 25% found to be cutting cover the previous year.
Posted: 2024-05-10
Pearson Ham Group has recorded a drop in pet insurance premiums in its Q1 2024 Quarterly Pet Insurance Price Index, which it linked to the investigation into the veterinary sector by the Competition and Markets Authority. While price falls were not uniform in all areas of cover, Pearson Ham said the drop in lifetime cover premiums represented a significant change in trends.
Posted: 2024-05-10
Commercial insurance platform Aurora has partnered Axa to launch a management liability policy. The product offers three heads of cover: directors and officers liability, employment practices liability and corporate legal liability.
Posted: 2024-05-10
JMG Group company Greenwood Moreland has acquired Hamilton Robertson Insurance Brokers, which has offices in Glasgow and London and includes a specialist motor division named C&A Mackie Insurance Brokers. The acquisition adds £15m of gross written premium to Greenwood Moreland.
Posted: 2024-05-09
Co-op Insurance and insurtech Urban Jungle have teamed up to launch a new renters product. It provides cover ranging from £10,000 to £50,000 for valuables against risks such as fire, weather damage or theft. Accidental damage and tenants liability cover comes as standard. Optional add-ons, include out of home cover for personal items and accidental damage caused by pets.
Posted: 2024-05-09
Broker software specialist Applied Systems Europe has expanded its collaboration with Bravo Networks to cover client money management for Applied Epic brokers. The added functionality will make it easier for brokers to comply with their regulatory responsibilities.
Posted: 2024-05-09
Insurtech Flock has teamed up with The Acorn Group to create a connected taxi fleet insurance product. It will target medium and large fleets in the private and public hire sectors and use telemetry data from vehicles to promote and reward safer driving.
Posted: 2024-05-08
Fintech specialist Acrisure has acquired two brokers in the South East. Sevenoaks-based Financial and Credit Insurance Services Ltd is a specialist credit insurance broker and surety bond expert. Global Broking Solutions is an accredited Lloyd’s broker and serves clients across Kent and East Sussex.
Posted: 2024-05-08
JMG Group has bulked up its commercial presence in the south with the acquisition of Surrey-based broker SIA Insurance. Chris Browne and Colin Duxberry established SIA in 1996 and it operates across commercial, property and motor lines from its offices in Surbiton.
Posted: 2024-05-08
Market intelligence provider Insurance DataLab has analysed data from the Financial Conduct Authority and highlighted that customers made more than 280,000 complaints about motor insurance in the second half of last year. This was up from just under 240,000 complaints for the same period the previous year.
Posted: 2024-05-07
The MIB has announced that Angus Eaton will become CEO on 1st July, taking up the position from Dominic Clayden. He joins from Hastings Group where he has spent more than four years as group chief risk officer. Clayden will remain with the MIB until the end of the year, acting as a strategic adviser.
Posted: 2024-05-07
International broker network Brokerslink has appointed Alexandra Littlejohn (pictured) to its board of directors. She is executive vice president and managing director at Alliant Retail Property and Casualty.
Posted: 2024-05-07
Direct Line Group has announced that Craig Thornton will become managing director of home and growth, Martin Milliner will become managing director of claims and Hugh Hessing will take up the position of chief operating officer. In addition, Roger Lowry becomes director of corporate affairs and Alexandra Hayes is named as chief of staff.
Posted: 2024-05-03
The latest Premium Price Index from Pearson Ham has shown that premiums for combined buildings and contents home insurance policies increased by 1.6% in April and are now 40% higher than last year. Motor premiums are 28% higher than last year, but down from a peak of 47%.
Posted: 2024-05-03
Allianz Commercial has appointed Faith Kitchen (pictured) as head of client relationships for mid-market. She joins from Ecclesiastical where she was customer segment director and prior to that had spent 16 years at Zurich. She will be responsible for building out the central discipline for mid-market case management.
Posted: 2024-05-03
Tesco Bank’s Pet Insurance Index has found that the number of uninsured cats and dogs has dropped from 44% last year to 40% this year. Between the two species, cat owners are less likely to buy cover and 45% are uninsured, compared to 31% of dog owners.
Posted: 2024-05-02
Insurance sector law firm Fenchurch Law has appointed Joanna Grant (pictured) as managing partner. She takes up the role from David Pryce who is moving into a senior partner role and will lead the firm’s expansion in Singapore. Daniel Robin is to become deputy managing partner.
Posted: 2024-05-02
Lloyd’s broker MNK has taken an additional floor within its Square Mile, London headquarters (pictured). The move adds 3,000 sq ft to its office floorplate, which the broker said would accommodate further growth. MNK has six offices globally.
Posted: 2024-05-02
The Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority have approved Wakam UK Limited’s application to operate as an insurer in the UK. The entity is a subsidiary of French group, Wakam. The carrier had already received full branch authorisation to operate in the UK, which was effective from 24 October 2023.
Posted: 2024-05-01
Sutton Specialist Risks and QBE have inked a five-year deal that will extend their ongoing relationship to 35 years. QBE provides SSR with covers for organisations in specific industries including security, fire protection, electrical and cleaning. Gross written premium of this business is forecast to exceed £50m annually.
Posted: 2024-05-01
The 2024 Global Market Report from the QualRisk Cyber Insurance Centre says the global cyber insurance market will double in size by 2030. The publication reported that global cyber insurance premiums grew at 6% in 2023, the slowest rate of growth since 2019. Total premiums were around £11.5bn.
Posted: 2024-05-01
Re/insurance group Africa Specialty Risks has launched ASR Syndicate 2454. It has a focus on African risks and is managed by Apollo. The syndicate has targeted £70m of gross written premium for 2024 and began underwriting on 26 April this year. Lines include political risk and trade credit, political violence and terrorism, parametric, energy, property, construction, liability and treaty.
Posted: 2024-04-30
QBE Insurance Group has announced that Nicola Schroder will take up the position of group head of sustainability. She will be responsible for sustainability governance, strategy implementation, human rights, and modern slavery initiatives, and driving social impact through the QBE Foundation.
Posted: 2024-04-30
Crawford & Company has named Will Gow as head of technology and cyber risks. He will have responsibility for all cyber claim activities undertaken by the UK Cyber team and the corporate casualty specialist and international risks team at Crawford.
Posted: 2024-04-30
The Association of British Insurers has said motor premiums nudged up by 1% in Q1 2024, when compared to the same quarter last year, but reported the average claim was up by 8% to hit a record of £4,800 for the same period. The data came from the ABI’s Motor Insurance Tracker (Q1’24).
Posted: 2024-04-29
Pen Underwriting has finalised a multi-year renewal with Zurich that sees the insurer continue to provide 100% capacity for its specialist fleet insurance offering in the Republic of Ireland. The deal extends to approximately £38.5m of premium over the next three years.
Posted: 2024-04-29
Technology specialist Kayna and AEGIS London are working to optimise the Lloyd’s managing agent’s Opal Underwriting platform. They are looking to make various insurances required by commercial lenders of their borrowers in the US, available to surplus lines brokers via the platform.
Posted: 2024-04-29
Allianz has announced that Nicola George (pictured) will become managing director for Allianz’s personal lines broker business in the UK. She takes up the role from Mike Crane, who is stepping down. The business rebrands from LV= Broker to Allianz next week.
Posted: 2024-04-26
Applied Systems has announced that HGV and fleet insurance specialist Compare HGV has switched to its cloud-based broker management system. Applied Epic makes it possible for Compare HGV to manage customer and policy data from multiple applications on a single system.
Posted: 2024-04-26
Ariel Re and Hiscox Re & ILS have launched a cyber catastrophe consortium called CyberShock. It will offer up to approximately £40m of per-programme capacity for cyber insurers worldwide. Incidents covered include: service supply chain events, cyber propagation events, hardware supply chain events, software supply chain events, and/or catalytic cyber events.
Posted: 2024-04-26
Jensten has acquired Robert Gerrard & Co which specialises in the lift and escalator sector and also provides commercial and personal lines services to clients. The Chingford-based team of 19 will join Jensten following the deal, which is subject to regulatory approval.
Posted: 2024-04-25
Global commercial insurance rates were up by 1% in Q1 2024 according to the Global Insurance Market Index from Marsh. This was down from the 2% increase in Q4 2023. The overall rise hides a mixed picture.
Posted: 2024-04-25
Professional services and technology business Davies has named Pino Vallejo as the new CEO of its multi-sector global consulting division. The division covers eight sector-specific practices – insurance, asset & wealth management, banking & markets, customer experience, assurance, financial crime & compliance, people & organisational performance, and specialist operations.
Posted: 2024-04-25
Allianz has signed a deal to use Clearspeed’s voice analytics in its personal lines business. The deal aims to help Allianz identify potential fraudsters and direct its resources more effectively to genuine customers.
Posted: 2024-04-24
CFC has created a team within its transaction liability practice that will focus on underwriting representations and warranties insurance in the renewable energy market. Simon Wood, who joined CFC a year ago, will lead the team, while underwriter Aline Brayner has recently been recruited.
Posted: 2024-04-24
Cambridge-based Addresscloud has teamed up with JBA Risk Management to map the flood risk of over 280 million buildings across mainland Europe. Addresscloud has proprietary geocoding capabilities which will be combined with JBA’s high-resolution flood data to offer users address-level flood ratings.
Posted: 2024-04-24
Commercial lines digital trading platform imarket, owned by Polaris, has confirmed that Bravo Digital Trader has become the fifth broker system to use the platform. imarket is used by more than 2,000 broker firms and generates annual gross written premium of more than £400m.
Posted: 2024-04-23
Insurtech Pikl, which focuses on the rental market, has launched a new insurance-backed product that will enable operators to offer similar cancellation policies to those that customers are used to with hotel bookings.
Posted: 2024-04-23
Ansvar Insurance has appointed David Eccles (pictured) as its new head of distribution. Ansvar is part of the Benefact Group, the charity-owned specialist financial services organisation. Eccles has previously worked at Zurich Municipal, Expression Insurance, and Markerstudy Insurance.
Posted: 2024-04-23
Data intelligence provider Percayso Inform has agreed a partnership with TransUnion to distribute its TrueVision credit data to insurers, managing general agents and brokers. The data will give users a better view of consumers and their financial behaviour.
Posted: 2024-04-22
Pen Underwriting has agreed a multi-year strategic partnership with SiriusPoint which will see it provide all the capacity for Pen’s social housing practice. The practice offers not-for-profit housing associations insurance for buildings, incidental contents, property owners’ liability and terrorism.
Posted: 2024-04-22
Legacy acquirer DARAG Insurance Guernsey Limited has signed a sale and purchase agreement to acquire a re/insurance captive based in the Cayman Islands. The unnamed captive has been acquired from a multinational corporate and carries long-tail UK employers’ liability exposure.
Posted: 2024-04-22
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association and Novo insurance have launched a new motor insurance scheme specifically tailored for electric cars in the UK market. This new scheme addresses the current challenges faced by electric vehicle owners and brokers in obtaining comprehensive policy coverage.
Posted: 2024-04-18
Contrary to fears about AI and automation displacing human workers, claims handlers see technology as an opportunity to improve processes, both for themselves and their customers. This is amongst the findings of research carried out by insurtech Sprout.ai, which uncovers the most “tedious elements” of the claims processing role across the UK and the US.
Posted: 2024-04-18
Jensten Group is to invest up to £1m this year to help 15 individuals to start their own independent brokerages. Aimed at brokers with around 10-years’ experience the initiative will be run through Coversure, the group’s network for independent brokers. The start-up funding is not a loan and the AR will be expected to be self-funding after the initial six months.
Posted: 2024-04-17
Paratus Holdings Limited has today announced the launch of its insurance brokerage division, Paratus and Partners. Led by Duncan Ross, the new division will focus on energy price risk insurance products in the maritime, freight, aviation and renewable power sectors.
Posted: 2024-04-17
Property insurers paid out £4.86bn to personal and commercial policyholders in 2023, according to the Association of British Insurers. It said £2.55bn was for home insurance claims, representing an increase of almost 10% on 2022 (£2.33bn), which was largely driven by weather-related damage. Across personal and commercial policies, weather-related damage totally £573m – the highest on record.
Posted: 2024-04-16
Partners& has created three new leadership roles ahead of planned future growth. It has named Ewan MacDonald (pictured) as CEO – north, Lee Davey as CEO – south and Ramzan Ghafoor as COO, client service. All three are internal promotions.
Posted: 2024-04-16
Industrial insurer HDI Global has established a dedicated underwriting and claims proposition for liability and property lines of business in the mid-market. The carrier has expanded its services to target clients with turnovers ranging from around £17m to £425m.
Posted: 2024-04-16
Seventeen Group has acquired Watford-based Jannard Quadrant Insurance Brokers Limited in its third deal of the year. Owners Stephen Sweden and Geoff Callaway will remain with the business following the deal. Jannard Quadrant has an ongoing relationships with Seventeen Group’s MGA subsidiary, Touchstone Underwriting.
Posted: 2024-04-15
Balgrove Underwriting Agency has announced that is been able to resume selling motor fleet policies after it renewed its underwriting facility with Accredited Insurance (Europe) Ltd. In March, Balgrove had said it was in negotiations with another insurer.
Posted: 2024-04-15
The Financial Conduct Authority has written motor finance firms to remind them they must maintain adequate financial resources at all times. The warning comes in the midst of the regulator’s review into the historical use of motor finance discretionary commission arrangements.
Posted: 2024-04-15
Direct Line Group has announced that Jane Poole will become group chief financial officer, subject to regulatory approval, and will join the board in October 2024. She joins from Aviva where she was CFO of the carrier’s UK and Ireland general insurance business.
Posted: 2024-04-12
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association has welcomed the positive findings from the Financial Conduct Authority’s review of signposting in the travel insurance market. Signposting requirements were introduced in April 2021 to help consumers with serious pre-existing medical conditions better navigate the travel insurance market.
Posted: 2024-04-12
PIB Group Limited has formed a partnership with Romanian intermediary Stein Bestasig Insurance Broker, which will see the local broker co-ordinate additional merger and acquisition activity within the market. PIB said it was looking to attract another 20 Romanian brokers to its stable.
Posted: 2024-04-12
On 9th April, Sheffield Crown Court sentenced Patricia Rogers to 12 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, and ordered her to pay £500 in compensation. She had previously pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation after her personal injury and damages claim for almost £500,000, made to NFU Mutual, was referred to the City of London Police’s Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department.
Posted: 2024-04-11
The Insurance Development Forum has published a blueprint to support insurance sector investment in infrastructure that will enhance the resilience of vulnerable communities in emerging and developing communities from risks associated to climate change and natural disasters.
Posted: 2024-04-11
Following its acquisition of QCH Legal last year, QuestGates has rebranded the law firm to QGLaw and appointed Jason Spencer as managing director. The firm will initially focus on work in the motor, casualty and property markets.
Posted: 2024-04-11
Acies MGU has established a construction-focused managing general agent named Phoenix Specialty, which will be led by managing director Tim James (pictured), subject to regulatory approval. Backed by capacity from Axa UK, Phoenix will initially offer contractors all risk and contractors plant and equipment products.
Posted: 2024-04-10
NBS Underwriting has launched a commercial combined product aimed at risks with fewer than 10 UK-based locations and premiums ranging from £2,500 to £25,000. The new product follows the acquisition of Capital Markets Underwriting and is available on the NBS quotation system.
Posted: 2024-04-10
Ardonagh Advisory has bolstered its presence in the northwest of England with the acquisition of Southport Insurance Brokers Limited, which was founded in 1965 and has a focus on the industrial, care and agricultural sectors.
Posted: 2024-04-10
Pet insurance prices fell 2.5% in March, according to data from Pearson Ham. The drop follows a prolonged period of rises – in February, prices were 21% higher than the same month last year. It also coincides with the Competition and Market Authority announcement that it will investigate the vet market.
Posted: 2024-04-09
Jensten has completed on its acquisition of Scrutton Bland Insurance Brokers after receiving final regulatory approval. The deal adds 50 staff, two additional offices and gross written premium of £22m to Jensten.
Posted: 2024-04-09
Digital risk processing platform Cytora and global trade data business TradeAtlas have signed a collaboration deal. TradeAtlas collects and analyses data from 30 million importers and 27 million suppliers, which will be integrated into Cytroa’s risk processing platform.
Posted: 2024-04-09
Motor insurers paid out £9.9bn according to the latest data from the Association of British Insurers’ Motor Insurance Claims Tracker. The trade body said the total was the highest annual figure since it started collecting data in 2013 and equates to an average of £1.13m an hour.
Posted: 2024-04-08
Kingfisher Insurance has acquired classic vehicle insurance specialist Lynbrook Insurance Services, which will now operate alongside Kingfisher’s classic vehicle brand Peter James Insurance. Lynbrook has been trading for more than 50 years.
Posted: 2024-04-08
The Clear Group has named Mandy Hunt as managing director, MGA. She chairs the Chartered Insurance Institute’s Underwriting Community Board and previously served as chief underwriting officer – commercial lines at RSA.
Posted: 2024-04-08
Broker software specialist Open GI has acquired Hug Hub’s Digital Platform. Open GI said it would initially integrate the Digital Platform technology with its own Mobius platform before making it available across its other platforms - Core and V.
Posted: 2024-04-05
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association has teamed up with insurer CFC to design and deliver a cyber hub for this year’s annual BIBA conference, which will be held in Manchester on the 15th and 16th of May.
Posted: 2024-04-05
AssuredPartners has announced its acquisition of LT Insurance Services, which was founded in 2009 and serves a range of commercial SME and personal lines clients. LT Insurance Services is based in South Wales and will become part of PSP Insurance Brokers, which is also owned by AssuredPartners.
Posted: 2024-04-05
Insurance intermediary group Howden has promoted Paul Hasib to the newly created role of chief placement officer within Howden UK & Ireland’s corporate and commercial division. Responsible for all placement activities, Paul and his team will seek to resolve placement issues and improve efficiency in this area of the business.
Posted: 2024-04-04
QBE has named Aiden Quinn (pictured) as head of commercial underwriting, trade credit for its European operations. He joins from the insurer’s Australian division where he was head of commercial underwriting. He has responsibility for servicing, renewing and growing the existing portfolio.
Posted: 2024-04-04
Insurance data specialist Percayso Inform has signed a deal with e2e Total Loss Vehicle Management, an outsourced, third-party administrator in the total loss claims supply chain. Under the arrangement, e2e will use Percayso’s Companion claims tool to value vehicles.
Posted: 2024-04-04
London-headquartered managing general agent Devonshire Underwriting, which comprises Devonshire UW Limited, and its affiliate Devonshire UW Europe GmbH, has launched. The firm will specialise in underwriting transactional risk and will be led by its four founding partners - Natasha Attray, James Dodd, James Fletcher and Charles Turnham.
Posted: 2024-04-03
Pearson Ham’s Q1 Insurance Price Index has found that combined buildings and contents home insurance premiums were up 10% on the previous quarter and by 41% over the year. It said the average premium was now £400. In contrast, it said the motor market had begun to soften, albeit in an irregular fashion.
Posted: 2024-04-03
Davies Broking Europe SRL has received approval from the Financial Services and Markets Authority and is also expecting to be accredited as an authorised Lloyd’s broker. Based in Brussels, the firm said its European operation would support brokers in the European Economic Area. Its UK branch will be able to support UK brokers expand into Europe via a warehousing solution.
Posted: 2024-04-03
The Broker Investment Group has upped its investment in Macclesfield-based PHP Insurance to 80%. PHP controls gross written premium of £5.5m and is run by directors Jullian Shawcross (pictured left) and Andy Tyrrell (pictured right), who both remain shareholders in the business.
Posted: 2024-04-02
GIC has become Miller’s majority shareholder after buying Cinven’s shares in the re/insurance broker. GIC and Cinven first invested in Miller in 2021. The deal was completed for an undisclosed consideration.
Posted: 2024-04-02
Fleetmaxx Solutions, which specialises in delivering fuel and fleet cost reduction, has teamed up with Artura Consultancy and Agile Developments to launch an app to improve the way fleets manage accident claims.
Posted: 2024-04-02
Claims management and loss adjusting specialist Sedgwick has named Peter Farrelly (pictured) as its chief operating officer in the UK. He has served as managing director for Sedgwick’s UK commercial claims services since 2019.
Posted: 2024-03-28
Moody’s Investor Service has published a report forecasting an increase in claims for trade credit insurers driven by an expected rise in the number of commercial insolvencies during 2024. However, it said the insurance sector was well-placed financially to absorb these losses and expected it to maintain underwriting discipline during the year.
Posted: 2024-03-28
Insurance sector law firm Fenchurch Law has announced that 60% of its shares will now be owned by employees, through its newly formed employee ownership trust. Employees will also have the opportunity to put themselves forward to join the firm’s management team.
Posted: 2024-03-28
The Competition and Markets Authority has given the green light to the proposed merger between Markerstudy Group and Ardonagh’s personal lines broking business, Atlanta Group. The deal, announced in September 2023, will create an organisation controlling gross written premium of more than £3bn.
Posted: 2024-03-27
Pool Re and HM Treasury have struck an agreement to modernise the terrorism reinsurance scheme offered by the government-backed carrier. The deal will see the scheme move from a facultative treaty to an aggregate catastrophe excess of loss treaty.
Posted: 2024-03-27
Professional services and technology business Davies has acquired Shoreside Law, a commercial and maritime litigation firm, specialising in shipping, commercial insurance and energy disputes. The team of lawyers from Shoreside will join Davies’ existing legal solutions business, Keoghs, and will be based in Davies’ London headquarters.
Posted: 2024-03-27
Independent finance broker Montane Finance has established an insurance division focused on clients in the healthcare and hospitality sectors. Montane Insurance Services is based in Winsford, Cheshire. Adam Lee (pictured right) has joined from Gen2 to head up the new division.
Posted: 2024-03-26
Specialist re/insurance broker BMS has recruited Tom Spraggs, Richard Austwick, and Tom Woolcott to bolster its financial and professional risks division. All three join from Howden’s financial institutions team, formerly Protean Risk.
Posted: 2024-03-26
Prestige Underwriting says the cost of the average fire-related home insurance claim has almost quadrupled from £6,583 in 2007 to hit £24,000. In part, it attributed the rise to the increasing prevalence of lithium batteries, which are used in e-bikes and e-scooters. Prestige said the rise in claims cost came despite a 63% reduction in UK domestic fires since 2007.
Posted: 2024-03-26
Specialist managing general agent Qlaims Limited has struck a deal with Howden. Under the agreement, Qlaims will offer its loss assistance insurance to Howden’s UK, SME clients. The broker began offering the Qlaims cover earlier this month.
Posted: 2024-03-25
Independent broker network, Momentum Broker Solutions has announced gross revenue of £15m for 2023, with net revenue exceeding £6m – an increase of 35% on the previous year. It said gross written premium across its 95 appointed representative broker members had jumped 31% to reach £81m.
Posted: 2024-03-25
Blink Parametric, which offers real-time flight delay insurance has teamed up with Zurich Insurance in Asia Pacific and integrated its assistance and claims solution with the Zurich Edge platform. The move enables Zurich to offer eligible policyholders complimentary access to a VIP airport lounge.
Posted: 2024-03-25
Direct Line Group has posted an operating loss of £189.5m for the year ended 31st December 2023, adding to the £6.4m loss reported the previous year. In force policies saw a 0.5% uptick on the previous year to reach 9.44m while gross written premium and associated fees improved by more than 27% to hit £3.1bn.
Posted: 2024-03-22
Convicted travel insurance fraudster Sam Carr of Bolton has received a suspended sentence for two years, and must also complete 200 hours of unpaid work and a 30-day rehabilitation activity. He had previously plead guilty to 10 counts of fraud by false representation in making bogus travel insurance claims worth an estimated total of £75,000.
Posted: 2024-03-22
Premium finance provider PremFina has signed a deal with broking network Blink Intermediary Solutions to offer premium finance solutions to its broker members and their personal and commercial clients.
Posted: 2024-03-22
Sabre Insurance Group, which specialises in the motor market, has reported gross written premium of £225.1m for 2023, up from £171.3m the previous year. The carrier’s combined operating ratio improved from 93.4% in 2022, to reach 86.3% in 2023. Profit after tax was £18.1m, up from £14m in 2022.
Posted: 2024-03-21
Safeagent, the not-for-profit accreditation scheme for lettings and management agents, has named Howden as its preferred insurance broker. Under the arrangement, Howden will provide Safeagent firms a packaged solution including property, business interruption, public and employers’ liability cover. Howden will arrange other covers as needed.
Posted: 2024-03-21
The British Insurance Brokers’ Association has appointed Julie Comer as its head of compliance. She took up the position on 18th March and is responsible for assisting members in overcoming their compliance concerns and queries. She joined from Lloyd & Whyte where she was director of risk and compliance.
Posted: 2024-03-21
Tesco Bank has appointed Pinnacle UK as its strategic partner to offer a full end-to-end service to Tesco Bank pet insurance customers, covering sales, servicing, and underwriting. The partnership will come into force on 1st January 2025 and run for five years.
Posted: 2024-03-20
Insurance administration software provider Genasys has announced the launch of Genasys Unify, a significant update to its eponymous platform. The new version is being officially launched today and includes a revamped user interface.
Posted: 2024-03-20
Direct Commercial, the commercial motor managing general agent, has upgraded its Haul in One trading platform. New features include the availability of all client specific documents for download from the system.
Posted: 2024-03-20
Industry body Insurtech UK has agreed a partnership with JP Morgan Payments. The deal will see JP Morgan Payments collaborate with Insurtech UK on events and thought leadership projects. Insurtech UK said the deal was a ‘major step’ in its development.
Posted: 2024-03-19
Aviva has completed another step in simplifying its operations and has announced it has completed the disposal of its shareholding in Singapore Life Holdings Pte Ltd, together with two debt instruments, for £937m. The planned exit was first announced in September of last year.
Posted: 2024-03-19
Alps, a specialist provider of insurance add-on policies, legal expenses and motor claims solutions for intermediaries, is offering its claims technology on the open market. The provider said its technology delivered a 50% improvement in claims efficiency and a 13% reduction in cost per claim.
Posted: 2024-03-19
Allianz has rebranded its digital motor insurance business Flow, which is now called Allianz. The insurance is sold direct to consumers as well as being available on price comparison sites. The move supports the previously announced rebrand of LV= Broker, scheduled for May 2024.
Posted: 2024-03-18
Howden Tiger, the reinsurance and capital advisory arm of Howden Group, has appointed Carrie Byler as managing director, head of US General casualty to further accelerate the growth of its US casualty division.
Posted: 2024-03-18
Lockton Re Capital Markets has appointed Brendan Roche as head of distribution. He will be based in Europe. He has more than 25 years of market experience and was an SVP at GC Securities and previously spent almost 14 years at Marsh, most recently as global leader of ILS and SPV Centre of Excellence.
Posted: 2024-03-18
Markerstudy Group has rebranded its broking division from Markerstudy Broking to Markerstudy Distribution. It said the new name better represented the breadth of products and services across the division, which encompasses a number of own-brand broking specialists and significant partnerships.
Posted: 2024-03-15
Embedded insurance specialist Open has acquired UK-based insurtech SO-SURE, which focuses on mobile protection and contents products. Open partners with brands such as Bupa and Polestar to deliver embedded car, home, travel and landlord insurance products to their customers.
Posted: 2024-03-15
In a bid to help brokers navigate the niche schemes market, Axa Commercial has launched an online directory detailing a selection of the insurer’s partners and the Axa-underwritten products it offers across a range of non-standard trades and sectors. The directory covers six categories - specialty, contractors, liability, motor, property and combined.
Posted: 2024-03-15
QBE has launched its new Healthcare Practice, which will be led by Doug Walker and supported by a team in London and underwriters in QBE’s regional offices in Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Glasgow and Belfast.
Posted: 2024-03-14
Aegis London, which operates Lloyd’s Syndicate 1225 has announced a combined ration of 79.4% for 2023, which is an improvement of 4.4 percentage points on the 83.8% in 2022. It also announced UK GAAP profit of £206m, in comparison to the £97m achieved in 2022. Premium gross of commissions was £1,040m in 2023 an increase of 15% on 2022’s premium of £908m.
Posted: 2024-03-14
The Chartered Insurance Institute’s 2023 Corporate Chartered Equality Diversity & Inclusion survey has highlighted positive business outcomes for companies that implement equality, diversity and inclusion practices and policies. These include improvements in creativity and innovation, and increases in employee engagement levels.
Posted: 2024-03-14
Seventeen Group has acquired Hendricks Insurance, which is based in St Andrews and has a gross written premium of £2.8m. It has also purchased Keith Miller Insurance Services Ltd, which controls gross written premium of £2.5m and is focused on the South East.
Posted: 2024-03-13
Academy Insurance Services has struck a deal with Allianz Holdings plc to purchase Allianz Business Services Ltd, which trades as Premierline. Launched in 2001 as the UK’s first direct to consumer commercial offering, it became part of Allianz in 2006.
Posted: 2024-03-13
Zurich UK has announced that its general insurance business prevented £78.5m worth of fraud during 2023. This included £15.5m in property claims, an area in which fraud levels have doubled in the past two years, according to the carrier.
Posted: 2024-03-13
A survey of brokers’ opinions has shown that regulation is their biggest operational concern in 2024 with finding appropriate markets and attracting talent also registering as significant problems. The poll was conducted by Rebuildcostassessment.com at the recent Bravo National Conference in Birmingham.
Posted: 2024-03-12
Connected car data and devices provider Trakm8 has agreed a two-year extension to its contract with Direct Line Group. The agreement covers the provision of Trakm8’s “connectedcare” data sets and AI-driven first notification of loss crash algorithm.
Posted: 2024-03-12
Online aggregator Compare Insurance has announced income of more than £3m for 2023 and said more than £1m of this total was new business. The firm said it had grown by 60% during the year and forecast growth of a further 50% in 2024.
Posted: 2024-03-12
Pearson Ham Group's February 2024 Insurance Price Index has shown an uptick in pricing across the home, motor and travel sectors. Motor pricing nudged up 0.6%, while home insurance was up 3.7% and travel increased by 4%.
Posted: 2024-03-11
Specialty re/insurer IQUW, which was established in 2021, has reported gross written premium of approximately £710m for 2023. This is an increase of 35% on the previous year. It said its combined operating ratio for the year was 80.9%.
Posted: 2024-03-11
The Managing General Agents’ Association has confirmed the appointment of three new directors to its board at its annual general meeting and highlighted that the organisation now has more than 400 members. The new board members are Ian Cook, managing director of MX Underwriting; Daniel Berry, chief underwriting officer at Brown & Brown Europe and Paul Brady, market oversight counsel at Lloyd’s.
Posted: 2024-03-11
Hastings Direct has licensed Verisk’s UKBuildings granular property database to give it a better insight into the various attributes of properties across the commercial and residential sector. The data will enable Hastings Direct to refine its risk assessment and underwriting analysis.
Posted: 2024-03-08
Allianz Commercial has appointed four regional distribution managers for the South (Victoria Ashman), North (Mark O’Brien), London (Julie O’Donovan) and Midlands & the South West (Viral Patel ) regions in a bid to improve the support offered to brokers. Each individual will have responsibility for overseeing the sales and distribution strategy and establishing long-term relationships with partner brokers.
Posted: 2024-03-08
Vehicle tracking and recovery specialist AX Track has entered into a Home Office subsidised collaboration with Gloucestershire Police to help reduce agricultural machinery and vehicle theft in the county. The collaboration aims to both improve recovery rates and create a more powerful deterrent.
Posted: 2024-03-08
The winners of the 2024 National Insurance Awards were announced last night at a gala dinner and awards ceremony at the London Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square. Hosted by the brilliant Hal Cruttendon, the fastest growing awards in the insurance industry highlight the very best in general insurance provision and management.
Posted: 2024-03-08
Simply Business has expanded its relationship with Zurich so that the carrier can now provide quotes for businesses with a turnover of more than £750,000 through the digital broker. Simply Business said the move would help meet increased demand from larger businesses seeking digital insurance quotes.
Posted: 2024-03-07
RSA Insurance has overhauled its accident and health proposition and launched a new group personal accident and business travel product. The cover is supported by Healix, a healthcare and risk management solution provider and Teladoc Health UK, a virtual healthcare provider. It is aimed is aimed at mid-market businesses through to large multinationals.
Posted: 2024-03-07
Advantage Financial Services Limited, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Advantage Travel Partnership, has purchased broker Cork, Bays & Fisher from Kingfisher Insurance Services Limited. The deal includes the brand and book of business and will see most of the team moving to Advantage.
Posted: 2024-03-07
Arc Legal Group, part of AmTrust Financial Group, has signed a deal with HomeServe. Under the arrangement, Arc Legal will provide its home accident cover to HomeServe’s policyholders. The cover provides assistance to householders in the event of an accident resulting in injury, leading to hospitalisation or death.
Posted: 2024-03-06
Legal firm Horwich Farrelly is expanding its operations in Northern Ireland and has moved into a bigger Belfast office in the Lincoln Building, Victoria Street, to accommodate the growth. The firm is seeking to grow its presence in the marine and aviation market on top of the work it currently does in areas such as injury, recoveries and counter fraud.
Posted: 2024-03-06
Insurance software solutions provider VIPR has appointed that Tony Russell (pictured) as chief revenue officer, effective 1st March. The firm welcomed his expertise in aligning sales and business strategies. His career has spanned three decades and he has previously held senior roles at organisations such as Charles Taylor InsureTech.
Posted: 2024-03-06
Watkin Davies Insurance Consultants, which is part of part of Howden, has secured a long-term partnership with Welsh Gymnastics, the sport’s governing body, to provide an insurance programme for both the organisation and its associated members.
Posted: 2024-03-05
Open & Direct estimates that 20% of home insurance quotes are turned down by providers because they have non-standard elements to the risk. The intermediary is calling for these customers to be signposted towards a potential solution, mirroring the approach taken in the home and travel market since 2012.
Posted: 2024-03-05
London market wholesale broker GAWS of London Limited, has rebranded to Evolin Broking Limited. The company is based in London and has a team of 40 people. It is an approved Lloyd’s of London broker and coverholder.
Posted: 2024-03-05
Bspoke Group has completed the acquisition of parts of the personal lines elements of the Police & Forces Mutual businesses, Police Mutual Healthcare and Police Mutual General Insurance, from The Royal London Mutual Insurance Society Limited. The move sees around 250,000 general insurance policies and 16,000 healthcare policies transfer to Bspoke.
Posted: 2024-03-04
Comparison site Money Expert has found 35% of drivers will consider monthly payment options when they next renew their motor policy due to recent rate rises. The figure jumps to 51% for drivers aged 35 to 44 and to 40% for those aged 18 to 40.
Posted: 2024-03-04
The Association of British Insurers has launched a new campaign to raise awareness of the fact that insurance premium tax affects 84% of households in the UK and has doubled to 12% since October 2015. The campaign is being fronted by a mascot named Snippy (pictured).
Posted: 2024-03-01
Bravo Networks, which comprises Broker Network and Compass, has launched Bravo Digital Trader. The e-trade platform caters for SME regional business and matches cases with insurer appetite. It was launched at the Bravo Networks annual conference in Birmingham (pictured).
Posted: 2024-03-01
Financial services review site, Smart Money People has forecast an 11% net increase in the pet insurance market over the coming year after commissioning research from Consumer Intelligence. It said the rise will be driven by a combination of people increasing their existing level of cover and those taking out a policy for the first time.
Posted: 2024-03-01
Direct Line has issued a firm response to a proposed takeover by Ageas, rejecting the approach as ‘unattractive’ and ‘highly opportunistic’.
Posted: 2024-02-29
Innovative Risk Labs and Apollo have launched a new product that aims to protect small and medium-sized UK firms from the cost impacts of parental leave.
Posted: 2024-02-29
The FCA has set out plans to carry out enforcement cases more quickly as the organisation seeks to increase the deterrent impact of its enforcement actions.
Posted: 2024-02-28
Andy Bragoli, Howden’s global head of placement, has been appointed as new chair of LIIBA, the body for London market insurance brokers.
Posted: 2024-02-28
Specialist marine MGA Amphitrite Underwriting London has received full authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority, effective 31 January 2024.
Posted: 2024-02-27
The ABI has unveiled a series of steps the industry is taking to combat the rising costs of motor cover. In collaboration with its consumer advisory group, the ABI will commission research into the feasibility and impact of various social policies focused on helping low-income households manage their insurance costs.
Posted: 2024-02-27
Mosaic Insurance has launched a suite of specialised financial institutions products, offering US$25m in investment management insurance, combined with cyber and other coverage for asset managers, funds, and associated directors.
Posted: 2024-02-26
Oakland Insurance has partnered with Machine Learning Programs to implement its predictive AI enrichment model, MLP Score.
Posted: 2024-02-26
Cyber risk specialist Kynd has announced a partnership with Lloyd’s syndicate Probitas 1492 to support its cyber book.
Posted: 2024-02-23
Allianz Holdings delivered growth across the business with a 7.4% increase in revenue to £4.26bn (from £3.9bn in 2022). Operating profit increased by 65% to £241.6m. Full year results for Allianz Group have shown a total revenue of £6.5bn, despite the ‘challenging’ backdrop of inflationary pressures.
Posted: 2024-02-23
Axa Global Healthcare has started the phased rollout of a new healthcare payment card to simplify the claims process for its corporate clients and their employees.
Posted: 2024-02-22
Zurich has posted record profits of US$7.4bn, up 21%, for 2023.
Posted: 2024-02-22
Brokerslink has added technology consultancy White Gate Consulting to its network. White Gate is a technology consultancy specialising in digital systems for the insurance, broking and fintech markets.
Posted: 2024-02-21
KoiReader Technologies has teamed with Loadsure to provide its autonomous OCR AI technology solutions to the cargo and logistics community.
Posted: 2024-02-21
Paymentshield has introduced improvements to its home insurance offer, including an overhaul of its core limits. The move follows market research with both customers and advisers, conducted alongside the firm’s insurance partners.
Posted: 2024-02-20
House rebuilding costs will grow no more than 2% per annum until 2030, aligning with the UK consumer price inflation figure from the IMF until 2028, according to figures from Prestige Underwriting. The in-depth assessment of rebuilding costs was undertaken with Finaccord to forecast future impacts on home insurance.
Posted: 2024-02-20
Agile Developments Group is to provide Hummingbird Insurance Services with a bespoke iteration of its Agile Claim App portal and dashboard, tailored to meet the specific needs of its fleet clientele.
Posted: 2024-02-19
Ardonagh Specialty has reached an agreement with Whitespace to widen the adoption of the e-trading platform for its Price Forbes brokerage. All lines of business are now starting their placements from data-first templates on Whitespace, with API integration being delivered throughout 2024.
Posted: 2024-02-19
Price comparison website Moneysupermarket has posted record group revenue of £432.1m for the financial year to 31 December 2023, up 11% on the previous year and largely based on what the firm describes as ‘exceptional’ trading in the insurance segment.
Posted: 2024-02-19
House rebuilding cost inflation calmed considerably in 2023, following a period of large price increases. Annual growth in the Building Cost Information Service/ABI house rebuilding cost index was 2.7% at the end of 2023, compared to 19.4% at the end of 2022. The latest data for January 2024 shows it was up 2.1% on the previous year.
Posted: 2024-02-16
More than half of young drivers admit they are struggling to afford cover and 90% believe the government should offer support, according to a survey by telematics firm Trakm8.
Posted: 2024-02-16
Charity insurance specialist Ansvar has launched a new business, office and retail policy, specifically designed for the activities of social enterprises, commercial organisations, shops, and offices.
Posted: 2024-02-16
Trawick International has entered into a sale and purchase agreement with Greenlight Insurance Services to acquire a controlling stake in the firm.
Posted: 2024-02-15
Acturis has announced a long-term partnership with specialist home, landlord and tenant broker First2Protect.
Posted: 2024-02-15
AXA UK & Ireland has announced Gwenaël Fourré as chief operating officer. He joins on 4 March from AXA France where he is currently chief digital officer.
Posted: 2024-02-14
Insurance network GBN Worldwide has launched GBN Worldwide Risk Solutions, a London-based independent broker and MGA.
Posted: 2024-02-14
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