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"Munich Re expects insurance premiums against sea piracy to rise following a spate of pirate attacks off the Somali coast.
Dieter Berg, Munich’s head of marine insurance, told Reuters that insurance rates are rising in all markets - marine insurance being no exception.
Payouts from current claims are pushing premiums up, Berg said.
He added that the risk [...]" (2009-1-30)
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"German legal services firm, ARAG, has been appointed by MMA Insurance to provide legal expenses cover alongside the firm’s commercial combined portfolio.
MMA is a broker-only insurer and the move will assist its customers by avoiding the need to obtain separate legal expenses quotes and complete proposal forms for standalone cover.
In addition, brokers using [...]" (2009-1-30)
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"Consumer advice group Which? has criticised several price comparison websites for failing to provide customers with accurate information.
Which? investigators examined six of the most popular price comparison sites, and found that on some sites, car insurance quotes were given with a different excess to what the customer asked for.
Some websites, including Gocompare.com, altered the customer’s [...]" (2009-1-30)
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"From 2010 banks and credit card providers will no longer be able to sell Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) alongside unsecured loans and credit agreements.
PPI is intended to cover repayments on unsecured loans if the borrower loses their job, becomes too ill to work, or dies.
The insurance has been the subject of controversy for years with [...]" (2009-1-29)
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"Fortis has started renegotiating a bailout deal with the Belgian Government and BNP Paribas.
The original bailout collapsed after a successful legal challenge from shareholders.
Fortis said the renegotiations will consider recommendations from a court-appointed panel of experts to sell only half of its insurance unit to BNP Paribas.
Fortis had planned to sell its entire insurance business [...]" (2009-1-29)
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"Storms that left 26 people dead across southern Europe this weekend caused hundreds of millions of euros in damage, an insurance industry group has revealed.
The Federation Francaise des Societes d’Assurances (FFSA) said better estimates will come in the next few days when the full extent of the destruction is clear.
Three types of insurance will be [...]" (2009-1-28)
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"The vast majority of UK underwriters expect insurance premiums to rise in the first quarter, according to research released this week.
In a survey conducted by Aon, 92% of underwriters predicted an increase in premiums for vehicle insurance.
In addition, 74% predicted a rise in property rates over the next three months, whilst 69% said liability premiums [...]" (2009-1-28)
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"Reinsurance Group of America (RGA) has posted its fourth quarter results, with profits down 85% on year despite an increase in operating income.
Fourth quarter profits were $9.4 million, or $0.14 per share, compared to $63.6 million, or $0.99 per share in the year ago period.
Operating income rose 9.6% to $100.0 million, or $1.45 per share, [...]" (2009-1-28)
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"Insurance for new properties built in flood-prone areas will become increasingly difficult to find, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) warned this week.
Developers who build in areas of high flood risk will find it difficult to sell properties because insurance will be prohibitively expensive or unavailable, the ABI said.
Stephen Haddrill, director general of the ABI, [...]" (2009-1-28)
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"Research from Investis, the online corporate communications specialist, suggests that insurance companies are the best corporate website communicators.
In its quarterly review of FTSE 100 companies, the firm found that the websites provided by life insurers are rich with both content and functionality.
Aviva took first place and Prudential 12th having been assessed for clear and [...]" (2009-1-28)
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"Independent insurance broker Heath Lambert Group has appointed Richard Buckmaster to enhance its specialist classic car sector (part of the Art, Jewellery and Private Client Division (AJPCD)).
He brings with him experience from both Aston Scott Ltd and Aon Ltd, where he developed a strong classic motor trade scheme and specialised in classic car insurance respectively.
Buckmaster [...]" (2009-1-27)
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"Home insurance claims relating to water damage have increased significantly over the past few weeks, according to Sainsbury’s insurance arm.
Sainsbury’s Home Insurance estimates a total of 13,000 water damage claims under the category ‘forcible/violent bursting’ this winter across the UK.
Total cost to insurers is estimated at £27.56 million.
Neil Laird, manager of Sainsbury’s Home Insurance, [...]" (2009-1-27)
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"Admiral - whose brands include elephant.co.uk and confused.com - has been tipped as a good buy by Mail on Sunday website This is Money.
The website said Admiral - unlike many insurance firms - prices properly to ensure that the majority of its risk is passed on to the reinsurance market.
Because of this, it barely needs [...]" (2009-1-27)
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"LV= has added its home insurance products to price comparison website Gocompare.com.
LV=’s eCommerce director Paul Wishman said: “We are very pleased to add our home insurance policies to Gocompare.com.
“We added car insurance in May last year and we have seen some really great sales results.”
Joining the Gocompare.com is part of LV=’s ambitious growth plan [...]" (2009-1-27)
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"The financial crisis resulted from a system-wide failure to embrace appropriate enterprise risk management (ERM) behaviors, rather than a failure of risk management as a business discipline. The assertion comes in an executive report from the Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS). RIMS notes that when we look for a cause of the current financial [...]" (2009-1-27)
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"Specialist executive search consultancy GRS has announced a raft of senior appointments in the insurance and pensions recruitment sector.
Over the last 3 months GRS Group has been in talks with search firm Mansion House’s pension and insurance recruiters which has yielded a team including Nick Purdue, Gerard Bland, Simon Dodds, Simon Clark and Mena Woodcraft.
The [...]" (2009-1-26)
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"Carmakers feature cars you can afford to buy." (2009-1-26)
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"Lorega, the loss recovery insurance specialist, has secured an agreement with Jelf Insurance Brokers under which it will provide its claims assistance service to Jelf’s commercial customer base.
The service, which has already undergone a successful pilot, involves Lorega providing a chartered loss adjuster to help Jelf’s commercial clients prepare and manage claims above £5,000.
Jelf [...]" (2009-1-26)
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"Duck Creek Technologies, Inc. (DCTI), the Missouri-based firm that provides software and services to the insurance sector, has announced plans to acquire Duck Creek Technologies Europe (DCTE).
The latter is a London-based affiliate of DCTI and the move involves acquiring the voting shares of all outside investors in DCTE, over the next two years.
According to DCTI’s [...]" (2009-1-26)
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"Independent insurance broker Giles Insurance Brokers has been appointed by the National Federation of Builders (NFB) to serve as the federation’s sole insurance advisor.
Beating off stiff competition from rivals, Giles will now offer the NFB’s 1,800 members, located across England and Wales, with insurance services tailored to their particular needs.
The appointment of a single insurance [...]" (2009-1-26)
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"Another market survey reports that commercial property/casualty market premiums showed definite signs of leveling off in the fourth quarter of 2008. According to the latest Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers’ (CIAB) Commercial P/C Market Index survey, while still a competitive market insurers were trying to hold the line on pricing in the fourth quarter. [...]" (2009-1-26)
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"Lloyd’s insurer Chaucer Holdings has confirmed reports that it is exploring options to raise capital.
A statement from Chaucer read: “The company confirms that it is currently exploring its options for raising capital in light of the improving underwriting outlook for the insurance sector and the company’s capital requirements.”
The comments were made following a Financial Times [...]" (2009-1-26)
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"Japan-based insurance firms Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group, Aioi Insurance Co. and Nissay Dowa General Insurance have announced plans to merge.
The merger - to be completed by April 2010 - will result in the biggest casualty insurance firm in Japan, with annual revenues of around 2.7 trillion yen ($30 billion, £22 billion).
The three companies - Japan’s [...]" (2009-1-26)
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"Lloyd’s insurer, Hiscox, has reported good rate increases in key areas during 2008.
The firm, which specialises in complex personal and commercial risks, including art and kidnap insurance, has reported that rates on US reinsurance business rose on average by between 15% and 25% during the year.
Meanwhile, regional business saw premiums increase by a minimum of [...]" (2009-1-26)
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"Learn how to adjust the coverage amount you purchase." (2009-1-23)
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"People send us their insurance questions. Here are some of the best. Is your question one of them?" (2009-1-16)
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"Amid discussions of how insurers are weathering the financial crisis and economic downturn, a key message emanating from the 13th annual Property/Casualty Insurance Joint Industry forum is that the insurance industry is not doing enough to promote its contribution to society and the economy. The comments came during the experts panel View From the Outside [...]" (2009-1-15)
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"Last November online insurance exchange MarketScout said the soft market was showing signs of winding down after the average property/casualty rate decrease hit single digits in October 2008 for the first time in more than 20 months. Now MarketScout’s analysis indicates the soft market is over because the property/casualty rate index fell below rate adequacy in [...]" (2009-1-9)
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"There are tons of upgrades and enhancements available for those who won't be purchasing a new car soon, but they may have implications for your car insurance." (2009-1-8)
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"Review our top 10 stories of the year and offer ideas for 2009." (2009-1-7)
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"A California earthquake would accelerate the U.S. mortgage meltdown and send shockwaves through the financial and insurance industries, according to a new study from Aon Benfield. The Annual Global Climate and Catastrophe Report: 2008 highlights that the lack of mandatory earthquake insurance in California would result in high levels of mortgage defaults should an earthquake [...]" (2009-1-6)
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