Exclusive: Six-in-ten UK small businesses forced to borrow to pay insurance premiums, new figures show May 9, 2022 Almost six out of ten (59 per cent) UK small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are relying on credit to pay their insurance costs, due to rising premiums and lower incomes linked to the impacts of Covid-19. On average, UK SMEs have borrowed £1,105 to pay for insurance costs, while nearly one in ten have borrowed [...]
Allianz strikes deal with South African insurer Sanlam to form Africa’s biggest insurance firm May 4, 2022 German insurance giant Allianz has struck a deal with South African insurance company Sanlam to create the biggest insurer in Africa. The deal will see two firms launch a new joint venture that is set to become the biggest pan-African non-banking financial services firm on the continent. The new firm will operate in 29 different [...]
Direct Line takes financial hit from watchdog’s new ‘price walking’ ban May 4, 2022 Insurance company Direct Line has said its Q1 performance was “broadly in line with expectations,” after the FCA’s new pricing practice reforms hit its bottom line. The Bromley based firm said its overall premiums were 2.4 per cent lower in Q1 2022 than in the first quarter of last year, as revenues dropped across its [...]
Allianz vows to stop insuring Arctic oil and gas projects April 29, 2022 Insurance giant Allianz has said it will stop insuring Arctic oil and gas fields by the middle of next year. The German multinational, which is one of the biggest oil and gas sector insurers in the world, vowed to stop insuring new oil and gas fields, oil powerplants, and oil pipelines in the Arctic by [...]
Sanctions are having ‘profound’ impact on London insurers, expert tells MPs April 26, 2022 The sanctions imposed on Russia are having a “profound” impact on London’s insurance sector, a leading insurance expert has told MPs. London insurers are struggling to keep on top of complex sanctions legislation and have resorted to taking an extremely cautious approach, the insurance chief said. “The volume of the legislation that’s been coming [...]
Former Citibank exec named head of City of London police force’s insurance fraud unit April 26, 2022 The City of London police has named a former Citibank exec as the head of its crack unit dedicated to tackling insurance fraud. Detective Chief Inspector Tom Hill, who joined the City of London police more than 15 years ago from his previous role as a project manager at Citibank, is set to lead the [...]
Insurance sector launches hiring spree amid surge in flooding and Covid linked claims April 19, 2022 Vacancies for jobs in the insurance sector hit record highs at the start of 2022 on the back of a surge in claims linked to flooding and Covid-19. The UK’s biggest insurance companies posted more job ads in January than in any other month since the start of 2019, a new report from Vacancysoft shows. [...]
Russian cyberattacks could cost insurers billions, industry experts warn April 3, 2022 Insurers could be forced to pay out billions to those impacted by cyberattacks following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Ambiguous wording in cyber insurance policies could see insurance companies made liable to pay out billions to victims of hacking Insurers may be forced to cover the costs imposed on businesses of paying for ransoms and repairing [...]
Axa vows not to appeal ruling over Corbin & King’s £4.4m claim for Covid linked losses April 3, 2022 Axa has said it will not appeal a High Court ruling ordering it to pay out £4.36m to high end restaurateur Corbin & King, after the firm was forced to close its restaurants during the pandemic. The French insurer said it would not appeal the February decision after it initially refused to pay the restaurant [...]
High flying insurance duo plan £150m SPAC IPO on London Stock Exchange March 31, 2022 Insurance industry veterans Will Allen and Andy Rear are planning to raise £150m through the launch of a new special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) in the coming days. The prominent duo plan to list a shell company called FINSAC on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) with a view merging with a leading name insurance technology [...]