Jaguar Land Rover will put driverless cars on Britain’s roads this year July 13, 2016 Jaguar Land Rover is the latest car maker to reveal its plans for driverless cars – and it aims to put them on Britain's roads incredibly soon. The car maker will begin introducing a fleet of driverless cars this year and by 2020, more than 100 of the vehicles will have hit Britain's roads on test routes [...]
This is how insurers can become part of the sharing economy July 13, 2016 If the general public was asked ‘what does the insurance industry do’, it’s unlikely the answer would be; ‘it supports entrepreneurial innovation and endeavour ’. But that’s precisely what insurers do and the exponential growth of the sharing economy has provided an interesting challenge for insurers in this role. Sharing enablers such as AirBnB, RideLink and Vrumi are [...]
Driverless car buyers may need new insurance covering cyber-attacks, and even ransom, a new report has warned July 10, 2016 Driverless car users may need to find cover against a raft of new dangers, including ransom payments demanded by hackers. A new paper from motor insurer Axa has warned that the rise of autonomous vehicles could lead to cars being hacked to conduct criminal activity, or even to be used a weapon. Alternatively, drivers could [...]
Comparethemarket owner prepares for listing that could value the company at over £2bn July 10, 2016 The owner of comparison site Comparethemarket is exploring a listing that could value to company at more than £2bn. An exact date for the listing has not been confirmed, but it is thought to be taking place in the first quarter of 2017. Read more: Cost of average car insurance soars to record high BGL group, the online financial [...]
The best holiday and travel tech: Enhance your galavanting with these essential gadgets July 6, 2016 Bluesmart One Suitcase technology seemed to grind to a halt shortly after we stuck wheels on them, but Bluesmart has just booted your luggage into the 21st century. The Bluesmart One suitcase has global GPS tracking thanks to a built-in SIM card, a battery charger for your devices, can tell you how heavy it currently [...]
Why Avant’s Al Goldstein is excited about partnering with big banks June 16, 2016 Despite being just four years’ old, Avant Credit is one of the largest marketplace lenders in the alternative finance industry. The US firm has been operating in the UK since 2013, and has issued over half a million loans to consumers, totalling more than $3bn in originations. Avant isn’t a P2P lender – it uses [...]
Chinese Uber rival Didi Chuxing raises another $600m – one month after it got $1bn from Apple June 13, 2016 Chinese Uber rival Didi Chuxing has just unveiled another $600m (£423m) round of funding – exactly one month after Apple ploughed $1bn into it. China Life made an equity investment of $300m and a long-term debt investment of two billion yuan, about $305m. Didi Chuxing said the two companies had committed to a partnership on internet-powered financial innovation and other initiatives – [...]
How drones have opened up a whole new world for insurers June 13, 2016 The popularity of drones could drive growth in some sectors of the insurance industry, one City law firm has said today. According to RPC, the new technology is increasing the demand for specialist drone insurance, which providers operators with cover that may not be available under traditional public liability policies. "Major issues do remain to be resolved for insurers – [...]
Travel troubles cost insurance industry £1m per day June 11, 2016 Those who are still shuddering at the cost of their most recent getaway should spare a thought for the insurance industry. Research out today has found that insurers shell out £1m every day on claims on travel policies. The study from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) discovered that travel insurers paid out £365m in claims last [...]
The CMA’s retail banking recommendations have been slammed by experts addressing parliament’s Treasury Select Committee June 7, 2016 The Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) work on the retail banking market is a failed opportunity, MPs have been told. One challenger bank boss said that the concentration risk in the market will take “decades” to unwind, speaking at a Treasury Select Committee hearing earlier today. Meanwhile, a former Competition Commission member said that the provisional recommendations issued [...]