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Aon Risk Solutions has announced that M. Claire Juliana will become the company’s first director of environmental claims for its Environmental Practice.

As a seasoned professional with more than 20 years of environmental insurance and law firm experience, Juliana is charged with developing best practices for managing complex claims. In addition, she will serve as a client advocate to help resolve challenges associated with difficult claims, offer advice on policy wording as well as monitor and advise clients on emerging insurance, legal and environmental developments.

Prior to joining Aon Risk Solutions, Juliana served as risk management counsel for Zurich’s environmental underwriting unit. She also held similar positions at Quanta, Chubb and Chartis (AIG). Juliana began her environmental insurance career as a claims analyst and then manager of pollution insurance claims.

Juliana earned a Bachelor of Science degree with honors in marketing from the University of Scranton and a Juris Doctorate degree with honors from Seton Hall University School of Law.

Source : Aon Risk Solutions

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During this hour presentation, we will describe the circumstances that led to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) judgment last March that EU insurers should no longer distinguish between genders in setting prices for products.  We will then outline the relative responsibilities of FSA, UK Government and insurance firms in implementing the judgment, and reflect on possible market consequences. There will also be an opportunity to pose questions.

Who should attend :

Insurance practitioners, risk specialists, professional advisers and others with an interest in this area.

Dates :

Friday 9 December, Financial Services Authority, London

Agenda :

Registration: 17:30
Start: 18:00
Close: 19:00 followed by networking

REGISTER

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The FSA has held a number of conferences for NEDs of regulated firms focusing primarily on the role of NEDs in relation to financial matters. Feedback from these conferences indicated that attendees found them very worthwhile and that many NEDs would welcome further such discussions, including NEDs’ responsibilities in relation to the fair treatment of firms’ retail customers.

This conference therefore aims to respond to that feedback with the focus very much on NEDs’ responsibilities to their retail customers.

Outline :

The conference will be hosted by Clive Adamson, FSA Director of Conduct Supervision and Nausicaa Delfas, Head of Department, Conduct Supervision, FSA. The guest speaker will be Sir Dominic Cadbury.

They will be joined by senior representatives of the FSA and FSA Senior Advisors who will share their views and observations on NEDs’ responsibilities to customers.

The intention is to have an open and wide-ranging discussion and the event will provide an opportunity for NEDs to interact with the FSA and to share their views and experiences.

By the end of the day we hope delegates will have a better understanding of the FSA’s views on NEDs’ responsibilities to their customers and will take away a number of thoughts and ideas as to how things may be taken forward.

Attendees :

The conference is open to NEDs of FSA-regulated firms which are either directly involved with retail customers or firms whose actions have an indirect, yet material, impact on retail customers.

Please note that places will be limited and submission of a booking form does not guarantee that a place will be secured.

Following submission of your application, we will confirm whether your application has been successful.

Location :

Drapers’ Hall
Throgmorton Street
London
EC2N 2AN

Fee :

£350+VAT (£420)

REGISTER

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An interactive seminar designed to provide an overview of the issues identified during our recent wealth management review work and to provide guidance on complying with our requirements in relation to retail clients.

Overview :

We have recently reviewed the suitability of retail client portfolios in a sample of firms in the wealth management industry.  We have identified significant, widespread failings, which we are concerned may also be prevalent in firms outside our sample.  This seminar aims to provide further information and guidance to compliance consultants and compliance officers of wealth management firms on the issues we have identified and how firms can demonstrate that they meet our requirements in relation to retail clients.

Attendees :

This event is aimed at compliance consultants of wealth management firms and the compliance officers of wealth management firms.

Places are limited to one delegate per firm and will be allocated on a first-come first-served basis.

Dates :

Thursday 8 December 2011, Financial Services Authority, London

Thursday 19 January 2012, The Midland Hotel, Manchester

Format :

A full-day event, including lunch

Fee :

Compliance officers from FSA regulated firms – £95

Compliance consultants – £250

Register :

London event – 8 December 2011

Manchester event – 19 January 2012

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The International Insurance Society (IIS) has announced the candidates for the prestigious 2012 Insurance Hall of Fame Awards. IIS members serve as electors of the Insurance Hall of Fame and the 2012 Laureates will be elected from among these candidates:

– J. Barry Griswell, USA

– C. Robert Henrikson, USA

– Donald Kramer, USA

– Tsan-Ming Shih, Taiwan

– Ikuo Uno, Japan

The winner will be announced in January and the award will be presented at the June 18th gala dinner during the IIS 48th Annual Seminar, which takes place at the Sofitel Rio Copacabana Hotel, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June17 – 20, 2012.

“Induction into the Insurance Hall of Fame is considered the highest honor in the industry, and we are pleased to have such a diverse and illustrious group of insurance leaders on the 2012 ballot,” says Bernhard Fink, the Chairman of the IIS Honors Committee which selects the candidates for the Insurance Hall of Fame. “Whether operating in a global or local arena, these candidates have made a truly significant contribution to the insurance industry as a whole.” ”All nominees are richly deserving of this award,” adds Michael Morrissey, IIS President, “and I congratulate them on their extra-ordinary achievements.”

Barry Griswell has more than 36 years of experience in the financial services industry, including more than 20 years in executive management at the Principal Financial Group where he retired as Chairman, President and CEO. The Principal Financial Group today has $320.8 billion in assets under management and serves some 17.8 million customers worldwide.

While at Principal Mr. Griswell helped craft the company’s global strategy and actively promoted the global adoption of defined contribution retirement systems. Mr. Griswell and his colleagues started operations in Chile, Mexico, Hong Kong, India and China, actively promoting mandatory retirement systems, and Principal now also has strong relationships with partners and government officials in Brazil, Japan, and Australia.

Mr. Griswell’s most notable contributions were in his remarkable participation in improvements to the U.S. retirement system and 401(k) programs over the past 20 years.  Culminating his career, as Chairman of Principal he was responsible and instrumental for working actively with key members of the U.S. Congress, the Department of Labor and other members of the Administration, to encourage and advocate the enactment of the 2008 Pension Protection Act (PPA), which put in place a comprehensive set of improvements, checks and balances, and protections in the system, which have benefited millions of Americans since the law passed.

Prior to joining Principal, Mr. Griswell had a distinguished career at Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, most notably as President and Chief Executive Officer of MetLife Marketing Corporation, where he  played a pivotal role in helping the company expand its distribution reach. He and his colleagues were pioneers in the field extending the strength and brand of a large insurer well beyond its traditional limits. During this period the industry changed significantly and MetLife Marketing was a key catalyst for that change.

Mr. Griswell has served the insurance industry in major leadership roles including as Chairman of LIMRA International, the Life Underwriter Council and the American Council of Life Insurers.

C. Robert (Rob) Henrikson is Chairman and former President and CEO of MetLife, the largest life insurer in the United States and a leading provider of insurance and financial services to more than 70 million customers worldwide.  Assets under management exceed one-half trillion dollars.  Through MetLife’s acquisition of American Life Insurance Company (Alico) from AIG, MetLife expanded its reach as a leading global insurance provider, serving approximately 90 million customers.

Over the course of his more than 37-year career at MetLife, Henrikson served in a multitude of leadership roles.  He  worked with some of the largest Fortune 500 companies in the United States, regulators and government agencies to create innovative pension and insurance solutions that have not only been the source of financial growth for MetLife, but have served as foundational solutions across the industry.

Mr. Henrikson is the first MetLife agent in the company’s 142-year history to be named CEO in 2006.  During his tenure as CEO, Mr. Henrikson has led MetLife to achieve record financial results, driven operational improvements and strategically positioned the company to capitalize on emerging trends in key markets around the globe.  His efforts led MetLife to be named by Forbes as the best managed insurance company in the U.S. for 2008. For 2010, MetLife had $52.7 billion in revenue and ranks 46th on the Fortune 500.

Beyond Henrikson’s pioneering efforts in insurance and retirement income solutions, he has frequently served as a voice of the industry, advocating standards and policies to benefit the customers it serves.  Regardless of the role he has held, he has been driven by a passion for the business of insurance and all that it can do to make people’s lives safer and better, buttressed by the one thing that distinguishes insurance companies from other financial services firms – the ability to provide guarantees.

Donald Kramer’s career in the financial industry spans almost 55 years, of which more than 44 years were dedicated to the insurance industry. He has been a leading innovator in investment banking, rehabilitating and/or liquidating troubled insurance companies, and establishing and leading several successful insurance companies.

In 1975 Mr. Kramer set up Kramer Capital Consultants, a management consulting practice which specialized in dealing with troubled insurance companies, and where he dealt with nearly all of the high profile receiverships in the United States.

The first in a series of insurance company start-ups began in 1984 when Mr. Kramer acquired North American Company for Property and Casualty Insurance. The company was initially purchased for $ 26 million and following several years of growth and financial development it was sold for over $ 1.2 billion dollars.

In 1993 he formed Tempest Reinsurance Company in Bermuda, which was merged into ACE.  Today ACE Tempest Re is a major reinsurer and ACE itself is a leading global multi-line insurance group with an annual net income of $ 2.5 billion. Mr. Kramer also served ACE internationally through its two Lloyd’s syndicate acquisitions, its China acquisition, the Huatai Insurance Company, and the opening of offices in Russia and Vietnam.

Following his retirement from ACE in 2005, Mr. Kramer started Ariel Holdings (Ariel Re) with a total of $ 1 billion in funds raised privately. The company has grown by more than sixty percent and recently returned forty percent of investors’ original investment through a yearend dividend.   Recently Mr. Kramer stepped down as CEO but remains Chairman of the Board.

Tsan-Ming Shih is a key figure in the Taiwanese insurance industry who has had a successful career spanning more than 40 years, culminating with his election to the Chairmanship of Fubon Insurance Co.  Concurrently, he serves as Honorary Chairman of the Non-Life Insurance Association of the R.O.C., the Chairman of Taiwan Residential Earthquake Insurance Fund, and the Senior consultant of the Non-Life Underwriters Society of R.O.C.

Mr. Shih’s dedication to fosterage is widely recognized by the general public and the industry peers in Taiwan. In 2004, he was appointed as the Chairman of the Non-Life Insurance Stabilization Fund and was also named “Insurance Leader of the Year” by the RMI Magazine.

Under his remarkable leadership, Fubon Insurance won “The General Insurance Company of The Year Award” in 1999 and 2004, making it the only insurance company in Asia ever to win this award twice in 5 years.

Mr. Shih pledged to upgrade standards in the industry and also contributed to introducing better regulations and insurance governing rules. Mr. Shih has also contributed enormous efforts to the creation of business opportunities in the industry; he brought about the commencement of Health Insurance, the final stage of tariff rate deregulations and the application of IFRS4 Insurance Contracts for non-life insurance.

Mr. Shih devoted himself to the development of insurance not only in the Taiwan market, but has also recently set foot in the Mainland China. In 2010, Mr. Shih’s Fubon Insurance successfully established the first branch office in Xiamen, Mainland China, which further endorsed a stronger business tie across the strait.

Since being elected as Chairman of the Non-Life Insurance Association in August 2004, Mr. Shih has been increasingly devoting his time to the Association.  As he once stated, “I have to give something back to the industry. I have been in this industry for 36 years and it is my social responsibility to do my part for the industry that nurtured me.”

Ikuo Uno, who joined Nippon Life Insurance Company in 1959, has more than 50 years’ experience in the insurance industry. He is a A business manager who is committed to long-term, stable business management with the conviction and determination to fulfill responsibilities to provide security for policyholders. Career highlights include being appointed President of the company in 1997 and serving as Chairman of the Life Insurance Association of Japan in 2000 and 2004, thereby leading not only Nippon Life Insurance, the biggest company in the industry but also the Japanese insurance industry, which ranks second in the world in terms of market size. He also played an important role, as an expert member of the Financial System Council Finance Subcommittee for 2001 through 2002, on the government’s Financial System Council, which is a forum for discussions on the ideal state of the financial system and development of institutions.

Mr. Uno’s philosophy on life insurance business management is to fulfill responsibilities to provide security for customers over the long term. Throughout the tumultuous 13-year period in which he served as President and Chairman of Nippon Life Insurance Company, and Chairman of the Life Insurance Association of Japan, Mr. Uno consistently pursued and implemented relevant policies, from a long-term perspective, in the course of his efforts on behalf of both an individual company and the industry in general.

When he assumed the office of President, Mr. Uno expressed his goals as follows: “While the 20th century was an era characterized by a focus on social security, in the 21st century, society needs to change its principles on self-responsibility and self-reliant efforts. This augurs a bright outlook for the life insurance industry. However, competition is likely to become fiercer. Under those circumstances, we should first forge a solid footing in primary insurance business and then expand our activities into peripheral fields, including the areas of annuities and nursing care.” Thus, he outlined his expectations for the mission of life insurance businesses and development of the industry.

Source : IIS

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For the last two winters over one in a thousand people have been victim of burst pipes in the UK. The average claim for a burst pipe reached £25,000 according to data compiled from Axa.

‘Escape of water claims’ have escalated by around 50% in the last two years leaving tens of thousands of homeowners facing the misery of damaged or destroyed property and a total insurance bill of £1bn.  The company calculates that the bill for the 20% of people with no contents insurance could have cost consumers a further £23m out of their own pockets.

The company’s data showed that as temperatures dropped during the cold winters of the last two years, customers were three times more likely to have an escape of water claim than a theft claim and 13 times more likely than a fire claim.

The average contents claim was £6,100 and the average buildings claim was £19,200.  Yet consumers hugely underestimate the potential cost of a burst pipe with 83% of people estimating that a claim would cost less than £5k and 93% reckoned it would be less than £10k. For those with no insurance the real cost is much more than average accessible savings.

Further research showed that less than 50% take the most basic and simple measures to prevent the worst happening – only 42% insulate pipes and 45% leave heating on low when leaving their homes.

Christine Matthews, head of household claims at AXA Insurance says: “Burst pipes in cold weather are a real issue. For those with insurance there is the comfort that the financial burden will be covered, but insurance cannot compensate for the misery and disruption of having your home and contents destroyed by water.

“Sadly, many, many instances of burst pipes could be avoided through a little maintenance and taking some simple precautions.  We appreciate that heating bills can be expensive but keeping the radiators on very low while you are away will probably cost less than the excess on your insurance should the worst happen.”

Tips for protecting pipes :

  1. Leave your heating on at a minimum of 13°C. This will stop water in your pipes from freezing.
  2. Leave your loft hatch open to let warm air circulate – particularly if you have a cold water tank in your loft.
  3. Make sure you know where your stop cock is so you can turn off water quickly in an emergency.
  4. Check the insulation on your water pipes and the lagging on your cold water tank – if there’s none in place get it sorted as soon as possible.
  5. Insulate your loft – not only will this keep your home warm, it has environmental benefits too.
  6. Leave your kitchen and bathroom cabinet doors open – this will allow warmer air to circulate around the pipes that are often found inside these cupboards.
  7. Seal any holes that let in cold air. With modern technology, increasing numbers of people have holes in the wall for computer cables or TV links.
  8. If you’re going away for an extended break, drain your water system. The group most badly affected by claims in the last  couple of years were the over 50s who were spending the winter abroad.
  9. Also if you are away, get you neighbours to check on your property and if you are away for an extended period check that you have proper insurance cover in place.  Most policies will have restrictions relating to un-occupancy – make sure you know what these limits are.
  10. Check your insurance is up to date and you are covered for the full value of your contents. If you’re an AXA home insurance customer and the worst happens, highly trained call handlers from AXA will guide you through your claim.

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Italy’s securities market regulator, Consob, on Friday extended a ban on the short selling of bank and insurance stocks until January 15 in order to limit volatility on the market. 

Consob first imposed the ban on August 12 along with a number of other European countries when huge tensions hit Eurozone securities markets, and renewed it in September through November 11.

Short selling is defined as when a trader borrows shares that he expects to see fall, sells them, then buys them back when the price is lower to allow him to take a profit before settling the loan.

Critics deride the practice as speculation and charge that it adds to market volatility, while market participants say it improves liquidity.

Milan, Nov 11, 2011 (AFP)

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In order to manage costs more effectively, Friends Life has teamed up with Diligenta, effective in the first quarter of 2012. The IT and customer service specialist will assume administration responsibility for most of Friends Life’s UK Heritage protection business, the individual pension business and part o the corporate benefits business.

This will allow Friends Life to focus on its new proposition developments, including the new workplace savings platform, within its core markets of corporate benefits, protection and retirement income.

Andy Briggs, chief executive officer, at Friends Life said: “The long-term partnership we are announcing with Diligenta gives our business the speed and flexibility to efficiently deliver the right solutions for our distributors and their clients. We have extensive experience in outsourcing partnerships and a proven track record of success and I am confident that in Diligenta we have a strong partner, with shared service values, who will help drive our business forward. Today’s agreement enables us to maintain our industry leading service levels and offers the speed and flexibility to quickly and efficiently deliver solutions that cater to the needs of advisers and employers.”

As a result of this new arrangement approximately 1,900 Friends Life roles in the UK- across a number of office locations- will transfer to Diligenta. Individuals will transfer on their existing terms and conditions, or if not practicable replaced with broadly similar benefits. The terms and conditions for those transferring will be subject to collective consultation with Unite and our Management Consultative Body.

The contract with Diligenta sets out clear levels of service to be delivered for Friends

Life’s customers and intermediaries as well as clearly defined requirements for future service enhancements.

The selection of Diligenta to manage the servicing of the Friends Life book follows a rigorous process which began in 2010. Friends Life chose Diligenta for its technical expertise, industrial strength platform (TCS BaNCS Insurance), shared service values and proven capability in managing circa five million policies for six life office brands.

Diligenta offers a robust record of service delivery and has successfully managed the migration of 3.4 million policies.

Phiroz Vandrevala, managing director & vice chairman of Diligenta, and director, Tata Consultancy Services said: “Our unparalleled experience in the Life and Pension sector coupled with our unique platform capability enabled us to win this path breaking deal. This strategic partnership will allow Friends Life to focus on new opportunities in its corporate markets and grow its business.”

Source : Friends Life

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Swiss insurer Zurich Financial Services (ZFS) posted Thursday a 64 per cent jump in third quarter net profit to $1.2 billion, despite what it described as “the worst catastrophe year” since 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. 

However its combined ratio — a measure of insurers’ profitability — weakened to 98.8 per cent from 97.7 per cent while turnover rose three per cent to $15.4 billion over the three months ending September.

“Results were impacted by significant weather events in the third quarter, particularly Hurricane Irene in the United States and hailstorms in Switzerland and Germany,” said the group.

Any margin improvements it managed to achieve during the period were “more than offset by the frequency and overall severity of catastrophes and significant weather-related loss events during the first nine months of 2011,” the insurer said. In fact, 2011 is turning out to be “the worst catastrophe year since 2005, when Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans.”

During the first six months, the insurer was also been hit by claims arising from earthquakes in Japan and New Zealand.

Zurich, Nov 10, 2011 (AFP)

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NFU Mutual confirms it dedication to reducing the scale and the impact of rural crime. The specialist rural insurer’s own claims figures estimate that the cost of theft from UK farms rose to £49.7 million in 2010 – an increase of 17% from the previous year.

Addressing the Rural Crime Seminar today, Matthew Scott, Chief Claims Manager at NFU Mutual, said: “As an insurer that has worked closely with, and funds, Police operations we recognise the challenges for an individual police force when intelligence identifies that there may be a store of stolen property from across the UK within their jurisdiction.

“Our experience of working with local police force representatives is very positive. There are clearly some very dedicated officers who are passionate about fighting rural crime, but this commitment needs to be supported by good continuity and succession planning.

“We strongly favour inter-force co-operation and collaboration with external parties like insurers and equipment manufacturers, and believe that this can be further strengthened. That’s why we’re putting our money where our mouth is and increasing our financial support for police units targeting rural crime from £92,000 to £190,000.”

As part of the increased financial package to the Police, NFU Mutual has agreed a stronger working relationship with the Association of Chief Police Officers Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service enabling it to recruit a second police officer to tackle rural vehicle crime.

Tractor thefts remain a major problem for farmers, with a significant increase in the number of tractors being stolen and exported from channel ports to final destinations across the globe. The number of tractor theft claims dealt with by NFU Mutual rose by 8% in 2010 while the cost of claims rose 21% reflecting the trend for thieves to target expensive tractors.

NFU Mutual first funded a dedicated Detective Constable to work full time in its claims team in 2010. This role focuses on the disruption and detection of criminal activity to aid the recovery of stolen vehicles. The insurer shares claims data with the Police to identify trends and has even used sting vehicles to catch criminals.

The Mutual’s joint approach has so far led to the recovery of over £1m worth of stolen tractors and won the “Claims Initiative of the Year” at the British Insurance Awards in July.

Commenting on the initiative, Mr Scott said: “Working with AVCIS and local police forces we have been able to return stolen agricultural equipment to our members very quickly. This not only helps keep costs down, but ensures far less disruption and inconvenience for our policyholders and their businesses. The benefits of the approach substantially exceed the cost of our contribution to the policing budget of AVCIS.”

Source : NFU Mutual

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Contrary to what many commentators are predicting, Italian insurers may not be able to pass on most of the losses incurred from an unlikely default of Italian government debt.

Based on the ‘A+’/Negative rating of Italian sovereign debt, Fitch believes that Italian government bonds are a low default risk. However, in the extreme scenario of a sovereign default, the ability of insurers to pass losses on to policyholders would be significantly impaired, as the return on customer portfolios may be below the minimum promised to policyholders. Insurers would be liable for the additional losses.

Life products offered by Italian life insurance companies typically distribute 85% of any investment return to policyholders and keep 15% for the company. In many policies, the absolute return cannot be less than a minimum guarantee that the insurer is contractually obliged to pay. If the investment returns are below this minimum, the insurer must pay the guaranteed return from its equity.

The situation is worse for insurers in Italy compared with other jurisdictions, such as Germany, because there is not an explicit ability to defer profit sharing. This means there is no capital buffer from previous unrealised profits on the company’s balance sheet.

Historically, Italian companies built a cushion of unrealised gains largely on domestic sovereign debt that could be used to cover guarantees when investment income was insufficient to meet the guaranteed return. This cushion has shrunk in recent months as credit spreads on Italian debt have widened, driving down the value of existing bonds and giving insurers less protection against further market volatility.

In the unlikely scenario of a sovereign default, the realised losses on Italian debt holdings could damage insurers’ capital adequacy to a larger extent than the traditional profit-sharing split would suggest. This is one of the assumptions underpinning Fitch’s Negative Outlook on the life and non-life sectors in Italy.

Theoretically the insurers are also exposed to liquidity risk if policyholders start redeeming their policies early. This is not believed to be a significant risk. The rate of policy lapse is around 8% and this is seen as a structural feature of the market. Many policies are partially insulated from this risk through early redemption penalties.

Source : Fitch Ratings Press Release

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According to a new survey from Jelf Employee Benefits, more employers are likely to support employee benefits following the Healthcare and Welfare reforms.

The survey showed that:

– Almost a quarter (24%) of employers at small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are more likely to support Private Medical Insurance provision as a result of changes to the NHS. (70% believed their company would maintain their current levels of provision.)

– Similarly, 11% believe that their company would be more likely to provide Group Income Protection for employees as a result of changes to the Welfare State. (79% would continue with current levels.)

Employee-paid benefits

In addition to the reforms having a positive impact on employer-paid or contributed benefits, the changes may also be the catalyst for a greater provision of employee-paid medical and income protection: 48% of companies expect to add more voluntary (ie employee paid) benefits as a result of these reforms.

Steve Herbert, head of benefits strategy at Jelf Employee Benefits said:  “Employers are by no means immune from the impact of the government cutbacks on the individuals wellbeing – increased absenteeism is one obvious consequence that employers will have to face, as well as duties to those on long-term sick leave.

 “Whilst an employer can win some fairly obvious brownie points from employees by having a wider choice of benefit options in place, it also shows that employers are willing and able to ensure that their business is protected. Ensuring that key staff return to work at the optimum time – not before they are ready but without huge delays – will be vital in keeping small businesses, and the economy heading in the right direction.”

Source : Jelf Employee Benefits

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Tesco Pet Insurance has increased its fee limits on its standard and extra policies in response to customer needs across the country. Limits have increased on Standard policies from £2,500 to £3,000 per condition for new customers. Existing customers have the option to upgrade at renewal.

Customers buying Extra Cover policies, for long term illness cover, can now choose between either £4,000 per condition or a new £7,500 limit.

Julie Hopes, Managing Director of Insurance at Tesco Bank comments: “Our focus is on listening to our customers and we know they’re concerned about increasing vet fees. So, at a time when other providers are withdrawing their products, we think it’s important to offer our customers peace of mind with affordable polices that meet their needs.”

All Tesco Pet Insurance customers have unlimited access 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to a qualified veterinary nurse through the ‘vetfone’ service, and Clubcard customers benefit from an exclusive discount every year that they insure.

Below is a representative example showing the premium paid by a customer for Standard and Extra Cover.

 

Source : Tesco

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Fitch Ratings invites you to join the upcoming annual RMBS/CVB seminar in Paris on Tuesday 15 November 2011. The event includes presentations on key current and future credit issues by teams from Fitch’s Residential Mortgage and Covered Bonds.

In light of growing sovereign credit risk and macro economic deterioration, Fitch will highlight the differences in performance between European RMBS; explain the impact of sovereign and banks risks in covered bonds; benchmark the latest French RMBS assumptions against European RMBS assumptions; summarise the French 2011 legislative and regulatory amendments affecting the analysis of French covered bonds programmes.

This conference is complimentary but pre-registration is required.

For any further details email to: fitch.parisnews@fitchratings.com.

Venue : Salons Hoche, 9 avenue Hoche, Paris 75008 France

Featured Topics

– Introduction

– Performance: Activity Along Fault Lines?

– French RMBS

– Fitch Initiatives in the RMBS Sector

– Impact of February 2011 Amendments on Analysis of French Covered Bonds

– Sovereign and Bank Risks in Covered Bonds

Featured speakers :

– Hélène Heberlein, Managing Director

– Gregg Kohansky, Managing Director

– Gioia Dominedò, Senior Director

– Emmanuelle Ricordeau, Senior Director

– Solena Gloaguen, Associate Director

View Event Agenda / Register

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MMA Insurance has made 5 new appointments across their regional offices following 50 per cent growth in regional bespoke business so far in 2011. 

The new appointments include: Joe Flynn as Regional Underwriter in Birmingham, Steven Kenna as Senior Regional Underwriter in Bristol, Steven Black, Regional Underwriting Assistant, Glasgow, and Roy Simpson and Scott Elliott as Senior Regional Underwriter and Regional Underwriter respectively in Manchester.

This announcement follows two recent appointments in July of Irene McFarlane to Newcastle and Matthew Giles to the Reading office, which makes a total of 7 appointments across the regional offices in 2011, bringing a total of 136 years experience to the regions.

Paul Hodgson, Underwriting Director, Commercial, at MMA commented:

“Achieving the growth we had planned across the regional offices is fantastic news. The positive impact this growth has on diluting our expense ratio means we can continue to enhance our broker proposition in 2012 through further recruitment and product enhancements.

“The launch of the Motor Trade Combined product in August as well as the increasing underwriting appetite demonstrates long term commitment to our regional network which is proving an increasing success with our target broker partners.”

Source : MMA

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Fitch Ratings has affirmed Liechtenstein-based PrismaLife’s insurer financial strength at ‘BBB+’ and long-term issuer default rating at ‘BBB’ and senior bond rating at ‘BBB’ with a stable outlook for both ratings.

The affirmation reflects the life insurer’s low investment risk, its maintained strong capital position and its good performance in H111. These positive rating factors are partly offset by PL’s low product diversification, relatively small size and short track record.

PL faces limited investment risks as policyholders carry the risk of falling equity markets. Fitch views positively the fact that PL’s mortality and disability risks are largely reinsured. This risk-averse insurance approach has low regulatory capital requirements under the current Solvency I regime, resulting in a regulatory capital position of over 1,000% in recent years. Fitch expects that PL will continue to report strong regulatory solvency ratios under Solvency II. Based on its risk-based capital assessment, Fitch views PL’s capitalisation as strong and recognises that the company’s capital shows resilience in the agency’s stress tests.

At year-end 2010, PL reported gross-written premiums (GWP) of EUR178.4m and a net income of EUR3.6m (2009: EUR2.5m). Fitch views positively that PL was able to achieve a premium increase of about 6.5% in H111 compared to H110, after three years of stagnating premiums when the market showed a declining trend. Fitch will continue to follow PL’s premium development closely as consumer demand for unit-linked insurance products tends to decrease when capital markets deteriorate and PL’s earnings are highly dependent on premium income.

Fitch notes that PL’s distribution mix is gradually moving away from its strongest distribution channel, AFA International AG, which is owned by Sky Tower Holding (STH), which also majority owns PL. Fitch views this positively, since a more widespread sales channel mix reduces dependencies and offers new growth opportunities. However, PL is able to exert greater control over the AFA channel than over independent brokers.

Fitch notes that PL’s financial leverage remains high at 31% at end-2010, but this is commensurate with the current rating. Leverage has been decreasing because PL’s capital has been increasing as a result of retained earnings and limited dividends. Furthermore, the company has reduced its amount of outstanding senior debt to EUR16.1m from EUR20.0m through repurchases in 2010 and 2011, which has reduced its debt leverage and improved its interest coverage in 2010 to 3.7x (2009: 2.7x), which also benefited from improved net income.

Key rating factors that could lead to an upgrade are interest coverage exceeding 7x, financial leverage below 28% and sustained growth in GWP. A decrease of interest coverage below 3x, financial leverage above 35% or significant deterioration of GWP could lead to a downgrade.

PL had total assets of EUR694.8m at end-2010 and is owned by STH (87.4%) and its management team (12.6%).

Source : Fitch Ratings Press Release

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MMA Insurance is warning of the new threat to the plastics sector following recent increases in metal theft in the UK. Rising prices of metals such as copper and lead, coupled with the economic downturn, have led to a 70% increase in metal theft in some areas of the UK. The cost to UK businesses is now estimated at £770m per year in the UK with a black market for metal strengthening.

The British Metals Recycling Association (BMRA) estimate over 15,000 tonnes of metal is stolen in the UK each year, and high demand is causing the thieves to widen their nets.   In a new twist, insurer MMA revealed this week that they are beginning to see a trend for wider claims relating to metal theft.  Particularly, beyond the obvious targets  (church roofs, manhole covers, batteries and businesses where metal is widely known as being used such as jewellers, tool manufacturers, precision engineers), thieves are now also a threat to the plastics industry, where they are targeting the brass tooling and dies which are needed to produce plastic products.

Ironically, while the thieves are motivated by what they view as high values for the scrap metal, for the insured, it is not the raw material replacement costs of items such as brass and dies that is the issue. In fact it is the replacement tooling costs and interruption to businesses that can result in six figure loses.

Paul Hodgson, Director of Commercial Underwriting at MMA insurance commented: “It is worrying to see this sort of theft on the rise in these industries. At MMA we are seeing average claims to the sector of around £100,000.”

 “As a direct result of high world metal prices we believe that insurers will need to move with the times in terms of raising the assessment of theft risk in a number different industrial sectors, as well as ensuring that the properties that they ensure are adequately protected against theft.  Good quality risk management advice is also key, and we have summarised our own advice to businesses on this below.”

– Review your current inventory and machinery equipment – identify what may be attractive to metal thieves.

– Consider where you store your equipment – place all items in a secure, locked area and monitor access and stock control.

– Review your existing physical security and ensure you have adequate electronic security in place for maximum security.

– Visitor control – make sure you know who is coming into and out of your premises.

– Backup your blueprints – make sure the blueprints for the tooling are readily available in case of a theft.

Paul Hodgson continues: “I would advise businesses to talk to their local community and police and find out if there has been any theft of metal in their areas. Lastly, make sure you have adequate insurance to cover you and your business.  Brokers are able to advise the most suitable cover for the requirements of businesses.”

MMA has produced a short guide for businesses which is available to brokers for distribution to their commercial clients. This can be obtained by emailing info@mma-insurance.com.

Source : MMA

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Munich Re AG expects further write-downs on Greek sovereign debt holdings in the third quarter, but these will be lower than in the second quarter, when it already wrote such holdings down to market value, Chief Financial Officer Joerg Schneider said Monday.

In the second quarter, Munich Re had write-downs of EUR703 million on Greek sovereign debt. Its after-tax profit took a hit of EUR125 million from that.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an insurance conference, Schneider also said Munich Re still expects a profit for the year, noting though that U.S. hurricane season isn’t over yet. Munich Re’s profit target is that of an after-tax profit, including minorities.

The company’s after-tax profit was EUR738 million in the second quarter. For the first six months, however, it made an after-tax loss of EUR210 million, after an after-tax profit of EUR1.19 billion in the comparable year-earlier six-month period.

Munich Re aims to pay a stable dividend, but it is too early to specify the level in the current market environment, Schneider said. The company, along with the entire insurance sector, wants to continue to be a financier of banks, he added. Munich Re competes with peers like Swiss Reinsurance Co. (RUKN.VX) and Hannover Re AG (HNR1.XE) for insurance customers, which buy reinsurance protection as they aim to take more risks on their books.

Berlin, October 17, 2011 (Dow Jones)

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Standard & Poor’s has announced Mapfre Insurance Group’s insurer financial strength and long-term counterparty credit rating have bee lowered to ‘AA-‘ from ‘AA’. At the same time, the long-term counterparty credit rating on Mapfre Group’s holding company, Mapfre S.A. was lowered to ‘A’ from ‘A+’. Long-term ratings on the junior subordinated debt of Mapfre S.A. were also lowered to ‘BBB+’ from ‘A-‘. The outlook on the ratings on Mapfre S.A. and the entities in the Mapfre Group remains negative.

Here is S&P’s report :

We revised to negative our outlook on the insurer financial strength and long-term counterparty credit ratings on the Mapfre Group’s subsidiaries that we regard as strategically important–Commerce Insurance Co. and Citation Insurance Co–and on the ratings on their intermediate holding company, Mapfre USA Corp. This is because their ratings, benefiting from two notches of support from their membership of the Mapfre Group, are, under our criteria, capped at one notch below the ratings on the core operating companies of Mapfre Group. We have affirmed the ‘A+’ long-term counterparty credit and insurer financial strength ratings on Commerce Insurance Co. and Citation Insurance Co., and the ‘BBB+’ long-term counterparty credit ratings on Mapfre USA Corp.

The foregoing rating actions follow the lowering of the long- and short-term ratings on the Kingdom of Spain (Spain; AA-/Negative/A-1+).

Under our criteria, an insurer’s ratings are constrained by our view of country risk (see “Factoring Country Risk Into Insurer Financial Strength Ratings,” published Feb. 11, 2003). With over 45% of the business written in its domestic market and a further estimated 40% in markets carrying lower sovereign ratings than Spain, the exposure of Mapfre S.A. and the Mapfre Group to country risk has, in our view, increased and is high relative to peer Europe-based global insurance groups.

Furthermore, we estimate that over 80% of the Mapfre Group’s investments and policyholder liabilities are held by entities domiciled in Spain or in lower-rated countries. While these assets are geographically diversified, we estimate Spain and such lower-rated countries represent more than 75% of Mapfre Group’s total investment portfolio.

The Mapfre Group’s assets comprise mostly government debt and bank deposits. As of end-June 2011, the Mapfre Group had a €7.4 billion exposure to Spanish government debt–about 20% of invested assets or 83% of total shareholder funds. The Mapfre Group’s exposure to Italian, Greek, Irish, and Portuguese government debt amounted to €1.8 billion. By our estimation, this is similar to the Mapfre Group’s exposure to Latin American sovereign debt.

The ratings on the Mapfre Group’s operating entities that we regard as core continue to reflect what we see as their very strong competitive position in Spain and Latin America, and their very strong capitalization and operating performance. The ratings also reflect our view of the Mapfre Group’s management track record, which we consider a positive factor for the ratings. These factors are partially offset by the difficult economic and financial climate in Spain, the Mapfre Group’s core market.

The negative outlook reflects that on our long-term ratings on the Kingdom of Spain. A downgrade of Spain could prompt us to lower the ratings on Mapfre S.A. and the entities in the Mapfre Group. Conversely, the outlook could be revised to stable following a similar outlook revision to Spain’s sovereign ratings.

Source : S&P

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Federal health authorities in Canada have  met with practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine as a first step towards modifying regulations covering the sale of imported Chinese herbal remedies.   

Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq held roundtable talks on Friday with Chinese  medicine professionals in Vancouver on Canada’s west coast.

More than 1,300 traditional Chinese remedies are currently sold in Canada,  but the government — seeing a boom in the market — says it wants to be sure  the laws on sales and prescription reflect current best medical practices.

“We do have legislation in place that is 40 years old,” Aglukkaq said    “Our government strongly supports enhancing Canadians’ access to a wide  range of safe and effective natural health products, including Traditional  Chinese Medicines,” she said.

Sales of medicines are regulated at the federal level, but health care is  governed by the provinces.

Albert Fok, who represents a group of merchants in Vancouver’s Chinatown  area including several purveyors of traditional Chinese remedies, said federal  and provincial authorities should work together to harmonize the legislation.

Vancouver, Oct 15, 2011 (AFP)

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