December 2010/3

The fledgling microinsurance market could be worth $40bn when it grows to maturity, according to research from Swiss Re

Lloyd's claims head Chaplin moves to Asia Pacific; The Hartford offloads TPA for $280mn; Alterra passes on management of Names syndicates; RFIB sets up in Kazakhstan...

US insurance giant Travelers has been ordered by a judge to pay $445mn to settle an asbestos claim with a trail of litigation leading back as far as 1986.

QBE Underwriting/Lloyd's O'Farrell Syndicate 1036 has been named as one of eight firms in a civil lawsuit filed by the US government against BP over the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Insurers' consistent profitability through the financial crisis means the industry is now paying more corporation tax than the banking sector, according to UK tax experts.

Insurers will not be affected by draconian new EU legislation that restricts the cash element of bankers' bonuses to 30 percent of their salary, according to the Financial Services Authority (FSA)'s new remuneration code.

The Brazilian insurance regulator, SUSEP, has published two new resolutions altering the landscape of the Brazilian reinsurance market.

Lloyd's has reworked its risk governance structure to address concerns that it would not stand up to the scrutiny of regulators under Solvency II.

American International Group (AIG) has confirmed that its directors' and officers' (D&O) insurers, including lead Great American, have agreed to pay $150mn to help settle shareholder claims against the company.

More than nine months after the earthquake that struck Chile, reinsurance broker Aon Benfield has estimated an ultimate industry insured loss figure of $8.5bn.

The Bermudian excess casualty market looks set for another significant loss from an oil pipeline rupture following a blast at Mexico's state-owned operator Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex).

For the second year in a row, direct and facultative (D&F) underwriters have been spared a substantial loss from a major US hurricane, despite an above average level of tropical storm activity.

US wind prices on industry loss warranty (ILW) contracts have dropped by as much as 20 percent for certain triggers after the hurricane season closed, according to broker Aon Benfield Global ReSpecialty.

Chartis subsidiary National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh (NUFI) last week almost doubled the size of its second Lodestone cat bond issuance, placing $450mn at the expense of the collateralised reinsurance market.

Independent London market broker Besso is in takeover talks with LDC, the private equity arm of UK bank Lloyds TSB, The Insurance Insider can reveal.

AM Best has upgraded the outlook on Swiss Re's A financial strength rating from stable to positive to reflect the action taken by management to repair the business following its difficulties in 2008.

Generali shares came under selling pressure last week, with investors fearful that it may endure impairment charges on its investment portfolio in the last quarter of the year.

The Reinsurance Association of America (RAA) has thrown its weight behind legislative proposals to license reinsurers at a federal level to create greater global harmonisation of regulatory standards.

Everest Re Group's approach to buy Kansas-based managing general agent (MGA) Heartland Crop Insurance Inc (HCI) is the latest in a flurry of M&A activity in a US agricultural insurance sector still seen to offer attractive underwriting opportunities.

As generally dire underwriting conditions continue to persist in the US property casualty sector, there are at least signs of encouragement in workers' compensation insurance.

Little doubt remains on the outcome of the joint Apollo-CVC bid for Brit Insurance after a series of resolutions on the make-up of the board were overwhelmingly approved by shareholders last week (17 December).

The current owners of the Lloyd's building have fuelled speculation about the property's future, confirming that its portfolio managers are monitoring the market although it is not "actively" up for sale.

Hardy has opened up an early lead over Beazley as the two companies put share buyback plans into effect to help limit the adverse effect of the failed takeover on their share prices.

Lloyd's business plans are budgeting a 3 percent increase in casualty premiums in 2011, as managing agents project an improvement in profitability of just over 5 percent next year.