March 2005/1

Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has today outlined how it will treat counterparty credit ratings of property casualty insurers implementing solvent schemes of arrangement.

Fitch Ratings is to finally publish its “Q” ratings on between 150-200 European insurers later this week after becoming embroiled in a controversy with the German industry association GDV earlier this year (see January edition of The Insurance Insider).

Lloyd’s sponsored electronic data transfer platform Kinnect has a new board, with representatives from the broking and underwriting fraternity taking up non-executive positions to “drive its adoption, guide its development and manage its performance”.

Despite a record fourth quarter result and a $79.4mn release from prior-year reserves, Allied World Assurance Holding’s 2004 results were down 32 percent in response to last year’s severe catastrophe losses.

Less than a week after axing CEO Dirk Lohmann, troubled Swiss reinsurer Converium reported a net loss of $760.8mn last Tuesday (1 March), made worse by a higher than expected fourth quarter net loss of $50.2mn. The results were in contrast to the $56.2

Embattled broking giant Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc is to shed a further 2,500 people in its global operations in a bid to save $375mn a year. The broker confirmed the job cuts in revealing its 2004 results that saw earnings decimated by the impact

Court case calls into question scope of Aon’s personal accident reinsurance Claim and counter-claim echoed across the oak-panelled walls of Court 11 at London’s Royal Courts of Justice today as a legal dispute between Aon’s insurance company and its re

As predicted in the February edition of The Insurance Insider, Aon Corp has struck a nationwide agreement with US regulators to settle the bid-rigging, kickback and steering investigations into the broking giant.

Heath Lambert Group’s Adrian Colosso has become the group chief executive following the retirement of its executive chairman, the scotsman Ian Martin.

Lloyd’s specialist helicopter insurer Hardy Underwriting Group Plc announced last Friday (4 March) that it has made strong profits on its Syndicate 382’s 2002 year of account, but warned that it expects to make pre-tax profits of £8mn when it reports its

Reinsurance broker RK Carvill & Co Ltd has promoted its long-serving executive David Thomas to the role of managing director.

A drop in underwriting profits from $1.72bn to $1.55bn from its (re)insurance operations contributed to Warren Buffett-managed investment conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway posting net earnings of $7.31bn for 2004, down on the $8.15bn it recorded in 2003.