March 2008/1

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s claims stemming from 9/11 will be restricted to two buildings a judge has ruled.

Property damage from the earthquake that hit the UK on 27 February is likely to cause insured losses of between £15-30mn, according to initial estimates by Risk Management Solutions (RMS).

Microsoft has teamed up with six insurance IT firms in a bid to provide a "one-stop-shop" for the London market.

UK consolidator Towergate Partnership has acquired the private medical insurance (PMI) provider City & Suburban Health.

Shares in Australian (re)insurer QBE Group slumped after the company missed analyst profit estimates for 2007.

Swiss reinsurer Glacier Re continued to grow in 2007 with an increase in premiums and the launch of its first securitisation.

Swiss Re has devised a new business model, with the aim of being "the first place companies turn to for solutions", according to the firm's CEO Jacques Aigrain.

(Re)insurance broker Willis Group Holdings has extended the contract of its chairman and CEO, Joe Plumeri, until 2011 as well as making a number of changes to its senior management.

Prosecutors in the trial of former General Re and American International Group (AIG) executives found guilty in a sham finite reinsurance contract have vowed to continue investigations up the corporate ladder.

Omega Insurance Holdings Ltd Lloyd's Syndicate 958 has withstood the impact of hurricanes Katrina Wilma and Rita to post a profit for 2005, maintaining its pedigree of a pure underwriting profit in every year it has traded since its launch in 1980.

Lloyd's insurer Beazley has warned that the squeeze on commercial property insurers will become "extreme" as market discipline slips and rates continue to fall.

Shares in American International Group (AIG) closed down 6.56 percent on Friday after the US insurance giant announced the biggest quarterly loss in its history driven by a $11.12bn pre-tax writedown in its financial products division, AIGFP.