Articles by Martin Friel
Aviva gears up for Irish branch sale
Aviva has set Friday 2 March as the deadline for first-round offers for its 26 Irish branches.
Investigation begins as Riverbourne is rescued
The Riverbourne Group, the Caterham-based broker that recently entered administration, has been purchased in a deal that will see the business split in two.
Keychoice improves membership package
Keychoice has added five new benefits to its membership package as the firm tries to gain increased leverage in the network sector.
Financial strength rating a priority when brokers assess insurers
Brokers are placing much greater emphasis on the credit ratings of the insurers they deal with, according to a recent survey by NIG.
Swinton to create more than 100 jobs in Manchester
Swinton is to create more than 100 call centre jobs to manage new business coming in from a deal struck with HPI.
RSA receives rating upgrade from S&P
RSA Group has had its second piece of good ratings news in as many weeks with Standard & Poor’s (S&P) upgrading the insurer to A+ Stable.
Allianz chief sees room for underwriting improvement despite good results
Allianz UK CEO, Andrew Torrance, has conceded that the insurer’s underwriting performance is not good enough despite recording top line and profit growth and producing an overall combined operating ratio (COR) of 95.7% and a commercial one of 94%.
Bids for Groupama due in tomorrow
Bids for Groupama’s UK business are close to being tabled with Zurich, Axa and Allianz all in the frame according to reports.
Hiscox remains in profit despite cat losses as chairman steps down
Hiscox has reported a pre-tax profit of £17.3m for 2011, down from £211.4m the previous year, as the company’s chairman Robert Hiscox announced his intention to step down.
Credit card insurer faces multi million pound bill over sales process
The credit card insurer CPP, which has been under investigation from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for the past year, could face a £15m bill as part of a committment to review past sales.
The first to fall
The most worrying news of the last week, if not the biggest, was that two brokers entered administration.
AM Best confirms RSA's 'A' rating
RSA has had its ‘A’ rating for financial strength confirmed by AM Best.
RSA delivers good 2011 result but commercial continues to drag
RSA UK delivered £310m profit before tax on premiums of over £3bn in 2011 while turning in a combined operating ratio (COR) of 98.2%.
SSP launches real-time pricing hub
SSP has claimed that it is set to transform the intermediated personal lines market with the launch of a new ‘quote hub’ providing brokers with real-time pricing.
Second broker in a week enters administration
Chester-based insurance broker Astbury Wren and Company has been sold to a competitor after the business went into administration.
RSA commercial chief threatens to exit unprofitable markets
RSA’s commercial chief has confirmed that he will pull out from product lines that are not working for the insurer as he continues his revamp of RSA’s commercial book.
Riverbourne enters administration
The Riverbourne Group, a Cobra Network member, has gone into administration.
Ageas produces growth and profit across the board
Ageas has reported a huge boost in both gross written premiums (GWP) and profit for 2011 as the insurer’s Tesco deal begins to pay dividends.
PwC: Companies must adapt to changing market dynamics
Over two thirds (70%) of insurance CEOs are planning to change their strategy over the next 12 months as they tackle ongoing economic difficulties and increasing regulatory pressures.
Oliva management go it alone as Cooper Gay pulls capacity
Cooper Gay has pulled capacity from managing agency Oliva to focus its MGA strategy on international business.
THB makes latest purchase from AFL Insurance
THB has acquired AFL Insurance Brokers' UK commercial wholesale account.
Aspen on the hunt for new CFO following poor 2011 results
Aspen Insurance Holdings is searching for a new chief financial officer following the departure of incumbent, Richard Houghton.
Business continuity plans likely to reduce premiums
New research has suggested that insurers are happy to provide premium discounts to companies that have business continuity plans in place.
Industry agrees to reduce premiums if government action cuts legal costs
The government has made a commitment to tackle the country’s growing compensation culture, reduce legal costs and cut health and safety red tape in return for the insurance industry’s assurance that it will pass any resultant savings on to consumers.