Latest Carriers Headlines
All the headlines from our Carriers Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Commercial Insurers’ Stocks Flat in 2007; M&As Heat Up
Jan 27 2008 // Stock Prices: Commercial lines insurers’ stocks have been relatively flat in 2007. Chubb Corp. (NYSE:CB) posted the largest gain at 5 percent. M&A Activity: The fourth quarter started with a bang as two large...
ISO: Insurers to Pay $6.5 Billion in 2007 Catastrophe Claims
Jan 27 2008 // U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay homeowners and businesses $6.5 billion for 2007 property losses from 23 catastrophes — the eighth lowest cost in a decade and the seventh lowest frequency for the...
Shares in US Bond Insurers Rise on Bailout Hopes
Jan 25 2008 // Shares of bond insurers rose sharply Thursday on hopes the sector could receive support from a possible bailout orchestrated by New York insurance regulators. Shares of Ambac Financial Group Inc. rose $1.49 (euro1.02), or...
Mass. Regulator Subpoenas Municipal Bond Insurers
Jan 25 2008 // Massachusetts’ top securities regulator on Wednesday said he issued subpoenas to a pair of municipal bond insurers, seeking information on how much the firms disclosed to cities and towns about their exposure to...
Ward Group to Benchmark Insurers’ Finance Operations
Jan 24 2008 // Ward Group, a consulting firm specializing in the insurance industry, is kicking off a new benchmarking program for finance and related operations. Ward Group has applied its benchmarking methodology to analyze expenses...
Minn. Victim Fund Bill Raises Questions on Caps, Insurer Reimbursement
Jan 24 2008 // United in a desire to provide state money to victims of the Minneapolis bridge collapse, Minnesota lawmakers are split over whether to cap those awards at $400,000 or leave the check size to a neutral...
Major China Insurer Ping Selling Shares to Finance Acquisitions
Jan 23 2008 // A major Chinese insurer has announced plans to raise up to $22 billion (euro15.0 billion) for acquisitions at a time when U.S. and European banks, battered by mortgage losses, want infusions of Asian capital to replenish...
Insurers Must Focus on Opportunities, Avoid Price Wars to Stay Profitable
Jan 23 2008 // Margin compression and continued pricing erosion will put increasing pressure on the insurance industry to achieve top line objectives in 2008, according to industry analysts. “With pricing becoming increasingly...
Workers Comp Insurer Guard Begins Rollout of Businessowners Policy
Jan 23 2008 // Guard Insurance Group in Wilkes-Barre, Penn. is venturing beyond its workers compensation roots by introducing a small businessowners policy (BOP) during the first quarter of 2008. The company said it will begin rolling...
Supreme Court to Rule Whether Disability Insurer in Conflict of Interest
Jan 22 2008 // The Supreme Court last Friday said it would rule on an appeal by MetLife Inc. in a case that could make employee benefit plans more expensive. The dispute centers on whether insurance companies such as MetLife have a...
New York Increasing Efforts to Attract More Muni-Bond Insurers
Jan 22 2008 // The victory scored last month when the Empire State enticed Berkshire Hathaway to begin writing municipal bond insurance in New York is part of a larger strategy to help stabilize the faltering market for that coverage,...
Tenn. Restaurant Owners Concerned about Workers’ Comp Insurer
Jan 21 2008 // Some Tennessee restaurant owners are concerned that a small, unrated insurance company with ties to the state has been chosen to take over a worker’s compensation fund. Already liable for a $4.8 million fund that the...
Fla. Halts Allstate from Writing New Business in All Lines; Insurer Appeals
Jan 18 2008 // The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation issued a final order immediately suspending Allstate Insurance Co. and its subsidiaries from writing any new business in all lines of insurance in Florida – including auto...
Calif. Title Insurers to Pay $3.5M for Alleged Unfair Rating Practices
Jan 17 2008 // Commissioner Poizner Announces $3.5 Million Settlement with LandAmerica Corporation, $2 Million Refunded to Customers Commonwealth Land Title, Lawyers Title, and Transnation Title agree to Cease and Desist from unfair...
Fitch Affirms AIG, Subs ‘AA’ Ratings
Jan 16 2008 // Fitch Ratings has affirmed American International Group’s Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at ‘AA’ and affirmed its ratings on all of AIG’s insurance subsidiaries at the same level. The rating outlook is...
Fla. Regulator Vows Enforcement of 2007 Law, Insurers Weigh In
Jan 15 2008 // Florida’s requiring that insurance company executives testify publicly about why their property insurance rates have not gone down proves the state is serious about its efforts to make property insurance available...
Ariz. Court Goes Against State Farm in Uninsured Motorist Case
Jan 15 2008 // An Arizona Supreme Court ruling issued late last week blocks insurance companies from lowering underinsured motorist payments to injured people who have received workers’ compensation. The ruling against Bloomington,...
Hanover Insurance to Acquire Chemical Industry Insurer Verlan
Jan 14 2008 // Worcester, Mass.-based The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has agreed to acquire Verlan Holdings, Inc., a Silver Spring, Maryland-based holding company that provides insurance to manufacturers and distributors of...
ISO: Insurers to Pay $6.5 Billion in 2007 Catastrophe Claims
Jan 14 2008 // U.S. property/casualty insurers are expected to pay homeowners and businesses $6.5 billion for 2007 property losses from 23 catastrophes — the eighth lowest cost in a decade and the seventh lowest frequency for the same...
Fla. Gov. Crist Weighs Suing Property Insurers Over Rates
Jan 13 2008 // Gov. Charlie Crist has asked three trial lawyers to review documents for a possible class-action lawsuit against property insurers, alleging that the industry hasn’t passed on savings to consumers as required by...
