Latest Market Headlines
All the headlines from our Market Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Property Catastrophe Market to See Price Hikes: Lockton
Nov 17 2011 // Large catastrophe losses and the prospect of poor investment returns are paving the way for much tougher market conditions for commercial property insurance buyers, according to a new report The new report — the Lockton...
Soft Market Has Hit Bottom for Commercial Lines, New RIMS Survey Says
Nov 16 2011 // Risk and Insurance Management Society’s latest survey found average renewal premium rates rising in three out of the four business lines it tracked. This “strongly suggests” that an eight-year period of...
Insurance Association Head Says China May Open Auto Market to Foreign Firms
Nov 16 2011 // China, the world’s largest auto market, is likely to open its mandatory auto insurance market to foreign companies next year, chairman of the Insurance Association of China said on Wednesday. The 200 billion yuan...
Best Issues Special Report on New Zealand’s Non-Life Insurance Market
Nov 14 2011 // A new report from A.M. Best examines New Zealand’s non-life insurance market, which it describes as being “in a state of transformation as it grapples with prolonged earthquake activity in addition to...
LexisNexis Selling P/C Insurance Software Business
Nov 9 2011 // LexisNexis Risk Solutions said it is selling its property/casualty insurance software business to a San Francisco-based private equity firm, Genstar Capital. The division being sold provides policy administration software...
Aon’s Study of Airline Insurance Industry Finds Divergent Trends
Nov 9 2011 // Aon Risk Solutions, the risk management business of Aon Corp., has released the latest edition of its aviation data report –”Airline Insurance Market Indicators 2011/12,” which concludes that “as the...
Independent Agencies Showing Signs of Recovery, Better Profitability, Study Reveals
Nov 7 2011 // Things are looking better for the nation’s property/casualty independent insurance agencies. Organic growth for these agencies improved somewhat last year and their profitability held constant across most of the six...
People
Nov 7 2011 // Westfield Insurance, headquartered in Westfield, Ohio, selected Dennis Baus to lead the company’s surety operations. Baus assumes the national surety leader responsibilities on Jan. 1, 2012, replacing Rick Kinnaird...
Generous P/C Sector Seeks Ways to ‘Give Better,’ McKinsey Author Says
Nov 7 2011 // The property/casualty insurance sector that already does a lot of good work is interested in doing more and having even more of an impact, according to the lead author of a landmark report on the property/casualty...
Read-in
Nov 7 2011 // A gathering in late October of people in the communications field in Santa Barbara, Calif. during the Insurance Information Network of California’s annual planning meeting highlighted what may be considered one of...
2011 Agency E&O Survey
Nov 7 2011 // Agency owners have a lot to protect. Of course, first and foremost they must protect their clients. But they must also protect their book of business. They must protect their relationships. They must protect their...
People
Nov 7 2011 // Jim Donelon has been re-elected commissioner at the Louisiana Department of Insurance. Donelon, a Republican from Metairie, on Oct. 22 defeated Democrat Donald Hodge. Donelon has been insurance commissioner since...
Is the World a Riskier Place? Insurance Industry’s Hartwig Answers
Nov 2 2011 // “Is the world becoming a riskier place?” That was the question posed by Insurance Information Institute President and Chief Economist Robert Hartwig during his talk at the annual Professional Liability...
Treasury Names Members of Federal Advisory Committee on Insurance
Nov 2 2011 // The U.S. Department of the Treasury appointed 15 individuals to serve as members of the Federal Advisory Committee on Insurance. The committee will provide advice to Treasury’s Federal Insurance Office (FIO), which...
Helping Banks is Hurting Insurance Industry Geneva Association Tells G20
Nov 2 2011 // In an open letter The Geneva Association directly addressed the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G-20 before their meeting in Cannes, France. It pointed out that amidst all of the concerns over the...
Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation to Host Benefit Dinner
Oct 27 2011 // The Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) New York/Northeast division will hold its 2011 benefit dinner on Dec. 14. “There are so many people in need in our area, and, in spite of the economy, the insurance...
Munich Re: ‘Uncertainty,’ Economic Crisis, Challenge Re/insurers
Oct 25 2011 // A bulletin from Munich Re names the “sovereign debt crisis in Europe and the USA, a sustained phase of low interest rates and heavy natural catastrophe burdens,” as well as general uncertainty in the...
Generous P/C Sector Seeks Ways to ‘Give Better,’ McKinsey Author Says
Oct 25 2011 // The property/casualty insurance sector that already does a lot of good work is interested in doing more and having even more of an impact, according to the lead author of a landmark report on the property/casualty...
P/C Industry Gave $500M to Charity in 2010, But More Can Be Done
Oct 25 2011 // Here is something some people might not know about the property/casualty insurance professionals: they are very generous folks. Property/casualty insurance industry’s charitable giving reached $500 million in 2010....
Kipper Made Nevada Insurance Commissioner, Again
Oct 24 2011 // Scott Kipper has returned to his role as Nevada’s insurance commissioner, an appointment that takes effect today. Kipper was named to the post by Terry Johnson, Nevada’s director of business and industry, who...
