Latest Trends Headlines
All the headlines from our Trends Topic Page, ordered by recency.
PartnerRe Hit by Cat Losses, Reports Decreases in Q4, FY Net Income
Feb 8 2011 // Bermuda-based PartnerRe Ltd. reported net income of $57.0 million, or $0.65 per share on a fully diluted basis for the fourth quarter of 2010, which includes net after-tax realized and unrealized losses on investments of...
In Future, Cars Might Decide if Driver is Drunk
Feb 7 2011 // An alcohol-detection prototype that uses automatic sensors to instantly gauge a driver’s fitness to be on the road has the potential to save thousands of lives, but could be as long as a decade away from everyday use...
Climate Change Link to Insurance Losses Decades Away
Feb 7 2011 // Tropical cyclones are expected to cause more damage in the United States and Asia but it could be more than a century before insurers can point to climate change as a factor in losses from storms, scientists say. In a...
Climate Change Link to Insurance Losses Decades Away
Feb 7 2011 // Tropical cyclones are expected to cause more damage in the United States and Asia but it could be more than a century before insurers can point to climate change as a factor in losses from storms, scientists say. In a...
Lloyd’s Warns of Increases in Fraudulent Claims
Feb 7 2011 // Fraud is a fact of life for the insurance industry – part of the game so to speak. While some claims, as Lloyd’s notes in an article on its web site, may cause people to smile, the amount of money they cost the...
Aon Revenue Up 40% in Q4 on Hewitt Merger
Feb 4 2011 // Growth-oriented insurance broker Aon Corp. saw revenues shoot up 40 percent to $2.9 billion in the fourth quarter, largely driven by its acquisition of Hewitt Associates. For the quarter, Aon saw a 41 percent increase in...
Claims Chief Feinberg Says Gulf to Recover from BP Oil Spill by 2012
Feb 4 2011 // The Gulf of Mexico should recover from the massive BP oil spill by the end of 2012, the administrator of the $20 billion victims compensation fund said. By that time, most of the harmful effect of the worst offshore oil...
Iowa Commissioner: Wellmark May Increase Rates by 8.5%, not 10.8%
Feb 3 2011 // After completing a review of health insurer Wellmark’s November 2010 rate increase request, Iowa Insurance Commissioner Susan E. Voss has determined the company will not be allowed to raise individual health...
ICC Says Impact of Counterfeiting/Piracy to Reach $1.7 trillion by 2015
Feb 3 2011 // A new report released from its Paris headquarters by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) indicates that the global economic and social impacts of counterfeiting and piracy will reach US$1.7 trillion by 2015 and put...
Best Revises Arch Capital and Subs Outlook to Positive; Affirms Ratings
Feb 2 2011 // A.M. Best Co. has revised the outlook to positive from stable and affirmed the financial strength rating (FSR) of ‘A’ (Excellent) and issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “a+” of Bermuda’s Arch...
In Future, Cars Might Decide if Driver is Drunk
Feb 1 2011 // An alcohol-detection prototype that uses automatic sensors to instantly gauge a driver’s fitness to be on the road has the potential to save thousands of lives, but could be as long as a decade away from everyday use...
Wisconsin Workers’ Comp Medical Costs Per Claim Increasing
Jan 31 2011 // The increased cost and more frequent use of medical care provided to injured workers in Wisconsin drove up the average medical payments per workers’ compensation claim in recent years, according to a new study by the...
Marsh Sees Soft Commercial Insurance Market Continuing
Jan 31 2011 // Another report indicates that soft commercial insurance market conditions that persisted throughout the U.S. in 2010 will continue into 2011. Key commercial insurance market drivers from 2009—including intense...
Investors Face Rising Risks However Egypt Plays Out
Jan 31 2011 // If President Hosni Mubarak clings to power, investors will re-price Egyptian and regional assets to brace for weeks, months or possibly years of heightened political risk. If he goes, global markets could still react with...
Oklahoma Senator Seeking Transparency in Health Insurance Rate Increases
Jan 28 2011 // Oklahoma State Sen. Earl Garrison wants insurance companies to be accountable to citizens and justify any rate increases. He has introduced Senate Bill 354, which would ensure that premium rate information relating to the...
Catlin Readies Launch of 3rd Arctic Survey; Focused on World’s Ocean Currents
Jan 26 2011 // Bermuda-based, London headquartered insurer Catlin announced the launch of its third Arctic Survey, which it said “will focus on evolving conditions in the Arctic Ocean that could cause changes in ocean currents that...
Best Revises Outlook on Italy’s Cattolica; Affirms Ratings
Jan 26 2011 // A.M. Best Europe – Rating Services Limited has revised the outlook to stable from negative and affirmed the financial strength rating of ‘A’ (Excellent) and the issuer credit rating of “a” of...
Zurich Study Focuses on Insurance, Technology for Emerging Consumers
Jan 25 2011 // “The technology landscape in developing countries is changing rapidly – sometimes outpacing industrialized markets,” according to a new study from Zurich Financial Services. “These changes are driving...
Medical Costs Drive Up Calif. Municipalities’ Workers’ Comp
Jan 20 2011 // Despite a decline in the number of job injury claims reported by California public self-insured employers last year, rising claim severity drove up total workers’ compensation costs for cities, counties and other...
RSA Posts 2010 Weather Impact Update; 2011 Outlook
Jan 20 2011 // The UK’s RSA announced that the “impact of the adverse weather in November and December 2010 to be around £142 million [$229 million] more than normal levels and for the full year to be around £255 million...
