Articles by L.S. Howard

Marsh McLennan Reports 8.7% Increase in Q2 Net Income

Insurance broker Marsh McLennan reported second quarter net income of $1.125 billion, an 8.7% increase from $1.035 billion reported during Q2 2023. Operating income rose 13% to $1.6 billion. Q2 earnings per share increased 10% to $2.27, while adjusted earnings …

Hard Market Conditions Expected to Ease in 2025 as Claims Inflation Softens: Swiss Re

Hard market conditions in the global non-life insurance sector will continue this year, but will begin to ease in 2025, as general inflation and claims inflation conditions soften, according to Swiss Re in a report, which discusses the macroeconomic factors …

Fleming Files Lawsuit Against James River, Alleging Fraud During JRG Re Acquisition

Fleming Intermediate Holdings filed a lawsuit against James River Group Holdings Ltd., alleging it had been defrauded during its $300 million acquisition of JRG Reinsurance Co. Once the deal agreement was signed in November 2023, “James River immediately began depriving …

AI Chatbots, Gen AI Set to Revolutionize Insurance Claims Processing: Survey

A majority of global insurers are actively endorsing the application of AI chatbots and generative AI in claims resolution processes, underwriting and customer fulfilment, according to a survey conducted by Gallagher Bassett, the claims-services provider and subsidiary of Arthur J. …

What Happened to Reinsurance ‘Class of 2023’? Hard Market Defies Age-Old Patterns.

Catastrophic events, such as major hurricanes and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, traditionally have led to hard markets that in turn drove the formation of startup reinsurers to fill capacity needs. Reinsurers launched in “the class of 1992,” “the class …

Aviva Completes Acquisition of Probitas, Re-entering Lloyd’s After More Than 20 Years

UK insurer Aviva announced it has completed the acquisition of Probitas Holdings (Bermuda) Ltd., which marks the company’s return to the Lloyd’s market after a hiatus of more than 20 years. The deal with Probitas, first announced in March, was …

Reinsurers’ Appetite Grows During Mid-Year Renewals but Discipline Remains: Brokers

Reinsurance buyers generally saw positive outcomes during the mid-year renewals, finding adequate capacity to meet cedents’ increasing demand for protection — in both property and casualty, according to three renewal reports from reinsurance brokers. “Loss-free property programs generally saw easing …

AI and APIs: Essential Tools for Zurich Insurance Group’s Digital Leap

Executive Summary: For a multinational insurance company like Zurich Insurance Group, which can find itself delivering large, complex policies in multiple languages to a single international customer, there’s a logical use case for Gen AI’s large language models in providing …

Key Emerging Risks: Cascading Effects of Natural Disasters, Supply Chain Resilience

Key emerging risks facing global economies, businesses and the re/insurance industry include the cascading effects of natural disasters, the weakening resilience of supply chains and the repercussions of persistent underfunding of healthcare systems, according to Swiss Re’s 12th SONAR — …

Onex Partners Completes Acquisition of R&Q’s Program Manager, Accredited

Accredited, the property/casualty program manager and subsidiary of R&Q Insurance Holdings Ltd., announced the completion of its acquisition by Onex Partners, the Toronto-based private equity company. The sale of the unit comes on the heels of R&Q’s decision on June …