Belgium News

AXA Posts Earnings Gains in all Sectors

France’s AXA Group joined the growing parade of big insurance companies who had a banner year in 2006. The financial services and insurance giant posted gains in all of its principal activities. Life & Savings entities recorded strong growth with …

AXIS Kyrill Losses at $40-$55 Million

Bermuda’s AXIS Capital announced that its expects net losses related to Windstorm Kyrill to be between $40 and $55 million, principally from its reinsurance segment. AXIS noted that Kyrill “produced damaging winds across Europe,” and was the “most significant storm …

Converium Estimates Kyrill Claims between $32 to $46 Million

Swiss-based reinsurer Converium has estimated that its gross claims for winter storm Kyrill will be around €25 to €35 million ($32.5 to $46.5 million). Converium said its estimates were “based on an assumed industry loss of roughly €5-7 billion [$6.5-$9.1 …

FERMA Urges Members to Develop Environmental Liability Products

Warning that “European businesses face uninsurable environmental impairment risks,” the Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA) called on insurers to be less “risk averse.” It urged members to “develop products that will allow businesses to protect themselves against new …

RMS Puts Kyrill Insured Losses at $3.9 to $6.5 Billion

Risk Management Solutions (RMS), has released its initial estimate for insured losses from Windstorm Kyrill, indicating that it expects them to be between €3 billion and €5 billion ($3.9 billion and $6.5 billion). RMS’ estimates are somewhat lower than fellow …

AIR Estimates Europe Storm Insured Losses at $5 to $10 Billion

Catastrophe risk modeler AIR Worldwide has issued a bulletin estimating insured losses from Winter Storm Kyrill (or Cyril) at between €4 billion and €8 billion ($5.18 billion and $10.37 billion). The GDV German insurance industry association estimated that country’s insured …

Pres. Bush to Propose Health Insurance Tax Break

President Bush will propose a tax deduction of $7,500 for individuals and $15,000 for families regardless of whether they buy their own health insurance or receive medical coverage at work. The proposal, to be announced Tuesday in his State of …

28 Die as Storm Lashes Europe; Transport Chaos, Widespread Damage

The mild winter weather that much of Europe has been enjoying for the last month came to a sudden halt earlier this week when the most violent storm to hit the continent since 1999 swept in from the Atlantic. So …

ING Presents New Belgium Structure; Exclusive Focus on Bancasssurance

The Netherlands’ ING Group has announced a major change in strategy and a restructuring of its Belgian insurance business. ING intends to focus exclusively on its on bancassurance distribution in Belgium. ING said that after a strategic review of its …

Zurich Ireland Opens Branch Offices in Belgium and Italy

Zurich Financial Services Group announced that its subsidiary, Zurich Insurance Ireland Limited (ZIIL), which functions as an EU-wide risk carrier for Zurich’s general insurance business, has opened branches in Belgium and Italy. ZIIL now operates in Belgium, Finland, France, Italy, …