Business Insurance

BioNTech, Pfizer sue CureVac over COVID vaccine patent claims

COVID-19 vaccine maker BioNTech said Tuesday that it and partner Pfizer filed a complaint in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, seeking a judgment that they did not infringe U.S. patents held by rival CureVac.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Calif. comp claim frequency hits 14-year high for private self-insureds

The California Workers’ Compensation Institute reported that a rise in medical-only and indemnity claim volume in 2021 drove frequency for private self-insured employers to the highest level since 2007.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Brown & Brown posts higher Q2 revenue, profit

Brown & Brown Inc. reported second-quarter revenue of $839.7 million late Monday, up 15.5% from the same period last year, with organic revenue increasing 10.3%.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Workplace homicides falling since 1994

Annual workplace homicides have fallen more than 50% from a high of 1,080 in 1994, yet nonfatal incidents have seen an uptick, according to a report released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Justice that aimed to identify indicators of workplace vi...

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Crypto exchange Coinbase faces SEC probe: Bloomberg

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether Coinbase Global Inc. improperly let Americans trade digital assets that should have been registered as securities, Bloomberg News reported Monday.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Aspen appoints Ernst & Young as accounting firm

Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd. has appointed Ernst & Young LLP as Aspen’s independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 2022, with effect from July 6, 2022, following receipt of regulatory approval and completion of...

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Loyola University students can pursue class-action COVID case

A federal appeals court on Monday reversed a lower court and held in a divided opinion that students at Loyola University in Chicago can pursue breach of contract litigation in connection with the COVID-19-related cancellation of their in-person clas...

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Coal mine collapse causes severe damage, kills 10 people

A mountainside collapse severely damaged a coal mine owned by Chinese state-owned mining conglomerate Shanxi Coking Coal Group Co. Ltd. in the Gansu province on July 23, killing 10 people while injuring seven others.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Fires account for majority of value of claims in South African businesses

A report by Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE said that fires or explosions generate the most expensive losses for businesses in South Africa, accounting for 65% of the value of all claims over the past five years.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

BMS Re buys Mexican reinsurance broker

U.K.-based insurance broker BMS Group Ltd.’s reinsurance arm BMS Re has acquired Mexico-based surety reinsurance broker Calomex Intermediario de Reaseguro, SA de CV for an undisclosed amount.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Aviation disruptions will continue for few more years: Qatar Airways CEO

Akbar Al Baker, chief executive of Qatar Airways Co. QCSC, has warned that aviation industry disruptions, mostly stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, will last for another couple of years.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Ukraine war affects marine insurance premiums

Alaa El-Zoheiry, president of the Insurance Federation of Egypt, said the Ukraine-Russia conflict has affected shipping activities in the region, causing the suspension of imports of agricultural and industrial goods which have increased marine insur...

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Torrential rains, floods cause over $9 billion damage

Torrential rains and floods in the north and northeastern regions of Bangladesh in May caused more than 868 billion Bangladeshi taka ($9.2 billion) worth of property and crop damage.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

Insurers monitor reserves and inflation

Commercial insurance industry reserves remain solid and largely continue to produce favorable development, despite high inflation, industry sources say.

Posted: Jul 26, 2022

T-Mobile to pay $350 million in settlement over massive hacking

T-Mobile US Inc. agreed Friday to pay $350 million to settle litigation over a cyberattack last year that compromised information belonging to an estimated 76.6 million people.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

Former Goldman banker, ex-FBI trainee charged with insider trading

A former Goldman Sachs banker, a former FBI agent trainee, a technology executive and others were charged on Monday with insider trading in separate schemes that together generated millions of dollars in profits, U.S. prosecutors said.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

Arbitrator to decide whether dispute should be arbitrated

An arbitrator is the one to decide whether a dispute over a reinsurance agreement should be submitted to an arbitrator or a judge, a federal appeals court said Friday, in affirming a lower court ruling.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

Fidelis Insurance to form MGU

Bermuda-based specialty insurer and reinsurer Fidelis Insurance Holdings Ltd. said Monday it intends to form a managing general underwriter separate from its existing balance sheet insurance businesses.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

Fired call center worker’s discrimination claim reinstated

A federal appeals court on Friday reinstated a disability discrimination claim filed by a call center employee who was terminated after seeking a reduced schedule under the Family and Medical Leave Act.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

Insurers make $5 billion profit under crop insurance scheme

Insurers in India had made a profit of nearly 400 billion Indian rupees ($5 billion) under the central government's flagship crop insurance scheme over the last over five years.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

Yamaha's musical instrument business suffers due to chip shortages

Japanese firm Yamaha Corp. said that the global semiconductor shortage is harming its musical instrument business and it could see about 30 billion Japanese yen ($220 million) in opportunity losses this fiscal year.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

Uniper expects to see $6.3 billion in losses over gas crises

Germany-based ailing energy firm Uniper SE has said it expects losses of €6.2 billion ($6.3 billion) due to reduced deliveries of Russian gas that have forced the company to buy gas at much higher prices elsewhere.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

Uber admits covering up 2016 hack, avoids prosecution

Uber Technologies Inc. on Friday accepted responsibility for covering up a 2016 data breach that affected 57 million passengers and drivers, as part of a settlement with U.S. prosecutors to avoid criminal charges.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

AIG hires executive vice president from Acacia

American International Group Inc. on Monday said former Acacia Holdings Ltd. CEO Charlie Fry has been named executive vice president, reinsurance purchasing and risk capital optimization, effective July 31.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022

‘Injured’ logger caught logging time on the dance floor

A Cowlitz County, Washington, logger who faked injuries to collect workers compensation benefits and who was caught dancing must repay the state $163,566.

Posted: Jul 25, 2022