Business Insurance

California wildfire losses likely to be in the billions of dollars: Moody’s

Ongoing California wildfires are likely to result in billions of dollars in insured losses following damage to commercial and residential properties, Moody’s Investors Service Inc. said in a report Wednesday.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Aon, Willis Towers Watson shareholders approve takeover

Shareholders of both brokerages voted to approve Aon PLC’s proposed acquisition of Willis Towers Watson PLC on Wednesday, the companies said in a statement.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Insurer digital interactions double since 2015: ACORD

The percentage of global consumer buyers interacting with their insurers through digitized mechanisms has doubled since 2015, according to a study Wednesday from ACORD, the global standards-setting body for the insurance industry.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Reality check: Keeping up with the telecommuting employees

A housewife with a husband telecommuting from the family playroom wrote to a business management advice columnist, posing this question: “Can my husband’s employer constantly record all the conversation in our house?”

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Hurricane Laura expected to become Category 4

Hurricane Laura was expected to rapidly strengthen to a Category 4 hurricane on Wednesday on a steady track to hit the Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast after dark, causing catastrophic damage, the National Hurricane Center said.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Swiss insurer slips into red due to pandemic

Swiss insurer Helvetia Holding AG posted a loss of 20 million Swiss francs ($22 million) in the first half of the year, compared with a profit of nearly CHF 300 million a year earlier, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Porsche faces new engine manipulation probe

Germany's motor vehicle authority is investigating Porsche AG over alleged manipulation of gas engines to achieve improved emissions data.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Insurers expect higher returns post pandemic

Insurers are betting that the COVID-19 pandemic will ultimately prove to be the catalyst that ends a period of low returns for the insurance industry.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Lebanese reinsurance broker enters Pakistan

Lebanon-based reinsurance broker Chedid Re has signed a co-brokering agreement with Pakistan-based Hellenic Sun Insurance Brokers Pvt. Ltd.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

IAG might stop insuring cultural sites

Insurance Australia Group Ltd.'s shareholders have proposed an insurance ban on projects that would damage natural or cultural sites within a world heritage area.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian markets see solid growth

A report by U.S.-based A.M. Best Co. Inc. said the insurance markets in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia have demonstrated solid growth trajectories above global market averages.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Vietnamese reinsurer posts stable underwriting results

U.S.-based A.M. Best Co. Inc. said that Vietnam-based PVI Reinsurance Joint-stock Corp. reported stable underwriting performance in the first half of the year, compared with the year-ago period.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Georgian insurers' net profit rises 49% in first half

Georgian insurers' net profit increased 49% year-over-year to more than 29 million Georgian lari ($9 million) in the first six months.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Musculoskeletal disorders in comp highlight prescribing changes

Musculoskeletal disorders can be treated more effectively by medications and therapies other than opioids, according to new research that shows injuries that make up the lion’s share of workers compensation claims can avoid dangerous drug remedies.

Posted: Aug 26, 2020

Founder of drug company bought by Teva charged

U.S. prosecutors brought insider trading charges against the founder and former chief executive of Auspex Pharmaceuticals Inc., accusing him of providing illegal tips to friends and family as Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. prepared to buy his co...

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

Brown & Brown terminating Hauser deal

Brown & Brown Inc. said Tuesday it has terminated its deal to acquire the family-owned Hauser Group, following news that Mark Hauser was pleading guilty in connection with the Varsity Blues scandal.

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

Philadelphia restaurants file COVID-19 class action suit

A group of Philadelphia restaurants and bars filed a suit seeking class action status against Allianz SE units Tuesday for business interruption coverage in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

P/C insurers report sharp decline in first-half net income: A.M. Best

U.S. property/casualty insurers reported a 21.6% decline in net income to $25.0 billion in the first half of this year, as realized capital gains fell $5.5 billion amid the COVID-19 pandemic, A.M. Best Inc. said in a report Tuesday.

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

P/C reinsurers’ net premiums up, profits down in first half: RAA

A group of 17 U. S. property/casualty reinsurers tracked by the Reinsurance Association of America wrote $32.1 billion of net premiums during the first half of this year, up 14.6% from $28.0 billion for the same period in 2019, the RAA said in a sta...

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

Chubb loses ruling in dispute with mortgage firm

A federal appeals court has overturned a ruling in favor of Chubb Ltd. in a litigation dispute with a mortgage company over an abandoned laundromat, holding more information is needed to determine who controlled the property.

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

Construction sector fuels $3M-plus comp claims: Analysis

“Mega” workers compensation claims from the construction sector comprised approximately 40% of large claims from 2001 to 2017, yet made up 20% of indemnity claims, according to research released Tuesday by the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating B...

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

Swiss Re, Alphabet's Verily partner on stop-loss insurance

Alphabet Inc.'s life sciences division Verily is partnering with reinsurer Swiss Re to launch a unit to provide stop-loss insurance, a financial product purchased by employers to cover unexpected and large employee health care costs.

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

Honda to pay $84.2M to settle Takata air bag probe

Honda Motor Co. has agreed to pay $84.2 million to settle a probe by most U.S. states into its use of defective Takata airbag inflators in its vehicles, according to a consent order made public on Tuesday.

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

Judge blocks Apple move to hamper Epic's Unreal Engine

A federal judge on Monday blocked Apple Inc. from shutting down an Epic Games tool that is relied upon by hundreds of other app makers but had become the subject of an antitrust battle between the companies.

Posted: Aug 25, 2020

Workforce drug testing positivity rate highest in 16 years: Study

The percentage of positive marijuana drug tests among workers rose by 11% across nearly all employee testing categories in 2019, according to an analysis released Tuesday by Quest Diagnostics Inc.

Posted: Aug 25, 2020