Business Insurance

South Korean insurer's profit rises more than 50%

South Korea-based Meritz Fire & Marine Insurance Co. Ltd.'s net profit totaled around 106 billion South Korean won ($89 million) in the second quarter of the year, up nearly 51% from the year-ago quarter.

Posted: Aug 17, 2020

Ship involved in Mauritius oil spill splits apart

The Mauritius National Crisis Committee said that Japanese bulk carrier MV Wakashio, which ran aground on July 25 with 4,000 tons of fuel, split on Aug. 15.

Posted: Aug 17, 2020

Part of plastics recycling factory collapses following fire

A portion of a plastics recycling factory in the Greek capital of Athens collapsed after a fire broke out on Aug. 15.

Posted: Aug 17, 2020

Oil trading firm's founder charged with forgery

Lim Oon Kuin, founder of Singapore-based oil trading firm Hin Leong Trading Pte. Ltd., has been charged with abetment of forgery.

Posted: Aug 17, 2020

Mapfre hit by cyber attack

Spain-based insurer Mapfre SA suffered a cyber attack in the weekend of Aug. 15.

Posted: Aug 17, 2020

Apax-backed Duck Creek shares soar in Nasdaq debut

Shares of Duck Creek Technologies Inc. jumped 55.5% in their Nasdaq debut on Friday, after the software company that serves the property/casualty insurance market raised $405 million in its upsized initial public offering.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

ILS issuance grows to $6.8 billion in H1

A total of $6.8 billion of new insurance linked securities were issued in the first half of 2020, compared with $5.5 billion in new issuance during the first half of 2019, Swiss Reinsurance Co. Ltd. said Friday.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

GM bid to reopen racketeering case against Fiat rejected

A federal judge in Detroit on Friday rejected a bid by General Motors Co. to reinstate a racketeering lawsuit against its smaller rival Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Inquiry blasts officials over cruise ship that spread COVID-19

Health officials in Australia’s most populous state made “unjustifiable” and “inexcusable” mistakes that allowed cruise ship passengers with COVID-19 to disembark in central Sydney, an inquiry said Friday.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Insurer wins back settlement money paid in sexual assault case

Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. units are entitled to the return of $275,000 paid towards a settlement in a sexual assault case at an Atlanta condominium complex because they were not informed of the incident until 21 months after it took place, a fe...

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Amazon liable for injuries from defective products

Amazon.com can be held liable like other traditional retailers for injuries from defective products sold via its sprawling e-commerce marketplace, a California state appeals court ruled on Thursday.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Ex-Hertz CEO settles SEC charges over incentive pay, restatement

A former chief executive of Hertz Global Holdings Inc. will pay $2.18 million to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges he failed to reimburse incentive-based pay to the rental car company following a financial restatement.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Barbershops’ COVID-19 losses not covered: Court

A federal court in Texas dealt another blow to commercial policyholders seeking coverage for coronavirus-related business interruption losses on Thursday ruling that pandemic-related lockdowns did not constitute a direct physical loss for a group of...

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Close compromise on closing time in bar lawsuit

The Athens-Clarke County City Council in Athens, Georgia, and several bars have agreed to settle a lawsuit over a controversial city ordinance that would have moved “last call” to 10 p.m. and instead compromised on an 11:30 p.m. last call for drink o...

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Contracted companies not considered employers in negligence suit

A driver who was injured by delivering barite to a well site provided sufficient evidence for a court to conclude that he was not the statutory employee of the well’s owners and operators.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

The BI Top 10: Week of Aug. 10, 2020

This week’s most popular story featured broker Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. suing Alliant Insurance Services Inc. in the latest industry poaching litigation. Meanwhile, a story on Chubb executive changes was No. 2 for page views.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Insurance body launches COVID-19 business interruption test case

The Insurance Council of Australia has turned to the courts following numerous complaints by small businesses about insurers denying their COVID-19 pandemic-related business interruption claims.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Tourism firm posts $1.7 billion loss due to pandemic

German tourism firm TUI AG posted a net loss of €1.42 billion ($1.7 billion) in the third quarter ended June, compared with a profit of nearly €23 million in the same period a year earlier, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Floods inundating South Korea

The South Korean government has declared 11 southern areas as special disaster zones following widespread damage by heavy rains.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Storm insurance claims near $700 million: Perils

Swiss catastrophe loss data provider Perils AG expects insurance and reinsurance claims related to the storm that hit Australia's east coast in February to total $958 million Australia ($686 million).

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Heavy rains, floods damage businesses, homes

Heavy rains and flash floods caused widespread damage in Shropshire county in the United Kingdom on Aug. 12.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

General insurance premiums fall 3.6%

The General Insurance Association of Malaysia said that gross written premiums fell 3.6% year-over-year to 8.6 billion Malaysia ringgit ($2.1 billion) in the first half of the year.

Posted: Aug 14, 2020

Tennessee lawmakers approve COVID-19 liability protection

The Tennessee House and Senate on Wednesday passed legislation that would protect businesses from coronavirus-related liabilities.

Posted: Aug 13, 2020

Court panel won’t centralize COVID-19 suits

The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation on Wednesday refused to consolidate COVID-19-related business interruption litigation filed by businesses against all insurers, but is considering centralizing litigation filed against individual in...

Posted: Aug 13, 2020

Injured worker entitled to reimbursement for massage therapy

An injured worker may be reimbursed for massages she received at the direction of her physician, the Supreme Court of New Hampshire held Wednesday.

Posted: Aug 13, 2020