Business Insurance

SEC fines World Acceptance $21.7 million for Mexican bribes

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced Thursday that it had fined World Acceptance Corp., a consumer loan company, $21.7 million for paying bribes in Mexico.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Axa CEO confident in XL business after coronavirus hit

The CEO of Axa on Thursday expressed confidence in the French insurer's company-focused XL Group after the business reported a loss in the first half following a spike in COVID-19-related claims.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Boyfriend’s burning passion leads to fire insurance claim

A romantic devil in Sheffield, England, spent two weeks planning a marriage proposal to remember for his sweetheart, but ended up burning down the couple’s home when the stunt went wrong.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Axa says $1.2 billion asset sale collapses, income slides

French insurer Axa said on Thursday the planned €1 billion ($1.2 billion) sale of its Axa Life Europe unit to Cinven had collapsed, and that it would make no fourth-quarter shareholder payouts after net income fell 40% in the first half.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Beirut blast causes up to $5 billion damage

The blast in Beirut on Aug. 4 is expected to have caused up to $5 billion worth of damage.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Canon suffers ransomware attack, 10TB of data stolen

Japan-based Canon Inc. suffered a ransomware attack, in which 10 terabytes of data was stolen.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Uniqa gets approval to acquire Axa's units

Austria-based Uniqa Insurance Group AG has received regulatory approval for the acquisition of French insurer Axa SA's units in Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Gazprom fined $57 million in Poland

Poland's anti-monopoly watchdog has fined Russian energy firm PJSC Gazprom 213 million Polish zloty ($57 million) for not cooperating in its proceedings with regard to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Saudi Re's premiums rise more than 30%

Saudi Reinsurance Co.'s gross written premiums increased more than 30% year-over-year to surpass 659 million Saudi riyal ($176 million) in the first half of the year.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Heavy rains cause widespread damage in South Korea

Heavy rains triggered floods and landslides in South Korea and caused widespread damage after two areas were declared disaster zones after 42 consecutive days of rain.

Posted: Aug 06, 2020

Judge rules against Labor Department over pandemic leave

A federal district judge has issued a ruling that removes limits as to employees taking leave if there is no work available under a regulation issued by the Department of Labor under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Insurer has no duty to defend contractor in worker injury case

A general liability insurer has no duty to defend a “pro bono” contractor for the injuries a church worker sustained on its job site, an appellate court held Tuesday.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Young to Trump: Stop ‘rockin’ in the free world’

Neil Young wants you to “keep on rockin’ in the free world” — unless you’re at a Trump rally.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

EEOC issues guidance for employees who use opioids legally

Employees who are using opioids legally are protected under federal disability law and can request an accommodation if its use creates a safety issue, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says in employee guidance issued Wednesday.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Citation, penalty in worker electrocution affirmed

A power line company must still pay nearly $12,000 in fines after federal inspectors found safety and health violations following the death of a worker.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Gallagher buys Canadian retail brokerage

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has acquired Canada-based retail brokerage Insight Insurance & Risk Management Ltd., Gallagher announced Wednesday.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Colorado State predicts ‘extremely active’ hurricane season

Researchers at Colorado State University on Wednesday upgraded their forecast for the 2020 Atlantic season to “extremely active” from “very active.”

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Hannover Re expects ‘major loss’ from Beirut explosion

German reinsurer Hannover Re SE on Wednesday said it will see a “major loss” from the explosion in Beirut, Lebanon, as it reported net income fell 39.3% to €402 million ($478 million) for the first half of the year.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Top 10 Off Beats from July

July’s most popular Off Beat story featured a Kit Kat lawsuit. A story on Amazon delivering car insurance was No. 2 for page views for the month.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Engineer gets 18 months in prison for stealing Google files

A U.S. judge on Tuesday sentenced former Google engineer Anthony Levandowski to 18 months in prison for stealing a trade secret from Google related to self-driving cars months before becoming the head of Uber Technologies Inc.'s rival unit.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Commercial insurance rates keep rising

Commercial insurance rates continued to rise in most lines in July although in some cases the pace of the increases slowed slightly from the prior month, according to insurance exchange Ivans Insurance Services’ monthly pricing index released Wednesd...

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

US pursues claims in Purdue Pharma opioid probes: Sources

U.S. prosecutors are pursuing possible penalties of nearly $13 billion to resolve investigations of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma after uncovering evidence of criminal and civil misconduct stemming from the company's alleged role in fueling the natio...

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Guy Carpenter names Canadian chief amid management changes

Guy Carpenter & Co. LLC named Peter Askew president and CEO of its Canadian operations, replacing its long-standing top executive in the country, as the reinsurance broker continues to revamp its management.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Blast kills 78 people, injures 4,000 others

A powerful blast at port warehouses in Lebanon's capital Beirut on Aug. 4 killed 78 people and injured nearly 4,000 others.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020

Hong Kong to introduce ILS regulatory

Hong Kong has approved a new insurance bill to allow for the issuance of insurance-linked securities such as catastrophe bonds.

Posted: Aug 05, 2020