Business Insurance

EU watchdog says state has role in pandemic cover

National governments must help provide insurance cover for future lockdowns, the industry's European Union regulator said on Monday, as the private sector cannot afford to provide such broad coverage on its own.

Posted: May 11, 2020

Former airline CEO sentenced to eight years for bribery

Emirsyah Satar, former chief executive of airline PT Garuda Indonesia Tbk, has been sentenced to eight years in prison and fined 1 billion Indonesian rupiah ($66,924) for bribery and money laundering.

Posted: May 11, 2020

Allianz faces lawsuit over COVID-19 business interruption claims

Allianz SE is facing lawsuits over COVID-19 business interruption claims in the United Kingdom.

Posted: May 11, 2020

Suncorp loses nearly $135 million due to pandemic

Australia-based Suncorp Group Ltd.'s insurance division took a $205 million Australia ($134 million) hit from coronavirus-induced market volatility in the first quarter.

Posted: May 11, 2020

Tesla suspends production at China plant

U.S.-based electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc. suspended production at its plant on the outskirts of Shanghai from May 6 to May 9 because of shortage of components.

Posted: May 11, 2020

UK's events industry could lose $72 billion due to pandemic

The British Tourist Authority expects the events industry to lose £58 billion ($72 billion) this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Posted: May 11, 2020

Reinsurance rates likely to rise at July renewals

Hamed Mahmoud, head of technical affairs at Egypt-based Misr Takaful Insurance Co., expects reinsurance rates to rise for local insurers at the July renewals.

Posted: May 11, 2020

5.8-magnitude quake hits Japan

The U.S. Geological Survey said that a 5.8-magnitude earthquake hit the island of Honshu in Japan on May 10.

Posted: May 11, 2020

Russian insurer's premiums rise nearly 28%

Russian insurer Rosgosstrakh PJSC's gross written premiums increased nearly 28% year-over-year to more than 22 billion Russian rubles ($300 million) in the first quarter.

Posted: May 11, 2020

Groups push OSHA for temporary meatpacking standard

The Centers for Food Safety and the Food Chain Workers Alliance have filed a rulemaking petition with the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, urging the agency to issue an emergency temporary standard to protect workers in the meat an...

Posted: May 08, 2020

Pandemic to jolt commercial insurers: Fitch

Commercial insurers will be hard hit by pandemic-related losses, delaying their profits recovery to the second half of 2021 and accelerating price increases for buyers, Fitch Ratings Inc. said in a report Friday.

Posted: May 08, 2020

Fluor receives DOJ subpoena over accounting practices

Engineering and construction firm Fluor Corp. said Friday it had received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice, seeking documents related to projects for which it recorded charges in the second quarter of 2019.

Posted: May 08, 2020

Iran-linked hackers reportedly target drugmaker Gilead

Hackers linked to Iran have targeted staff at U.S. drugmaker Gilead Sciences Inc. in recent weeks, according to publicly available web archives reviewed by Reuters and three cybersecurity researchers, as the company races to deploy a treatment for th...

Posted: May 08, 2020

Insurers push back in COVID-19 coverage case

An insurer facing a coronavirus-related business interruption case and various industry trade groups filed arguments Thursday urging a state high court not to fast-track the litigation process.

Posted: May 08, 2020

Judge on ice cream marketing: Don’t have a cow

A federal judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit against the makers of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream over the claim that its product came from “happy cows.”

Posted: May 08, 2020

The BI Top 10: Week of May 4, 2020

The financial toll of the COVID-19 pandemic has been top of mind this week, as insurers and brokers continued to assess how their businesses will be hit. Meanwhile, M&A activity picked up with a $200M+ deal.

Posted: May 08, 2020

Mapfre allocates $65 million for renewal discounts

Spain-based insurer Mapfre SA has allocated €60 million ($65 million) to provide clients automatic discounts on the renewal of their professional insurance amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Posted: May 08, 2020

E-learning site’s database of 22 million users hacked, put up for sale

Indian e-learning platform Unacademy's database of 22 million users, with contacts of employees of Wipro Ltd., Infosys Ltd., Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., Google LLC and Facebook Inc.

Posted: May 08, 2020

Locusts may cause nearly $4 billion in losses

A report by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization said that the invasion of desert locusts may cause agricultural production losses of 600 billion Pakistani rupees ($3.7 billion) in Pakistan.

Posted: May 08, 2020

Heavy rains cause widespread damage

Heavy rains have led to floods across East Africa, causing widespread damage and killing more than 260 people.

Posted: May 08, 2020

UK regulator puts insurance stress test on hold amid pandemic

The U.K.'s Prudential Regulation Authority will put its insurance company stress tests on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Posted: May 08, 2020

RSA Insurance's premiums ebb

U.K.-based RSA Insurance Group PLC's net written premiums slipped 2% year-over-year to more than £1.5 billion ($1.9 billion) in the first quarter.

Posted: May 08, 2020

Tokio Marine, IBM develop wind damage prediction model

Japan-based Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co. Ltd. and U.S.-based IBM Corp.'s Japanese unit have developed a wind-damage prediction model based on artificial intelligence..

Posted: May 08, 2020

Air France-KLM's loss widens to nearly $2 billion

Air France-KLM SA's net loss widened to €1.8 billion ($1.9 billion) in the first quarter, compared with €324 million in the first quarter of last year.

Posted: May 08, 2020

Amazon tribes sue oil companies, government over spill

Indigenous communities in Ecuador's Amazon region have sued the government and oil companies over the spill of 15,000 barrels of oil into nearby rivers.

Posted: May 08, 2020