Business Insurance

Category 5 cyclone to hit Vanuatu

Parts of Vanuatu are expected to be hit by a category 5 cyclone Harold on April 6.

Posted: Apr 06, 2020

UK loses $3 billion per day due to outbreak

U.K.'s Center for Economics and Business Research has said that the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic is costing the economy more than £2.4 billion ($3 billion) per day.

Posted: Apr 06, 2020

Pakistan could lose up to $15 billion due to outbreak

Pakistan expects to lose up to 2.5 trillion Pakistani rupees ($15 billion) in three months due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Posted: Apr 06, 2020

Credit Suisse issues $461 million operational risk cat bond

Swiss investment banking firm Credit Suisse Group AG has issued a more than $461 million operational risk catastrophe bond.

Posted: Apr 06, 2020

600 gallons of oil spilled in Galapagos Islands

Six hundred gallons of oil spilled in the Galapagos Islands on April 5, when a crane loading a diesel container onto a neighboring cargo vessel tipped over.

Posted: Apr 06, 2020

Washington state group sues Fox News over coronavirus reporting

A Washington state group has filed suit against Fox News charging that its “erroneous” and “incomplete” reporting on the coronavirus pandemic violated the state’s Consumer Protection Act.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Court reinstates fired Uber driver’s claim against reporting agency

A federal appeals court has overturned a lower court ruling and reinstated a Fair Credit Reporting Act claim against a background check firm that provided incomplete information about an Uber driver’s accident record, which resulted in his firing.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Applied Underwriters to buy Florida-based insurer

Applied Underwriters Inc. has agreed to buy Sarasota, Florida-based insurer Centauri Insurance Co., the Omaha, Nebraska-based insurer announced Friday.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Federal and state OSHAs overrun with COVID-19 complaints

Federal and state agencies have seen a large influx of workplace safety complaints related to the COVID-19 outbreak, and experts urge employers to create exposure control plans in case an agency comes knocking. Unlike the flu and common cold, COVID-1...

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Best sees stable outlook for reinsurers

Rating agency A.M. Best Co. Inc. said Friday that the outlook for the reinsurance industry remained stable and the sector’s exposure to the coronavirus pandemic was “manageable.”

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Broker M&A numbers dip in first quarter

The number of mergers and acquisitions between insurance brokers fell in the first quarter as transactions involving multiple purchases evaporated, but it remains unclear how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting deals, Optis Partners LLC said in a repo...

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Former AIG head and risk expert pushes coronavirus sniff test

Can the same program that once helped the banking system navigate risks assist the world in tracking coronavirus at a time of limited medical testing for COVID-19?

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Terminated worker’s retaliation claim reinstated

A federal appeals court has reinstated the retaliatory harassment claim of a terminated executive assistant who said she was threatened by her supervisor.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Two state AGs seek info on Zoom's privacy practices

At least two U.S. state attorneys have sought information from Zoom Video Communications Inc. following multiple reports that questioned the privacy and security of the videoconferencing app.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Doctors on virus frontline seek protection from malpractice suits

U.S. medical professionals on the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic are lobbying policymakers for protection from potential malpractice lawsuits as hospitals triage care and physicians take on roles outside their specialties.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Proposed fines total $315K in Hard Rock construction collapse

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued proposed fines totaling $315,536 to 11 companies associated with the deadly October 2019 partial collapse of a Hard Rock Hotel under construction in New Orleans.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

No business interruption virus cover, insurers tell Calif. lawmakers

Standard business interruption policies do not provide coverage against communicable diseases such as COVID-19, and were not actuarially priced to do so, major insurer organizations said in a letter sent Thursday to California members of Congress.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Mega comp claims spiked during recession: NCCI report

The frequency of expensive workers compensation claims above $1 million was “significantly impacted” by the recession between 2007 and 2009, according to a report released Thursday by the National Council on Compensation Insurance.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Florida sports bar sues Lloyd’s for coronavirus coverage

A Tampa, Florida, sports bar Thursday sued its insurers at Lloyd’s of London for business interruption coverage related to the coronavirus pandemic.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Aon launches COVID-19 tracking app for employers

Aon PLC has launched an interactive web application that aims to help employers forecast the impact of COVID-19 on employee populations throughout the U.S., including medical costs, absenteeism and the potential need to shift work operations.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

New York AG says state will stand firm on NRA suit defense

New York Attorney General Letitia James said the state will aggressively defend itself against a National Rifle Association lawsuit against the state over its decision to deem gun retailers nonessential.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

The BI Top 10: Week of March 30, 2020

There was high interest this week in stories focusing on potential business interruption exposure due to the coronavirus pandemic, including one in which Morgan Stanley analysts said claims concerns were “overblown.”

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Europe faces hundreds of billions of euros in production losses

Data from Germany-based Ifo Institute for Economic Research indicates that the coronavirus outbreak could cost Europe hundreds of billions of euros in lost production.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

ILS capacity falls at April renewals due to outbreak

Reinsurance broker Willis Re Inc. said that even though April reinsurance renewals saw significant rate increases, overall insurance-linked securities capacity declined slightly particularly for Japanese risks.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020

Small businesses risk losing insurance on closed premises

Millions of businesses in the United Kingdom that have been forced to shut their premises due to the coronavirus outbreak risk losing their insurance unless they act quickly.

Posted: Apr 03, 2020