Eight catastrophe bond transactions totaling USD $2.05 billion in risk capital were completed in the second quarter of 2010, making it the second most active second quarter on record, according to a new report issued by Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC, and GC Securities, a division of MMC Securities Corp. The report, Cat Bond Market [...]
ACE Limited has reported net income for the quarter ended June 30, 2010, of $1.98 per share, compared with $1.58 per share for the same quarter last year. Income excluding net realized gains (losses) was $2.01 per share, compared with $2.09 per share for the same quarter last year. Book value increased $774 million during [...]
Wolters Kluwer Financial Services has released its annual lists of the top 10 reasons insurance companies are found to be out of compliance during market conduct examinations. The categories with the most criticisms comprise the top 10 lists for property and casualty, and life and health insurance. The company’s Insurance compliance business reviewed and analyzed [...]
Property/casualty carriers surveyed overwhelmingly believe that billing impacts customer retention. Guidewire Software, a provider of core systems to property/casualty insurers, has released its Billing Market Survey that finds a majority of respondents have difficulty creating new bill plans and more than a third cannot bill multiples policies on a single invoice which impacts their ability [...]
According to a study commissioned by AXA, more than half of Quebecers think only occasionally or rarely of shopping around for their automobile and home insurance. However, when they decide to do so, they are willing to switch insurers for a 10 to 20% discount on their premiums. Consumer behaviour, purchase triggers, shopping habits, client [...]
Major losses from the Chile earthquake and storms in Australia in the first quarter of 2010 have had little impact on pricing in the global reinsurance market, which continued to soften this renewal season. The exception was on Chilean-specific renewals, which have seen rate increases of between 40 and 70 percent. This assessment of the [...]
Businesses with stronger risk management practices than their peers enjoy more stable financial performance over the long term, including much lower earnings volatility, according to the findings of a new study of more than 500 large multinational companies. Commissioned by commercial property insurer FM Global and conducted by Oxford Metrica, an independent strategic advisor to [...]
Willis North America, a unit of Willis Group Holdings, has formed a Distressed Assets Practice to advise clients on managing the risks associated with financially distressed, foreclosed or abandoned properties and to provide a range of insurance solutions. The new unit will be headed by Brian Ruane, National Real Estate and Hotel Practice Leader [...]
Crawford & Company (Canada) has announces the launch of the Crawford CMS Property ADVANTAGE across the Canadian marketplace. Using tablet and wireless technology, Crawford CMS Property ADVANTAGE allows Crawford’s property adjusters to complete their site visit and subsequent report at the claim scene itself. Crawford CMS Property ADVANTAGE is being rolled out nationally to all [...]
Gartner says P&C insurers are being confronted with the growing need to offer more services to agents and consumers through mobile devices — and demand will intensify during the next five years. Users expect websites to be accessible via handheld devices and that certain transactions can be supported on mobile devices as well. Mobile technologies [...]
While the New Brunswick legislature has wrapped up and won’t sit until after the Sept. 27 provincial election, the issue of credit scoring and the use of credit histories for insurance purposes is still a hot topic. Superintendent of Insurance Deborah McQuade has issued a discussion paper that addresses the province’s concerns with credit scoring. [...]
The Internet has become a core component of operations for personal and commercial lines P&C insurers. It is a tool to interact with agents, consumers and policyholders. Therefore, Gartner says the use of portal technologies for agents and policyholders is critical as a means to offer access to sales/customer service systems, corporate information, and data. [...]
Gartner listed BPM Solutions Including Workflow and Rule Engines on its list of top ten technologies to impact the property and casualty insurance industry. Gartner says BPM holds promise for insurance, because it enables companies to model, analyze and test business processes independent of core systems. Process problems can be easily identified, and companies can [...]
In its list of top ten technologies to impact the property and casualty insurance industry, Gartner highlights Product Development and Configuration Solutions. It says one of the top business priorities among P&C insurers is improving speed to market for new products. Legacy environments make this task difficult, if not impossible. New systems will help drive [...]
View the video here on your mobile device. For many, it was the summer of our discontent. Record temperatures hit parts of the west while rain and cooler days were too common in the rest of the country. When Environment Canada released its list of top weather stories of the year, the summer and its [...]
In its list of top technologies to impact the property and casualty insurance industry, Gartner says that Advanced Fraud Detection Solutions are key. It is key that insurers reduce losses and leakage to retain profitability. Better control of fraud is essential in accomplishing these goals. Advanced tools analyze data (structured and unstructured) to identify fraudulent [...]
Traditional data analysis processes are typically historical (analysis and reporting of the past) or current day (analysis and reporting of current-day positions). Using predictive-modeling technologies, insurers can analyze data and create models that will enable them to predict future behaviors or outcomes. This will allow companies to look into the future and make predictions based [...]
In its list of top ten technologies to impact the property and casualty insurance industry, Gartner says Business Intelligence and Analytics can help improve risk management and compliance and reporting. In 2010, P&C insurers are increasing their focus on improving how data is used and the value derived from past investments in data warehousing. The [...]
