Monthly Archives: <span>April 2014</span>

Bigger and More Frequent Wildfires Burning Western U.S.

Wildfires across the western United States have been getting bigger and more frequent over the last 30 years, according to a new study. The number of wildfires over 1,000 acres in size in the region stretching from Nebraska to California …

Ilinets Named Vice President of Hub’s San Francisco Commercial Markets

Hub International Insurance Services Inc. named Artem Ilinets vice president in the San Francisco, Calif. commercial division. Ilinet’s primary role with Hub will be the deployment of risk aversive insurance solutions for business clients throughout the state. Prior to Hub, …

2013 P/C Insurers’ Results Show Net Gain on Underwriting– First Since 2007

U.S. property/casualty insurers’ net income after taxes grew to $63.8 billion in 2013 from $35.1 billion in 2012, with insurers’ overall profitability as measured by their rate of return on average policyholders’ surplus climbing to 10.3 percent from 6.1 percent. …

Claims, Oil and Resentments Linger Four Years After BP Oil Spill

Four years after the Deepwater Horizon spill, oil is still washing up on the long sandy beaches of Grand Isle, Louisiana, and some islanders are fed up with hearing from BP that the crisis is over. Jules Melancon, the last …

Markel Int’l. Appoints Tidey Assistant Marine Underwriter in Singapore

Specialist insurer Markel International has appointed Luke Tidey as an assistant marine underwriter in its Singapore office. He joins the team in Singapore from Markel’s Stockholm office where he held the same position. Prior to that, he was a marine …

Aspen Adopts Shareholder Rights Plan; Endurance Slams ‘Poison Pill’ Defense

The 17th April of April saw a resumption of hostilities between Aspen Insurance Holdings and its would-be acquirer Endurance Specialty Holdings. The two Bermuda-based specialty insurers have fighting each other since April 14, when Endurance offered to buy Aspen for …

Lloyd’s Focuses on Brokers, MGA’s, Capital in New Details for ‘Vision 2025’ Plan

Lloyd’s has published a more detailed strategy for 2014-2016, setting out how it will work towards achieving its goals, embodied in its “Vision 2025” Plan, which details “how the Corporation will support managing agents, brokers and capital providers in an …

Strong M7.2 Earthquake Shakes Acapulco, Mexico City: AIR Analysis

According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, on the morning of April 18, 2014, a M7.2 earthquake struck southwestern Mexico, 37 km [23 miles] north of the municipality of Tecpán de Galeana (approximate population 53,000). The epicenter is located 273 …

Bermuda Re/Insurers Post Strong Results on Favorable Cat Loss Experience

The Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers (ABIR) has released the 2013 global underwriting results for its member (re)insurers. 18 of its 21 member (re)insurers participated in the 2013 report. The companies write insurance and reinsurance from underwriting centers in …

A Tough Sell: Insurance Coverage for a China Financial Crisis

Selling insurance against a financial crisis should not be difficult five years after the last one nearly wrecked the global economy. But when it comes to China, the world’s second-largest economy, the probability of a full-blown crisis is apparently so …