Articles by Scott McGee
Insurance Institute of Northern Ireland fails in no confidence vote against CII
The Insurance Institute of Northern Ireland held a vote of no confidence against the Chartered Insurance Institute at its Annual General Meeting on Tuesday morning, Insurance Post can reveal.
Gove ‘outraged’ by broker leasehold commissions
In a letter to Financial Conduct Authority CEO Nikhil Rathi, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove, said he is “outraged” by the findings of the FCA report into broker remuneration.
FCA tells brokers to stop paying third parties without justification
The Financial Conduct Authority expects brokers of multi-occupancy buildings to “immediately stop paying commissions to third parties where they do not have appropriate justification and evidence for doing so”.
Could the PRA soon be knocking on personal lines insurers’ doors?
Editor’s View: 2022 was tough for personal lines, but if you are an insurer who had a particularly difficult year, the Prudential Regulatory Authority could soon be knocking on your door.
What is behind Ardonagh’s international shift?
Five years after Ardonagh was formed, news editor Scott McGee explores what the next five years could hold for a broking group that has more than tripled its income.
Covéa puts jobs at risk with company restructure
After reporting a loss of £145m for 2022, Covéa Insurance UK is currently undergoing a company restructure, entering a consultation process with employees, Insurance Post can reveal.
Q&A: Ardonagh UK Commercial MGA's chief executive Jaime Swindle
Jaime Swindle, chief executive of Ardonagh's UK Commercial MGA, catches up with Insurance Post to talk about moving from an insurer-owned company to a broker-owned business, and whether an organisation can be too acquisitive.
Lockton suffers exodus as ‘at least ten’ leave for Ardonagh
Insurance Post understands a substantial number of Lockton’s Global Financial Institutions team have all resigned to join Ardonagh’s Bishopsgate.
A smooth exit strategy is essential should things go south, says PRA
Shoib Khan, director of insurance supervision at the Prudential Regulatory Authority, warned that businesses and senior management must be ready to pull the plug on writing new business before things get too messy should market conditions become too…
Who is responsible for ending the insurance poverty premium?
Analysis: Social Market Foundation research shows insurance is increasingly unaffordable for those on low incomes; news editor Scott McGee examines who is responsible for preventing a “poverty premium” being charged.
Time for insurtechs to grow up or say goodbye to funding
Editor’s View: If you want to survive as an insurtech, you need to prove you can survive on your own.
Group income surpasses £1bn as Ross reflects on five years of Ardonagh
The broker celebrated its fifth birthday in 2022, and has continued on its path to growth through acquisitions.
Insurers are increasing admin fees after ‘loyalty penalty’ ban
Research from Go Gompare found that more products are subject to administrative fees across its car insurance policies since the introduction of the Financial Conduct Authority’s General Insurance Pricing Practices regulations last year.
End of Energy Bill Relief Scheme could be ‘final nail in the coffin’ for SMEs
SMEs could face more hardship as the Energy Bill Relief Scheme comes to an end, after the cost of living and energy crises led to over half a million insolvencies in 2022.
Amazon to scale up Insurance Store activity after slow sales
According to sources, only around 250 policies have been sold through the Amazon Insurance Store since it was launched back in October.
Direct Line posts £45m pre-tax loss as operating profit crashes 95%
After a well-documented difficult first three months of the year for Direct Line, financial results for 2022 show just how tough last year was.
Aviva’s Winslow hopes for easing inflation as PL motor shrinks slightly
Adam Winslow, Aviva GI CEO for UK and Ireland, says diversification helped the firm weather a drop in personal lines motor business, and shares Aviva’s approach to pricing and building out the HNW book.
Aviva UK&I GI sees growth as it returns more than £5bn in capital since 2021
Aviva Group CEO Amanda Blanc has announced strong results for the UK and Ireland general insurance business, while launching a £300m share buyback scheme, having taken capital return to over £5bn in two years.
Hiscox’s UK & London Markets’ GWP drops for 2022 but sectors stay profitable
Hiscox’s UK and London Markets businesses both dropped gross written premium in real terms but continued profitability, as the insurer announced the launch of an ESG sub-syndicate.
Insurtech 2.0 must embrace the concept of brokers
Flock CEO Ed Leon Klinger said in order for insurtechs to continue to grow their scale and distribution capabilities, they needed to use the concept of brokers.
Lloyd’s working to address ‘awful’ infrastructure within the London Market
Rich Boyd, head of digital claims at Lloyd’s, has said the marketplace is working on a way to help insurtechs and start-ups to sell into and connect up to London-based underwriters’ tech systems.
‘Hardly any insurance players put customers at the heart of the product,’ says Beale
Dame Inga Beale has said radical thinking is needed to change insurance, encouraging insurtechs to continue challenging the current way of operating.
Ardonagh’s Swindle looking to establish clarity in the market
Ardonagh UK Commercial MGA CEO Jaime Swindle wants to be clearer regarding strategy moving forward, before looking at growth opportunities in the second half of the year.
Ransomware gets the headlines, but it is not the top cyber exposure says CFC’s Nelson
CFC Underwriting’s cyber development leader, Lindsey Nelson says that while media interest in ransomware remains high, it is not the most frequent exposure seen in the SME cyber space.