Marsh and Citi support vaccine efforts; Hudson takes majority Occam stake; Simply Business in Barclays tie up; Aston Lark strikes Irish deal; RAC picks Premium Credit

This week in Post:

• Willis Re buy a growth not a synergy story, say Gallagher chiefs
• Business interruption payments edge closer to £1bn
• Both Ryan Specialty Group and Tokio Marine Insurance Singapore confirm cyber incidents
• July floods likely to be Europe’s costliest weather event
• FCA yet to fully investigate more than half of Covid whistleblowers’ reports from first year of pandemic
• Ardonagh adds £900m to firepower as Ebitda rises and losses narrow
• Dual targeting $3bn GWP within five years after Align buy
• The future of construction insurance
• UK General’s Tim Smyth on why ‘know their stuff’ MGAs are thriving

People moves:

• Carl Hess to succeed John Haley as Willis Towers Watson CEO
• Ross Dingwall swaps Hiscox for Partners&
• Swiss Re appoints Jason Richards as UK and Ireland CEO
• Zurich’s Peter Hamilton appointed disability and access ambassador for government disability unit

For the record:

Hot pick

Marsh and Citi develop risk mitigation structure on behalf of vaccine alliance Gavi

Date announced: 17 August

Deal value: N/a

Marsh and bank Citi have confirmed the placement of a risk mitigation structure on behalf of vaccine alliance Gavi to cover risks associated with governments that are self-funding coronavirus vaccine placement through the Covax facility.

The structure will enable Gavi to bulk pre-purchase vaccines from manufacturers with “greater confidence”, Marsh updated, with a view to facilitating more rapid and equitable vaccine distribution globally. It provides cover against non-payment by 21 countries across Africa, the Americas, Asia and Continental Europe.

The policy is underwritten by Axa XL, Chubb, Liberty Specialty Markets, Sovereign Risk Insurance, Swiss Re Corporate Solutions and Tokio Marine HCC.

Assietou Diouf, Gavi managing director of finance and operations, said: “An initiative like Covax requires a risk mitigation structure to match its scale, complexity and ambition. This new structure will further strengthen the foundation of Covax, which is the best mechanism the world has to bring an end to the acute phase of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Deals of the week

Hudson buys Occam majority stake

Date announced: 17 August

Deal value: Undisclosed

Hudson Structured Capital Management has bought the majority stake in specialist managing general agent Occam Underwriting.

Occam updated that HSCM has made a futher investment in the business to enable it to expand into new lines. Steve Hart has joined Occam as head of trade credit, political risk, surety and terrorism reinsurance business. Hart was formerly Vibe Syndicate Management head of specialty reinsurance.

Earlier this month the MGA hired Oliver Litterick as head and director of low carbon energy, tasked with building a (re)insurance unit to support clean energy.

Occam CEO Mark Fisher said: “As evidenced by the recent announcement of our expansion into the renewable energy market, the additional investment provided will help enable the company to move forward at pace with its planned growth strategy.”

Aston Lark buys in Ireland

Date announced: 17 August

Deal value: Undisclosed

Aston Lark Ireland has bought Dublin-based broker AR Brassington, a subsidiary of ARB Group.

AR Brassington provides travel insurance to individuals and offers business insurance services. Its wholesale division specializes in professional indemnity to insurance brokers.

Aston Lark Ireland CEO Robert Kennedy said: “Brassington Insurance perfectly encapsulates what we look for in an acquisition. It is a business that is deeply rooted in the market, with decades of rich tradition and history, and it shares the same values and passion for their people and customers. Over 90 years of successful trading, a strong client base and a loyal team is testament to this.”

Barclays partners with Simply Business

Date announced: 18 August

Deal value: N/a

Barclays and Simply Business have partnered to offer business insurance quotes via the bank’s website or over the phone from a panel of insurers.

Julie Fisher, Simply Business chief commercial officer, said: “We’re passionate about helping entrepreneurs protect the businesses they have worked hard to build, and we’re thrilled to provide our tailored SME and commercial landlord insurance to Barclays Business Banking customers. This partnership represents an exciting opportunity to deliver simplicity, choice and value in commercial insurance solutions to an important group of small businesses across the country.”

Head of Barclays Business Banking Hannah Bernard added: “We know that finding the right insurance policy can be a bit of a headache for small businesses.  We hope this partnership with Simply Business will make choosing business insurance easier, faster and more cost effective for our customers – as well as giving valuable peace of mind.”

And finally…

• RAC has selected Premium Credit as its premium finance provider across telematics, van and home insurance. RAC Insurance head Marcus Latchford said: “The ability to offer premium finance options consistently, simply and compliantly to our customers through a reliable partner was central to our decision to select Premium Credit.”
• CPP Group has partnered with Just Travel Cover to launch a parametric lost luggage product. Customers receive a £50 pay out directly to their Pay Pal or bank account after 30 minutes of their luggage being unlocatable, with an addition £500 if it is still lost after 48 hours. Andrew Jackson, Just Travel Cover managing director, said: “By eliminating manual processes as far as possible, we’ve also eliminated many pain points from the customer journey and are able to offer both reassurance and practical, real-time cash assistance to customers who are likely contending with other Covid-19-related stresses.”
• Honcho has added motorhome to its app through a partnership with Lifesure. Nick Long, Lifesure head of insurance, said: “We’ve seen the number of online motorhome enquiries rocket over the past 14 months, and we knew that Honcho was keen to expand their ‘wheels’ product marketplace.” Adding: “Whilst our process isn’t a reverse auction in the traditional Honcho style, we’re pleased to have created something that is a stepping stone to new and exciting developments. We’ve created an agile solution to allow Honcho customers to access our panel of motorhome insurers and it’s testament to our knowledge, experience and can-do attitude that Honcho have chosen to partner with Lifesure.”
• Guidewire has bought US-based insurtech Hazard Hub, a property risk scoring insight service. Hazard Hub analyses data on risks that could destroy property, including across air, wind, earth and fire. Guidewire CEO Mike Rosenbaum said: “Embedding Hazard Hub’s comprehensive property risk data service into Guidewire’s industry-leading platform will drive tremendous value for our customers and the P&C insurance industry.”