Opinion
View from the Top: The varying role of the broker across Europe
There is no perfect model for an insurance broker. The important aspect to focus on is not the way in which distribution in individual European countries - or sectors - works, but the continued collaboration of the industry as a whole.
Your say: End of the expenses era?
Recent high-profile expenses fraud prosecutions are prompting insurance companies to take a tougher stance with employees when it comes to recording and submitting expense claims.
View from the top: Business continuity needed for SMEs
Only 39% of SMEs have business interruption cover in place.
Editor's comment: Shaking up the market
Two of this week's market stories - emanating from opposite ends of the insurance supply chain, and arising from both home and abroad - carry the potential for significant shakeup in the months to come.
My best 11: Martin Egan, Direct Line Group
Direct Line Group national manager for property insurance advisers Martin Egan selects his best XI for an insurance start-up. Egan has leant heavily on the stars of League One side Bury as well as colleagues from his firm. His one celebrity pick is…
View from the top: Brokers failing to reach next-gen HNW customers
A new generation of potential high net worth customers are not being reached by brokers, says Justin Gott.
Editor's comment: Fleeing the family nest
This week’s deal developments read like two coming-of-age literary fables written to reward hard work and endeavour, while also serving as cautionary tales against potential fallout from familial difficulties in modern times.
Ask the expert: Ali Foroshani on Agency Worker Regulations
As a contractor, I'm worried that the new Agency Worker Regulations have put organisations off hiring temps. Have you noticed any evidence of this?
Your say: uncovering dishonest drivers
It is no secret that a large quantity of drivers who have not recently claimed, and whose circumstances have not changed, are nonetheless paying increased insurance premiums.
North of the border: presumption of death reforms
While Scotland has had a fairly clear procedure for dealing with the legal affairs of persons missing for longer than seven years since the Presumption of Death (Scotland) Act 1977, those south of the border have had to deal with "a legislative patchwork…
View from the top: equality without reform
Boards need competent individuals regardless of gender, rendering quotas irrelevant
View from the top: a riot to remember
As debates resurface about the response to last year's riots, the question of inadequate SME cover returns.
Your say: The reasons for standardisation
We would have been naive, here at Wunelli, to think our call for telematics data standardisation would not result in some debate, and we're pleased that it has - which is precisely why we are planning a think tank for all interested parties.
View from the top: The great rate debate
The rating environment continues to be the 'hot' topic in the insurance industry.
Regulation response: Twin peaks - a return to the dark ages?
Nature does not favour creatures with two heads, probably because they spend most of their time arguing with themselves.
View from the top: FSA supervision strategy does not reflect risk of client detriment
As chairman of the Chartered Insurance Institute’s broking faculty, I recently had the pleasure of visiting the Financial Services Authority to hear about the impending changes to our regulatory world and it was a fascinating insight into what’s going on…
Editor's comment: Consolidation casualties coming?
The specifics of what went wrong at North West personal injury firm Donns - forcing it into administration at the cost of 42 jobs, while 2500 cases were still in progress - will remain the subject of speculation for some time.
View from the Top: Olympic challenges
The London 2012 Olympic Games will have a significant and positive impact on the UK and its businesses, but companies will need to give careful consideration to the effect on their day-to-day operations.
Bancassurance in CEE: opportunities for growth
Some view Central and Eastern Europe as behind Western Europe, but bancassurance could help to change this. Thomas Schöllkopf takes a look at the motives and opportunities for growth offered by this alternative sales channel.
South Asia slow down: is this a blip or the new normal?
South Asia is probably the region of the world most acutely aware of the interconnectedness of growth prospects across countries in the developed and developing world.
Your say: Treating telematics data fairly
Sharing customer data would, on the face of it, be illegal and against the public interest, says Mike Brockman.
View from the top: Learning from our neighbours
As Italy takes a step towards combating motor fraud, can the UK follow suit?
View from the top - Social Media: A tale of the unpredictable and of the inevitable
Recent years have witnessed the most drastic change in human behaviour, both in terms of fine tuning our knowledge towards what and who is really of interest to us, and in the way individuals interact with each other.
Comment: The risk of irrelevance
A recent report paints a bleak picture for the future of insurance.