Company results
Mapfre expects revenues to top €26bn in 2013
Spanish insurer Mapfre plans to pay a record dividend of €0.11 per share after posting revenues of €25,301.2m for the 2012 financial year.
Aviva's rating affirmed by S&P
Standard & Poor's has confirmed that Aviva's ratings and outlook are unaffected by the company's after-tax loss of £3bn for 2012.
Spencer warns tough broker action ahead
Aviva UK & Ireland general insurance chief executive Robin Spencer has warned it will have to take some “tough calls” on its broker relationships if the insurer is to reduce its commercial lines combined operating ratio to a sub-100% position in 2013.
Novae 'rebalances' book to deliver £49m profit
Novae has reported underlying profit before tax of £49.3m (2011: £6m loss) while the underlying pre-tax return on equity was 17.6% (2011: negative return of 2.1%).
Aviva hit by £3bn post-tax loss
Aviva has announced a full year total loss of £3bn (2011: £60m profit), alongside a 44% cut in its final dividend.
Success of Esure float boils down to accurate pricing in current market
Esure could err on the side of caution when it comes to pricing its stock as it aims to follow Direct Line Group onto the London Stock Exchange, analysts have suggested. The personal lines insurer confirmed plans to float as it revealed its 2011 result.
View from the Top: Because we’re worth it
Forget the naysayers, brokers play a crucial role in the relationship between insurers and policyholders, says David Ross.
L&G to re-enter motor insurance market
Legal & General is considering re-entering the UK motor insurance market in 2013 following moves to diversify its portfolio beyond its core household lines.
L&G general insurance profit falls to £30m
Legal & General's operating profit increased to £1.09bn (2011: £1.05bn) while operating profit from divisions - excluding capital and financing and investment projects - rose to £1.12bn (2011: £1.06bn).
Top five Asian news stories
The top five Asian news stories from www.insuranceinsight.com over the past seven days.
JLT increases revenue by 7% and unveils new transformation programme
JLT increased revenue to £880.1m in 2012 with 7% coming from organic growth and 1% through acquisitions. This was offset by 1% foreign exchange movements compared to 2011.
Amlin returns to profit after £141m Sandy claims
Amlin has posted a pre-tax profit of £262.2m for the year ending 31 December, swinging into profit after a £193m loss in 2011.
Co-op considers sale of non-life insurance business
The Co-operative Bank is believed to be considering the sale of its non-life insurance business to address a billion pound deficit.
Lancashire leads pack with "thumping" 2012 result
Lancashire’s 2012 results place it “firmly at the front of its peers in terms of underwriting delivery and return of capital”.
DLG posts improved international COR after reserve releases
Direct Line Group saw a return to underwriting profit for the 2012 financial year as it posted a combined operating ratio of 99.2%.
BMS plotting 10% growth this year, following profitable 2012
Independent broker the BMS Group has today released a 2012 trading update showing revenues in excess of £63m, up 20% on 2011.
DLG improves combined ratio to 99.2%
Direct Line Group has reported a 9.3% rise in operating profit for ongoing operations to £461.2m (2011: £421.9m) including an underwriting profit of £28.2m compared to a loss in 2011 of £72.3m and a combined operating ratio of 99.2% (2011: 101.8%).
South east Asia spurs Allianz profit growth
Allianz's 2012 Asia Pacific results saw an 80% profit growth and 9% increase in premiums spurred by south east Asia.
Rate hikes the only answer to CL market’s poor results
The dismal state of the UK commercial lines market can only be remedied by insurers inputting rate rises in 2013 and resisting their natural urge to compete on price, the heads of major firms have said.
Expertise in Action: Pricing: A Perfect Storm
The continuing economic downturn and prevalence of large losses make this a difficult period for the insurance industry – but the sector is demonstrating its resilience.
Brit has "natural opportunity" to grow top line as it eyes new markets
Brit group chief executive Mark Cloutier said the insurer is likely to see top line growth in 2013 having repositioned the business to "opportunistically" target profitable specialist lines business.
Bluefin Ebitda increases 27.5%
Bluefin Insurance has reported a 27.5% rise in Ebitda to £22.7m (2011: £17.8m) and a 54.3% pre-tax profit of £17.9m (2011: £11.6m).
Esure confirms IPO intention as improved COR of 92.8% is chalked up
Esure chairman Peter Wood has this morning confirmed the intention of his firm to proceed with an initial public offering.
Brit COR improves to 93.2% in 2012
Brit has produced an operating profit of £113.6m for the full year 2012 (2011 restated: £68.4m) and an impoved combined ratio of 93.2% (2011 restated: 99.6%).