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Florida rocked by home insurance crisis: ‘I may have to sell up and move’ | Florida
Households in Florida, the third most populous state in the US, have been grappling for some time with a property insurance crisis that is making home ownership unaffordable for many. After at least six insurers went insolvent in Florida last year, Farmers on Tuesday became the latest to pull out of the Florida market, saying in a statement that the decision was based on risk exposure in the hurricane-prone state. Climate change is threatening the very existence of some parts of Florida. And the costs are already being felt by Floridians. At the end of 2022, average annual property insurance…
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Administrator for Greensill Bank sues insurer Zurich for $250mn
Receive free Zurich Insurance Group AG updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Zurich Insurance Group AG news every morning. The administrator for the German bank that was owned by failed supply chain finance group Greensill Capital is suing insurer Zurich in London’s High Court for more than $250mn over unpaid claims, as the legal battles stemming from the scandal multiply. Greensill, which was founded by Australian financier Lex Greensill and counted former UK prime minister David Cameron as an adviser, collapsed in 2021 after failing to secure new insurance cover for the securities…
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I’m priced off the road because of my age | Insurance
I am curious to know whether my experience of being priced off the road by insurance companies on account of my age (92) is shared by other readers. I am lucky enough to be in excellent health with no disabilities and have never had an accident. I was insured through Age UK, but I have just been informed by their insurer that they will not renew my insurance, with no reason given (thanks, Age UK). I have been offered alternative insurance by three other insurers for £2,900, £3,600 and £7,000 respectively, from which I infer that some if not all…
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Insurers rack up $50bn in losses from natural catastrophes this year
Receive free Insurance updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Insurance news every morning. The global insurance industry has racked up $50bn in losses from natural catastrophes in the worst start to a year since 2011, highlighting the challenge the sector faces from global warming. As well as climate change leading to more extreme weather events, the first-half losses were driven by the expansion of urban areas and the rising cost of insuring them, according to a widely watched study by reinsurance group Swiss Re published on Wednesday. “The effects of climate change can…
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UK drivers shocked as car insurance costs soar by up to 90% | Car insurance
In 2022, Stephen Sangster had an uneventful year behind the wheel of his brand-new Dacia Jogger, covering 6,000 miles with no accidents or traffic offences. So the father of four was shocked when his car insurance renewal quote landed and the price had soared by a “shocking” near-90%. “My quote has come through 87% higher, and that’s with no accidents, points or anything else that would increase my risk,” Sangster says. “With inflation where it is, you would swallow 10%-15% … but it’s such a jump.” Although this week’s cost of living bulletin from the Office for National Statistics showed…
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European insurers say US backlash has damaged climate change push
Receive free Climate change updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Climate change news every morning. The heads of Europe’s largest insurers have warned that a growing political backlash in the US has jeopardised their ability to join forces to combat climate change. The industry’s effort to tackle carbon emissions collectively culminated two years ago in the establishment of the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance, a UN-backed group of insurers that promised to shrink the emissions linked to their underwriting. However, its future has been in doubt since May when a letter from 23 Republican state…
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UK car insurance: insider tips on how to save money | Car insurance
Car insurance costs may be racing ahead of inflation but there are things you can do to cut what you pay that will help some save hundreds of pounds. Here we round up some of the key advice and insider tips. Shop around This has been the key piece of advice for years but bigger bills mean it is more important than ever. According to the price comparison website Compare the Market this week, drivers can now typically save up to £457 by shopping around. Earlier this year the site said the figure was £411, and late last year it…
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Allstate is a BBB credit now
Receive free US insurance industry updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest US insurance industry news every morning. You’re in good hands with Allstate. But the hands are maybe slightly less good than they were a few years ago, from a credit-ratings perspective. Allstate’s holding company just caught its second credit downgrade to BBB+, three tiers above junk, this time from S&P Ratings. Its operating subsidiaries’ credit was downgraded one notch to A+, from AA-. To be sure, bond markets usually reflect deteriorating credit quality through higher borrowing costs long before the ratings firms…
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Car parts shortage leaves drivers in limbo as makers ‘put sales first’ | Motoring
It was a snowy day in early March when Ruth Joad pranged her car. The one-year-old Volkswagen needed a new bumper and sensors. Her insurer, Aviva, told her to book it into an approved dealership – and that’s where it’s been ever since. “Four months on, there’s still no update on when they’ll have the bumper,” she says. “It took three months for Aviva to get me a courtesy car, and when I call for updates I’m sent round in circles.” Late last week, after queries from the Observer, Aviva said the part had finally arrived and her repair had…
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Departing L&G chief urges UK to ‘reverse’ trend of underinvestment
Receive free Legal & General Group PLC updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Legal & General Group PLC news every morning. Sir Nigel Wilson has called for greater UK investment to allow early-stage businesses to rival their western counterparts, as he presented his final set of results as chief of Legal & General. Wilson, who is due to step down in January after more than a decade leading the FTSE 100 insurer, told the Financial Times that Britain needed an “investment-led growth strategy” that included planning reform, and an answer to recent US…
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