Europe Intelligence Wire articles from November 2003

Europe Intelligence Wire archives from November 2003

News Analysis - Hitting out against the hearsay.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Adrian Leonard. Warren Buffett recently alleged that "one of the world's largest reinsurers has all but ceased paying claims". Was it a reference to Swiss Re? The rumours are thick, but evidence is thin....

News Analysis - Reformer moves into Lloyd's.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Vic Wyman. In the world of Lloyd's, most people would probably accept Iain Saville's light-hearted description of himself as a rocket scientist. He has a first degree and a doctorate from the University...

News Analysis - Enter the hedge funds.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Adrian Leonard. Not since the development of catastrophe bonds in the mid 1990s has the reinsurance sector seen the introduction of a completely new source of capacity. Now something new is emerging, and it...

ReWeb - First seen on the Reinsurance website www.insurancewindow.net.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) The blackout that left 50 million people without power in North America in August caused at least $75m in damages, according to the property claims service unit of the Insurance Services Office. The figure could...

WTC blow for Silverstein.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) A US federal court has announced that the 11 September 2001 attack on the World Trade Centre (WTC) was one event, not two. The US Second Court of Appeals turned down the argument put forward by lawyers for Larry...

US Q3 nat cat losses soar.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) US third quarter 2003 losses from natural catastrophes soared by 300% when compared to the same period in 2002, according to the Insurance Services Office's property claims service unit. Seven major catastrophes,...

Typhoon season below average?
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) The number of typhoons that will hit the region around Australia will be below average for the 2003/04 season, according to the Tropical Storm Risk (TSR) group at the Benfield Hazard Research Centre. TSR predicts...

World Cup risk analysis.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Risk Management Solutions (RMS) has carried out a risk analysis for the securitisation covering the cancellation of the 2006 football World Cup in Germany. The analysis looked at the threat and impact of possible...

Benfield looks at Swiss terrorism coverage.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Broker Benfield has created a new terrorism reinsurance facility that looks at potential property risks for the Swiss insurance market. The company has created a customised version of its live underwriting system,...

Munich Re's rights issue.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Munich Re expects to raise EUR3.8bn in a new rights issue, hoping to create a stronger capital base that will allow it to take advantage of "profitable growth opportunities". The subscription period will last from 28...

Email hazard to reinsurers.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Electronic paper trails created by email could be putting (re)insurers at risk of costly claims litigation, according to a speaker at a recent market briefing hosted by the International Underwriting Association. ...

Hiscox launches new web-based claims system.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Hiscox has introduced a new claims management system that is available via the internet. The claims management system (CMS) is web-based and is available across the UK. It has been designed to give brokers quick and...

Bermuda is set to be a market leader in terms of electronic trading.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Bermuda's reinsurance market is at the forefront of the move towards electronic trading, according to electronic data hub ri3k. Speaking at the 17th International Reinsurance Conference on the island, chief executive...

Latin American market findings.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) The potential of the Latin American market is underdeveloped when compared to more mature markets, according to a new report from Standard & Poor's (S&P). The report says an increasing number of reinsurers such as...

Swiss Re wins Asian award.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Swiss Re has been proclaimed Asian reinsurer of the year for 2003, the third time that the company has won the award since it was started seven years ago. The award is organised by the Asia Insurance Review and The...

Hatch bill deadlock broken.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) US asbestos companies and insurers have broken the deadlock over what to pay towards the creation of the asbestos compensation trust fund proposed by the Hatch Bill. Following initial disagreements over who would pay...

Swiss Re power generation insurance.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Swiss Re has published a new technical report looking at the issues involved with insuring power generators. The report examines how recent deregulation and privatisation in different countries has had an impact on...

Reweb.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Rating agency AM Best has downgraded the financial strength ratings of Swiss Re and its core subsidiaries from 'A ' (superior) to 'A+' (superior). The outlook on all ratings has been changed from negative to stable....

Comment - Matters of concern - Sal Zaffino examines the problems facing US casualty reinsurers.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Sal Zaffino, chief executive of global reinsurance intermediary Guy The casualty reinsurance market in the US has seen turbulent times in recent years, and there has been wide variation in conditions among...

Comment - Considering the bigger picture.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Isobel McCalman, Editor. Reinsurance is typically described as a global market and it certainly does have multinational players who trade across many borders. The capital invested and the risk underwritten...

Comment - Success hangs in the balance.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Henry Keeling, chief executive of reinsurance operations, XL Capital. Despite some of the clouds that hang over the sector, many reinsurers are reporting record-breaking profitability for their current...

New York Summit - Start spreading the news.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Isobel McCalman. The second Reinsurance summit took place in New York. Another leading group of industry executives in the reinsurance sector gathered to discuss the market and how it may develop. The...

Technical Report: Life cover - Hard facts to stomach?
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) The way we live today is prompting a rising level of obesity. At the same time, increasing obesity is influencing the way we live. Who would have thought, a decade ago, that fast food outlets would be challenged in...

Interview - Burning issues.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Isobel McCalman. Christian Milton is vice-president, reinsurance officer, at American International Group (AIG). He is responsible for the management of the purchasing of reinsurance by all affiliates and...

Technical Report: Life cover - Bigger risk to swallow.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Keith Sankey. Critical illness cover (CIC) is the UK healthcare insurance success story of recent times. Having arrived with reinsurers' help in Britain from South Africa as recently as 1986, yearly sales...

Market report: Persian Gulf - Platform for growth.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Mention the Persian Gulf to most people and the chances are they will think of oil, sand, wars and controversy. (Re)insurance is not something that easily comes to mind. But times are changing in the region. The...

Emerging risks - Preparing for the worst.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Marc Jones. For most people the biggest worries in life centre around areas like the health of their family, getting the car fixed or paying the mortgage. Bigger worries like the imminent extinction of...

Bermuda - Brokers put down roots.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Vic Wyman. Many people may agree with John Jenks, head of the reinsurance broker Benfield in Bermuda, that the reinsurance business cannot be pinned down to one location: "There's only one market for...

Bermuda - Facing the future in Bermuda.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Marc Jones. Anyone who has ever run a business knows that making a profit is easy when the economy is booming and people think that their wallets are bottomless. Doing well when things are going badly takes a...

Bermuda - Island snares more captives.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Vic Wyman. Within weeks the Bermuda Insurance Management Association (Bima) might for the first time be able to reveal detailed figures about what is believed to be rapid growth on Bermuda of captive...

Bermuda Summit - Market dynamics.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: David Worsfold. Bermuda sees itself as a vibrant, creative market, prepared to be flexible in meeting the challenges facing the global reinsurance market but at pains to reject charges that the new capacity...

Bermuda - Cat-handling in Bermuda.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: David Fanning. Rating agency Standard & Poor's predicted in May that 2003 would be a difficult year for the reinsurance industry. Reporting that the four biggest reinsurers - Munich, Swiss, Employer's and...

UK Legal - Clearing up the facts.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: John Butler. Lord Hoffmann continued his consideration of whether the phrase "any single act or omission (or related series of acts or omissions)" used in TSB v Lloyds Bank, would enable losses relating to...

Legal: Mould - A rising concern.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Scott Casher. Litigation involving allegations of property damage and bodily injury caused by toxic mould has been commenced in jurisdictions across the US, with the filings increasing rapidly in the past few...

Regulation Focus - Duma postpones car insurance law.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) The Duma, the parliament of Russia, has voted to suspend compulsory third-party car insurance just three months after its introduction. Mandatory third-party car insurance was introduced by the Russian government in...

Regulation Focus - ABI agrees new wordings for medical information.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) The Association of British Insurers (ABI) and the British Medical Association (BMA) have joined forces to agree on a package that will make it easier for doctors to provide medical information to their patient's...

Regulation Focus - AIA calls for support for US legal reforms.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) A senior member of the American Insurance Association (AIA) has called on risk managers to help reduce litigation and reform the US legal system. Speaking at the Risk and Insurance Management Society's real estate...

IUMI Review - Troubled waters.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Eric Alexander. Marine underwriters always seem to live in challenging times, and none more so than now as this year's September conference of the International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) demonstrated...

Regulation Focus - Regulatory link-up.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) The Monetary Authority of Singapore has signed a regulatory memorandum of understanding with the Securities and Exchange Board of India. The agreement will pave the way for enhanced cooperation and communication...

US Legal - Taking it to the limit.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Peter Chaffetz and Steven Schwartz. When a cedant pays a claim, one of the most important questions for reinsurers is how their contracts' limits apply. In some cases, this is an easy question. For example,...

Risk: Storm tracking - Forecasting success.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Mark Saunders, lead scientist on the TropicalStormRisk.com The active 2003 Atlantic hurricane season has already seen two hurricanes strike the US. Hurricane Claudette struck Texas on 15 July and hurricane...

Claims - Isabel damage claims to hit $1.17bn.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Hurricane Isabel caused up to $1.17bn of damage when it hit the US mainland in September, according to the latest estimate from the property claims services arm of Insurance Services Office (ISO). The hurricane hit...

Claims - China suffers from natural disasters.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) China has been hit by a series of natural disasters that has left the country with an estimated bill of $18.3bn in economic losses. So far this year 1911 people have been killed in some of the most serious flooding...

Claims - Swiss Re looks at global warming.
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Swiss Re is working with the United Nations Development Project (UNDP) and Harvard Medical School's centre for health and the global environment on a research project looking at the costs of global warming. Over the...

Risk: Windstorm modelling - A hazy outlook?
November 1, 2003... (From Reinsurance) Byline: Dr Jayanta Guin, vice-president of research and modelling at AIR. As the 2003-04 European winter storm season gets underway it is an excellent time to re-examine this complex and potentially costly peril. ...

Go skiing in a French winter wonderland.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) DESTINATIONS Gemma O'Doherty * In France they're calling it the wedding of the century - but you won't see it on the pages of a celebrity magazine. On the Saturday before Christmas thousands ofguests will...

Recovery play IFG back over [euro]1 mark.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) FINANCIAL services group IFG topped the list of Dublin SE gainers againthis week when the shares added on 13.2pc. Earlier in the week, analysts put the surgein IFG down to the fact that the company is a 'recovery...

Doyle set for NYC sequel after turbulent ComReg starring role.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) NEWSMAKER OF THE WEEK WHILE the news that Etain Doyle was stepping down as chairperson of the Commissionfor Communications Regulation (ComReg) was not much of a shock to the telecommunications sector, the news...

BUSINESS WEEK : Revenue targets 'Large Cases'.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) THE Office of the Revenue Commissioners has restructured its 'Large Cases' division along industry lines to improve its detection of tax evasion or latepayments by high net worth individuals and large...

News In Brief.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Elan expects to raise $573m PHARMACEUTICAL company Elan has increased the size of its bond issue announced on Thursday from $250m to $400m. Elan also said its 35m new shareswould be priced at $4.95 per share....

Sharp fall in level of perks for top execs.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) THERE has been a sharp fall in the level of perks enjoyed by seniorexecutives, down by 16.2pc on last year, as employers react to the arrival of benefit inkind taxation, a new report revealed yesterday. ...

Landslides may hamper wind farm appeal.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) THE landslides allegedly associated with the construction of an ESB wind farm in Galway are set to make it more difficult for the ESB to win a planning appeal for a [euro]300m wind farm in Bellacorick, Co Mayo. ...

Greenstar gets the go-ahead for Galway dump but appeal mooted.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) WASTE management company Greenstar has been granted planning permission for a huge landfill dump in East Galway, but residents' groups immediately said they wouldappeal the decision. The application was...

NTL boosts Irish revenues to stgGBP17.9m in Q3.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) THIRD-quarter results released yesterday for cable group NTL show that the company'sIrish business generated revenues of stgGBP17.9m in the three months ended September2003, up over 10pc on the same period in 2002....

ComReg set to issue roaming agreement consultation paper.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) TELECOMS regulator ComReg is to issue a consultation paper on a national roaming agreement in the coming weeks. If introduced, it could result in Meteor piggy-backing on the networks of Vodafone Ireland and O2...

Sutherland cashes $3.5m stock.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) FORMER Goldman Sachs International managing director Peter Sutherlandhas cashed in another $3.5m worth of stock in the investment bank in the last month. Mr Sutherland availed of the latest window which allowed...

Duisenberg urges adherence to Pact.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) OUTGOING European Central Bank President Wim Duisenberg warned yesterday that any collapse of the budget rules underpinning monetary union would be a disaster. "The danger is certainly there, and that would be...

Centre is a lonely place to be as extremists gain most.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) FIVE YEARS ago, the terms of the Belfast Agreement were widely welcomed by both communities in Northern Ireland. So wrote the Irish Times in an editorial on Wednesday, October 29. As often happenswith...

Reform of Dail long overdue for democracy's sake.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) THERE IS a misconception about our legislators, that they do not work hard enough. They take long holidays. They have too few sitting days in the Houses of theOireachtas. They award themselves time off without a...

Anorak man returns.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) IMAGE OF A TAOISEACH If it is true that, as Shakespeare once wrote, "apparel oft proclaim the man", then perhaps Bertie Ahern should read fewer Government papers and more 16th century English playwrights. ...

Hallo Santa Claus.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) YOU THOUGHT IT WAS HALLOWEEN? IT'S REALLY . . . In Dublin's Henry Street, they were already hauling up the Christmas lightsby the middle of this week. In the shops, the Halloween face masks, nuts and pumpkins...

How the Tiger finally found its way home.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) The Tiger economy has been good to Sean. He's in his late 20s, holds a university degree and has a prestige job with a company that's going places. The work itself doesn't stretch his talents, in fact he often...

How Larry and Sergey are Googling their way to a [euro]3bn fortune.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) WHEN MONEY TALKS... Nobody asked Larry Page and Sergey Brin to reinvent the internet - but they did it anyway. Google, the search engine created by the two friends as a college project, transformed the web...

Diana: what the butler saw... but is still not telling us.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) After the recent revelations by Diana's former butler, it seems the royals are stuck between her 'rock' and a hard place. They are damned if they don't say anything and they'll be damned if they speak publicly to...

First tango in Buenos Aires.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) It's a good thing for Robert Duvall that it takes two to tango. Otherwise, hemight not have discovered the love of his life. Fifteen years ago, he became obsessed with the tango after seeing it performed in New...

Teachta Dodgers.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) A growing number of people are coming to the view that TD no longer stands for Teachta Dala - but... It hasn't been a great week for voter apathy. Large sections of the electorate are disenchanted, angry or...

We're not Teachta Dodgers.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) from Review front should be back three or four weeks and then gone again for another week." She spends Mondays working in her office in Birr, meeting constituents, the meat and potatoes of every TD's life....

Whatever happened to the presumption of innocence?
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Suddenly, out of nowhere, the religious orders have a champion. Her name is Florence Horsman-Hogan. Hogan, a nurse, spent some time in a religious run institution and has only happy memories of the nuns who cared...

SHOP EARLY, SHOP OFTEN?
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Marks and Spencers: Already well-stocked with Christmas goodies. Signs advertising festive fare sat next to Halloween goods this week. Argos: Christmas is everywhere. Shops are decorated with huge hoardings of...

SEARCH ENDS IN IRELAND.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) * The announcement by Google last March that it is to establish a Europeanoperations base in Dublin, creating 200 jobs in three years, was a crucial boost to Ireland's ailing high tech industry. The decision...

Chocs away, it's our sweetest love affair.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) From its warehouse in the Bronx, Food Ireland Inc specialises in supplying homesick expatriates with a genuine taste of the Emerald Isle. There is much demand for Irish foodstuffs that are difficult to...

The Russian super-billionaires waiting for a knock on the door.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) It was the last thing Russia's richest man expected. Mikhail Khodorkovskywas sitting on his jet on a Siberian runway last weekend when Russian security agents stormed the plane, handcuffed him and bungled him away....

Iraq: Why the coalition war for minds and hearts is being lost.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Two images on television this week were equally shocking. The first was thecarnage at the Baghdad headquarters of the previously inviolate Red Cross. The second was of George Bush, still mouthing his platitudes...

In the salerooms.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Robert Rackard An auction 700 lots of antiques and furniture will be held by Robert Rackard, Caim, Enniscorthy, Co Wexford on Saturday next, 8 November. Items include a Georgian mahogany chest on chest,...

Staffordshire Blue pottery.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) THE HISTORY of Staffordshire blue dates from 1780 when pewter wasgoing out of general use. The underglaze transfer-printed decoration was cheaper than the hand-painted earthenwares and more accessible to all...

THE THRILL FACTOR.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Last Car To Elysian Fields By James Lee Burke Orion, stgGBP12.99New Iberia policeman Dave Robicheaux returns but in a much more sombre andtroubled mood than ever before. The death of his beloved wife...

Making politics work.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Making politics workNEW proposals can result in replacing what works with what sounds good. But the Oireachtas reform ideas put forward by both the Labour and the Green Party this week merit due attention. ...

CHECK IN.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) The Hassler Villa Medici (8), Piazza Trinita dei Monti, 6 (00 39 06 699 340, www.hotelhasslerroma.com) offers traditional luxury (think chandeliers and lots of marble)at the top of the Spanish Steps with doubles...

SUNDAY MORNING, GO TO THE PANTHEON.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) There are around 400 churches in Rome. To see where ancient and modern meet, head to the Pantheon (24), Piazza della Rotunda (00 39 06 6830 0230). Built byHadrian AD119-128, it was originally a temple to the...

DINNER WITH THE LOCALS.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Panattoni Pizzeria (22), viale di Trastevere, 53 (00 39 06 580 0919) is abustling pizzeria in hip Trastevere with lots of crowded tables out on the street. Order afew of the large, thinly crusted pizzas all cooked...

TAKE A HIKE.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Through ancient Rome. Start at Constantine's triumphal arch just to the left of the Colosseum (3) and walk through the Roman Forum (4), then on to the Capitoline(with the Palatine hill on your left) past the Arch...

GET YOUR BEARINGS.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) From the Termini station, Rome spreads north-west towards the Borghese Gardens (2); south-west towards the Colosseum (3) and the Roman Forum (4); and west to the heart of the city, the Centro Storico (5). Wrapped...

WINDOW SHOPPING.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) The food market in Campo de' Fiori (14) on a Saturday morning is vibrant and colourful. It begins at around 6am and wraps up in early afternoon when the restaurants around the square fill for lunch. For designer...

BEAM DOWN.
November 1, 2003... (From Irish Independent) Rome's two airports, Fiumicino (or Leonardo da Vinci) and Ciampino, areboth around 30km from the city centre. Fiumicino handles most of the scheduled flights; Aer Lingus (0818 365 000, www.aerlingus.com) has a...