Best's Review articles from February 2008

Best's Review archives from February 2008

What's the number?(Editor's Prologue)(Editorial)
February 1, 2008... America's independent agents have lots to worry about every day--how to increase business, how to find the time to study for a professional designation and how to develop leads. They work hard and exemplify America's entrepreneurial dream....

Quote/unquote.(Comment)
February 1, 2008... Excerpted from BESTWEEK U.S./Canada and BESTWEEK Europe "This [eliminating the distinction the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program previously made between foreign and domestic acts of terrorism in the recent seven-year renewal of the program]...

P/C execs at odds with NAIC over federal role in providing catastrophe reinsurance.(Briefing: Highlights From BestWeek)(private insurance industry )(Conference news)
February 1, 2008... The private insurance industry cannot provide coverage for major catastrophes and government involvement is necessary, a panel of industry leaders said during the Insurance Information Institute's Property Casualty Insurance Joint Industry...

Snapshot: judicial jurisdictions.(Briefing)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... The American Tort Reform Association, a national organization working for tort and liability reform, has issued its annual Judicial Hellholes ranking of the country's most unfair civil court jurisdictions: 2007 Rank and Location 1....

Tiny particles, major concerns: Lloyd's examines nanotech.(Briefing)
February 1, 2008... Imagine a particle that is smaller than a virus and can help clear up pollution, clean the windshield of your car or protect you from the sun Now imagine billions of such particles being used in everyday items such as makeup, tennis balls and...

Best warns insurers.(100 YEARS AGO in Best's Review)
February 1, 2008... Before committing to a policy, property owners should investigate the policies of surplus line insurance companies with warranties attached, according to Best's Review. These companies designate larger companies, or warranty companies, for...

Meetings.(Briefing)(American Council of Life Insurers)(The National Conference of Insurance Legislators)(Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers)(Brief article)(Calendar)
February 1, 2008... Feb. 5-7 Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers: Insurance Legislative Summit, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Washington, D.C. Phone: (202) 783-4400 Web site: www.ciab.com Feb. 6-7 Professional Liability Underwriting Society:...

By the numbers.(Briefing)(Report)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Individual annuities now represent a much higher percentage of overall life/health sales than 10 years ago and sales are expected to continue growing in 2008, according to A.M. Best's Special Report, Individual Annuities Keep on Selling but...

"PMI, TRIA, S-CHIP all the way": Congress, Bush in holiday mood.(Briefing)(President Bush issues new bills and renewed Terrorism Risk and Insurance Extension Act of 2005)
February 1, 2008... While most of the country was sipping eggnog and opening gifts, Congress and President Bush left three new pieces of legislation under the insurance industry's Christmas tree. The president, in a post-holiday burst, signed into law a...

A.M. best's stock indexes.(Briefing)(Statistical table)
February 1, 2008... A.M. Best's Stock Indexes From Dec. 6, 2007 to Jan. 9, 2008 (Dec. 31, 2004 = 1,000.00) [GRAPHICS OMITTED] Percent Change Index Month/ Year to Year/...

Congressman revives plan to permit interstate sales of health insurance.(Briefing)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz., is reviving his proposal to allow the interstate sale of individual health insurance, including over the Internet. H.R. 4460, the Health Care Choice Act, would permit health insurers to designate their domiciliary...

Munich Re: 2007 catastrophes point to climate change impact.(Briefing)
February 1, 2008... There was a notable absence of extreme natural catastrophes in 2007, but insurers still paid far more in claims than the previous year as unusual rainfall and windstorm patterns add to evidence of climate change impacts, according to Munich Re....

Hiscox warns U.K. companies on Manslaughter Act.(Highlights From BestWeek: Briefing)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Companies in the United Kingdom should review their risk management procedures in preparation for the Corporate Manslaughter Act, which goes into effect on April 6, specialist insurer Hiscox Ltd. has warned. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Lockton.(Agent/Broker)(has appointed Eddie Montieth as the senior vice president)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * LOCKTON has named EDDIE MONTEITH to be senior vice president of the company's financial services specialty team. Monteith will join the Kansas City, Mo.-based insurance broker's Houston office. A 20-year veteran of the insurance...

PWS Holdings Plc.(Agent/Broker)(has appointed Richard Cirsch as the managing director )(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * London-based broker PWS HOLDINGS PLC has appointed RICHARD CIRSCH managing director of its marine division. Cirsch, who will be based in London, comes to PWS from Lloyd's broker SBJ Ltd., where he has served on the board. Richard He has...

Willis Group Holdings.(Agent/Broker)(has appointed Eugenio Paschoal and Flavio Piccolomini as the chief executive officers at Latin America region and Continental Europe respectively)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * WILLIS GROUP HOLDINGS has appointed EUGENIO PASCHOAL chief executive officer of its Latin America region. Paschoal was previously with Willis Brazil, where he was a member of the senior LatinAmerica management team for 10 years. Also,...

Guy Carpenter & Co. LLC.(Agent/Broker)(has appointed Carlos Abrantes as the senior vice president )(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * GUY CARPENTER & CO. LLC has named CARLOS ABRANTES as its senior vice president of operations in the Iberian region, according to a company statement. Based in Lisbon, Portugal,Abrantes will focus on developing the New York-based reinsurance...

Conseco names new president to succeed retiring Dubes.(People in Insurance)(has appointed Dan R. Bardin as the president)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Conseco Inc. has named Dan R. Bardin to be the president of Conseco Insurance Group, a member company of the Carmel, Ind.-based insurance holding company. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Bardin took over the presidency of the insurance...

Heath Lambert Ltd.(Agent/Broker)(has appointed Mark Bourke as the veteran risk manager)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * Independent U.K. broker HEATH LAMBERT LTD. has named veteran risk manager MARK BOURKE to lead its expansion in Scotland. Bourke, who will be based in Edinburgh, will head the broker's Project Risks Group in Scotland. He will work to...

Marsh.(Agent/Broker)(has appointed John Nicholoson as the chief operating officer )(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * Broker MARSH has appointed JOHN NICHOLSON, its chief operating officer in the United Kingdom, to be chairman of its Scottish operations. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Nicholson has overall responsibility for Marsh's offices in Aberdeen,...

Friends Provident Plc.(Life)(has appointed Mark Cracknell as the director of development of U.K. distribution)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * MARK CRACKNELL, an experienced senior sales executive for U.K. life and pensions provider FRIENDS PROVIDENT PLC, has been named director of development of U.K. distribution for the group. Cracknell will focus on the developing and...

Conseco Inc.(Life)(has appointed Timothy Tongson as the senior vice president and corporate actuary)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * CONSECO INC. has named TIMOTHY TONGSON as its senior vice president and corporate actuary. He will report to the Carmel, Ind.-based insurance holding company's executive vice president MARK ALBERTS. Most recently the executive vice...

American International Group Inc.(Property/Casualty)(has appointed Alexander Baugh, Julio Portalatin and Jose Hernandez as the three new executives)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL GROUP INC. has named three new executives to top posts within the company's foreign general insurance operations. ALEXANDER BAUGH will take over as managing director of AIG U.K. Ltd., and regional president for the...

Great American Insurance Group.(Property/Casualty)(has appointed Michael E. Sullivan as the senior vice president)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * GREAT AMERICAN INSURANCE GROUP has named MICHAEL E. SULLIVAN as senior vice president, according to a company statement. Sullivan will work mainly with the Cincinnati-based company's nonprofit and social services specialty operations,...

Fortis (Insurance, U.K.).(Property/Casualty)(has appointed Helen Pickford as the finance director)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * HELEN PICKFORD, a finance director with Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Group pie, has been named finance director of FORTIS (INSURANCE, U.K.). At Royal & Sun, Pickford headed U.K. retail and affinity businesses. Pickford will be a member...

Liberty Mutual Group.(Property/Casualty)(has appointed Shazia Aslam Rafique as the assistant vice president)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * LIBERTY MUTUAL GROUP subsidiary LIBERTY INTERNATIONAL UNDERWRITERS has appointed SHAZIA ASLAM RAFIQUE assistant vice president for marine, energy and construction in its Dubai office as a part of its plans to expand in the Middle East region....

Zurich.(Property/Casualty)(has appointed Kevin McCracken and Joseph Tocco as casualty and property executive vice presidents)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * ZURICH has named two new executive vice presidents for the casualty/property sectors of its North American global corporate offices. KEVIN MCCRACKEN and JOSEPH TOCCO, the new casualty and property executive vice presidents, respectively,...

Ironshore.(Property/Casualty)(has appointed Ron Sandler as the chairman)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Former LLOYDS' Chief Executive RON SANDLER has been elected chairman of Bermuda-based specialty insurer IRONSHORE. Sandier replaces ROBERT CLEMENTS, a cofounder of Ironshore, and a pioneer of Bermuda's insurance and reinsurance industry. ...

Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd.(Property/Casualty)(has appointed Bernard De Haldevang as the head of its political risk insurance sector)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * ASPEN INSURANCE HOLDINGS Ltd. has named BERNARD DE HALDEVANG as the head of its political risk insurance sector. De Haidevang will report to MATTHEW YELDHAM, the Hamilton, Bermuda-based property/casualty insurer's head of international...

Kingsway Financial Services Inc.(Property/Casualty)(has appointed Shaun Jackson as the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer )(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * KINGSWAY FINANCIAL SERVICES INC. has named Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer SHAUN JACKSON as president and chief executive officer. Jackson, who has served with Kingsway since 1995, replaces the Toronto-based...

Montpelier Re.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets)(has appointed Anthony Taylor as the executive chairman)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * ANTHONY TAYLOR, the chairman and chief executive officer of MONTPELIER RE, is expected to relinquish the CEO role on or after June 30, 2008, and assume the position of executive chairman under a new agreement with the company's board. ...

Partnerre Ltd.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets)(has appointed Eric Gesick as the reinsurer's group chief actuary)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... * PARTNERRE LTD. has named ERIC GESICK as the reinsurer's group chief actuary. Gesick replaces COSTAS MIRANTHIS, who was named as the Bermudabased reinsurer's deputy chief executive for its global sector in April 2007. Gesick will answer...

Antoine Issa named CEO of Allianz Saudi joint venture.(People in Insurance)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Allianz S.E. has appointed Antoine Issa as chief executive officer of its Allianz Saudi Fransi operation in Saudi Arabia, in a bid to accelerate development of the German insurer's operations in the kingdom. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Getting to know you.(ADVERTISING)(embrace retirement planning )(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... LINCOLN FINANCIAL GROUP recently launched a new national advertising campaign to help Americans embrace retirement planning with optimism and confidence. The company's emotionally charged "futureself" campaign inspires people to look deep...

Slam dunk.(SPONSORSHIP)(Hartford Financial Services Group Inc and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame enteres into agreement)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THE HARTFORD FINANCIAL SERVICES GROUP INC. and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame recently entered into an agreement in principle to create a new title for the annual men's college basketball doubleheader...

Auto insurance ad spend explodes.(ADVERTISING)(Statistical table)
February 1, 2008... Several insurance areas are seeing a rise in ad expenditures, with the auto industry notching a nearly 200% rise over the past five years. Ad Expenditure by Segment 2007(e) Auto 1,774 +195% Health ...

Online access with doctors.(SPOTLIGHT)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Cigna HealthCare and its technology partner, RelayHealth, are expanding Cigna's four-state pilot program nationally to provide patients secure online messaging that enables virtual house calls with their doctors. The reimbursable webVisit...

Guardian insures teeth whitening:.(Employee Benefits)(Guardian Life Insurance Company of America)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America now is covering the costs of teeth whitening, a cosmetic procedure usually not covered by dental insurance. The company believes there is value in the coverage because...

ING adds critical illness product.(Employee Benefits)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... ING Employee Benefits has launched a critical-illness insurance product, Premier Critical Illness. It pays an immediate lump sum benefit following the diagnosis of coma, end-stage kidney failure, heart attack, major organ failure, permanent...

Employers get new Web tool.(Employee Benefits)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Cigna International introduced a newWeb site (www.CIGNAexpats.com/ benefits), dedicated exclusively to the benefits needs of international employers and their consultants and brokers. The site provides visitors with information on benefits...

New annuity helps overcome changes.(Life)(from Lincoln Financial Group)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Lincoln Financial Group has launched Lincoln SmartIncome Inflation Annuity, a single-premium immediate annuity that addresses the consumer objections to annuitization. It offers guaranteed lifetime income annually adjusted to reflect changes in...

Jackson launches new living benefits.(Life)(Jackson National Life Insurance Co.)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Jackson National Life Insurance Co. has launched LifeGuard Select, a guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit, and FutureGuard 6, a guaranteed minimum income benefit. LifeGuard is the eighth optional withdrawal benefit within the company's roster...

MGA launches online quotes.(Technology)(www. iQuoteSurfer.com)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Multi-company managing general underwriter and managing general agent Ocean Consulting Group recently introduced www. iQuoteSurfer.com, which will save brokers time and money by allowing them to submit their accident quotes via a secure and...

By the numbers: long-term-care costs rise in 2007.(SNAPSHOT)
February 1, 2008... By the Numbers: Long-Term-Care Costs Rise in 2007 3% Rise in nursing home costs $209 Average daily cost of a private room $185 Average daily cost in room for two $407 Highest per-day regional cost (Alaska) ...

D&O policy launched.(SPOTLIGHT)(director liability insurance policy)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Monitor Liability Managers Inc., a member company of W. R. Berkley Corp., said it has launched a new director liability insurance policy that provides individual protection to independent directors. The new policy, underwritten by Monitor...

ACORD task force targets tools.(Technology)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... The ACORD-User Groups Information Exchange recently formed a task force to develop practice tools. AUGIE's "Real Time Leads to Real Growth" initiative will pull together sales-and-service training material and offer a step-by-step approach to...

Markel launches flood program.(Property/Casualty)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Markel American Insurance Co. said it has launched a new admitted excess flood program for residential and nonresidential properties. The program will be available in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado,...

Life reinsurer expands in Europe.(Reinsurance)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Transamerica Reinsurance has expanded its operations into southern Europe, with the opening of a branch in Madrid, Spain. The office is responsible for developing reinsurance opportunities throughout the region, particularly within the...

Florida included in wildfire risks.(Risk Management)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... CDS Business Mapping LLC, a provider of online hazard mapping, said it has added a Florida wildfire risk to its RiskMeter Online (www.RiskMetercom) natural hazard risk report service. By simply typing in an address, RiskMeter's wildfire report...

Health insurance top priority.(SNAPSHOT)(Survey)
February 1, 2008... Employees surveyed say health insurance is top priority in job choice. Very Important Health insurance 84 Job security 82 Clear procedures ...

Rating actions.(Ratings)(Property and casualty insurance industry)
February 1, 2008... This edition reflects all rating actions--assignments, changes or placed under review--that occurred for life, health and property/casualty insurers domiciled in North America, as well as international insurance companies, since this section...

IMAS session highlights.(Agent/Broker: Marketing)
February 1, 2008... Direct and to the Point: Insurance Direct Marketing: What Works, What Doesn't and Why Donald R. Jackson, Principal, Jackson Consulting Group Ltd. * Direct marketing is a choice of some insurance agents, brokers, direct sellers and mail...

Going up: insurers are reaching middle-income Americans with new term life products that have sent sales soaring.(Life: Term Life)
February 1, 2008... Laddering is a popular concept in the purchase of bonds or certificates of deposit to mitigate interest-rate risk and provide steady income. Using this technique, investors build equal amounts of short-, medium- and long-term bonds and CDs into...

A textbook example of handling risk.(Term Life: Life)
February 1, 2008... The idea of buying several level-premium term life policies, each to eliminate a financial risk, is a strategy not often presented to clients, but it has merit, said Edward Graves, professor of insurance at The American College in Bryn Mawr,...

Shake it up: how a snow-globe approach could help the life insurance industry.(Life: Selling Insight)
February 1, 2008... Everyone involved in the life insurance industry has plenty of opinions on what's wrong with the business, why producers need more respect or even why underwriters should spend time in the field making sales. Let's think about changing...

Best's Review's Top News Stories of 2007: events and trends over the past 12 months have set the stage for insurers in the coming year.(2007 Stories of the Year: The Year Ahead)
February 1, 2008... The legacy of 2007 will be its turning points. The point, for example, when economic forces recognized the liabilities that climate change represents. Or the point when lawmakers in Europe and the United Kingdom, through their actions, reached...

Exporting growth strategies: to successfully recruit agents and customers in India and China, U.S. insurers must adapt their domestic strategies.(Life: New Markets)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... An international gold rush is under way in several key developing nations, where literally millions of households are reaching threshold income levels that invite long-term financial planning, including life insurance, [ILLUSTRATION...

Europe's hidden danger: potential quake losses climb beyond what most European governments can afford.(Property/Casualty: Earthquake)
February 1, 2008... The likelihood of a devastating earthquake striking somewhere in Austria, Germany or Switzerland seems remote. But lurking beneath Central Europe is a peril that could lead to large-scale catastrophe losses for insurers and reinsurers,...

Food for thought: from injuries to food-borne illnesses, the restaurant industry is ripe for insurance products and risk mitigation services.(Property/Casualty: Restaurants)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] When Chi-Chi's closed its doors for good in September 2004, it was not due to the casual Mexican food chain's pending bankruptcy case, but rather to a virus that had hitched a ride to America on a bunch of green...

Where the buck stops: facing lawsuits, unhappy customers and bad press, annuity writers revamp how, and to whom, they issue policies.(Life: Annuities)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Financial advisers sometimes urge clients to put into writing why they are buying an investment product. Doing so, they reason, allows clients to review their rationale and helps them to stay on course when times get...

Looking ahead: even affluent women worry about the cost of long-term care.(Life: Selling Insight)(Survey)
February 1, 2008... Many Americans are tormented by the thought that they will outlive their money. Securian Financial Group recently polled 400 women ages 30 to 64 about the financial impact of their own eventual long-term care. Even women with annual household...

Regulator yearbook: the 2008 insurance commissioners.(Regulatory/Law: Commissioners)(List)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE Walter A. Bell, Commissioner 201 Monroe St., Suite 1700, Montgomery, AL 36104 334-269-3550, Fax: 334-241-4192 www.aldoi.gov Background: Former NAIC president....

Fair conduct laws are anything but Washington becomes the newest state where insurers stand to be fleeced.(Regulatory/Law: Legal Insight)
February 1, 2008... "Be fair to one another." It's one of the simplest rules of any relationship. Yet ongoing legislative attempts to require fairness in the insurer-insured relationship involve unilateral requirements for insurers that are inapplicable to...

Get the message: several insurers are moving slowly to text messaging to communicate with customers and employees.(Technology: Text Messaging)
February 1, 2008... First a beep or a ring tone. Then a glance at the cell phone. ?4U. CYE. CULSR. This encrypted message may look like secret code, but it's actually a typical text message an agent might send to a customer. The deciphered message: "I have a...

Metrics management: to improve performance in a soft market, smart insurers are measuring what matters.(Technology: Technology Insight)
February 1, 2008... As we enter the down cycle, insurers once again are challenged with how to manage it and meet various stakeholder expectations. Insurers are armed with more data, cleaner data and analytic tools. Metric-driven insurers now can harvest some...

Leaders of the PAC: Clinton and Romney lead their parties in industry contributions.(Regulatory/Law: Elections)(Hillary Rodham Clinton and Mitt Romney)(Statistical table)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] As the 2008 presidential race kicked into full gear in January, insurance sources have contributed $5.66 million to leading candidates, with Democrats pulling in 59.1% of the industry total, according to Federal...

Bridging the generation gap: voluntary benefits and supplemental plans are replacing one-size-fits-all group coverage in America's multigenerational workplaces.(Health/Employee Benefits: Voluntary Programs)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Rising medical-care costs, an aging work force and increasing ethnic diversity in the workplace are a few of the factors facing today's employers, putting group benefit options in the spotlight. But a dramatic shift...

The whole truth concerning ERM: a holistic approach matches underwriting risk with financial and operational stragegies.(Property/Casualty: Underwriting Insight)
February 1, 2008... Assessing, controlling and monitoring risks across the enterprise can be a daunting challenge. How will enterprise risk management teams address complex, interdependent issues associated with the evolving nature of insurer risk in the 21st...

Better visibility: predictive modeling helps to steady medical malpractice underwriting.(Property/Casualty: Medical Malpractice)
February 1, 2008... Predictive modeling techniques have been used extensively over the past few years to rate auto, homeowners and other personal lines of insurance. In its television commercials, Progressive Insurance Group boasts of its competitive advantage...

The no churn zone: the bad news: technology lets customers leave at a moment's notice. The good news: they really don't want to say goodbye.(Technology: Cross-Selling)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Today's technology allows policyholders to switch insurance companies more quickly and painlessly than ever before. The democratization of information has made insurance a commodity, and online quoting and comparison...

Shelter from the storm: derivative strategies can balance volatile investments.(Reinsurance/Capital Markets: Derivatives)
February 1, 2008... With the credit and fixed income markets in a continuing state of uncertainty, insurance risk managers should look for both protective strategies as well as potential income generation strategies with a limited downside. In turbulent...

Value judgments: can insurers avoid the same traps that led to the subprime market crash?(Reinsurance/Capital Markets: Capital Markets Insight)
February 1, 2008... By now, everyone is familiar with the basic issue at the heart of the ongoing credit squeeze: highly opaque financial instruments, and derivatives of those securities, that were created from underlying mortgage loans which contain cash flows...

London broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group Plc launched Thistle Underwriters Ltd. to provide underwriting services to JLT clients.(Agent/Broker)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... London broker JARDINE LLOYD THOMPSON GROUP PLC launched THISTLE UNDERWRITERS LTD. to provide underwriting services to JLT clients. According to JLT, development of the new operation group came out of its realization that there was "substantial...

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.(Agent/Broker)
February 1, 2008... ARTHUR J. GALLAGHER & CO. has acquired Chicago-based wholesale brokerage Avreco, the company said in a statement. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

XL Insurance Co. Ltd.(Asia/Pacific)(opens a new branch in Singapore)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... XL INSURANCE CO. LTD. has established a new branch office in Singapore that will act as the management and underwriting hub for the Asian region. The company said the office will have an initial focus on directors and officers liability, free...

CNInsure Inc. said it agreed to acquire the remaining 45% stake in Fujian Xinheng Insurance Agency Co. Ltd. that it doesn't already own.(Asia/Pacific)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... CNINSURE INC. said it agreed to acquire the remaining 45% stake in FUJIAN XINHENG INSURANCE AGENCY CO. LTD. that it doesn't already own, giving the independent insurance agency and brokerage greater leverage in the life insurance market in...

Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. is acquiring Sun Life Retirement Services (U.S.) Inc. from the U.S. division of Sun Life Financial Inc. Terms of the agreement.(Life)
February 1, 2008... HARTFORD FINANCIAL SERVICES GROUP INC. is acquiring SUN LIFE RETIREMENT SERVICES (U.S.) INC. from the U.S. division of Sun Life Financial Inc. Terms of the agreement, which Hartford said is expected to close during the first quarter of 2008,...

Torchmark Corp., a Texas-based life and health insurance holding company, said it redomesticated two insurance subsidiaries, United American Life Insurance Co. and Globe Life and Accident Insurance Co., from Delaware to Nebraska.(Life)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... TORCHMARK CORP., a Texas-based life and health insurance holding company, said it redomesticated two insurance subsidiaries, UNITED AMERICAN LIFE INSURANCE CO. and GLOBE LIFE AND ACCIDENT INSURANCE CO., from Delaware to Nebraska. After studying...

American Financial Group Inc. said it plans to become the majority shareholder in Market-Form Group Ltd.(Lloyd's)
February 1, 2008... AMERICAN FINANCIAL GROUP INC. said it plans to become the majority shareholder in MARKET-FORM GROUP LTD., a Lloyd's insurer that focuses on specialty property/casualty insurance products outside of the United States and is a player in the...

Ace Ltd. is acquiring the high-net-worth personal lines business of the Atlantic Cos., the Bermuda-based insurer said.(Property/Casualty)
February 1, 2008... ACE LTD. is acquiring the high-net-worth personal lines business of the ATLANTIC COS., the Bermuda-based insurer said. The majority of the Atlantic Cos.' personal lines employees will become employees of Ace, said spokesman Robert T. Grieves.

Atlantic Mutual.(Property/Casualty)(is headed by its Atlantic Master Plan policy)(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... The high-end personal lines business of New York-based Atlantic, also known as ATLANTIC MUTUAL, is headed by its Atlantic Master Plan policy, which is offered through independent agents across the country.

Former Ren Re, praetorian execs launch underwriter.(Companies)(New Asset Class Management )(Brief article)
February 1, 2008... Former reinsurance executives James Stanard and Rod Fox have launched a new underwriting management company with venture capital backing "to take advantage of the rapidly changing insurance industry marketplace." [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Thinking ahead: a long-term-care insurer hopes a computer-based program helps outsmart dementia and Alzheimer's.(The Last Word)
February 1, 2008... Several health insurance carriers are asking their members to put on their thinking caps and challenge their minds. In October, Penn Treaty American Corp. became the first long-term-care insurer to offer Posit Science Corp.'s Brain Fitness...