Employee benefits have become an increasingly hot topic for corporate risk and insurance managers in recent times. This is because companies involved in the European and international economy are fast waking up to the fact that real and lasting success can only be achieved by attracting and retaining the best talent. To do this, they need to offer the best…
The recent outbreak of a novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China has received worldwide attention and is increasingly putting a strain on businesses. On 30 January 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. The outbreak of any virulent disease presents the trading and shipping industries with various challenges, as was the case with…
In 1996, a 32-year-old woman died of a drug-resistant strain of tuberculosis after flying with a US carrier from Chicago to Hawaii. The Centre for Disease Control traced all 249 passengers and found that six of them, some as far as 13 rows behind the woman, had caught the pathogenic bacterium that causes tuberculosis. As a result of this incident,…
The Belt and Road’s major infrastructure and energy projects stand to benefit from the support of risk and insurance partners during the lifecycle of a project, explains Brian Botkin, global head of multinational, global financial lines, AIG. China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) continues to attract international attention and grab headlines. Determining exact figures for the vast macroeconomic initiative is…
Typhoon Hagibis made landfall in eastern Honshu, Japan on 12 October, bringing heavy rainfall, flooding and mudslides in rural areas. The typhoon reportedly affected more than six million people, leaving thousands without electricity and water for a few days. The potential exposure for insurers from the typhoon is likely to be significant. Hagibis is reported to be as powerful as…
The US is in the middle of an opioid epidemic, causing an estimated $504bn of economic damage and resulting in countless deaths. Risk managers in the pharma sector should be watching carefully as remedial action is being taken to address the health effects of this national crisis, and as enforcement and litigation is also beginning to ramp up. While the…
Evidence of the harmful effects of diesel emissions is growing, resulting in it being likened to another toxic ‘timebomb’. These developments are likely to require corporates and their insurers to reconsider their approach to this developing risk. A new inquest into the passing of a child who died from asthma was recently ordered, following evidence that the death may be…
Bed bugs have been around since the dawn of time; originally, they were using bats as hosts and began feeding on humans while we were still living in caves. They were a common sight in the pre-insecticide era, where it is estimated they were resident in 30% of households. Recent years have seen species migrating northwards as temperatures increase. While…
The shipping industry has recently seen a large number of exciting and futuristic proposals for automated and digital innovations. The intention is to increase efficiency, reduce costs, save time and promote safety at sea. The increasing number of automation and digitalisation solutions should lead to a corresponding increase in standardisation and regulation. However, this will take some time to achieve…
HDI Global Specialty SE launched in January with an expected gross annual premium level of €1.2bn at year-end 2019, after merging the specialty lines activities of Talanx-owned HDI Global and Hannover Re. We spoke to Richard Taylor – the company’s chief marketing officer, chief underwriting officer of short-tail classes and former UK managing director at HDI Global – about the…