Latest France Headlines

All the headlines from our France Topic Page, ordered by recency.

PIP Breast Implant Scandal Exposes Weaknesses in EU Safety Net

Feb 3 2012 // In June 2000, when American medical regulators posted a warning letter on the Internet about problems at a breast-implant maker in southern France, French authorities didn’t pay much attention.A U.S. Food and Drug...

French P/C Insurers’ Outlook Now Stable: Moody’s

Jan 31 2012 // In a new industry outlook published today, Moody’s Investors Service says that it has changed the outlook for the French property and casualty (P/C) sector to stable from negative, reflecting insurers’ smooth...

French Broker Gras Savoye Receives License to Operate in Georgia

Jan 10 2012 // France’s Gras Savoye, which is closely associated with Willis, announced that it has received a license to commence brokerage operations in Georgia (the country – not the state), as part of its initiative to expand...

AXA, Japan Post Top Best’s List of World’s Largest Insurers

Jan 4 2012 // France’s AXA S.A. has again topped the list of the world’s 25 largest insurance companies, based on premiums written, compiled by A.M. Best. The lists, which were compiled both on asset value and on net...

Breast Implant Scandal Shows Regulators in Dark on Tracking Risks

Dec 30 2011 // Long before the latest global breast implant scare, American health officials were toying with the idea of building a registry that would track patients with implants.The registry would give a better idea of the number of...

Financial, Legal Woes Dogged Breast Implant Company

Dec 27 2011 // Signs of legal problems and financial losses surrounding the French breast implant manufacturer at the heart of a scandal affecting hundreds of thousands of women worldwide can be traced back as far back as 2003,...

Storm Joachim Hits Northern Europe; AIR Sees No ‘Significant’ Losses

Dec 20 2011 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, has reported on winter storm Joachim, which developed over the Atlantic and became a severe extra-tropical cyclone over Western Europe late last week. Central pressure went as low...

Best Places Ratings of Caisse Centrale de Reassurance on Review/Negative

Dec 15 2011 // A.M. Best Europe – Rating Services Limited has placed under review with negative implications the financial strength rating of ‘A++’ (Superior) and the issuer credit rating of “aa+” of...

Best Downgrades Allianz and Subs Issuer Credit Ratings; Affirms FSR

Dec 15 2011 // A.M. Best Europe – Rating Services Limited has reacted to the ongoing sovereign debt crisis in the euro zone, which it describes as “continued negative developments” with a number of rating actions, starting...

Italy, Southeast France Hit by Heavy Rains, Floods: AIR Analysis

Nov 15 2011 // Catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide has issued a report on the heavy rains, which caused widespread flooding in France and Italy during the first week of November.The storms were caused by a “low pressure system...

Floods Hit France, Italy; UK Motorway Crash Leaves 7 Dead, 51 Injured

Nov 7 2011 // Continuing heavy rains have caused serious flooding in southern France and throughout Italy, with little letup in sight. In western England an horrendous crash on the M25 motorway in Somerset, involving 34 cars and trucks,...

France, Germany Give Greece Ultimatum on Euro

Nov 3 2011 // The leaders of Germany and France told Greece on Wednesday it would not receive another cent in European aid until it decides whether it wants to stay in the euro zone.They also made clear that saving the euro was...

Germany Rebuffs France on Euro Zone Solution; Insurance for Bonds an Option

Oct 21 2011 // France’s push to use more European Central Bank money to fight the euro zone debt crisis ran into strong resistance from Germany and other EU partners on Friday, leaving Paris increasingly isolated before a crucial...

French Broker Filhet Allard Joins BrokersLink in Expansion Move

Oct 20 2011 // Filhet Allard, the 6th largest corporate broker in France, has become a member of BrokersLink, the independent insurance broker network, whose members manage premium volumes in excess of $14 billion, as part of the...

Europe’s Fleet Vehicle Market Valued at $23 Billion

Oct 18 2011 // New research by Finaccord, a specialist market research consulting firm, estimates that the market for motor insurance for fleet vehicles across ten European countries is worth €15.8 billion [$21.77 billion] in premiums...

Who Is Reid French and Why Is He Saying Nice Things About Insurance?

Oct 17 2011 // Applied Systems’ new CEO Reid French is no stranger to technology, having worked for several software makers over the past 15 years. One job was with a company called Six Solutions that sold software for professional...

Applied Systems Names French as New CEO

Sep 13 2011 // Illinois-based insurance software firm Applied Systems has named Reid French as the company’s new chief executive officer.As CEO, French will direct Applied Systems business strategy, develop client relationships,...

Sarkozy, Merkel Push Euro Integration; No Joint Bonds

Aug 17 2011 // France and Germany unveiled far-reaching plans for closer euro zone integration on Tuesday, but they disappointed investors by declaring that any thoughts of a common euro bond issuance would have to wait.Under heavy...

Sarkozy & Merkel Face ‘Stark Choice’ in Euro Zone Talks

Aug 16 2011 // The leaders of France and Germany face a stark choice in talks on Tuesday over whether to begin steering the embattled euro zone towards closer fiscal union or risk watching the bloc unravel.French President Nicolas...

EQECAT Models $260 Mn Windstorm Risk Cat Bond for French Nat’l Power Co.

Aug 15 2011 // Oakland-based catastrophe modeling firm EQECAT has provided risk modeling services to Electricité Réseau Distribution France S.A. (ERDF) for the issuance of a €150 million [$216 million] catastrophe bond transferring...