Latest London Headlines

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

AXIS Capital to Acquire Lloyd’s Specialty Re/Insurer Novae for $604 Million

Jul 6 2017 // AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd. announced it is acquiring Novae Group plc, a specialty re/insurer that operates through Lloyd’s of London.“The US$604 million transaction adds scale and breadth to the international...

London-Based Ed Taps Gallagher’s Blacker as Managing Director of P/C

Jun 28 2017 // Ed, the London-based reinsurance, wholesale and specialty broker, announced the appointment of James Blacker as managing director of property and casualty. Blacker will take up his role in December and report to Chris...

Arconic Stops Selling Cladding for High-Rises After Grenfell Tower Tragedy

Jun 27 2017 // Arconic Inc. said on Monday it will stop global sales of plastic-filled aluminum cladding panels for use in high-rise buildings after a fire in London’s Grenfell Tower, which used those Arconic panels, killed at...

Existing EU Contracts Must Be ‘Grandfathered’ After Brexit to Avoid Complexity: Lloyd’s CEO Beale

Jun 26 2017 // Existing European Union insurance policies should stay in place after Britain leaves the bloc because the process of dividing them into British and EU contracts would be too complex, Lloyd’s of London Chief Executive...

Whirlpool Fridge Started London’s Grenfell Tower Fire that Killed at Least 79

Jun 26 2017 // A deadly fire that killed at least 79 people in a London tower block started in a Whirlpool Corp. fridge and spread at “unexpected speed” through the building’s exterior cladding, police said, indicating...

London Underwriters, Trigon to Offer Alabama Homeowners Program

Jun 26 2017 // London Underwriters LLC, a national MGA and surplus lines broker, has partnered with Birmingham based wholesaler Trigon Inc., to provide a new and exclusive low-value homeowners program for the state of Alabama.The product...

Norway’s Protector Forsikring Insured Grenfell Tower Fire; Price Tag Debated

Jun 22 2017 // Olso-based Protector Forsikring is the insurer of Grenfell Tower, the residential block that was destroyed last week by a raging fire that killed 79 people.“Based on the information we have as of now, the damage is...

London Blaze-Tower Built with Cladding Used Across England

Jun 22 2017 // About 600 high-rise apartment blocks in England have been fitted with cladding similar to that used on the London tower in which 79 people died in a devastating fire last week, Prime Minister Theresa May’s office...

UK, EU Insurers & Banks Need ‘New System’ for Their Post-Brexit Business

Jun 20 2017 // British and European Union banks need a new system to let them do business with each other after Brexit to avoid splitting markets, Britain’s finance minister Philip Hammond said on Tuesday.Britain, the EU’s...

‘Complicated’ Brexit Talks Begin with Questions Over What Britain Wants

Jun 19 2017 // Almost a year since Britons voted to leave the European Union, Brexit talks finally began on Monday amid confusion over what exactly the U.K. government wants from the divorce.What U.K. Brexit Secretary David Davis...

Tragic London Fire Raises Questions About ‘Stay Put’ High-Rise Safety Rule

Jun 19 2017 // A catastrophic blaze at a London apartment tower has brought new scrutiny to a long-accepted, counterintuitive rule for people in tall buildings: If the blaze breaks out elsewhere in the structure, don’t...

Prime Minister May: ‘People Deserve Answers’ on London Tower Blaze

Jun 16 2017 // British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday promised a public inquiry into a fire that gutted a 24-story apartment block killing at least 17 people, as the government faced questions about how such a devastating blaze...

London Tower Block Fire Death Toll Rises

Jun 15 2017 // The death toll in a fire that ripped through a 24-story block of flats in London rose to 17 on Thursday, with many people still missing and firefighters facing hazardous conditions as they searched the charred wreck.Smoke...

Insurers Adapt Terrorism Policies with Loss of Attraction, Violent Acts, Other Coverages

Jun 15 2017 // The changing nature of attacks in Western cities has led insurers to offer new policies, from straightforward cover for business lost due to police cordons to more risky compensation for declines in tourism.Terrorism...

In ‘Classic’ Soft Market Battle, Brokers and Carriers Attack Each Other

Jun 14 2017 // Chief executive officers of property/casualty insurance carriers and insurance brokers called each other out last week for engaging in activities they said are “classic signs of a soft market.”During a session...

AIG Defends Layoff of London Employee Alleging Pregnancy Discrimination

Jun 13 2017 // American International Group Inc. said it was not “unwelcoming to working mothers” as the insurer fought a discrimination lawsuit filed by a former London trader dismissed while on maternity leave.Jennifer...

XL Catlin’s O’Malley Moves to StarStone to Lead Cargo Unit in London

Jun 13 2017 // Global specialty insurer StarStone has appointed Rod O’Malley as of head of cargo in London.O’Malley is joining StarStone in from XL Catlin, where he most recently served as head of the UK cargo team and senior...

What Is Blockchain and How Does It Work?

Jun 7 2017 // First of Two ArticlesWhile everyone talks about blockchain, also known as mutual distributed ledger technology, just a few people actually know what this technology can do and how it could someday revolutionize the...

Sompo International to Acquire Novae’s Financial Institutions’ Renewal Rights

Jun 2 2017 // Sompo International, a Bermuda-based specialty provider of property and casualty re/insurance, announced its London market insurance platform has agreed to acquire Novae Syndicates Ltd.’s financial...

Ironshore Names Hiscox’s Fisher as VP Political Risk & Trade Credit in London

Jun 1 2017 // Ironshore Inc. has appointed Russell Fisher as vice president of Political Risk and Trade Credit to underwrite European business lines, based in London.Fisher has more than 20 years’ experience as a specialist in...