Insurance UK

  • December 08, 2023

    Union Probes Boots Pension Age Change After £4.8B Deal

    A British trade body is investigating the lawfulness of a change to the Boots Pension Scheme that means members are no longer entitled to an unreduced pension from age 60 following a £4.8 billion ($6 billion) deal the pharmacy chain struck.

  • December 08, 2023

    Pensions Insurer Invests £30M In UK Housing Association

    Pension Insurance Corp. PLC has said that it has loaned an additional £30 million ($37.5 million) to a provider of U.K. social housing, the Heart of Medway housing association.

  • December 08, 2023

    Ireland's Insurance Reforms Lead To Drop In Injury Payouts

    Personal injury payouts by Ireland's statutory body fell to the lowest value in 16 years in 2022, partly because of recent reforms to the way claims are handled in the country, the board that deals with the claims has said.

  • December 08, 2023

    UK To Clarify Financial Advice Guidelines For Consumers

    The Financial Conduct Authority and HM Treasury launched a public consultation on Friday to seek input on three proposals to make it easier for individuals with modest investments to get affordable advice on personal finance.

  • December 07, 2023

    MPs Criticize Slow Progress Of Financial Services Reforms

    Senior MPs said on Friday that government reforms to make the U.K.'s financial services more innovative and competitive have progressed too slowly and had little economic impact.

  • December 07, 2023

    Fla. Fairfield Inn Must Arbitrate Hurricane Damage Fight

    A Florida federal judge ordered the owner of a Fairfield Inn in Tampa to arbitrate its hurricane damage dispute in New York with its insurers, saying the property owner's argument that arbitration unfairly favored insurers was irrelevant since the dispute involved a foreign underwriter.

  • December 07, 2023

    Regulator Prioritizes Pensions Safeguards In M&A Deals

    The Pensions Regulator on Thursday warned it would use enforcement powers to protect defined benefit scheme members should an employer become involved in a merger or acquisition that causes material harm to a retirement savings plan.

  • December 07, 2023

    Financial Watchdogs Eye Boost To Oversight Of Outsourcing

    Britain's financial watchdogs put forward proposals on Thursday to tighten the oversight of so-called critical third parties, saying the new framework would ensure companies that perform outsourced services for businesses in the sector are properly regulated.

  • December 07, 2023

    Skadden, Clifford Chance Steer Admiral Deal For RSA Biz Unit

    Insurance giant Admiral PLC said Thursday it has bought a section of the personal lines portfolio of rival RSA Insurance Group Ltd. for up to £115 million ($144.7 million), in a deal guided by Clifford Chance LLP and Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom UK LLP.

  • December 07, 2023

    PE Firm Agrees To £48M Sale Of Broker To Rival Insurer

    B.P. Marsh said Thursday that it has agreed to sell insurance broker CBC Partnership to competitor Specialist Risk Group for £47.7 million ($60 million), as the U.K. private equity firm seeks to make significant returns on its investment.

  • December 07, 2023

    UK Pension Superfund Sector Needs Clearer Regulation

    The first-ever superfund pensions transaction was completed in the last week of November. But experts have told Law360 that regulatory problems mean that the deal is unlikely to open the floodgates to more transactions.

  • December 06, 2023

    UK Insurers Seek To Stop €425M Venezuelan Suits Abroad

    Two British insurers urged a London appeals court on Wednesday to block Venezuela from pursuing €425 million ($460 million) claims over a sunken vessel in other countries, arguing that state immunity doesn't cover anti-suit injunctions.

  • December 06, 2023

    Audit Watchdog Discloses Upcoming Supervisory Focal Areas

    Britain's accounting watchdog on Wednesday said climate risk and some specific industries will be among its regulatory priorities in the financial year beginning April, with a focus on compliance with corporate reporting and audit quality inspections.

  • December 06, 2023

    Increasing Climate Breakdown Set To Trouble Insurer Profits

    An expected increase in natural catastrophe events could dent the profitability of the global insurance sector going forward and increase the cost of customer premiums, a group of international regulators for the sector warned Wednesday.

  • December 06, 2023

    Greenberg Traurig Hires Finance Pro From Weil

    Greenberg Traurig LLP has bolstered its London banking and finance practice by hiring a lawyer from Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP.

  • December 06, 2023

    Russia Acting To Avoid Sanctions, UK Finance Firms Warned

    The National Crime Agency issued an alert to British financial firms on Wednesday that Russia is going through intermediary countries to gain access to goods and services despite sanctions imposed by the U.K. after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

  • December 06, 2023

    Financial Ombudsman Weighs Fees For Claims Co. Cases

    The Financial Ombudsman Service said on Wednesday that it is considering charging fees for cases brought by claims companies and law firms on behalf of consumers in the next financial year.

  • December 06, 2023

    FCA Proposes Toughening Money Market Funds Regime

    The Financial Conduct Authority on Wednesday proposed post-Brexit rules to make money market funds more resilient to avoid central bank interventions, as during the dash-for-cash in the early pandemic.

  • December 06, 2023

    MPs Target Gov't For Underpaid Pensions, Overpaid Benefits

    The U.K. government needs to show that state pension payments are accurate after errors left thousands of people short of an average of £5,000 ($6,300), a parliamentary committee said in a report released Wednesday.

  • December 05, 2023

    Retailer Wins £2.3M In Warehouse Blaze Underinsurance Row

    An insurance broker must pay an online baby gifts retailer £2.3 million ($2.9 million), after the High Court ruled its advice left the retailer underinsured and out of pocket when a fire destroyed a warehouse it operated from.

  • December 05, 2023

    Ashurst Steers £18M Pension Deal For Med. Device Co.

    Medical device manufacturer Haag-Streit UK offloaded £18 million ($22.7 million) of its pension liabilities with insurer Aviva, advisers said Tuesday, in a deal steered by Ashurst LLP.

  • December 05, 2023

    Housing Association Inks £60M Deal With Pensions Provider

    Retirement specialist Just Group said it has covered £60 million ($76 million) of pension liabilities for Hyde Group in a move to completely remove the retirement risks from the housing association.

  • December 05, 2023

    Defined Benefit Pension Transfer Take-Up Rates 'Plummeting'

    Just 3% of savers given a quote to transfer out their defined benefit pension took up the offer in the first three months of 2023, a retirement savings consultancy has said — the lowest rate since it began collecting figures in 2014.

  • December 05, 2023

    FCA's 'Disgraceful' Response To Ruling Knocks Credibility

    The Financial Conduct Authority's "disgraceful" response to a recent legal setback in a key enforcement case risks diminishing its reputation — adding to the pain of a critical costs judgment that lawyers say could prompt the watchdog to rethink how it approaches cases.

  • December 04, 2023

    Global Body Issues Third-Party Financial Risks Toolkit

    A global standards setter unveiled on Monday a comprehensive toolkit designed to strengthen the ability of financial institutions to manage risks arising from providers of third-party services and to boost the resilience of the global financial system.

Expert Analysis

  • Litigation Funding Is On The Rise In Europe

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    The rising popularity of litigation funding across Europe is a positive force for litigation and arbitration proceedings, but its growth and influence should be carefully managed, say Klaus Oblin and Florian Wettner of IR Global.

  • Judging The Financial Conduct Authority 5 Years On

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    The U.K.'s Financial Conduct Authority, 5 years old this month, has had significant success in securing record financial penalties against firms in relation to misconduct, but it remains to be seen whether it will be able to hold senior individuals to account, says David Rundle of WilmerHale.

  • The Outlook For Anti-Suit Injunctions After Brexit

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    It remains to be seen whether, after Brexit, the U.K. will issue anti-suit injunctions in relation to proceedings in EU member states. Much will depend on whether the U.K. adopts the common law approach or Lugano Convention, or negotiates a new agreement with the EU, say Nicholas Greenwood and Nicola Kelly of Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP.

  • New Tax Rules For Termination Payments In UK

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    New rules aim to simplify the taxation of termination payments and mean that income tax and national insurance contributions must now be paid on all payments which relate to the notice period, says Justin Tarka of Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC.

  • EU Ruling Casts Doubt On Bilateral Investment Treaties

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    In March, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that an arbitration clause in a bilateral investment treaty between two member states was incompatible with EU law. This decision may impact foreign direct investments significantly, as similar clauses are common to almost 200 BITs currently in force, says Charles Goldblatt of Seddons.

  • GDPR Will Benefit Financial Services In The Long Run

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    We are entering the next data age very soon, and the financial services industry must get on board and comply with the General Data Protection Regulation, which provides firms with opportunities to devise new competitive advantage from handling data and cleansing systems, says Phil Beckett of Alvarez & Marsal Holdings LLC.

  • IP Considerations For UK Open Banking App Developers

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    Since January of this year, consumer-facing banks in the U.K. have been required to make customers' banking data available to authorized third parties in a standardized format. As competition between open banking app developers increases, intellectual property rights will become a key legal tool, say Rajvinder Jagdev and Peter Damerell of Powell Gilbert LLP.

  • Opinion

    BigLaw Doesn't Have A Diversity Problem

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    Although the lack of racial and gender diversity among the ranks of the majority of both midsized and top law firms is a major issue, it’s past time to shed light on the real problem — inclusion, or lack thereof, says Marlen Whitley of Reed Smith LLP.

  • Equity Partnership Isn't What It Used To Be

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    To many young attorneys, becoming an equity partner shows a firm's long-term commitment, meaning job security and a voice in important firm matters. However, the industry has changed and nowadays it may not be better to enter a new firm as an equity partner, says Jeffrey Liebster of Major Lindsey & Africa.

  • Breaching Policy Warranties Can Partially Void UK Coverage

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    The U.K. Commercial Court's recent decision in BlueBon v. Ageas highlights the need for policyholders to comply with all warranties, but also indicates that failure to comply may not necessarily invalidate an entire policy, says Richard Mattick of Covington & Burling LLP.

  • With The GDPR, The Dawn Of The New Normal Approaches

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    With the General Data Protection Regulation on the horizon, companies' GDPR governance should be set up to work seamlessly. Those with GDPR responsibilities should ensure that individuals' rights are accounted for and that employees do not become weak links in data security, says Maarten Stassen of Crowell & Moring LLP.

  • Issues To Watch For When Brexit-Proofing Your Contracts

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    While a great deal of uncertainty remains around Brexit, there will be challenges for all contractual parties in the U.K. and the EU as they approach existing and future contractual obligations, say Dipti Hunter and Kirsty O'Connor of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.

  • Identifying Cybersecurity Best Practices For Financial Firms

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    As financial services and fintech firms seek to reduce their vulnerability to cyberattacks and mitigate against regulatory and litigation exposure, one key inquiry is the extent to which a company’s cybersecurity controls are consistent with industry best practices. In this regard, a recent report from the World Economic Forum provides a valuable reference point, say Rishi Zutshi and April Collaku of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP.

  • You're Perfect, Now Change: Perfectionism Hurts Lawyers

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    Like medical professionals, lawyers often resist policies to reduce errors due to the culture of perfectionism that permeates the industry. Autonomy is key to the legal professional's prestige and the outward demonstration of competence is key to maintaining autonomy, says Peter Norman of Winnieware LLC.

  • UK Policyholders Must Beware Pre-Brexit Policy Transfers

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    Recent disclosures by U.K. insurance regulators have highlighted the possibility of an imminent flood of applications by U.K. insurers to English courts to transfer their policies to their EU-based affiliates. Policyholders affected by these transfers will need to scrutinize them closely, says Richard Mattick of Covington & Burling LLP.

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