As a region, Central American (including Panama) insurance premiums rose 8.1% when comparing Q1 2010 to Q1 2009, totaling US$ 529 million during the first quarter of 2010.  Premiums for Costa Rica’s Instituto Nacional de Seguros, effectively still a monopoly holder in the market for the time being despite recent regulatory changes, rose 16.6% for the period. …
Read More Led by Costa Rica, Central American Insurance Premiums Up 8.1%

The Third Circuit recently held that an insured who, while intoxicated, allegedly attempted to shoot another person was not covered under his homeowner’s insurance policies for the resulting liability, as the attempted shooting could not constitute an “accident.” …
Read More Third Circuit Holds That Drunken Shooting Attempt Is Not An “Accident” For Purposes Of Insurance Coverage

The Connecticut Supreme Court recently affirmed summary judgment in favor of an insurance company on the basis that a wrongful termination lawsuit against an insured was related to a prior administrative action for unemployment benefits and was therefore excluded by the policy. …
Read More Connecticut Supreme Court Affirms Summary Judgment for Insurer on Because Prior Administrative Proceeding for Unemployment Benefits Constituted a Related Claim

A recent joint report by Lloyd’s 360º Risk Insight and UK think tank Chatham House entitled Sustainable Energy Security: Strategic Risks and Opportunities for Business, finds that worldwide we face an era of ambiguity and volatility in our energy supply.  Mounting prices and supply interruptions will become more recurrent due to growing consumption, insufficient investment, and threats to IT systems and transportation. …
Read More Lloyd’s Reports “Green Energy no Longer Just Nice but Necessary”

As negotiations over a final financial reform overhall draw closer to a conclusion, leadership at the National Conference of Insurance Legislators (“NCOIL”) petitioned Senate leadership for membership in the Financial Stability Oversight Council (“FSOC”). …
Read More State Lawmakers Lobby for a Seat at the Financial Stability Oversight Council

The Bermuda Monetary Authority (“BMA”) announced on June 1 that it had taken an important step towards achieving equivalence with the European Union’s imminent Solvency II regulations by initiating a pilot of its internal capital model (“ICM”) review process with Bermuda’s largest commercial insurers. …
Read More Bermuda Continues Stride Towards Regulatory Equivalency with Solvency II

In July 2009 in New Castle County in the State of Delaware, three separate plaintiffs filed civil suits against E. I. Du Pont De Nemours and Company, Inc. (“DuPont”) alleging that their work at a DuPont textile plant in Mercedes, Argentina from 1961 to 2002 caused them to be exposed to and inhale asbestos fibers. …
Read More U.S. Lawsuits Based Upon Foreign Toxic Tort Liability: A Growing Threat?

According to an estimate provided by Lloyd’s of London, over £6.2 billion worth of insurance coverage has been purchased by individuals and entities in connection with the 2010 FIFA World Cup, which begins today.  Over half of that amount is for coverage for stadiums and training facilities, which reflects the vast amount of money that has been spent constructing and upgrading stadiums ($5.5 billion, according to the New York Times). …
Read More World Cup Insurance Estimated at Over 6 Billion Pounds

We have reported previously on the UK Financial Services Authority (FSA)’s short selling disclosure rules, most recently as consultation on its implementation of the UK’s Financial Services Act 2010 (click here to read our post). In that consultation, the FSA noted that the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) was consulting on a Pan-European regime. …
Read More Europe: Committee of European Securities Regulators Publishes Model Short Selling Disclosure Regime