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Insurance UK
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February 20, 2024
Pension Numbers Shrink As Funding Grows, Watchdog Says
The number of defined benefit pension schemes in the U.K. has decreased by 2% since 2022, according to a report published Tuesday by The Pensions Regulator that shows that funding levels for retirement savings plans are continuing to improve.
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February 19, 2024
Insurers Detail Plans To Free £100B Amid Solvency Changes
Developing more consistent long-term decarbonization plans will help accelerate infrastructure investment of £100 billion ($126 billion) after the U.K. overhauls the capital adequacy rules for insurers, a report said on Monday.
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February 19, 2024
AmTrust Hikes Counterclaim To £14M In Legal-Funding Fight
Insurer AmTrust has boosted its counterclaim against Novitas to £14.4 million ($18.1 million), alleging it paid out to the legal loans company under after-the-event litigation policies that were unenforceable and did not comply with regulations.
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February 19, 2024
FCA Secures Bankruptcy Order Against Pension Promoters
The Financial Conduct Authority has said it has secured bankruptcy orders against a pair of pensions promoters in a move to cover a £10.7 million ($13.5 million) restitution order for creditors.
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February 19, 2024
NatWest Begins £300M Share Buyback As Profits Soar
NatWest Group PLC said on Monday that it has launched a share buyback program worth up to £300 million ($380 million) as the financial services group looks to reduce its shareholder equity after posting a surge in profits.
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February 19, 2024
Lloyd's Confirms Claire Schrader As General Counsel
Lloyd's of London said on Monday that it has appointed Claire Schrader as general counsel on a permanent basis after she held the position temporarily when her predecessor stepped down in August.
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February 16, 2024
Insurers Reject WRBC Corp.'s $90M COVID-19 Losses Claim
A group of underwriters and insurance companies have denied they owe at least $90 million claimed by a Lloyd's of London syndicate to cover COVID-19 losses, arguing they have met their obligations, having already paid out around $26.6 million.
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February 16, 2024
Law Firm Loses Over Solicitor's Pension On Maternity Leave
A London-based commercial law firm discriminated against an associate solicitor because she was on maternity leave and forced her to resign by making baseless criticisms about her performance, a tribunal has ruled.
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February 16, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen a legal battle erupt between JPMorgan and the founder of a Greek payments company following a dispute over the valuation of their jointly owned fintech business, the children of late Russian oligarch Vladimir Scherbakov face a claim by Fieldfisher LLP, the Director of Education and Training at the Solicitors Regulation Authority tackle a claim by two solicitors, and train operator First MTR South Western Trains file a claim against a security company. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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February 16, 2024
Stephenson Harwood Hires Regulatory Pro In Corporate Boost
Stephenson Harwood LLP has appointed regulatory lawyer Christophe Boucherie as a partner in its London office, a move it believes will strengthen its corporate practice.
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February 16, 2024
UK Pension Annuity Sales Hit £5.2B In 2023, ABI Says
The total value of pension annuities for consumers jumped by almost 50% to £5.2 billion ($6.6 billion) in 2023, a trade body said Friday, a rise fueled in part by rising interest rates.
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February 16, 2024
Claims Managers Are Clouding Regulatory Status, FCA Warns
Claims management companies are failing to distinguish between regulated and unregulated activity, which can mislead consumers into thinking that it all enjoys the same protection, according to a review by the Financial Conduct Authority.
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February 15, 2024
Gallagher Denies Liability In $7.3M Cargo Reinsurance Claims
Insurance broker Gallagher has denied owing insurers $7.3 million for allegedly failing to pay money owed under a reinsurance contract covering decades-old cargo losses, saying it has already paid out the sums required.
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February 15, 2024
City Lobby Calls For Tax Cuts, Investment Reform In Budget
The U.K. government should cut taxes on banking, make it easier for firms to list as public companies and create a new investment office to boost competitiveness, according to a leading financial lobby.
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February 15, 2024
Claimant Body Denies Injury 'Epidemic' Before Court Appeal
Insurers have widely exaggerated the rise in the number of so-called mixed tariff injuries, a trade body for the claimant sector said on Thursday, as the U.K.'s highest court prepares for hearings next week on how to compensate people who have been affected.
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February 15, 2024
FCA Quizzes Top Firms On Advice Services Fees
The Financial Conduct Authority said Thursday it has written to 20 of the largest financial adviser firms to gauge how those businesses charge clients after giving advice amid its broader focus on ensuring customers are treated fairly.
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February 15, 2024
Osborne Clarke Steers £114M Standard Life Pension Deal
Standard Life said Thursday that it has completed a £114 million ($143 million) buy-in transaction guided by Osborne Clarke LLP to acquire the pensions of around 1,800 members of the Vector Pension Scheme.
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February 15, 2024
UK Gov't Asks Financial Regulators To Review AI Policing
The government said on Thursday that it has told financial markets regulators to publish an update by April 30 on how they will police artificial intelligence.
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February 15, 2024
Fintech Expert Appointed To FCA Board For 3-Year Term
HM Treasury said Thursday it had appointed Bryan Zhang, an expert in financial technology and open banking, to the Financial Conduct Authority's non-executive board for an initial term of three years.
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February 15, 2024
Addleshaw Goddard Adds BoE Deputy GC To Finance Team
Addleshaw Goddard said on Thursday that it has hired the Bank of England's deputy general counsel as a partner to bolster its financial services regulation team in London.
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February 14, 2024
BDO Sues Insurance Broker Over Unpaid M&A Advisory Fee
Accounting firm BDO LLP has sued KGJ Insurance Services and three of its directors over claims they failed to pay out for the advisory services BDO provided the insurance broker as it looked for a new buyer.
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February 14, 2024
UK Access Rules Too Burdensome, Say European Funds
An association for Europe's investment managers has asked the Financial Conduct Authority to make its planned regime giving European funds "equivalent" access to U.K. markets less burdensome, given similar requirements do not exist for U.K. funds.
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February 14, 2024
Insurers On Hook After Top Court Rules On Credit Hire Claims
The cost of motor claims for insurers could rise after Britain's highest court ruled on Wednesday that they have to pay additional damages to replacement car hire companies after a road traffic accident, although experts say there could still be a silver lining.
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February 14, 2024
FCA Flagged 10,000 Misleading Financial Ads In 2023
Britain's finance watchdog has ramped up its fight against misleading financial advertisements, reporting on Wednesday that it intervened to have more than 10,000 promotions posted online without proper authorization pulled or amended in 2023.
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February 14, 2024
Broker WTW Works With Maths Lab On Catastrophe Modeling
Insurance broker WTW unveiled a new collaboration on Wednesday between its research network and the London Mathematical Laboratory to improve how it predicts natural disasters such as earthquakes or hurricanes and deals with the consequences.
Expert Analysis
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Is Equifax Data Breach Penalty A Sign Of Fines To Come?
Recently, the U.K. Information Commissioner's Office fined Equifax £500,000 for falling victim to a cyberattack — the highest penalty available. Some speculate that this decision is a sign that the ICO is already assuming a tougher stance following the commencement of the General Data Protection Regulation, say James Castro-Edwards and Eaven Prenter of Wedlake Bell LLP.
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Ensure That Dispute Resolution Mechanisms Are Brexit-Proof
With only five months remaining for the U.K. to make a deal with the EU and the possibility of a "no-deal" Brexit looking increasingly plausible, now is the time to take proactive steps to protect your clients’ positions and to make sure that their contracts are effective and enforceable, say Claire Stockford and Caitlin McLean of Shepherd & Wedderburn LLP.
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5 Cyber Insurance Pitfalls To Avoid In The UK
Faced with the opportunity to purchase cyber risk insurance to mitigate the damage caused by cyber events, prospective policyholder companies need all the help they can get in order to navigate this increasingly complex part of the U.K. insurance market, says Richard Mattick of Covington & Burling LLP.
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UK Unexplained Wealth Orders: More Bark Than Bite So Far
This month, the U.K. National Crime Agency successfully resisted a challenge to its first unexplained wealth orders. This is a victory, but the agency has some way to go to show that UWOs will be a meaningful tool in the U.K.'s anti-money laundering arsenal, says Fred Saugman of WilmerHale.
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GDPR Compliance Questions For Blockchain Firms
The General Data Protection Regulation applies to blockchain networks that directly store personal information. However, blockchain technology can make compliance challenging, and also raises questions regarding who bears responsibility for compliance, say attorneys at Covington & Burling LLP.
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Knowledge Management: An Unsung Hero Of Legal Innovation
As technology evolves, law firms are increasingly looking for ways to improve communication, transparency and service for their clients. Firms should put knowledge management at the core of their value proposition to create a competitive advantage, says Rob MacAdam at HighQ.
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Uncertainty Concerning The UK's Proper Purpose Rule?
The U.K. Supreme Court's judgment in Eclairs v. JKX seemingly opened the door for a broad interpretation of the proper purpose rule, but despite the confusion, the rule will continue to operate as a useful legal safeguard for shareholders, say Nick Hoffman and Conal Keane of Harney Westwood & Riegels LLP.
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How Europe's AML Regime Is Tackling Virtual Currencies
The use and provision of virtual currency services have remained largely unregulated in the European Union, but its newest anti-money laundering directive could be the first step to tougher regulation, say Chris Warren-Smith and Paul Mesquitta of Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP.
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UK Ruling Signifies Greater Cross-Border Sharing Of Data
In KBR v. SFO, the U.K. High Court confirmed that the Serious Fraud Office can require foreign companies to produce documents held outside the U.K. as long as there is a sufficient connection between the company and the jurisdiction. This judgment will embolden other agencies with similar compulsory document production powers, says Andrew Smith of Corker Binning.
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Why Law Firms Should Monitor The Dark Web
Dark web monitoring allows law firms to see what sensitive information may have made its way onto the thriving global underground marketplace where cybercriminals buy and sell exposed data. It can also help lawyers advise clients on a wide range of legal and business matters, say Anju Chopra and Brian Lapidus of Kroll.
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Lessons From UK's Data Backlash
Tesco Bank and British Airways are the latest British icons to find themselves in legal difficulties regarding data breaches, exemplifying the breadth of breach-related risks beyond the established route of the Information Commissioner's Office, says Kim Roberts of King & Spalding LLP.
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Tech, Media, Telecom Investor-State Arbitration Is On The Rise
Disputes between foreign investors from the technology, media and telecommunications sector and host states are a substantial feature of the investor-state claims landscape. The recent growth of investor-state arbitrations in this sector could be explained by several factors, says Florencia Villaggi of Herbert Smith Freehills LLP.
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Treat GDPR Compliance As A Marriage, Not A Wedding
Earlier this year, many businesses were so focused on ensuring that their privacy notices and customer lists were compliant by May 25 that they forgot that General Data Protection Regulation D-Day was just the first day of a new regime, rather than a one-day event, say Ben Pilbrow and Joanna Boag-Thomson of Shepherd and Wedderburn LLP.
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New UK And US Regimes May Deter Foreign Investment
Newly proposed U.K. rules and the amended regime for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States will radically change how the two governments review sensitive transactions, which will affect the likelihood of deal clearance, deal timing and the drafting of appropriate contractual provisions, say Robert Bell and Jennifer Mammen of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP.
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UK Employees May Soon Gain The 'Right To Disconnect'
Several European countries have recently incorporated the "right to disconnect" from work into their domestic legislation. Currently, there is no equivalent law in the U.K., but as stress levels continue to rise, it is likely that U.K. legislators will follow suit, says Sarah King of Excello Law.