Banks, Insurers, Homeowners ... everyone is suffering

NCD News: Banks, Insurers, Homeowners ... everyone is suffering - 10.11.09

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Banks, Insurers, Homeowners ... everyone is suffering: >>>> A survey conducted by Swinton Insurance has shown that van drivers will spend on average, two hours searching for a suitable insurance quote. The poll of 1000 van drivers found that it is now taking 30 minutes longer than last year. This is the first time in five years that the amount of time spent searching for insurance has risen. The rise has been blamed on financial pressures.

>>>> The Association of Independent Financial Advisers (AIFA) has asked that the review of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme due to be carried out by the FSA, should be careful not to mix different types of businesses. AIFA want to see a specific provision for protecting IFA firms from banking collapse. Also the collapse of financial firms Square Mile, Pacific and Keydata caused concern as they were not IFA's yet other IFA's were asked to pay for their mistakes. The review is set to be published by 2010 or 2011.

>>>> Lord Smith, the Chairman of the Environment Agency has asked the Government to buy up homes which are threatened by the sea, in particular those on the Norfolk, Suffolk and Lincolnshire coast. This would mean that the home-owners would be able to sell their homes to the local authorities, enabling them to release capital in their homes and move. The idea is welcomed by the Coastal Concern Action Group who say that people needed some form of financial assistance when they lose their homes through coastal erosion.

>>>> Aviva has appointed Thornside to administer it's pet insurance product. Thornside is part of Capita Insurance Distribution and will work with Aviva for the next three years. They currently administer 35 different schemes and insure 300,000 pets in the UK. The new product will have three levels of cover: gold, silver and platinum.

>>>> Research from Post Office Travel Insurance has shown that 25% of parents have a sick child while on holiday and in 10% of cases a doctor has to be seen. In the study of more than 1000 claims, ear infection was the most common cause of illness, followed by cuts and scrapes, viruses and infections. The cost of an average child's claim was £666 - the little devils. They encourage people with children to be particularly vigilant about making sure they have travel insurance when on holiday.

>>>> 1000 servicemen who claim they have been made ill during the nuclear tests of the 1950's in Norfolk are saying that the MoD are refusing to discuss the terms of possible compensation. The men won the right to sue for compensation in June 2009, but the MoD have appealed the decision and will not meet with solicitors until next year. In the meantime, some of the men are dying of old age and illness. The MoD claim that discussions are ongoing - but they make a lot of claims.

>>>> The parents of two French students who were murdered in Southeast London are to sue for compensation from the police and the Ministry of Justice. Laurent Bonomo and Gabriel Ferez were killed in June 2008 by two men from the area, one of whom, Dano Sonnex was under the supervision of the probation service. The murder took place at a time when he should have been recalled to prison. Sonnex had been incorrectly assessed as a medium risk and no plan was put in place to manage his risk to the public. The Chief Probation Officer, David Scott has since resigned from his post and expressed regret over the incident.

>>>> The chief Executive of the Royal Bank of Scotland, Stephen Hester has said that injury compensation claims have hugely affected the profits of RBS insurance companies Directline, Churchill and Privilege in the third quarter 2009. He said that they had failed to take note of the increase and were now responding with different claims procedures and increased pricing policies. The expectation is that the fourth quarter will suffer the same fate, but that improvements will occur next year once these changes take effect. He adds that American-style compensation claims are a growing problem for the insurance industry.

>>>> A hearing will be held at Leeds Crown Court this week in a bid to recover the insurance and pensions paid to Anne Darwin after her husbands "disappearance" in his canoe. In 2007 his death was found to be a hoax and Mr Darwin and his wife were jailed. The scam was discovered after a photograph of the couple living in Panama surfaced. Prosecutors hope to use the Proceeds of Crime Act to recover the cash.

>>>> Chairman of the AXA management board, Henri de Castries has announced a 2 Billion Euro rights issue to finance the purchase of interests in central and eastern Europe. It is expected that the rights issue will result in 174,112,428 new shares and preference will be given to existing shareholders. The preference shares will be issued at a discount of 27.9%. Full settlement and listing of the shares should be complete by December 4, 2009.

>>>> 24% of households will end up arguing over the heating this winter, according to Moneysupermarket.com. Concerns over bills will affect 62% of people who will turn down or turn off their heating in an attempt to save money. 18% have admitted they cannot afford to cover increased fuel costs. This represents 5 million homes despite the Governments pledge to help households living in fuel poverty.

>>>> Research from Scottish Provident has found that 21% of people living in the UK believe their standard of living will decline over the next ten years. 26% thought that living standards had declined over the last 25 years, despite average income nearly doubling. However, 35% still believed in the welfare system and thought the Government provided adequate cover for those who "cannot support themselves". †