General Insurance News Articles

The timetable for a ban on payment protection insurance being sold alongside loans has been set, with the measures likely taking effect on April 2012.

The Competition Commission says it will carry out a 30 day consultation later this year and expects to issue a formal order early in 2011. Under the planned timetable, from October 2011 all companies would Full Story

The Competition Commission has confirmed a total ban on banks selling payment protection insurance to customers at the same time as issuing a loan.

The insurance policies are designed to cover the cost of loan repayments if a borrower becomes unable to repay through specific reasons such as ill health or unemployment. They have previously been controversial because of alleged mis-selling, for example Full Story

A senior figure in the European legal system has ruled that insurance companies should not be allowed to discriminate solely on the grounds of gender. It's been described by one British member of the European Parliament as "simply madness."

The ruling came from Juliane Kokott, the advocate general to the European Court of Justice, the highest court in the European court system. It's an advisory ruling, meaning judges in the court are expected to take it into Full Story

An American insurer is now offering insurance against getting divorced. The "WedLock" policy is designed to cover costs such as legal fees and other costs of splitting up.

The policy works in a slightly unusual way: policyholders buy "units" of insurance, each of which costs $15.99 (a little over £10) a month and entitles them to $1,250 (£800) as and when they present a valid divorce document. The maximum policy size is 200 units, totalling $250,000 in Full Story

John Lewis is to begin selling a range of insurance policies under its own brand. But those hoping to exploit the firm's "Never knowingly undersold" slogan may be disappointed.

The company has previously sold insurance, alongside products such as event booking and travel, through a separate firm known as Greenbee. That's now closing, but the insurance will continue under the John Lewis Full Story

One in five iPhone users have made an insurance claim in the last year according to one company offering cover. Mobile phone inurer Protect Your Bubble also reports that 45% of those claims were for accidental damage.

The company doesn't reveal the source of those statistics. It may well be that one in five iPhone users that have taken out insurance have made a claim, rather than it being one in five Full Story

An American football player is reported to have had his hair insured for $1 million. The policy is said to have been taken out by Procter and Gamble to cover his continued appearance in adverts for a shampoo brand.

Troy Polamalu of the Pittsburgh Steelers, who is of Samoan descent, has a mass of three-foot long curly hair which could perhaps be described as resembling a Tina Turner wig placed on a baby. He says he hasn't cut the hair since 2002.

It's not known Full Story

One in five cyclists have had their bike stolen in the past five years, while 8% have had at least three bikes stolen.

It may not be a matter of luck, however. Insurers Aviva note that 13% of bike owners leave the bike unattended and unlocked for short periods, for example when running an errand, while 17% put their bike out of sight but still leave it unlocked.

To promote their bike insurance, the Full Story