Core systems

The competitive marketplace is a challenge for all lines of insurance, but a new report from New York-based Novarica notes that the workers comp line is particularly susceptible to ongoing pressure.

Cambridge, Mass.-based Pegasystems Inc., a provider of business process management (BPM) software, has acquired Cupertino, Calif.-based Chordiant Software, Inc., a provider of claims management and business acquisition software to the insurance industry.

Pharmacists Mutual pointed to the 2009 H1N1 flu outbreak as the catalyst for seeking a unified communications system.

Sixteen percent of Americans online are responsible for 80% of brand impressions in online social media; insurance marketers should take heed, Forrester says.

RiskRover records addresses and GPS coordinates, takes photographs and translates the info into risk models all on a mobile device.

With consumers using digital tools to search for information before making an insurance purchase, insurers must plan accordingly, a new report says.

The rising economic tide, a modest inflationary environment, and larger underwriting losses in 2010 will lead to rate-firming for the property/casualty industry, a new study from Hartford, Conn.-based Conning Research & Consulting finds.

A.M. Best upgrades Grain Dealers Mutual Insurance and affirms Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance, while Moody’s affirms Unitrin’s senior debt ratings.

AIG may pursue Goldman Sachs on losses from $6 billion of insurance deals similar to those that prompted the SEC's recent fraud charges against the bank.

NAIC, ISO and NICN announce streamlined reporting process.

New York City agents vote to bring suit over compensation rules, arguing that the rules should apply to the time of sale, “not when quoting the account.”

Fitch Ratings concludes that most companies experienced solid operating earnings and a significant recovery in investment portfolios in 2009. However, the industry still faces continued earnings and capital pressure.

Insurer says HP Exstream offers interactive and real-time capabilities that allow for convenient distribution of documents to policyholders.

Risk managers are benefitting from lower premiums, but looming catastrophe losses could portend a turn in the market, notes survey.

The agency is pushing for legislation to create a way for the government to conduct an orderly wind down of a large financial companies.

Insurers’ profitability increased to 5.8% last year from 0.6% in 2008.

New report says insurers are making slow, but steady progress remaking their core systems.

The insurer added more than $2 billion to surplus for the year, expanding policyholders’ safety cushion to more than $15 billion.

Insurers must link plans to the overall company strategy already in use, and expect detours along the way, Gartner analysts say.

New report chastises insurance industry for owning shares of fast food companies.