In Brief

Paul Kelly's Names' hero
LLOYD'S Name Paul Kelly has beaten off a challenge from Lady Rona Delves Broughton to win an external member place on Lloyd's 18-strong ruling council.
Kelly was elected for a three- year term after a ballot of external members of the Society of Lloyd's (Names). He polled 2,881 votes on a weighted basis to Broughton's 1,481.
Votes among external members are apportioned on the basis of one per £500,000 (or part of) of their attributed capacity.

Safeguarding the 800
Legal expenses insurer Safeguard has struck an agreement with Broker Direct to offer cover for unrecovered credit hire to its 800 or more shareholder brokers.
The cover includes cover against repair charges and Safeguard is party to the Association of British Insurers' agreement on credit hire.
Safeguard is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Avis Europe which supplies replacement vehicles through its 160 branches.

CII to meet on status
The Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) is to hold a special meeting to approve its proposals for chartered broker status on March 28
at 1.30pm.
The meeting, at the CII building in London, is for members to approve the institute's application to the Privy Council for the introduction of a chartered title for brokers.

Co-op motors along
Mutual insurer Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS) has reported significant growth in its motor and home insurance lines in 2000.
Motor premiums rose from £62.6m to £123.3m, while home insurance rose 8% to £13.5m.
The company said the non-life fund's strength, combined with a steady and prudent approach to pricing, allowed it to limit motor insurance increases to 11%, while home insurance rates were cut for the fifth successive year.
CIS said that it was unlikely that premiums would have to rise as a result of increased claims following the storms and floods last year.
CIS has nearly one million motor policyholders and almost two
million home and contents policyholders.

Allianz adds to Select range
Allianz Cornhill has launched Property Owners Select as an addition to its Select range.
The new product will enable brokers to offer commercial property owners a tailored policy with a choice of covers, sum insured and inner limits.
A property management system will be offered with the product for clients who require administrative support.

Linking facts
The NHS Litigation Authority has launched an investigation into the link between its medical risk management standards developed by broker Willis and the hospital deaths league tables published this week.
Hospitals that score well under the Clinical Negligence Scheme For Trusts (CNST) pay lower premiums to cover medical negligence claims and should, in theory, have been at the bottom (best) end of the deaths league table.
But the NHS Litigation Authority refused to be drawn on comparisons, claiming the league table and CNST figures did not compare like with like.

An accident
Martin Wiggins has joined Accidentcare Group as head of business operations and not Accident Group as we reported on January 5.

Why bother to tidy the office?
CAVE Tab has launched Findentity, a document location system. Findentity tracks items using radio signals emitted from stamp-sized labels, bearing transponders, attached to the document.As an item moves, it is “followed” by sensors fitted around the office. Locations can be relayed by a text file, by voice or by a 3D plan of the office. A basic Findentity search and identification system includes the basic software, two sensors and 50 transponders.

ABI scheme gets 3 Arrows
CREDIT hirer 3 Arrows has joined the Association of British Insurer's scheme for the supply of replacement vehicles to non-fault accident victims.The company said the move would strengthen its credibility within the insurance industry and enable it to move into an era of cooperation, as opposed to confrontation, with insurers. Jon Ralph, 3 Arrows' managing director, said membership of the ABI scheme would enable it to expand its business considerably. The company is a subsidiary of car hire company Avis Europe and has access to its parent group's fleet of more than 20,000 cars.

24-hr Clubbing
Club Direct has launched an online travel insurance sales service at www.clubdirect.com. The service will be available day and night, complementing the telephone service. The move towards ecommerce comes as the company predicts that travel sites will pose a serious threat to the traditional businesses of tour operators and travel agents.

Inkies to get better cover
Aon, in partnership with ACE Europe, has launched an improved insurance scheme for the British Printing Industry Federation. The scheme is designed to anticipate changes in the industry and will allow members the option of basic or enhanced cover through their existing brokers.
The improvements in cover include protection in the event of workplace violence and enhanced cover in areas including cyber-liability, directors and officers' liability and business travel.

Online goes for the record
Online Claims has teamed up with MSL to offer a full range of legal expenses insurance policies.
Adrian Bennett, managing director of Online Claims, said it initially wanted to launch its own range of legal expenses policies. However, he added that excess capacity, particularly in the ULR market, meant it was far more sensible to collaborate with an established player with a proven track record.

Donns deal
Colonnade Insurance Brokers has extended its contract with Manchester-based solicitors Donns for a further three years.Donns expects to handle around 45,000 accident cases during this time.

Jolly Rogers
Penzance brokerage William Rogers has established a marine and leisure division. It will be headed by Tom Hosie who has been with the firm for six years.