Flying sheep, the Great Train Robbery, new babies and Tinder dates. What has the insurance industry been up to of late? You heard it here first…
Tiny fingers and toes
December 2021 saw Carpenters Group head of defendant services Faye Fishlock welcome her “bundle of joy” into the world, just before her due date. Her baby boy Charles Fishlock was born at 2:38am on 5 December 2021, weighing 3.48kg.
In a LinkedIn post, Fishlock - who is a regular participant in Insurance Times’ quarterly Fraud Charter roundtable events - announced her excitement at the “10 tiny fingers and 10 tiny toes” of her little one.
Baaad claims experience?
In January 2022, Aviva revealed some of its most peculiar claims - from flying sheep, burning whisky and a Great Train Robbery - as it opened the vaults on its 325-year history in commercial insurance.
During the Great Train Robbery on 7 August 1963, a mail train from Glasgow was stopped by a signal between Leighton Buzzard and Cheddington in Buckinghamshire and £2,595,291 in used bank notes were swiped from the train. Aviva insured some of the securities stolen, paying out £59m for this event.
Meanwhile, in 1960, Aviva paid a claim to a shop owner for a broken showroom window - this related to an incident involving a sheep running through the door of the showroom.
In 1975, a whisky firm filed a claim for missing whisky, but it turned out that an electrician had been syphoning the spirit.
Swipe right
Sam White, chief executive of Freedom Services Group, revealed in January to the Manchester Evening News that she fell for partner Jennie Guay after meeting her on the Tinder dating app. The pair tied the knot in January - now the couple are planning to start in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment together.
In the article, White admitted that she has always struggled with her mental health and her weight, but after losing four stone and being open about her sexuality, her mindset has improved.
Speaking of mental wellbeing, Allianz employees have successfully raised £1m for mental health charity partner Mind, over the last three years.
Passed away peacefully
The former minister previously held directorships of companies including Lloyd’s of London, NatWest, Coutts and Co, the Bank of New York and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund, as well as a membership at the Bank of England’s Court of Directors.
He “passed away peacefully” at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London, according to a family statement reported in The Guardian.
The Speculator
January 2022 saw the House of Lords enter into a debate around safety regulations and compulsory insurance for e-scooters.
As part of the discussion, Baroness Lucy Neville-Rolfe said that she feared for her life due to the speed of these micromobility vehicles.
Currently, privately owned e-scooters can only be used on private land, meaning they are illegal to ride on pavements and roads. E-scooters that are included in the UK’s government trials, meanwhile, are insured and can be ridden on UK roads.
The government is waiting for these trials to conclude in November 2022 before coming to a decision around regulation - this is so enough data and knowledge around e-scooter risks is generated to inform decision-making.
With e-scooter accidents reportedly on the up, however, this time frame may have to be accelerated to ensure rider and pedestrian safety and put a lid on potential claims.
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