Weblog

Online traffic has soared in the past few weeks, with AIG on the front pages of news websites around the world. The US insurer has also dominated users’ attention at insurancetimes.co.uk.

The market had been waiting for the insurer to announce its full-year results for 2008 – and how it would deal with them. The answers were staggering.

After reporting a $61.7bn (£43.3bn) loss for the fourth quarter of 2008, the biggest loss in American corporate history, and a total of $100bn for the full year, AIG confirmed its global property and casualty business would be hived off to a new parent company, AIU Holdings. This includes AIG UK, which is now set for a rebrand.

AIG received another bailout from the US government; this time for $30bn. Ben Bernanke, chairman of the US Federal Reserve, has admitted he is “angry” at the situation.

The second most read story at insurancetimes.co.uk was about Peter Hubbard, the former chief executive of AXA, who has joined the law firm Keoghs as a non-executive director.

Head to the claims section of the website and you can watch video highlights from Insurance Times’ first claims clinic, held in London last month.

A new edition of Insurance Agenda is also available to subscribers – and don’t forget to check out the latest entry in the interactive video blog by John Kitson, Norwich Union’s sales and marketing director.

Finally, this week’s “Five things you didn’t know about ...” comes from Toby Esser, chief executive of Lloyd’s broker Cooper Gay.

Online Top 5

• AIG UK hived off following parent company's $61.7bn loss

• Peter Hubbard makes comeback

• AIG in 'three-way break-up'

• Capita swoops for £15m Hero

• RSA announces 1200 jobs cuts