Weblog

The political storm brewing at the annual party conferences has dominated headlines online in recent weeks, but breaking news in the insurance sector has not been lost.

At insurancetimes.co.uk, big stories concerning developments in the broker market resulted in a flood of traffic to the site.

They didn’t come much bigger than when Insurance Times broke the news that consolidator Oval had received a healthy financial boost after being lent a chunky sum of cash by insurer RSA. The loan, thought to total around £10m, could allow Oval to make a number of new acquisitions.

Stories connected to the major consolidators are always popular with online readers, and as the UK’s biggest brokers start reshaping their businesses to battle through the next year, expect more groundbreaking developments to follow.

Meanwhile, the well-travelled Tom Ernoult, formerly of Heath Lambert, Oxygen and Giles, made a return to the broker market, heading back to former employer Marsh. We revealed his departure from Giles after only six months. News of his latest move proved popular, becoming the second most-read story on the site.

Elsewhere, a rebrand at insurance giant Fortis also struck a chord with readers, as did the story of a Canadian woman whose Facebook photos of her cycling and hiking were used in court by Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, after she claimed she had disabling injuries from a car accident.

Finally, don’t forget to check the site for ‘Five things you didn’t know about …’ See below for a preview of the latest one.

Online Top 5

RSA loans millions to Oval

Consolidator expected to use funding for forthcoming acquisitions

Ernoult returns to Marsh after Giles stint

Tom Ernoult will lead UK southern region for the global broker

Fortis to rebrand and grow

Strategic review promises partnership working and growth

Facebook used to dispute claim

Canadian court sees hiking and cycling Facebook pics

Dublin to rival Lloyd’s

Relocating firms boost premium income in the Irish capital by 45%