Quinn Insurance in Administration

Started by An Gaeilgoir, March 30, 2010, 12:15:49 PM

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mick999



Permanent Administrators have been appointed ...

Quinn Insurance get permanent administrators


Thursday, 15 April 2010 16:07
The High Court has appointed permanent administrators to Quinn Insurance.

Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns was told that the company was no longer opposing the Financial Regulator's application to have the provisional administrators appointed at the end of last month made permanent.

The High Court was told there had been considerable progress made between the parties since the matter was last in court on Monday.

AdvertisementSenior Counsel Michael Cush said the company was now consenting to an order appointing permanent administrators to Quinn Insurance.

Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns said that having read the material presented to him, he was satisfied this was an appropriate case in which to make such an order.

He said it didn't follow that that meant every assertion made by the regulator was accepted or every assertion made by Quinn Insurance was rejected.

However, he said there was sufficient material before him to make the order.

The judge appointed Paul McCann and Michael McAteer of Grant Thornton as administrators to the company.

He also granted them the power to act separately if necessary.

Mr Justice Kearns said it was important to stress, particularly in view of the concerns of employees that part of the statutory function of the administrators was to carry on the business as a going concern with a view to placing it on a sound commercial footing.

Lawyers for the administrators said they wished to deliver their first report in a month.

The case will be mentioned before the court again on the 20 May.

In a statement, Jim Quigley, Chairman of Quinn Insurace Ltd, said:'This decision has been taken after very careful consideration.

'We have concluded that, given what has happened, it is in the best interests of the Company, our employees and policyholders that, as a matter of urgency, we work closely with the Administrators and the Financial Regulator to get the situation resolved as quickly as possible.

In particular, we would hope that working together we can find a way to re-commence business in the United Kingdom.'


The company has been increasingly concerned about the damage it is suffering as a result of the ban on it doing business in Northern Ireland and the UK.

Yesterday, Financial Regulator Matthew Elderfield told an Oireachtas Committee that the motivation of his office was to protect policy holders.

orangeman

What can we read into this permanent appointment and the assertion that much progress has been made by the parties since Monday and consequently Quinn's withdrawl of his opposition ?.

Bogball XV

6.1 news seemed to infer that this is all the doing of the new director, mckillop?  a debt restructuring expert from scotland, they think that Quinn Insurance will be sold off to help the quinn's pay back their debts and that it'll be all change within the group from there on in.

orangeman

Quote from: Bogball XV on April 15, 2010, 07:17:05 PM
6.1 news seemed to infer that this is all the doing of the new director, mckillop?  a debt restructuring expert from scotland, they think that Quinn Insurance will be sold off to help the quinn's pay back their debts and that it'll be all change within the group from there on in.


How much is the insurance business valued at ?

If it making £360million a year, it bounds to be worth a few billion ???

mick999

From another website, here is some commentary on the profitability of  QI ..

No claim as to the correctness of this info, but it is based on the 2008 report from the financial regulator ...

http://www.politics.ie/2600191-post73.html

2008 Insurance Returns on IFSRA Website
http://www.financialregulator.ie/pub...20version).pdf
Premium: c€1.1bn
Profit/Loss: Loss of €58m
Assets: c€1.8bn of which 0.5bn is classified as property
Liabilities: c€1.5bn
Solvency Cushion: c€0.36bn

Regulator Information €0.45bn of assets are impaired by guarantee

A Quinn Martin Production

Bid to end ban on Quinn UK trade

The administrators of Quinn Insurance have presented proposals to the Irish financial regulator aimed at reopening parts of the firm's UK arm. The regulator said it would give them "prompt consideration". The company was banned from writing new business in the UK last month, jeopardising hundreds of jobs in its Fermanagh offices. On Thursday the High Court in Dublin appointed permanent administrators to Quinn Insurance. That followed a dramatic u-turn by the company when it dropped its objection to the appointment of administrators. Quinn Insurance had been in temporary administration after the regulator raised concerns about its solvency levels. The group's owner, Sean Quinn, had been highly critical of the move. The administrators, Paul McCann and Michael McAteer of Grant Thornton, have asked the regulator to lift the ban in regard to certain business lines of Quinn Insurance in the UK. A report in the Irish Times on Friday suggests that Quinn would not seek to re-enter some parts of the UK market, specifically professional indemnity insurance and some motor insurance cover. In a statement, the regulator said: "The administrator is to forward further details regarding these proposals and we will give these prompt consideration. "We remain encouraged by the nature and quality of our engagement with the administrator in this and other respects."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/8624482.stm
Antrim - One Of A Dying Breed of Genuine Dual Counties

unitedireland

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Fermanagh Herald
BY NUALA MCALOON
WITH the entire community across Fermanagh anxiously awaiting the outcome of next Monday's High Court decision on the future of Quinn Insurance, the sheer enormity of the threat facing Fermanagh's economic future is starting to sink in.

With fears widespread that a bad result for Quinn Insurance next Monday could have a domino effect on the other ends of the business, including glass and cement, it is feared the county could be facing economic meltdown in a worst case scenario.

It is estimated that as many as one in eight of the Fermanagh workforce are directly employed by the Quinn Group.

With 3,000 employees working on both sides of the Fermanagh/Cavan border (1,500 in each county) and several more local businesses indirectly depending on the group to sustain the productivity of their outlets, the harsh reality of a worst case scenario in the ongoing Quinn Insurance dispute, is becoming much clearer and more devastating for the county this week.

However, amid the doom and gloom, hope does remain for the Quinn Group this week. The group said it was pleased following Monday's decision by the High Court to adjourn the financial regulator's application to have permanent administrators appointed to Quinn Insurance (QIL) for one week.

Yesterday afternoon (Tuesday), the group appointed Talbot Hughes McKillop LL, a financial restructuring firm to provide financial restructuring services to the company. In addition, THM Partner Mr Murdoch McKillop has been appointed as an interim executive director of Quinn Group Ltd.

The chief executive of Quinn Group, Liam McCaffrey, said: "Mr McKillop's role will be to assist the board and the executive management team to successfully work through the group's current issues and to ensure that executive management are not excessively diverted from the vitally important job of running our manufacturing business."

According to the latest census employment figures (2007) - there were then only 14,852 people in full-time employment here, of which 26 per cent worked in the public sector. With 1,500 working in the Quinn group north of the border and many Fermanagh people also working at the cement works just over the border at Gortmullan and Quinn Insurance headquarters in Cavan town, the group is clearly the single biggest employer in the county.

Since the last census, various sectors of the employment industry have been hit hard by the economic climate, not least in construction which then counted for 1,585 of Fermanagh's full-time jobs.

Meanwhile, in a statement following Monday's court hearing, the group said it was hopeful that the adjournment will provide time to progress meaningful discussions towards an overall resolution.

"Notwithstanding recent issues, we believe the underlying QIL business is profitable and that the operational model is robust, having brought much needed competition to the market and improved service levels to consumers.

"The Quinn Group believes that it is in the best interests of all stakeholders, and primarily the policyholders and staff, that this model is allowed to continue under whatever solution emerges. In particular we would urge the reopening of business in the UK as a matter of urgency in order to ensure sustainable future employment and preserve value in QIL.

"The Quinn Group will continue in its efforts to find an overall solution that secures the long-term position of the business and that of its employees who have been so supportive to the company, the group and the Quinn family in recent weeks."

The court hearing will take place on Monday next, April 19.

supersarsfields

That bottom bit is out of date now as there's not going to be a court hearing on Monday anymore.

orangeman

Most articles I have read this morning are saying that it's over as regards Quinns ownership of Quinn Insurance which obviously will have serious consequences for the other parts of gthe group.


Quinn is trying to pay his debts.


Most of the other big boys would have gone cleaned the companies and gone bust at this stage, cleaned up the debt and started again.


Quinn is trying to do pay his way but it's not acceptable.


Given what some of the bankers have got away with, I can't but feel some sympathy for him.

A Quinn Martin Production

My gut tells me that the Insurance employees can breathe a wee bit easier with this development but that employees in the wider Group might be sweating a bit more this morning??  What's the feeling on the "inside" supersars??
Antrim - One Of A Dying Breed of Genuine Dual Counties

supersarsfields

Still up in the air QMP to be honest. QD doesn't follow the same sort of structures that other insurance companies do so people are still a wee bit worried about changes ahead. But in saying that I'd imagine that the UK market will be opened again shortly which should ease a bit of stress.
I think the other QG employees will be happy enough as well as there was talk that everything could have ended up going. I'd say this was there is a greater chance of SQ holding on to the rest of it now. This should seriously reduce the debt owed and should bring it into a more managable area.

I still don't believe we're seen the last twist in this story yet for QD.

seafoid

Quote from: unitedireland on April 16, 2010, 10:06:44 AM
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Fermanagh Herald

According to the latest census employment figures (2007) - there were then only 14,852 people in full-time employment here, of which 26 per cent worked in the public sector. With 1,500 working in the Quinn group north of the border and many Fermanagh people also working at the cement works just over the border at Gortmullan and Quinn Insurance headquarters in Cavan town, the group is clearly the single biggest employer in the county.


I thought Norn Irn got rid of counties years ago. Is it just the Tadhgs who think in terms of counties or do the other half do so too?  I imagine the GAA thing is very important in terms of keeping a sense of county belonging together. I mean where would Tyrone people be with their superiority complex over Ormaugh people without the GAA?
"f**k it, just score"- Donaghy   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbxG2WwVRjU

haranguerer

You're exactly right, something I've mused over a while: the GAA is almost solely responsible for county identity in the north. Whereas I find that most nationalists would know which county towns are in, and would know which county all their acquaintances are from, i find that this would be vastly less so with the other side.

seafoid

Message to all Nordies

It is surprising the "only" 26% of Fermanagh wallas work for the Crown considering the overall percentage in the public sector for Norn Irn is closer to 2/3rds. So Fermanagh seems to be losing out.

I read in the FT that the average Norn Irn subvention from the hated British State works out to a mere £20,000 per family when you include everything.  It's good that at least some of the money goes into GAA and is thus used productively. How could NI survive without British taxpayers?  Was this dependency the ultimate shoot yourself in the foot (rather than the knee) result of the IRA's campaign of insurrection that started in the late 60s ?

Given these numbers isn't it pointless to vote along sectarian lines in the upcoming elections?     Ye should all vote for Brit parties since they are the ones who sanction your vast subsidies . Isn't Sinn Fein's abstention absolutely pointless unless accompanied by the blanket refusal of all Shinner voters to hand back their subsidy? 
"f**k it, just score"- Donaghy   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbxG2WwVRjU

A Quinn Martin Production

Quote from: seafoid on April 16, 2010, 01:13:23 PM
Message to all Nordies

It is surprising the "only" 26% of Fermanagh wallas work for the Crown considering the overall percentage in the public sector for Norn Irn is closer to 2/3rds. So Fermanagh seems to be losing out.

I read in the FT that the average Norn Irn subvention from the hated British State works out to a mere £20,000 per family when you include everything.  It's good that at least some of the money goes into GAA and is thus used productively. How could NI survive without British taxpayers?  Was this dependency the ultimate shoot yourself in the foot (rather than the knee) result of the IRA's campaign of insurrection that started in the late 60s ?

Given these numbers isn't it pointless to vote along sectarian lines in the upcoming elections?     Ye should all vote for Brit parties since they are the ones who sanction your vast subsidies . Isn't Sinn Fein's abstention absolutely pointless unless accompanied by the blanket refusal of all Shinner voters to hand back their subsidy? 
?

Emotive word there for us Nordies seafoid...on the blanket, blanket defence...on a par with "puke" ;)
Antrim - One Of A Dying Breed of Genuine Dual Counties