The single renewal date of 1 October is not the only cause of last year’s problems with professional indemnity insurance (PII) renewals, the chairman of the Law Society’s PII working group stressed this week.

Nigel Day, a partner at Manchester firm Hague Lambert, said: ‘It’s superficially attractive to point to [the date] as a problem. But the majority of the profession didn’t have a problem, and for those that did, whether this was caused by a single renewal date isn’t clear.’

The PII working group convened following last year’s turbulent renewals season, during which a number of major insurers stopped providing PII cover to small firms. Day said the PII group and the Solicitors Regulation Authority, which holds the power to alter the renewals process, are continuing to discuss staggered renewals and other issues.

In another development, the Gazette has learned that German insurance giant Allianz is to enter the solicitors PII market and provide up to £10m of cover for the coming season. Allianz will provide PII for firms with four or more partners.

However, Mark Carver, head of financial lines at Allianz Global Corporate and Specialty, said: ‘Don’t expect us to be a "white knight".’ He said firms’ internal risk management and business strategies will come under close scrutiny before cover is given. Carver said Allianz may open its doors to smaller firms in future years depending on market conditions.