The finance director of CGNU, the U.K.'s biggest insurer, has done his part to cure information overload by dropping full-blown quarterly reporting, to the widespread approbation - and apparent relief - of investors and analysts alike.

Biggs, 48, decided to take his vow of partial silence in June, after CGNU had sold off its U.S. and U.K. general insurance operations, thereby enhancing the reliability of its results. Much of the insurer's revenue had come from such unpredictable sources as tropical storm insurance.

"Half-yearly reporting is more appropriate for stable, long-term savings businesses like life insurance," contends Biggs. "We don't believe the effort involved in quarterly reporting is commensurate with the value for shareholders." CGNU's quarterly reports had contained almost 40 pages that detailed bank borrowings and gilt investments, which hardly changed from quarter to quarter.

Starting in October CGNU will provide only the quarterly essentials: new-business growth, profit margins and updates on the sales environment. In the U.K. established companies aren't required to report quarterly results.

Numis Securities analyst Stuart Duncan, for one, is grateful. "I was staying late at the office needlessly," he says. Now he's looking forward to seeing his family more often.