Segment
Reinsurance
AIR updates U.S. hurricane model to better estimate business interruption
June 5, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterAIR Worldwide has updated its United States hurricane model to include an enhanced methodology for estimating business interruption (BI) losses.In the aftermath of the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons, which devastated wide swaths of the Gulf Coast and put countless…
Property market conditions rapidly changing
June 1, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterThe terms and conditions for both cat risks and non-cat risks in the global property insurance market are changing more rapidly than many would have anticipated a year ago, says a recent Willis Group Holdings Ltd.s property alert.In Willis Property…
Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility now operational
June 1, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) funded by participating countries, donors and the World Bank is now operational, starting with a claims-paying capacity of US$110 million on the international reinsurance and capital markets.. Thanks to the support of the…
Hannover Re completes sale of Praetorian Financial Group
June 1, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterHannover Re has completed the sale of its U.S. subsidiary, Praetorian Financial Group, Inc., New York, to the Australian QBE Insurance Group Ltd., Sydney.The deal had been agreed upon in December 2006 and was closed, effective May 31, 2007, upon…
Benfield: Reinsurance sidecars headed in different direction?
May 31, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterSidecars remain a popular form of raising capital, but a recent Benfield report suggests sidecars could conceivably be headed in a different direction in the future.Reinsurers will typically set up a short-term entity called a sidecar, funded by investors money,…
Bermuda reinsurers show tale of two dramatically different results
May 30, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Bermuda reinsurance market wildly fluctuated between fantastic results in 2006 and brutal results in 2005, according to an A.M. Best report. In 2005, the Bermuda market reported a devastating combined ratio of 119.4%. However, in 2006, the combined ratio…
U.S. jury finds against risk manager in finite reinsurance deal
May 29, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterA Manhattan federal jury has found Timothy Harcharik, a one-time risk management director for cell phone distributor Brightpoint, liable on three counts of aiding and abetting securities fraud for his part in a finite reinsurance deal, A.M. Best reports.Harcharik told…
Swiss Re promotes risk analysis in light of EU “polluter-pays” legislation
May 25, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterNew, polluter-pay environmental legislation in the European Union is based on a new liability regime under public law and will create unprecedented loss complexes for which claims experience is not yet available, according to a recent report by Swiss Re.It…
Bermuda insurers face rate pressures; warns A.M. Best
May 25, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterThe calm 2006 storm season showered benefits on Bermuda insurers, but A.M. Best is warning that last years strong performance has set the stage for increased pressure on rates as a whole.In its 2007 Special Report: Bermuda 12-Month Financial Review,…
SCOR to take WTC settlement to arbitration
May 24, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterSCOR Reinsurance has served notice that it intends to take to arbitration a recent US$2-billion settlement that was designed to bring an end to the six-year legal battle between seven insurers and the leaseholder of the World Trade Centre over…
What’s New: In Brief (May 22, 2007)
May 22, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterRisk Management Solutions (RMS) has designed a trigger mechanism and performed the risk analysis for a Swiss Re securitization of typhoon risk in Japan. A Cayman Islands special purpose vehicle, Akibare Ltd. has provided collateralized coverage of $120 million over…
Reinsurers wary of “naive,” short-term capital providers
May 17, 2007 by Canadian UnderwriterTraditional or legacy reinsurers, those who have been in the business a long time, are confronting a recent sea change in reinsurance philosophy, according to the senior vice president and chief agent in Canada for the Toa Reinsurance Company of…