On the heels of the worst ever year on record for insured catastrophe losses in 2004, U.S. insurers are facing another steep price tag in the first quarter of 2005, says the Insurance Services Office (ISO) Property Claims Services (PCS)…
Almost half of all large and mid-sized U.S. businesses purchased terrorism insurance in 2004, a significant increase over recent years, according to new research issued by brokerage Marsh.In 2003, just 27% of businesses had opted to buy the coverage, but…
With the release of its first-quarter 2005 results, brokerage Willis Group says has laid off 500 staff members and put aside a further US$20 million to deal with litigation relating to contingent commissions. Earlier this month, Willis announced settlements totaling…
Despite record profits reported by the Canadian property & casualty insurance industry last year, the industry’s position of profitability will be difficult to maintain, says Nicholas Smith, attorney in fact in Canada for Lloyd’s underwriters.Smith made the remarks at this…
Terrorism risk is on the rise around the world, with increased exposure seen in many countries, according to the “2005 Terrorism Risk Map” released by Aon.In total, 31 countries have received higher terrorism threat rankings than last year, with 48%…
U.S. insurers had their day before a Senate committee investigating the status of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA), urging lawmakers to extend the program beyond its December 31 sunset. Insurers insist the government backstop for terrorism risks must be…
Florida’s state-run windstorm insurer of last resort, Citizen’s Property Insurance Corp., says it will face a US$516 million shortfall in its account following last year’s unprecedented hurricane season. The shortfall could result in every insured homeowner in the state paying…
Finite reinsurer Inter-Ocean has gone into voluntary run-off. Inter-Ocean, based in Bermuda and Ireland, is owned by 11 international insurance and reinsurance companies. The company itself retains no net underwriting risk, but received a fee or margin on each contract…
Lloyd’s of London says pre-tax profits for the 2004 year of account will be GBP1.36 billion, despite net claims of GBP1.2 billion from the U.S. hurricanes. 2004 does represent a decline from 2003, when the London market recorded GBP1.89 billion…
Fairfax’s Odyssey Re Holdings Corp. says last year’s extreme weather, combined with Windstorm Erwin earlier this year, could produce after-tax net losses of US$26-$29 million, which will be factored into first-quarter 2005 results. The total includes a US$14-US$15 million increase…
On the heels of last year’s unprecedented Atlantic hurricane season, well-known forecaster Prof. William Gray is anticipating another stormy season for 2005.Gray and his team of researchers at Colorado State University say 2005 will likely see above-average hurricane activity during…
The global catastrophe bond market grew 17% in 2004, according to a joint study released by reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter & Co. and MMC Securities Corp.Measuring total outstanding risk capital, yearend 2004 reached US$4.04 billion, compared to US$3.45 billion at…