Global Initiatives for Terror Coverage
November 1, 2002 Donald Callahan, president of Guy Carpenter & Co., Ltd.In the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Canada, like many other nations sought to develop programs to cover losses that result from terrorist acts. The process has been a tedious one, which has been exasperated by a global reinsurance market position that terrorism is an uninsurable exposure that cannot be quantified. Most reinsurance companies around the world, in the period following the attacks moved to exclude terrorism risk from their contracts.
Lili damage estimated at US$335 million
October 18, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterThe U.S. Insurance Services Office (ISO) is estimating insured damage from Hurricane Lili at US$335 million. The hurricane hit Louisiana and parts of Mississippi in early October.Lili had swept the coast of Mexico as a category 4 hurricane, but was…
Lili losses less than US$500 million, predicts EQECAT
October 9, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterWith the downgrade of Hurricane Lili to Category 2 prior to landfall in Louisiana, it is now estimated that U.S. insurers will suffer less than US$500 million in property wind damage claims, says catastrophe management services company EQECAT.While there is…
U.S. insurers post strong recovery for first half 2002
October 1, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterU.S. property and casualty insurers rose net taxed income for the first half of this year by 66% to US$4.6 billion compared with the US$2.8 billion reported for the same period a year ago, according to industry data collected by…
Rating agencies bearish on reinsurance outlook (October 01, 2002)
October 1, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterU.S. rating agencies Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings have issued negative outlook reports for the global reinsurance sector, citing limited medium to long-term earnings growth potential despite the substantial rate increases introduced by companies during the course of this…
U.S. insurers post strong underwriting/income recovery for first half 2002
September 30, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterU.S. property and casualty insurers rose net taxed income for the first half of this year by 66% to US$4.6 billion compared with the US$2.8 billion reported for the same period a year ago, according to industry data collected by…
Canadian reinsurance rates up sharply, says report
September 17, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterLast year’s dismal financial returns for reinsurers have led to a sharp 44.1% increase in reinsurance premiums in 2002, says a report from global reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter.In its study “The World Catastrophe Reinsurance Market 2002”, the brokerage notes that…
Rating agencies bearish on reinsurance outlook (September 10, 2002)
September 10, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterU.S. rating agencies Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings have issued negative outlook reports for the global reinsurance sector, citing limited medium to long-term earnings growth potential despite the substantial rate increases introduced by companies during the course of this…
Protecting Value: An Enterprise-Wide Approach
August 1, 2002 Perry Brazeau, senior vice president of FM Global's Canadian divIn today’s climate of limited cover availability, increased costs and greater consequences on business returns, financial executives and risk managers must now find new solutions to help minimize their companies’ risk exposure. This is especially true in light of new research, which has found that contingency planning – once the realm of risk managers – has now reached the highest levels of the corporate boardroom.
Winners & Losers
August 1, 2002 Bill Star, president of Kingsway Financial Services Inc.The insurance industry has gone through two years of a hard market which started mid-2000 and became more restrictive following the disaster of September 11 of last year. Currently, the tight conditions experienced within the marketplace remain a dominating factor, particularly for managing general agents (MGAs) and program business.
Fires/floods cause more than US$2 billion in 2-Q cat losses
August 1, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterA wildfire that ravaged a large area of parkland at the Rodeo-Chediski Complex in Arizona over late June/early July this year is expected to cost insurers about US$120 million, according to loss estimates compiled by the Insurance Services Office (ISO).…
Wawanesa rating affirmed by A.M. Best
July 31, 2002 by Canadian UnderwriterRating agency A.M. Best has affirmed the A+ (Excellent) rating of Winnipeg-based Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company and its U.S. subsidiary, San Diego-based Wawanesa General. Outlook for the rating is stable.The rating reflects strong capitalization and operating performance, as well as…