June 2004/6

Global Aerospace Underwriting Managers (GAUM) CEO Tony Medniuk has started his reign as chairman of the International Underwriting Association (IUA) with a pledge to keep technology in the London Market at the top of the agenda.

In its latest Sigma study, reinsurance giant Swiss Re notes that the direct insurance industry – now worth $2.94tn – is well on the road to recovery, and will continue to show improvement this year.

Lap dancing group Spearmint Rhino is in dispute with German insurer Allianz for non payment of claims, Insider Week has learned, with legal teams representing both companies appearing in London’s Royal Courts of Justice last week to agree a timetable for

Oil giant Royal Dutch/Shell looks set for a courtroom clash with angry shareholders after 27 directors and officers of the company were named in a lawsuit filed in the US by law firm Lerach Coughlin Stoia and Robbins LLP in relation to the recent oil rese

Bermudian reinsurer RenaissanceRe revealed last Wednesday (23 June) that stalwart and chief underwriting officer David Eklund has resigned from the group “to pursue personal interests”.

June has become a fertile month for catastrophe bonds with at least three $100mn+ contracts either signed or close to fruition.

Despite operating momentum building from last year into first quarter 2004 results, the property/casualty industry faces its biggest challenge in its ability to maintain underwriting discipline as premiums fall off and surplus levels rise, according to AM

Despite previously describing the Californian workers’ compensation sector as “crazy”, Berkshire Hathaway has agreed to replace Everest Re as the carrier on Acacia Pacific Holdings’ California Workers Compensation Program.

Recently floated Bermudian (re)insurer Alea revealed last week that CEO Dennis Purkiss will step down from the executive board at the end of June, with group president and COO Mark Ricciardelli taking the reins.

Shares in UK brokerage Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT) hit a three-year low last week on fears that the company’s profits would be hit by weaker than expected reinsurance volumes.

Lloyd's has undergone an impressive turnaround since September 11 and results are likely to remain strong through 2004, Marsh-owned reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter has concluded in its latest overview of the London insurance market.

The insurance and reinsurance sectors are the most exposed industries in the short term to increases in the prevalence of obesity, a new report from Dresdner Kleinwort Wassertein Research (DrKW) has concluded.