October 2005/3

GoshawK is set to become the first corporate victim from Hurricane Katrina and Rita’s insurance losses when the UK quoted company confirmed this morning that it is likely to go into run-off. The insurer – which after the demise of its Lloyd’s...

Lloyd’s chief executive Nick Prettejohn is to end his ten year association with the Corporation and join UK insurer Prudential plc at the beginning of next year. Prettejohn, aged 45 yrs, will replace Mark Wood as the chief executive of Prudential’s...

Following the impact of 2005's devastating hurricane season Lloyd's insurers are preparing to take advantage of expected rate rises next year, according to announcements made today (12 October).

UK regulator Financial Services Authority (FSA) has fined a subsidiary of GoshawK £220,000 over breaches of FSA rules in 2002 and 2003. The fines were levied on GoshawK Syndicate Management Ltd, the company which managed GoshawK’s ill-fated...

The UK Financial Services Authority (FSA) has said it is consulting with the (re)insurance industry on revised rules for the disclosure of finite reinsurance. The announcement follows a March 2005 request for information from the FSA for firms’ use...

Shares in Bermuda headquartered GoshawK slumped 18 percent to a low of 19.5p last week, before recovering to close at 24.5p today (10 October), after the troubled reinsurer more than doubled its estimate of net losses stemming from Hurricane Katrina...

With climbing estimates for flood losses following Hurricane Katrina that continue to differ wildly the catastrophe models used to calculate figures are coming under increasing criticism with one (re)insurer publicly questioning their confidence in the...

IPC Re became the latest Bermudian (re)insurer to announce plans to tap the capital markets when filing a mixed shelf registration late on Friday evening (7 October) to raise up to $1.25bn in future capital. The property catastrophe specialist also...

Japanese P&C (re)insurers received a positive outlook from ratings agency Moody’s when in its latest report it said there was a low to moderate possibility of a ratings action in the next 12-18 months on the sector.

Swiss reinsurer Converium has commuted net reserves of almost $250mn relating to the liabilities of Converium Reinsurance (North America) Inc during the third quarter of this year.

US insurer the Chubb Corporation has placed its 2005 third quarter catastrophe loss estimate at roughly $600mn gross and $390mn post-tax.

Leading broker Marsh has been chosen to provide insurance consulting and risk management services for the 2008 Olympic Games in the Chinese capital, Beijing. Marsh will team up with the China Sports Insurance Broker Company to provide services for...

HCC Insurance Holdings Inc revealed that it faces gross Hurricane Rita exposures of $70mn which would net down to $20mn after reinsurance, and $13mn with tax. In a statement, HCC founding chief executive Stephen Way explains: “Rita represents a...

Specialist Lloyd’s underwriter Marketform has made a commitment to a cleaner environment and carbon neutrality by joining ECX Associate Membership Ltd. ECX, which is chaired by former Brit Insurance chief executive Neil Eckert, provides advice to compa

Bermudian reinsurer Max Re reported net income for the nine months ended on 30 September of between $10mn and $20mn.

An excellent first-half to 2005 for European reinsurers has been eclipsed by the third-quarter catastrophes which are set to make this year the most expensive ever for the (re)insurance industry. That was the conclusion from reinsurance broker Benfield...

UK insurer Royal & Sun Alliance has vowed to fight on despite another set back in its attempts to avoid exposures to US student loan losses. Last week, a US Court of Appeals court upheld an earlier decision that R&SA’s US arm Royal Indemnity had...

Canopius announced the recruitment of Mike Duffy and Alex Shepherd on October 6. The new recruits will underwrite global property insurance for the Lloyd’s insurer, although there will be a particular focus to the US market.

Reinsurance broker Glencairn has announced it has hired Mark Ter Haar as business development director, as part of its acquisition of IoRisk Solutions.

Uncertainty over the ceiling for insured losses arising from Hurricane Katrina remains, as (re)insurers continue to revise estimates upwards. On Friday (7 October), shares in Bermuda-headquartered GoshawK tumbled after it revealed its gross losses...

Bermudian reinsurer Quanta, and Lloyd’s vehicles Kiln and Watkins Syndicate 457 are among the first in what is likely to be a growing list of (re)insurers withdrawing from selected lines of business for at least part of the remainder of 2005.

Aon UK confirmed last week that it is to follow rival MMC in reducing its headcount with a major restructuring of its Risk Services and Specialty divisions. As revealed by Insider Week on 26 September, the broker is to place its employees into...

Reinsurance specialists BMS Group have restructured their international arm BMS International Intermediaries Ltd and appointed Tom Gleis as managing director to replace the departed Steve Higginson.

It is an anniversary which many in the industry would be keen to forget. But on Friday 14 October, it will be one year on since the New York attorney general Eliot Spitzer rocked the insurance world with his stunning allegations against MMC.