September 2003/1

Laptop looks at Lloyd’s and ILV pension deficits and questions the increasing actuarial control... Actuaries Lane, Clark and Peacock estimate that, out of the 90 companies in the FTSE-100 index, only 13 showed a surplus of assets over liabilities in th

Against the backdrop of US tort reform, some US insurers are lobbying to increase Equitas' burden of asbestos claims, warned Equitas’ new chief executive Scott Moser this month. Speaking at Equitas' annual meeting on 12 September, Moser applauded the

UK insurers are being warned that increases in US reserves against asbestos-related claims could be a taster of things to come for the London market. The warning comes after news that US underwriters have bolstered their reserves for asbestos-related c

Rating agency Moody’s believes the current benign trading conditions will see Lloyd’s return a profit of £3.7bn for the 2002 and 2003 years of account. Moody’s has increased its forecast for 2002 to £1.9bn - the equivalent of 14.5 percent of capacity -

Lowered LSAs reflect poor performance and pipeline losses In the second yearly review of its Lloyds Syndicates Assessments (LSAs), rating agency Standard & Poor's has lowered its assessments on 10 syndicates and raised two, reflecting on the “poor oper

Lloyd’s specialist insurer Hardy Underwriting Group announced on Monday 22 September that it will begin underwriting financial institutions for the 2004 year of account. The account, which will be accommodated within the 2004 stamp capacity of £115mn,

Munich Re executives met with London based analysts and fund managers earlier this month as the reinsurer sought to reassure the City in the light of its shock downgrade by rating agency Standard & Poor's. In August, Munich Re suffered the humiliatio

Hurricane Isabel, which hit the US eastern seaboard with heavy wind and rain on 18 September, is estimated to have caused $1billion of insured property damage - significantly less than early forecasts.

The $10mn fine handed to AIG this month (11 September) was a further sign that US regulators are scrutinising the industry's penchant for complicated financial instruments. The world's most valuable insurance company agreed to settle an investigation b

Crédit Lyonnais has announced that it has reached agreement with the United States Attorney's Office to settle a long running investigation into the French bank's 1991 acquisition of Los Angeles-based Executive Life Insurance Company. In a statement po

Waning market share, slower premium rises and fiercer competition among smaller businesses: all are cited as catalysts for a mooted increase in broker M&A Consolidation among brokers is set to increase, according to new analysis by investment bank Morg

Lloyd's insurer Brit is considering legal action against rival Abacus Syndicates Management over the recruitment of former PRI Ltd staff, the liability insurer acquired by Brit earlier this year for around £173mn. As first revealed in issue 81 of The I

AIG backed ruling finds INA liable for Brandywine exposures, ACE to appeal The spectre of asbestos legacy issues hangs over Bermudian-based giant ACE Ltd, with the (re)insurer’s defeat in a landmark case involving Brandywine and ACE INA, inherited with

Under-reserved, GoshawK’s Syndicate 102’s future is on a knife-edge... Embattled Lloyd's insurer GoshawK saw its share price tumble for the second time in three months as the company admitted it was under-reserved by an undisclosed amount. Following

Belgo-Dutch insurer Fortis is set to spin-off its US insurance business in a 2004 New York Stock Exchange IPO that could value the business at around Eur4.2bn.

Lloyd's insurer Advent Capital (Holdings) plc revealed a welcome return to profit after the devastations of the 2001 underwriting year. The former BF Caudle agency is forecasting a strong profit of 25 percent on the 2002 year of its Syndicate 780, but

XL Capital’s ELU transfers prime treaty account to rival Benfield Reinsurance brokers RK Carvill is in dispute with a division of XL Capital after the Bermudian insurance giant transferred its prime directors and officers reinsurance treaty to rival in

Following AM Best’s decision to downgrade SCOR to B++ this month, the French reinsurer goes into the key renewal season with its rating below the critical A- from the major agencies.

Capital providers at Lloyd's will see their fees reduced next year after the Society restructured the levies charged on each underwriting member. As predicted in the August edition of The Insider, Lloyd's will end the current 2 percent premium levy at

Recently announced Lloyd's liability start-up Illium Syndicate 4040 is on the fast track to making its underwriting debut after deciding to buy a majority stake in the existing Lloyd's managing agency of run-off specialist Omni Whittington. Illium will

The expansion of Omega Underwriting Agents from a small Lloyd's managing agency into an insurance group that could even consider an IPO remains on a knife-edge. Omega has submitted to Lloyd's and had initial approval for plans which would see the Agenc

With the majority of interims published, Lloyd’s insurers are prospering as they unveil “market leading” combined ratios. Despite stiff competition, the current winner is Kiln Amlin: beats consensus with strong interims The second largest quoted Llo

New entrant with an interesting past offers EL insurance to the London Market... After the demise of the likes of Independent and The Underwriter, it was inevitable that soaring professional indemnity rates would attract new players into a market where

A new $550mn capitalised (re)insurer is set to be launched later this year with backing from US private equity houses and management shipped in from Swiss Re, The Insider can reveal. Bermudian based Quanta Capital Holdings Ltd will provide fresh (re)i