September 2005/1

Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc (MMC) announced today (9 September) that president and CEO Michael Cherkasky will hand over the reins of broking subsidiary Marsh Inc to Brian M Storms with immediate effect.

Catastrophe reinsurer PartnerRe has become the first of the Bermudians to report its assessment of Hurricane Katrina losses.

On the eve of the key Monte Carlo reinsurance Rendez-Vous event, Standard & Poor’s has again downgraded a troubled reinsurer below its pivotal A- rating.

Pressure from US regulators over finite reinsurance continues unabated, with the revelation that Joseph Brandon, chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway’s General Reinsurance unit, has received a Wells notice from the US Securities and Exchange Commission..

Swiss insurer Zurich Financial Services (ZFS) has released its preliminary estimates of losses resulting from the recent flooding in Switzerland, southern Germany and Austria.

Lloyd’s insurer Kiln has released its estimates of the impact of Hurricane Katrina, suggesting that insured market losses will be in the region of $40bn, split $35bn for on-shore losses and $5bn for off-shore losses.

Lloyd’s insurers Chaucer and Beazley have added their figures to the list of early estimates of damage from hurricane Katrina.

Douetil raises spectre of $50bn insured losses: Wellington and Royal & SunAlliance (R&SA) have become the latest UK insurers to comment on incurred losses as a result of Hurricane Katrina.

GoshawK - the parent company of Bermudian reinsurer Rosemont Re – has announced its estimate of losses as a result of Hurricane Katrina.

Hannover Re has warned that the cost of Hurricane Katrina would mean the world’s fourth-largest reinsurer is unlikely to meet its profit forecasts for 2005.

Insured losses to the Gulf of Mexico energy sector will be twice as high as those of 2004’s Hurricane Ivan, according to the latest estimates of the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina.

Shares decline as H1 profit slump unveiled: London-listed (re)insurer Alea Group meets with rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) this week in an attempt to defray a threatened downgrade following the group’s disappointing interim results last week.