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.

Amlin plc became the first Lloyd’s insurer to publicly estimate its exposures to Katrina, as it projected $110mn net of reinsurance – but shares in the group rose almost 3 percent on strong first half figures.

Lloyd’s of London is sensibly awaiting details from its trading syndicates before revealing details of its estimated losses from Hurricane Katrina.

French reinsurer SCOR continued its return to profitability as it announced an 18 percent rise in net income to EUR72mn in its first half results for 2005 last Thursday (1 September).

Supporters of UK solvent schemes of arrangement were encouraged by a Scottish Court’s decision to sanction the M&G Re scheme last Thursday (1 September).

US broker Hilb Rogal & Hobbs Company revealed last week that it had settled with Connecticut regulators investigating the firm over alleged compensation abuses.

Bermudian reinsurer Partner Re has appointed Emmanuel Clarke to head up the property and casualty business unit of its global operations.

Mark Hardinge, the former Aon Ltd managing director of its professional risks division, is set to join UK broker Heath Lambert Group later this year.

Devastating hurricane on course to be costliest natural catastrophe of all time: As the sheer scale of devastation wreaked by Hurricane Katrina becomes clearer, estimates of economic and insured losses have begun to escalate, as the industry starts to

Start-up European reinsurer Glacier Re has added to its pool of underwriting talent with the appointment of Franco Masciovecchio as senior underwriter on its property and energy portfolio.

UK insurer Brit Insurance Holdings has announced the appointment of Kathy Lisson as Chief Operating Officer as the group continues its drive for market reform and operational changes.

LCL Group – the run-off manager to debt collections specialist – has today (5 September) announced the acquisition of Associated International Insurance (Bermuda) Limited (AIIB).

Claims Management Group Limited (CMGL) has been acquired from Zurich Financial Services Group (Zurich) (ZFS) by a management buy-out backed by UK private equity firm Sovereign Capital Partners LLP.