Latest Reinsurance Headlines

All the headlines from our Reinsurance Topic Page, ordered by recency.

House Panels Face Environmental, Insurer Groups Over Catastrophe Bill

Mar 10 2010 // Two House subcommittees have scheduled a joint hearing today on ways to address homeowners insurance costs in disaster-prone communities, an issue that has some environmentalists, taxpayer groups and insurers standing...

Florida’s Homeowners Choice Reports Profitable Q4, Year 2009

Mar 10 2010 // Homeowners Choice Inc., a Florida-based homeowners’ insurer, reported a profitable fourth quarter and year 2009.Net income for the fourth quarter of 2009 was $807,000, compared to net income of $5.1 million for the...

Bermuda Insurers, Reinsurers Oppose State Cat Fund Bill – HR 2555

Mar 9 2010 // The Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers (ABIR) has filed an opposition to HR 2555 which, the Association warns would “replace private sector risk bearing capital with government reinsurance and government...

A ‘Great Earthquake’ Strikes Chile; Insurance Doesn’t Pose Systemic Risks to the Economy; Berkshire Buys More Munich Re

Mar 7 2010 // February was a short month, but a deadly one. In addition to a massive earthquake in Chile, the Northeastern U.S. was hit by three blizzards; floods and mudslides ravaged the Portuguese island of Madeira and beleaguered...

Fitch Sees Chile Quake Losses Unlikely to Impact P/C Insurance Ratings

Mar 5 2010 // Based on preliminary analysis, Fitch Ratings said it believes that the Chilean P/C insurance industry “will likely be able to absorb losses from the earthquake and Tsunami that hit the central-south part of Chile on...

Max Capital to Merge with Harbor Point; Conference Call Today

Mar 4 2010 // Max Capital Group Ltd. and Harbor Point Limited announced that they “have unanimously approved a definitive amalgamation agreement for a merger of equals.” Both companies are based in Bermuda. Max Capital is a...

S&P Affirms Max Capital and Harbor Point Ratings

Mar 4 2010 // Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services has affirmed its ‘BBB’ counterparty credit ratings on Bermuda-based insurance and reinsurance holding company Max Capital Group Ltd. and its intermediary...

Florida Recruits First Reinsurer Under Relaxed Collateral Rules

Feb 25 2010 // Florida insurance officials have reached an agreement with the first foreign reinsurer to operate under collateral requirements that were reduced in 2008 in an attempt to attract new reinsurers to the state.The Florida...

Best Maintains Stable Outlook on Global Non-Life Reinsurance Industry

Feb 23 2010 // For the fourth consecutive year, A.M. Best Co. is maintaining a stable outlook for the global non-life reinsurance industry. The current outlook implies that the “majority of 2010 reinsurer rating actions are likely...

Berkshire’s National Indemnity Stake in Munich Re Exceeds 5%

Feb 23 2010 // Munich Re has released a statement that “National Indemnity Company, Omaha, USA, informed us in accordance with Section 21, para. 1 of the German Securities Trading Act (WpHG) that its share of the voting rights in...

LeStrange to Retire as Endurance CEO, President; Cash to Succeed Him

Feb 18 2010 // Bermuda-based Endurance Specialty Holdings Ltd. announced that, effective March 1, 2010, David Cash will take over as its Chief Executive Officer. Kenneth J. LeStrange, the Company’s Chairman of the Board, President...

AJ Gallagher Buys Brazil Facultative Reinsurance Broker

Feb 17 2010 // Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has acquired Securitas Re of Sao Paulo, Brazil from Estater Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.It will trade internationally as Gallagher Brazil, as a...

Liberty Mutual Says It Was Victim of Fraud by General Re

Feb 16 2010 // Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. last Friday asked a federal judge to undo part of a recent settlement by a reinsurance unit of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. with federal investigators, saying it was a victim...

Armour Re Selects Barker to Serve as U.S. Subsidiary President

Feb 10 2010 // Bermuda-based Armour Reinsurance Group Holdings Limited announced the appointment of Katherine Barker as President of its US subsidiary, Armour Risk Management Inc. and group vice president. Armour Risk is the...

Kessler Appointed President at ACE Westchester

Feb 8 2010 // ACE Westchester, the Philadelphia-based wholesale-focused P/C operation of the ACE Group, has appointed Bruce Kessler as president of ACE Westchester Casualty and Specialty Lines.Based in Atlanta, Kessler will have...

Aon Warns on Political, Financial Risks; Berkshire Bets a Billion on Munich Re; IPCC Defends Climate Change Report; Frau

Feb 7 2010 // Aon Risk Services 17th Political Risk Map highlights continued political and financial instability for global business in 2010, closely linked to the ongoing recession in many parts of the world.“Rising risk levels...

Strunden Joins U.S. RE ApS; Skafte Promoted to VP

Feb 4 2010 // Mark Lucas, Managing Director of U.S. RE ApS, announced that Ruslana Strunden, an actuary with extensive experience in non-life insurance and reinsurance, has joined the Company as a Vice-president, and that Henrik Skafte...

Best Assigns ‘A’ Ratings to Starr International Insurance (Asia)

Feb 3 2010 // A.M. Best Co. has assigned a financial strength rating of ‘A’ (Excellent) and an issuer credit rating (ICR) of “a” to Hong Kong–based Starr International Insurance (Asia) Limited – both...

Munich Re to Post $3.57 Billion 2009 Profit; 95.3% Combined Ratio

Feb 2 2010 // Munich Re announced that according to its “preliminary calculations” consolidated profits increased “significantly” in 2009 to €2.56 billion [$3.57 billion, compared to €1.58 billion [$2.2...

Buffett’s Berkshire Amasses $1 Billion Stake in Munich Re

Jan 27 2010 // Munich Re posted a statutory notice on Tuesday announcing that Berkshire Hathaway’s stake in the company rose to 3.045 percent on January 18, just above the level at which such holdings must be...