Latest Underwriting Headlines

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

Argo Warns of $114M Underwriting Loss, Extra Costs From Watson’s Departure

Feb 13 2020 // Argo Group International Holdings Ltd. is warning that its 2019 fourth quarter will feature some “unacceptable” results, particularly a $114 million underwriting loss. Separately, there are also added expenses...

Wisconsin’s Integrity Names Messerschmidt as Commercial Lines Underwriting Manager

Feb 13 2020 // Integrity Insurance, a property & casualty carrier headquartered in Appleton, Wisconsin, has promoted Lisa Messerschmidt to commercial lines underwriting manager.Messerschmidt will be responsible for leading a group of...

MGA Pen Underwriting Promotes Downey as CEO, Succeeding Turner

Feb 11 2020 // Pen Underwriting has announced the appointment of Tom Downey to the role of chief executive officer, subject to regulatory approval.He takes over the leadership of the £500 million (USS$646 million) GWP underwriting...

Workers’ Compensation Is Doing Well. Is It Time to Worry?

Feb 10 2020 // Although workers’ compensation results remain strong — and the line continues to outperform all other commercial insurance lines — worries about continued soft pricing and loss reserve levels for...

Take a ‘Deep Dive’ Into the Nonprofit Sector: Nonprofits Treading Water as Market Hardens

Feb 10 2020 // The task of insuring nonprofit organizations is a complex one and agents, brokers, underwriters and carrier representatives say that in order to fully serve those entities that serve our communities in myriad ways,...

A Tale of Two Californias: Managing Wildfire Risk in the Year 2030

Feb 6 2020 // For most of the 20th century, the insurance industry considered wildfires to be little more than a benign nuisance. They occurred frequently but rarely resulted in more than a handful of claims, and underwriters priced for...

AXA XL Appoints Benet as Global Chief Underwriting Officer for Cyber

Feb 5 2020 // To help manage its cyber risk portfolio worldwide, AXA XL has named Elizabeth Benet to the newly-created role of global chief underwriting officer for Cyber. Benet will help the insurer monitor its cyber risk portfolio and...

K2 Insurance of U.S. to Acquire UK’s Pioneer Underwriters

Feb 5 2020 // California-based specialty insurance holding company K2 Insurance Services is acquiring London-based Pioneer Underwriters.Pioneer will form the cornerstone for a new international platform of K2. This will initially...

J.M. Wilson Adds Knibloe as Assistant Transportation Underwriter in Michigan

Feb 5 2020 // J.M. Wilson has hired Andy Knibloe, as an assistant transportation underwriter in its Portage, Michigan, office.Knibloe is responsible for assisting underwriters on a wide variety of transportation risks, quoting new and...

The Unique Requirements of a Lloyd’s Syndicate-in-a-Box

Feb 4 2020 // Lloyd’s developed the concept of a syndicate-in-a-box (SiaB) to make it easier for innovative capital to enter the market, but there are certain requirements and differences compared to traditional syndicates.The...

W.R. Berkley Reports Underwriting Income Up, Catastrophe Losses Down

Jan 31 2020 // W.R. Berkley Corp. reported that its gross premiums written grew by more than 10 percent in the 2019 fourth quarter, thanks in part to accelerated rate increases.But net income dipped compared to the same period a year...

Is the Re/Insurance Industry Ready for the Fourth Industrial Revolution?

Jan 29 2020 // Industry transformations occur when the pain of staying the same is suddenly greater than the pain of changing, according to Karen White, CEO of RMS.“The second thing that has got to be present for those...

Beazley Adds Sanches as Underwriter in Southern California

Jan 29 2020 // Specialist insurer Beazley has appointed Justin Sanches as an underwriter within the U.S. healthcare liability team. Sanches joins Beazley’s Los Angeles, Calif., office to underwrite a range of global miscellaneous...

Workers’ Compensation Is Doing Well. Is It Time to Worry?

Jan 24 2020 // Although workers’ compensation results remain strong—and the line continues to outperform all other commercial insurance lines—worries about continued soft pricing and loss reserve levels for workers’...

AGCS Appoints Haagen as Chief Underwriting Officer Specialty, Succeeding O’Neill

Jan 22 2020 // Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE (AGCS), the corporate insurance carrier of Allianz Group, appointed Henning Haagen as chief underwriting officer specialty and member of the board of management, subject to...

MGA Incubator Castel Taps Carlos from Arch Insurance as Head of Specialty

Jan 17 2020 // Castel Underwriting Agencies Ltd., the managing general agent and club-style MGA formation platform, has announced the appointment of Raoul Carlos as head of Specialty as it structures its underwriting cells and MGAs into...

P/C Insurers Boosted Underwriting Profit, Surplus in 2019’s First 9 Months

Jan 17 2020 // The private U.S. property/casualty insurance industry saw its net underwriting gains increase to $5.4 billion in the first nine months of 2019 from $4.7 billion a year earlier, bolstered by growth in premiums and a drop in...

Coastal Insurance Underwriters Acquires Assets of Florida Tech Company Cybercom

Jan 17 2020 // Coastal Insurance Underwriters, Inc., a Ponte Vedra Beach Florida based MGU and program administrator, acquired the assets of Cybercom International Corp. on Jan. 2, 2020.Cybercom International Corporation, Inc. (CIC) was...

Philadelphia Insurance Names Doyle Co-Chief Underwriting Officer; Adds 3 Senior VPs

Jan 15 2020 // Philadelphia Insurance Companies has appointed John Doyle as a co-chief underwriting officer and promoted three vice presidents to senior vice president roles.Doyle is now shares the underwriting officer responsibilities...

One80 Intermediaries Acquires Pennsylvania’s Vista Underwriting Partners

Jan 15 2020 // One80 Intermediaries, a national wholesale insurance broker and program manager headquartered in Boston, Mass., has acquired Vista Underwriting Partners, a full service managing general underwriter of medical stop loss...