Around the industry: May 13, 2015

News from RMS, Chubb, Munich Re, U.S. captive states and more. (Photo: Shutterstock/Rawpixel)

Vermont governor Peter Shumlin signed into law changes that will lower surplus requirements for cell captives and make technical changes in other areas of the state’s captive statutes. It will cut in half the minimum capital requirement for cell captives from $500,000 to $250,000. In addition, Vermont’s captive law will now echo that for its traditional insurers and allow marketable securities to meet capitalization levels. Previously, the state would accept cash and cash equivalents, trusts and letters of credit.

The Chubb Group of Insurance Companies has added a leading global public relations firm to its network of independent crisis assistance service providers. Edelman has joined a list of three other providers that help Chubb’s commercial umbrella customers manage major liability crises that could generate significant adverse media attention.