Reinsurance

A hard market now would be purely for the purpose of price gouging buyers of insurance, particularly commercial-lines insureds, according to an Americans for Insurance Reform report that says the industrys little understood economic cycle has been used to victimize policyholders for 35 years.

Enterprise risk management continued to move more toward the mainstream in Corporate America this year, with its implementation being driven by anxious boards and by CEOs more acutely aware than ever of the need to understand and mitigate existential threats.

The property and casualty insurance industry got hit hard with losses in 2011, but the prospect of a return to underwriting discipline and improved earnings in 2012 leads Fitch Rating Service to give the industry a stable outlook.

Had Japan been more fully insured for earthquakes, 2011 would have set a record for insured catastrophe losses. As it stands, 2011 will see approximately $108 billion in insured manmade and natural catastrophe losses, second only to 2005, when insured catastrophe losses reached $123 billion, according to a Swiss Re...

Global specialty insurer Torus says it is entering the surety market with the acquisition of First Sealord Surety Inc., and the subsequent launch of Torus Surety.

Industry veteran John R. Charman will retire as chief executive officer and president after a decade at the helm of specialty-lines insurance provider AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd. The companys chief financial officer will take the role.