Latest Underwriting Headlines

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

Success or failure on paper

Feb 23 2012 // Success or failure on paper By: David Connolly iQ Consulting They are the primary form of communication with our underwriters. They have a substantial impact on our reputation. They are often the difference between winning...

The Hartford Hires Chartis U.S. Underwriting Chief Tucker

Feb 22 2012 // Hartford Financial Services Group announced three senior management appointments, including Tom Tucker as chief underwriting officer of commercial markets and head of specialty casualty. He will start his post at The...

Professional Underwriting Group Provides Insolvency Carve Back

Feb 22 2012 // The Professional Underwriting Group, Inc. (PUG) will now provide insurance agents and brokers professional liability insurance for insurers earning a rating of “A” or better from Demotech. The insurance...

Inland Marine Underwriters Association Announces New Board Chairman

Feb 16 2012 // The board of directors at Inland Marine Underwriters Association (IMUA) has voted Swiss Re America senior vice president Peter Opinante to assume the chairmanship of the board. Opinante, who served as deputy chair, fills...

Beyond Golf: P-U-T-T-E-R’s the Name of the Game in E&S World

Feb 16 2012 // Bill Reynolds, Atlantic Casualty Insurance Golf could be called the go-to sport of the insurance industry, so it’s safe to assume that most insurance professionals know what a putter is – a tool for cursing and...

United Heartland Names Miller Director of Corporate Underwriting

Feb 9 2012 // New Berlin, Wis.-based United Heartland has appointed Mary Miller as director of corporate underwriting. Miller recently joined United Heartland and is responsible for the ongoing development of the company’s...

Liberty International Underwriters Launches Cyber Liability Products

Feb 9 2012 // Agents and brokers have three new options for technology risks from Liberty International Underwriters (LIU). The specialty lines division of Liberty Mutual Insurance has started offering a trio of new primary cyber...

Have Insurers Lost the Capacity to Run an Underwriting Profit?

Feb 9 2012 // We frequently hear people ask, “When is the next hard market going to come?” And by that they typically mean double-digit increases in premium growth for a sustained period of time. Of course, no one knows. But...

Best Upgrades Fremont Ratings; Affirms Auto Club Group, P/C Members

Feb 7 2012 // A.M. Best Co. has upgraded the financial strength rating (FSR) to ‘A’ (Excellent) from ‘A-‘ (Excellent) and issuer credit rating (ICR) to “a” from “a-” of Michigan-based...

Fremont Insurance Co. Ratings Upgraded; Auto Club Group Affirmed

Feb 7 2012 // A.M. Best Co. has upgraded the financial strength rating (FSR) to A (Excellent) from A- (Excellent) and issuer credit rating (ICR) to “a” from “a-” of Fremont Insurance Co. (Fremont) of Fremont,...

Torus Appoints Rousseau to Develop General Property in France

Feb 6 2012 // Global specialty insurer Torus has appointed Gilles Rousseau as Senior Underwriter, General Property. He is based in Paris and has more than 30 years of underwriting experience, as well as “extensive knowledge of the...

People

Feb 6 2012 // Jamie Durocher has been promoted to director of business development for Eau Claire, Wis.-based wholesale insurance firm, Scobie Group. Durocher has held the position of marketing representative with Scobie Group since...

Have Insurers Lost the Capacity to Run an Underwriting Profit?

Feb 6 2012 // We frequently hear people ask, “When is the next hard market going to come?” And by that they typically mean double-digit increases in premium growth for a sustained period of time. Of course, no one knows. But...

People

Feb 6 2012 // Marsh & McLennan Companies has appointed AIG executive Julio Portalatin as CEO of Mercer, MMC’s human resource consulting unit. Portalatin succeeds M. Michele Burns who left the firm last October. Portalatin...

Zurich Appoints Chief Underwriting Officer in North America

Feb 2 2012 // Zurich has promoted industry veteran Sabrina Hart to chief underwriting officer for Global Corporate in North America. Hart replaces Paul Horgan who is relocating to Switzerland to become global head of group reinsurance....

A.M. Best Downgrades Florida’s FFVA Mutual to A-

Feb 1 2012 // A.M. best has downgraded the financial ratings of FFVA Mutual Insurance Co. due to underwriting losses on its workers’ compensation line of business, especially in states where it expanded outside of Florida. A.M....

Lime-St.com For Underwriters Launches Cloud Computing for Insurers

Jan 31 2012 // London Market technology specialists TriSystems has announced the launch of a new electronic underwriting service to complement their electronic broking platform, which, the company said, marks “a significant shift...

Maryland High Court Sides With Allstate in Coastal Homeowners Case

Jan 31 2012 // The Maryland Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court, ruled in favor of Allstate last week. It upheld a previous lower court’s ruling that the insurer was within its rights to stop writing new homeowners...

A.M. Best Downgrades Peachtree Casualty Due to Florida Auto Results

Jan 30 2012 // A.M. Best has downgraded the financial ratings of Peachtree Casualty Insurance Co., citing the insurer’s poor underwriting results due in part to rising costs associated with Florida’s troubled no-fault...

Best Revises Chartis, Lexington & Members Outlooks to Stable; Affirms Ratings

Jan 27 2012 // In connection with its revision of its outlook on AIG, A.M. Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength ratings of ‘A’ (Excellent) and issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “a” of Chartis US Insurance...