Many of the products people use every day are made in foreign countries - from coffee makers produced in China to cars built in Germany to cell phones manufactured in India. While many of these products fulfill their purpose without any complications, there are others that cause problems for their users. A coffee maker might spill boiling water or a car’s airbag might not open properly. These problems can be caused by manufacturing errors or flaws in product design.

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A summary of the compulsory and optional terrorism pools that operate around the globe.

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Here we review past GC Capital Ideas stories that have focused on legislation surrounding insurance covering terrorist acts.

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When banks in Europe and the United States become unable to honor their financial obligations in 2007 and 2008, governments bailed them out. But why? The standard answer is that politicians faced a terrible choice. They had to choose between saving insolvent banks largely “as is” in the short-term, or unleashing economic chaos. Recovery and Resolutions Plans (RRPs) are supposed to stop such a dilemma arising again.

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Guy Carpenter reports that the reinsurance sector enters 2013 equipped with ample dedicated capital and stable pricing. In its 2013 global renewal report, The Route to Profitable Growth, Guy Carpenter finds that the January 1, 2013 renewals took place against a stable backdrop, with only loss-affected lines and select regions experiencing price volatility. The market was supported by a combination of factors including lower than normal catastrophe losses during the first nine months of 2012, new reinsurance capacity and record-high levels of capital.

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David Flandro, Global Head of Business Intelligence, Julian Alovisi, Assistant Vice President, Lucy Dalimonte, Senior Vice President, Ellen Rieder, Managing Director and Emma Karhan, Senior Vice President
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To help (re)insurers manage the global terrorist threat, terrorism reinsurance pools have been created in a number of countries. The pools were established in reaction to the specific threats faced within each country, and each pool generally requires a declaration by the national government that a terrorist event has occurred to trigger coverage. In the countries where compulsory or optional terrorism reinsurance pools exist, property insurance policies can be extended to include terrorism coverage in accordance with the local pool. In such situations, any standalone terrorism and sabotage policy would be issued as difference in conditions (DIC) and difference in limits (DIC/DIL) of the locally issued property policy.

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Recent Legislative and Judicial Developments in Continental Europe Affecting the Casualty Insurance Industry  is the latest installment in Guy Carpenter & Company Ltd.’s (”Guy Carpenter’s”) legislative update series, designed to provide our international clients and markets with a concise overview of key trends in the Continental European legal environment. These issues have had an impact on insurers and reinsurers or are expected to have an effect in the near future.

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Matthew Day, Senior Vice President
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Lloyd’s has a well-developed risk management framework. A number of committees provide oversight for the Market and detail what is required of members in terms of their own risk management. Lloyd’s is required to conduct an ICA for the Market as a whole, using the normal FSA risk categories to examine risks that are not captured within syndicate ICAs. This process aims to determine the level of capital required to be held centrally that can withstand a 1-in-200 year event over a one-year time frame. The Lloyd’s ICA is an important driver for the Council in determining the optimum level of central assets. Another key driver is the expectation that the costs of mutuality will be less than 1 percent of members’ GWP across the insurance cycle. The central assets target and the level of contributions are regularly reviewed in light of the Market’s current financial position and forecasted needs.

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Here we highlight GC Capital Ideas’ recent top stories covering the evolving Solvency II capital requirements regime.

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Guy Carpenter sister company, Oliver Wyman, has published a new report on Solvency II. The road to implementing Solvency II has been longer and more circuitous than expected. In Oliver Wyman’s joint report with Morgan Stanley, Solvency II: A Long and Winding Road, they provide insights on implementation progress thus far. The report also discusses key debates in the industry, which will have a significant impact upon the insurance landscape across Europe, including:

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