eInternational insurers forecast insurance prices continuing to rise in some classes of commercial business and relatively tight conditions continuing for the foreseeable future.
Although long term the market will remain cyclical, some moderating factors will smooth volatility, agreed a panel of insurance market leaders at yesterday's roundtable discussion. Such factors include: a better management focus on directing capital to profitable areas; greater differentiation between clients, reflecting risk management, loss prevention and risk mitigation; improved quality of information; more discipline and focus on managing the 'rolling technical result', and the focus by rating agencies on insurers' behaviour.
Looking at catastrophe risks, John Amore suggested that the insurance industry at European level should try to create a common organizational process for handling terrorism that individual countries could apply within their market solutions.
On the subject of inclusions of sub-limits and more exceptions in insurance programmes, Steve Schleisman explained that lack of good quantitative tools meant that sub-limits were sometimes the only way that insurers could define potential loss.
The insurers agreed that, while Europe was following the US example in terms of increasing liability claims, its different political and regulatory system would provide some cushion here.
Discussing questions from Maurizio Castelli, group risk manager of Pirelli and chairman of the International Risk Management Association, were: John Amore, president and CEO, Zurich North America; Ruud Bosman, executive vice-president in charge of international business, FM Global; Jean-Paul Rignault, CEO Axa Corporate Solutions; Steve Schleisman, CEO Allianz Global Risks and Clive Tobin, president and CEO, XL Insurance Global Risk.
