ALIRT Industry Update: U.S. Life Review Year-End 2022
Our year end 2022 financial highlights based on insurers’ statutory financial statements.
Liquidity and Risks for Life Insurers
There has been considerable client interest in the liquidity of life insurance and annuity companies in the wake of
bank regulatory actions against Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and Signature Bank of New York (SBNY) over the
last several days. The concerns are understandable given a number of similarities between banks and life insurance companies, including the following:
Topa Insurance Gets Lifeline from Granada Financial Group
This past week Granada Financial Group (GFG) agreed to acquire a majority stake in Topa Equities, parent company of Topa Insurance Company and subsidiary Dorchester Insurance Company. Per our recent release on the upcoming sale of Argo Group, this is yet another example of a commercial specialty lines carrier taking remedial action in the face of poor operating results. What makes this transaction more interesting is the acquirer.
The Spectrum Approach to Insurer Financial Oversight – PC
Adopting a binary approach to the consideration of an insurer’s financial strength; i.e. that the carrier is either solvent (good) or insolvent (bad), is a common and potentially costly due diligence mistake. As historically not many insurers become insolvent (though more do so in the property & casualty and medical health insurance sectors) , distributors of their products may conclude that carrier financial oversight is therefore either unnecessary or something to be passed over lightly. While we agree that insolvency always equals a bad outcome, it does not follow that all solvent companies are necessarily “good.”
Hurricane Ian Loss Estimates for Florida Homeowners Specialist Cohort
Several weeks ago, ALIRT sent an email detailing total Hurricane Ian loss estimates based on releases from the international insurance community over the past two months.
Unpacking Hurricane Ian Losses
As ALIRT prepares to digest the 9 month 2022 statutory financial filings issued late last week, we pause to consider the impact of Hurricane Ian which struck Florida with sizeable force in late September.
Lincoln National Update Following $2.6 Billion Quarterly Loss
On November 2, 2022, Lincoln National Corporation (LNC) announced a $2.6 billion GAAP1 net loss for
the third quarter 2022, which followed its annual review of reserve assumptions and deferred acquisition
costs (DAC). The loss included the following:
ALIRT Industry Update: U.S. Health Review Six Months 2022
Our six months 2022 financial highlights based on insurers’ statutory financial statements.
ALIRT Industry Update: U.S. Life Review Six Months 2022
Our six months 2022 financial highlights based on insurers’ statutory financial statements.
U.S. Life Insurers’ Bermuda Reinsurance Exposure
The U.S. Life Insurance Industry has long utilized foreign reinsurance as part of its risk and capital
management strategies. In recent years the use of Bermuda reinsurance in particular has become
increasingly common among life insurers (especially for individual annuities), raising some concerns
among industry participants.