I was shocked yesterday to hear Property Casualty Insurers Association of America President Ernie Csiszar abruptly announce his resignation. The move comes shortly after PCI reversed course and pulled out of ProtectingAmerica.org–the Allstate-backed group pushing for a federal mega-catastrophe fund–which PCI joined with much fanfare days before defecting.

While everyone directly involved is making nice and declining to comment on Ernie's motivations, this most probably is a direct result of the tug of war PCI found itself in over its position on catastrophe coverage. As I noted in yesterday's post, “An Industry Divided,” PCI was in a tough spot because Liberty Mutual and Allstate–two mega-members–took exactly opposite stances on what role, if any, Uncle Sam should play in disaster insurance.

Ernie and I don't always see eye to eye, but I respect the fact that he's a straight shooter and says what's on his mind. Perhaps in his current situation, caught in the crossfire between two powerful members, it was either 'let me lead, or let me go.' In any case, with all his connections in the business, he should land on his feet pretty quickly. I look forward to dueling with him again wherever he ends up.

As for ProtectingAmerica.org and its Allstate sponsor, this is a terrible blow to their cause–perhaps a deathblow. I cannot imagine Congress acting to create a national cat fund with the industry itself so bitterly at odds over the concept. The opposition is just too fierce, and this was a hard sell for Congress in the first place. Even a united industry might not have been able to slip this one by a very divided and skeptical Congress.

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