NU Online News Service, Nov. 12, 3:10 a.m. EDT

Hamilton, Bermuda-based Catlin Group Limited, an international specialty property and casualty insurer and reinsurer, reported a 13 percent increase in net premiums earned for the first nine months of 2010 compared to 2009.

The company said about half of the increase is attributable to increases in premium volume and higher rates relating to business written in 2009 but not earned until 2010. The remainder is attributable to the embedded growth arising from the 2006 acquisition of Wellington Underwriting plc., the company said.

Gross premiums written for the 2010 third quarter were $3.2 billion, up 9 percent from $3.0 billion in 2009.

Stephen Catlin, chief executive of Catlin Group Limited, said in a statement: "I am pleased to report that all areas of the Catlin Group performed well during the third quarter. Our Bermuda, U.S. and International underwriting hubs continue to report meaningful and profitable premium growth, with the non-London hubs now accounting for 43 percent of the group's total gross premiums written."

He added that while there have been a large number of Atlantic storms during the current hurricane season, "so far the group has incurred no losses from these events, and overall loss activity was benign in the third quarter. Our estimate of the two major losses that occurred earlier this year--the Chilean earthquake and the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion--has not changed during the third quarter."

Mr. Catlin noted that while the rating environment is challenging, "we believe there are still good margins available for many classes of business."

A Catlin spokesperson said Catlin does not disclose the combined ratio in quarterly interim management statements. "In the U.K., most insurers only disclose full underwriting information (including the combined ratio) at the end of the first half and the full year," he said in an e-mail.

Special Reports /

Catlin Reports 13% Increase In Net Premiums Through Sept.

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