E&S/Specialty

A House panel has reported out flood insurance legislation and two other bills dealing with natural catastrophes, but only the flood program extension has unanimous industry backing.

Captive insurers tend to be capitalized in excess of the statutory minimums regardless of where they are domiciled, according to a new report from Marsh insurance brokerage.

As debate continues on financial services reform legislation in the Senate, insurance industry representatives said they will work to eliminate regulatory provisions they consider too "bank-centric."

There's no clear answer as to whether fraud litigation brought against Goldman Sachs by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will fuel a new wave of credit crisis lawsuits.

While program carriers have found property and casualty business opportunities in everything from auto repossessors to fine arts in recent months and years, some are eyeing new business potential in the accident and health space.

Directors and officers insurance experts found little to celebrate in a report declaring an end to securities lawsuits arising from the credit crisis, and Goldman Sach's recent troubles had them throwing more cold water on positive findings.

The return on catastrophe bonds increased 11 percentage points over the last twelve months with North America Wind bonds leading the pack, according to a report from Aon Benfield Securities.

Securities lawsuit filings fell by 39 percent in the first quarter, according to a report by Advisen, which noted that several high-profile stockholder actions were dismissed as well.