Insurance Marketplace Realities 2024 – International casualty
November 9, 2023
The market remains stable within a complex landscape. Capable markets are offering competitive terms and pricing while also investing in strategies to set themselves apart.
Casualty
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Rate predictions: International casualty
Trend
Range
International casualty
Flat
A broad range of carriers continues to provide ample capacity, with a commitment to investing in talent and employing efficient risk transfer tools.
External factors such as inflation, geopolitical instability, instances of nationalism, and a fluctuating regulatory environment pose ongoing challenges. Nevertheless, solutions remain available.
Data remains a key commodity in this market, whether it be underwriting exposures, as well as the data that carriers make available about the coverage they issue around the world.
Across the portfolio, claims statistics remain below the common averages for U.S. casualty, whether in terms of frequency or severity. However, administrative costs remain a significant factor in international casualty placements and warrant consideration during renewal planning and budgeting.
While related lines of business such as U.S. and excess casualty can influence international casualty renewals, buyers can anticipate a stable landscape benefiting from carrier confidence and healthy competition.
With a focus on the amount of administrative complexities from multinational coverage, opportunities exist to streamline time and costs. Multi-year arrangements can provide longer-term pricing stability. Additionally, partnering with a select number of carriers supporting multiple lines of coverage can yield pricing and terms advantages.
U.S.-based insureds can access international casualty markets in both the U.S. and Europe to obtain competitive terms; however, there are some notable coverage nuances.
Accessing coverage from European markets will deliver optimal coverage terms for the larger multinational organizations who require support for more complex risks. U.S.-based markets offer competitive terms for both middle-market and larger global programs.
Establishing clear objectives about what success will look like will help ensure a successful renewal in general; however, when choosing a market access point, insureds should examine the value of higher localized limits (e.g. $10 to 20 million or more) and/or the issuance of coverage terms more commonly available in Europe — and ensure a source for foreign voluntary WC.
Access points into the market do not impact the need to ensure proper alignment across U.S., international and excess casualty on topics of coverage territory, attachment points and carrier relationships.
While most key coverage terms remain available for competitive pricing, insureds have a few places to focus.
PFAS (per and poly-\fluoroalkyl substances) are still very much a topic at renewal, and insureds with manufacturing and retail exposures can anticipate additional underwriting data requests. However, there are recent examples of a softening approach in the market, where exclusions can be removed where exposure is minimal.
With federal sanctions imposed in eastern Europe, global and regional carriers are restricting or eliminating coverage that can be issued in Russia and Belarus. Coverage from global programs is a particular challenge for buyers’ subsidiaries in the region, so insureds should seek independent coverage in the local market. In recent exceptional cases, global program carriers have considered more flexibility in the discussion of issuing admitted coverage into the Ukraine as well as offering excess/DIC limits around exposures in these countries to protect the insureds’ global HQ exposure.
In preparation for the implementation of international programs, there are often several AML & KYC documents — and documents will vary depending on the mix of countries involved. It can often take several weeks to identify and complete these documents, so we recommend the elevation of these items prior to renewal; some markets are making them available to insured HQs in order to get out ahead of the work.
Disclaimer
Willis Towers Watson hopes you found the general information provided in this publication informative and helpful. The information contained herein is not intended to constitute legal or other professional advice and should not be relied upon in lieu of consultation with your own legal advisors. In the event you would like more information regarding your insurance coverage, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. In North America, Willis Towers Watson offers insurance products through licensed entities, including Willis Towers Watson Northeast, Inc. (in the United States) and Willis Canada Inc. (in Canada).
Each applicable policy of insurance must be reviewed to determine the extent, if any, of coverage for losses relating to the Ukraine crisis. Coverage may vary depending on the jurisdiction and circumstances. For global client programs it is critical to consider all local operations and how policies may or may not include coverage relating to the Ukraine crisis. The information contained herein is not intended to constitute legal or other professional advice and should not be relied upon in lieu of consultation with your own legal and/or other professional advisors. Some of the information in this publication may be compiled by third-party sources we consider reliable; however, we do not guarantee and are not responsible for the accuracy of such information. We assume no duty in contract, tort or otherwise in connection with this publication and expressly disclaim, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any liability in connection with this publication. Willis Towers Watson offers insurance-related services through its appropriately licensed entities in each jurisdiction in which it operates. The Ukraine crisis is a rapidly evolving situation and changes are occurring frequently. Willis Towers Watson does not undertake to update the information included herein after the date of publication. Accordingly, readers should be aware that certain content may have changed since the date of this publication. Please reach out to the author or your Willis Towers Watson contact for more information.
