Alan Gray Selected to Provide Run-Off Administration Services for ECRA and CMC Reinsurance Pools
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Chubb reported third-quarter 2026 net income of $2.84 billion, or $7.30 per share, and record core operating income of $2.98 billion, or $7.66 per share, with consolidated net premiums written of $15.1 billion, up 1.9%. The P&C combined ratio was 84.1%, P&C underwriting income reached $2.06 billion, and pre-tax net investment income was a record $1.79 billion.
Florida’s Office of Insurance Regulation reports that Hurricane Isaias has so far generated about 47,000 claims in the state with estimated insured losses of $582 million. Most claims are from residential property owners, and industry observers including Gallagher Re and AM Best have described the storm as a manageable earnings event that is unlikely to significantly affect most carriers’ reinsurance renewals or surplus levels.
W. R. Berkley Corporation reported third-quarter 2026 net income of $446 million, or $1.14 per diluted share, and operating income of $456.5 million, or $1.17 per diluted share, with an operating return on equity of 18.8%. Pre-tax underwriting income in the insurance segment grew 10.6% to $237.7 million, the reported combined ratio was 90.8%, and net investment income reached $383.5 million.
E+S Rück expects demand for high-quality reinsurance protection to remain strong in the German market for 2027 renewals, even as competition intensifies in industrial property and other segments and catastrophe losses have been moderate. The company highlights ongoing claims inflation in motor, adequate pricing in natural catastrophe programs, pressure on industrial fire rates, and the growing role of insurance-linked securities as additional capacity.
Morningstar DBRS estimates that France’s latest riots will cost insurers no more than €1 billion to €1.2 billion, assuming no further violence, and describes the event as a manageable earnings rather than capital issue after reinsurance recoveries. The agency says the unrest reinforces the need to treat strikes, riots and civil commotion as an accumulation risk that requires dedicated pricing, limits, and reinsurance.
Howden Re argues that insurers should treat reinsurance as a capital management tool rather than solely as protection, especially in a softening market that allows programs to be redesigned around capital and return targets. The broker’s analysis of 42 European non-life insurers found that capital-light, high-return performers held about €28 of capital per €100 of premium and achieved roughly 22% ROE, while capital-intensive peers held €86 and returned less than 5%.
Munich Re recorded a preliminary third-quarter 2026 net profit of approximately €1.7 billion, driven by strong operating performance across segments, below-average major losses in P&C reinsurance, and a solid investment result. After a nine-month net result of €5.7 billion, the company has raised its full-year 2026 net profit guidance from €6.3 billion to €6.6 billion.
Gallagher Re’s Q3 2026 Natural Catastrophe and Climate Report shows global insured losses from natural disasters reached $92 billion through the first nine months of 2026, 29% below the 10-year average and the lowest nine-month total since 2019. The industry has now gone six consecutive quarters without a single event producing more than $10 billion in insured losses, with severe convective storms accounting for nearly 60% of insured natural catastrophe losses.
Travelers has increased the percentage of risk it cedes to its cyber quota share reinsurance treaty effective October 1, which is expected to reduce net written premiums by about $165 million in the fourth quarter and $230 million in full-year 2027, primarily in the Bond & Specialty segment. CFO Daniel Frey said the move is intended to manage risk exposure and that the impact on bottom-line earnings is expected to be de minimis in both years.
Marsh’s Global Insurance Market Index shows global commercial insurance rates fell 5% in the third quarter of 2026, the ninth consecutive quarterly decline, driven by ample capacity and strong insurer competition. Property rates declined 10% globally, casualty rates rose 1% largely due to the U.S., and cyber rates fell 4%, while buyers secured improved terms, higher limits, and lower deductibles.
NMS Capital Group has launched Ascendra Specialty Inc., a technology-driven managing general agency and program manager focused on bespoke insurance programs. Ascendra will initially concentrate on about eight business lines including professional liability, workers’ compensation, transportation, cyber, construction, property, environmental, and small business specialty, and has partnered with Moonshot Foundry for technology and operational support.
3M plans to argue that Australia’s landmark lawsuit seeking more than A$2 billion ($1.38 billion) over PFAS contamination from the company’s firefighting foam is legally flawed, including that the public nuisance claim is not available under Australian law. The case, the largest ever brought by Australia, alleges 3M knew or should have known the foam could harm the environment and people but failed to warn the government about risks at 28 military bases.
A U.S. appeals court has vacated class certification in lawsuits by California Tesla customers alleging the company misled them about the hardware capabilities of its full self-driving technology. The 9th Circuit found too many individualized questions about what buyers actually saw before purchasing, meaning the claims cannot proceed as a class action for now, though the underlying case remains pending.
Instacart parent Maplebear will pay $5 million to settle a federal investigation by the Justice Department and EEOC into claims that the company preferred hiring foreign workers through an employment-based green card program rather than Americans. The settlement includes $1 million in penalties and up to $4 million for affected applicants between December 2023 and February 2026, along with requirements to post job openings publicly and accept electronic applications from U.S. workers.
Meta Platforms was ordered to pay a $25 billion civil penalty to the state of New Mexico after a jury found the company violated consumer protection laws more than 43 million times through deceptive statements about how it handled hate speech and user data following the Cambridge Analytica scandal. The award, issued under New Mexico’s Unfair Practices Act, ranks among the largest civil penalties in U.S. legal history.
Industry executives at a NetDiligence Cyber Risk Summit said cyber losses are increasingly driven by financial fraud and business email compromise rather than traditional ransomware alone, with Travelers reporting that these claims now account for about 50% of its cyber claims and frequency rose 57% in the first half of 2026. Panelists noted that AI is making impersonation more convincing and helping attackers perform reconnaissance and overcome previous limitations, while also being used in defensive tools.
Delegance Brokerage has raised $3.1 million in pre-seed funding led by Grit Capital Partners to expand its AI-native commercial insurance brokerage. The company charges a flat, disclosed 5 percent fee instead of traditional commissions of 15 to 25 percent, is licensed in 51 jurisdictions with direct appointments from 25 carriers, and has secured more than $26 million in premium commitments for 2026.
Arbol has launched a new policy that protects data center developers and financiers against government-imposed moratoriums that halt or suspend construction, paying a predetermined amount if the action remains in effect past an agreed waiting period. The product responds to growing local opposition that has blocked or delayed at least 106 data center projects representing about $198 billion in investments in the first half of the year.
Willis’s Directors’ & Officers’ Liability Insurance Survey 2026 found that 70% of organizations have formally incorporated cyber risk into board-level enterprise risk frameworks and 65% of boards receive cyber briefings at least quarterly. While 60% of respondents quantify potential cyber losses and 48% already hold cyber insurance, only 55% said they had a good understanding of the cyber risks facing their organization.
Acrisure has appointed Andy Tedstone as Chief Executive Officer of its UK Retail business, effective April 2027. Tedstone, who has more than 30 years of experience in the UK broking market and is currently CEO of Cobra Network at PIB Group, will focus on sustainable growth and deepening client relationships as Acrisure continues to invest in its UK retail platform.
Arch Reinsurance Group has announced that Matthew Dragonetti, President of Arch Re Ltd., will retire effective March 2027 after a 25-year tenure with the company. Dragonetti joined Arch Re in 2001 as one of its first employees as a Senior U.S. Property Treaty Underwriter and later held a series of leadership roles leading to his current position.
AXA XL has appointed Erin Bouren as Underwriting Manager for E&S Casualty in the Western region of the U.S., where she will focus on driving growth, managing the portfolio, and strengthening broker relationships. Bouren, who brings more than 20 years of industry experience in casualty underwriting and portfolio management, will report to Laura Johnson, Head of West, E&S Casualty.
Munich Re’s Supervisory Board has transferred responsibility for P&C Reinsurance Europe & Latin America to Thomas Blunck effective 1 November 2026, who will continue as CEO of Reinsurance. Clarisse Kopff will step down from the Board of Management at the end of 31 October 2026 after a four-year term and will not be succeeded on the board.
Conduit Re has engaged Winfried Knust to support growth in credit, surety, political risk, and mortgage reinsurance. Knust, who brings more than three decades of experience and most recently served as Underwriting Manager and Head of Zurich Operations at Navigators Re, will work with Conduit’s specialty team to selectively expand the company’s product appetite.
Generali’s Board has approved an evolution of the Group’s organisational setup effective November 2, 2026, expanding the responsibilities of Direttore Generale and Group Deputy CEO Giulio Terzariol and reorganizing insurance markets into five areas from January 1, 2027. The changes include new regional leadership appointments, the creation of Group Insurance & Business Performance, and the departure of Marco Sesana and Jaime Anchústegui at the end of 2026.
HDI Global has appointed Sheena Williams as Global Head of Sport, Leisure & Entertainment, effective immediately. Williams, who has spent the past seven years at HDI Global and brings extensive experience across the insurance distribution chain, will focus on expanding the international SLE proposition, particularly in entertainment and film, while leveraging existing Sports Personal Accident expertise.
Holborn Corporation has announced that Adam Manus will become Chief Executive Officer and Tim Releford will become President effective March 1, 2027, while Frank Harrison will continue as Non-Executive Chairman. Both Manus and Releford have spent their entire careers at the independent, employee-owned reinsurance intermediary, and the transition is described as a planned succession that preserves the firm’s independent culture.
Howden has appointed Enrico Nanni as CEO, Europe, effective 1 January 2027, while he continues as Chief Commercial Officer and reports to Luigi Sturani, CEO of EMEA. The appointment follows five years of expansion in which Howden’s European business grew from 11 countries to 30 and from 1,000 to more than 6,000 colleagues with $8.5 billion in GWP.
Price Forbes has appointed Anthony Burnell-Nugent as Chief Executive Officer of its Marine division, with Paul Kearns becoming Chairman of Marine. Burnell-Nugent joined the firm in September 2026 from Miller Insurance Services, where he was Head of Hull, while Kearns has spent more than two decades at Price Forbes and will support the division’s long-term strategy in his new role.
AXIS Capital has promoted Roisin Kealy to Chief Executive Officer of AXIS Specialty Europe SE, based in Dublin and reporting to Sara Farrup, Head of Global Markets. Kealy, who joined the company in 2014 and has served as Head of Finance for AXIS Specialty Europe since 2022, will join the Global Markets leadership team.
The Fidelis Partnership has appointed Greg Bowman as CEO Bermuda, Mark Herget as CUO Insurance Bermuda, Deputy Group Head of Property and Head of Property Binders, and Danny Mereu as Deputy CUO Bermuda. These appointments strengthen the firm’s Bermuda leadership as it continues to expand its underwriting, analytics, and MGA capabilities on the island.
Alan Gray was established in 1988 as a claims and audit advisory firm, and over the years has built a reputation as a cost-effective, reliable, and trusted resource to those involved in the management of risk.
