Best Reinsurer for Innovation (GWP of less than $2bn) winner: Catlin Re

Reinsurer Catlin Re was commended on its openness to new ideas and willingness to innovate. One respondent said that Catlin Re was a “small company with a global spread and once again are prepared to innovate on any transaction”.

Throughout the survey, Catlin Re’s underwriting team have been praised, and this category was no exception. The team was praised on its win-win attitude and its understanding of what clients want and need.

After grappling with Catlin Re for the top spot, XL Re took second position. One respondent said that XL Re has “proven that it has turned the corner”, while another responded that the reinsurer is “daring in new lines”.

The reinsurer was commended numerous times for its readiness to listen to clients and provide smart solutions. One respondent also added that the CEO, Jamie Veghte, promotes new product innovation.

London-listed Amlin took third place with a score of 7.01. The reinsurer, which is comprises Amlin Re Europe and US-based Amlin Re Managers, received exceptional feedback throughout the survey.

Catlin Re is a “small company with a global spread prepared to innovate.”

Formed in 1998 as the result of a merger between Murray Lawrence Lloyd’s underwriting agency and Angerstein Underwriting Trust, the reinsurer was praised for its focus on providing solutions and market experience.

One respondent said that “Amlin is constantly seeking additional knowledge in the market”, while another added that the reinsurer offered an all-round service.

AXIS Re and Arch Re took fourth and fifth place respectively. With a score of 6.91 out of 10, AXIS Re was praised for its innovation and ability to create new solutions.

Praised for a whole host of reasons, Arch Re received a score of 6.89 out of 10. The team was continuously commended as high quality following recent hires.

One respondent said: “If you look at how they’ve developed over the years, they have built a team based on what clients have asked for. In the past, they may not have done something but they’ve understood client’s needs and recruited accordingly.”

Many of the respondents spoke from experience, with one adding that Arch Re was part of a loss portfolio transfer transaction in the company. It was also commended on its willingness to provide alternative solutions and in particular its casualty focus.

The companies in the shortlists seen here were selected based on the first stage of the research, conducted via phone interviews and open online polls. Respondents were asked to name three companies they regard highly in this category. They were then asked to give details of why they had chosen these firms.

The shortlist for this category reflects the companies mentioned the most frequently.

The researchers then approached the market a second time and, using this shortlist presented in a random order, asked respondents to score each company out of ten based on how they perceive the firm based on the criteria of this category. It is the results of this part of the survey that are shown here.

More than 500 respondents took part in each part of the survey respectively.

The score shows the average score out of ten that each company received in stage two of the survey.

The shortlist was presented to respondents in a random order.