Ironshore International boosted the capacity for its Terrorism & Sabotage coverage insurance programs. A division of Argo Group International Holdings, combined with a partner, is now offering transactional risk insurance designed to facilitate M&A transactions. RMS unveiled its new Colombia earthquake model.

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Ironshore International boosted the capacity for its Terrorism & Sabotage coverage programs to $400 million, up from the current $375 million limit.

The cover provides insurance protection against damage to commercial and residential property, including business interruption stemming from global terrorist attacks. It is provided on either a full value or first loss basis, with optional policy extensions that can respond to loss due to malicious damage, strikes, riots and civil commotions.

The insurer said that the cover has been increased in part due to the rice of terrorist attacks and incidents of civil unrest around the world. Ironshore offers War & Terrorism coverage globally through its Lloyd Pembroke Syndicate 4000 platform.

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Argo Group International Holdings’ Argo Pro division is partnering with BlueChip Underwriting Services LLC to provide transactional risk insurance to facilitate mergers and acquisitions.

Plans call for BlueChip to sell and underwrite the insurance, which will include Representational & Warranties, Tax Indemnity and Contingent Liability insurance products.

In turn, Argo Pro will be the lead provider, with capacity provided by Argo Group’s Lloyd’s of London operation, ArgoGlobal Syndicate 1200, which will offer global clients limits of up to $30 million for any one transaction.

Argo Pro provides professional lines insurance products and services for medium and large organizations on an admitted and non-admitted basis.

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Catastrophe modeling firm RMS won Colombian regulators’ O.K. to begin marketing its new earthquake model to national and global insurance companies who write earthquake risk in the country.

The approval is noteworthy because, as RMS explained, insurers writing earthquake risk in Colombia can only use catastrophe models approved by regulators to determine their probable maximum loss, average annual loss and to manage their capital reserves. RMS’s approval follows similar action taken previously regarding AIR Worldwide’s Colombia earthquake model.

RMS said its new model will allow insurers and reinsurers to access latest scientific understanding of regional earthquake hazard, combined with RMS modeling capabilities, to improve their risk selection and pricing. RMS said its Colombia model is one of eight focused on South America earthquake modeling. The others include Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Venezuela.

RMS said it developed the models by collaborating with South American seismology and engineering experts.
Sources: Ironshore, Argo Group International Holdings, RMS.