Ken J. Hawkins
Darcie R. Truttmann
Michael K. Chen
Erich A. Brandt
Robert J. Walling III
Aaron N. Hillebrandt
Joseph A. Herbers
Arthur R. Randolph II
Nicholas Gurgone
Laura A. Maxwell
Timothy C. Mosler
Gregory W. Fears, Jr.
Derek W. Freihaut
There were queries from our auditors which required further detail. Pinnacle provided this to us in a timely manner and enabled completion of the audit on time, which was greatly appreciated.
Pinnacle helps alternative market risk owners, captive managers and service providers determine risk retentions that optimize the balance between the cost of risk transfer and loss volatility.
Pinnacle consultants deal with auditors daily, assisting them in serving their customers and evaluating the work products of other actuaries.
Pinnacle provides loss reserve analyses and other diagnostics in support of collateral negotiations associated with deductible and/or self-insured retentions.
Pinnacle is experienced developing cost allocation mechanisms by member or department in the most equitable manner using elements such as – exposure, geographic cost differences and actual loss experience.
Management sometimes wishes to reflect the time value of money in funding projections, accruals for unpaid claims liabilities and other valuations. The two most important parameters for doing so are the assumed interest rate and the underlying claim payment pattern. Assessing reasonable values for these parameters is not trivial as the interest rate may need an adjustment for risk while the claim payment pattern may not be readily available.
Whether it’s a captive insurance company, large deductible program, self-insured entity, public entity pool or syndicate, an alternative market entity is a risk retention program outside the traditional commercial property and casualty market. By virtue of the growth in the alternative markets for more than 30 years, the premium volume outside the mainstream markets is now greater than that written by the traditional markets.
Pinnacle understands the needs of those involved in the alternative markets, the most important of which is a desire to control insurance costs over the long term. Each program has unique risk characteristics that are often the impetus for the program formation in the first place. Differing geographic, industry or line of business mixes of business may dictate customized approaches to reviewing the risk profile for your program.
Pinnacle has expertise in a wide variety of lines of business, regulatory jurisdictions and industry niches. Not only do we have a team of experienced consultants at your service, we also have the local knowledge unique to individual market segments such as:
April 2020 APEX Cyber Insurance: What’s in Store for Captives Authored by Nicholas Gurgone and Aaron N. Hillebrandt.
Risk (and Opportunity) Everywhere Captive Review Authored by Robert J. Walling III.
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Cayman Captive More »
Pinnacle serves many of the largest group captives in the world, many of them domiciled in the Cayman Islands. These reserve analyses are typically produced twice a year and serve multiple purposes. First, they provide a range of reasonable estimates which management uses to determine their best estimate of ultimate losses and unpaid claims liabilities. Second, these reserve estimates can then be allocated to individual members to determine the outstanding liabilities and potential future assessments, if any. Finally, the allocated ultimate losses become the basis for renewal pricing estimates for each member. Pinnacle’s approach to estimating and allocating reserves in group captives is unique in the industry and sets our alternative practice apart with its efficiency and accuracy.
Self Insured Dividend / Assessment Analysis More »
A large group self insurance program was concerned with the amount of retained earnings and wanted to establish a policy for the minimum capital for the program to trigger dividend distributions. Pinnacle compared the program’s capitalization to a wide variety of industry standards for similar programs from rating agencies, regulators, and other sources. The results of this analysis lead to a recommended board policy regarding a minimum capital threshold for dividend distributions and ultimately to the development of an actuarially sound dividend distribution plan.
Self Insured Loss Reserve Analysis More »
Pinnacle was approached by a major, national manufacturer to perform a loss reserve analysis of their retained workers compensation, auto liability, general liability and products liability loss exposures. The previous actuary worked for a large broker which the customer felt presented a conflict of interest. In addition, the actuary used industry benchmarks that the customer felt did not accurately represent their loss development behavior. Pinnacle worked with the customer to better understand their loss exposures, claims handling practices, and corporate risk management philosophy. We worked with the company to gather better internal data and refine the industry benchmarks to better reflect their third party administrator, industry focus and geographic mix. These refinements, and many others, led to a more accurate analysis of the company’s retained loss exposures, a reduced provision for unpaid claims on their balance sheet, and reduced collateral requirements from their fronting carrier.
At Pinnacle, we partner with you to explore whatever path it takes to find the answers you need.
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October 14, 2020 Pooling Today
October 15, 2020 October APEX Webinar - An Update to Pinnacle’s Risk Retention Group Benchmarking Study Register