CONSTRUCTION 

Iconic 200 ft. clock mid-construction policy arranged with time to spare

Miller have recently placed Builders All Risks insurance for an iconic clock which is currently being constructed. A US wholesale broker approached us to obtain terms as the countdown to renewal was on for the insured’s existing Builders Risk policy. The incumbent market was not in a position to extend due to their construction book of business being in run-off. This left the policyholder with a problem on a highly complex construction project that was already underway.

Time was of the essence in more ways than one. Mid-construction policies are never easy or popular with underwriters. 

The US wholesale broker approached Miller due to our ability to provide them with access to the expertise of the London market and in the knowledge that we have solved similar problems in the past. The client needed coverage for the partially-constructed, high profile and unique project. 

Careful collation of necessary information and good liaison between respective teams meant that we were able to obtain a suitable policy with Lloyd’s lead and completed with London company markets support. 

Flood and Earthquake cover for a Levee construction project

Domestic markets could not provide contract compliant limits for excess Flood and Earthquake to cover a levee construction project in Washington State. The project was scheduled to take a number of years and included site clearance, construction of concrete flood walls, bulk earthworks, erosion and sediment control, roads and recreational areas.

Construction underwriters in London and the Miller team have a high level of expertise regarding complex civil and infrastructure projects and also have the ability to deploy significant capacity with regard to natural peril exposures.

The initial excess named peril only approach was not of interest to underwriters but a ground up policy on an all risk basis including natural catastrophe perils gained much more traction. Our experience enabled us to work with our intermediary client to identify and obtain the right project information to enable us to present the risk in the best possible way to insurers.  

A thorough marketing exercise successfully resulted in a policy that delivered terms for the full duration of the project, including full value cover for flood and earthquake.  

Levee facts

• There are nearly 100,000 miles of levees protecting communities, critical infrastructure, and valuable property in the U.S. 
• As development continues to encroach in floodplains along rivers and coastal areas, an estimated $80 billion is needed in the next 10 years to maintain and improve the nation’s system of levees.
• Most of the levees across the country were built in the middle of the last century by federal, state and local agencies or by private property owners. 
• The average age of levees in the U.S. is 50 years and most of them are believed to be outdated or in need of repair.

Our markets are interested in other similar exposures. Are you working on any or have a prospect with similar challenges?

CARGO

Cargo team overcome challenging market conditions to secure key renewal 

Working with a US intermediary, Miller’s cargo team secured a second consecutive renewal with the insured (a manufacturer and distributor of refrigeration units, equipment and related gas products) for a three tier excess stock programme.

There was competition but the domestic market was unable to offer the required significant capacity including full limits for CAT perils.

Securing the required capacity in difficult market conditions made this a challenging renewal. The cargo market have suffered a number of significant excess stock losses in recent years, as a result underwriters have not only continued to increase rates, but also taper their line sizes to reduce and spread their exposure. 

Despite losing a number of incumbent markets, we successfully managed to renew all three excess policies within the producer’s target premium. This was done by efficiently layering the available capacity across our polices to ensure that we achieved the most competitive premium. We were able to offer coverage with a sufficient limit and also provide drop-down CAT cover over a significant amount of exposure, which included retail locations. 

The producer was very happy with our renewal terms which we managed to secure below their target expectations. 

Delivering improved terms and a significant premium saving in a challenging cargo market

Miller’s Cargo / Stock Throughput team placed coverage for a leading oil and gas services company, covering a wide range of equipment and chemicals in transit on land, ocean and air as well as storage in over 50 locations scattered around the world including North America, Europe and Asia. 

The US intermediary approached Miller following a recommendation from the new risk manager at the company who had previously worked with Miller and had been impressed by the cargo team and their specialist focus.

We were originally asked to submit a separate quote in order to be compared to the existing placement (also in London) and were shortly appointed sole London wholesale broker. We explained market conditions, talked through coverage and retention options and put a strategy together about how we could obtain improved pricing with increased Cat aggregates. 

Our extensive marketing gave both our retail partner and the insured confidence that they had the best deal on offer in a challenging cargo market. Miller left no stone unturned approaching over 40 markets in London and Europe to find the most suitable and competitive insurers to partner on this risk. 

As a result of this, we were able to deliver improved terms and a significant premium saving. The US intermediary was delighted, and with the new relationship established, is already joint targeting on other business.

Working with our US partners, this is a great example of how together, we can meet the needs of clients’ operating with increasingly complex supply chains.  

TERRORISM 

Overcoming obstacles: A win for the Terrorism team - Hotel in downtown Manhattan

Miller’s Terrorism team was recently approached by a US retail broker to provide a standalone terrorism quote for an individual hotel in downtown Manhattan.

The Insured was originally part of a group programme, which logically should deliver premium savings from bulk purchasing. However they felt overly penalised and weighted against in the group premium allocation due to the hotel being located in prime Manhattan, therefore they no longer saw the benefit of staying on the group programme. Were they right or wrong and could we help the retailer break them out? 

A number of obstacles had to be overcome in order to achieve success, as the policy had challenging wording, various sub-limits and extensions, which we managed to which we achieved underwriter agreement and the placement was secured at better than the group programme pricing. 

PROPERTY & CASUALTY

Two day turnaround on challenging retro risk

Miller recently helped a UK based client access retro Products Liability terms for a distressed risk.  

The company had traded without Products Liability insurance for at least three years, retailing electronic goods manufactured in China predominantly to customers in the US, with at least one of their products being recalled. The company were due to be acquired and the deal was expected to close within two days, by which time cover needed to be in place. 

Despite lack of information and obvious challenges, Miller worked tirelessly to secure terms within the two day timeframe via a specialist market with whom the Miller team have a strong relationship.