Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Somerford and Mueller Selected for International Internships

Rachel Somerford, a junior at the University of North Texas, and Claude Mueller, a junior at Florida State University, NAPSLO interns in 2008, have been selected by NAPSLO for additional internships in London and Bermuda in 2009.

Each summer NAPSLO selects students from around the country for its internship program. Out of 80 applicants in 2008, Somerford and Mueller were two of 15 interns selected for the internships. Of the 15 interns, seven were selected to attend the NAPSLO Annual Convention in San Diego where the interns had many opportunities to interact with individuals representing the Excess and Surplus Lines industry. After an interview process at the NAPSLO convention, the Internship Committee selected Somerford and Mueller as the 2008 top interns.
Rachel was selected as the J.H. Blades Scholar and will receive a 3-week internship in London and will intern with Miller. Claude was selected as the first recipient of the new Bermuda Scholarship sponsored by NAPSLO and will intern with Crump International in Hamilton.

With the additional internship opportunities, NAPSLO provides airfare and a stipend for the students to spend three weeks learning about the London or Bermuda insurance market with selected hosts. While this is the first Bermuda internship, NAPSLO has sponsored an internship in London since 1984.

NAPSLO established the Internship Program in 1981 to interest students in the Surplus Lines Industry, which handles unique, unusual, or hard to place risks. Since its inception more than 200 students have participated in the program and over half of the former interns are currently working in the insurance industry and many are employed by NAPSLO member firms.

Monday, September 22, 2008

NAPSLO Affirms Strength and Stability of Specialty Lines Insurance Industry

NAPSLO as part of its recently launched education and awareness campaign, today issued a statement affirming the strength, stability and accessibility of the wholesale specialty lines insurance industry, including surplus lines.

“Given recent developments in the financial services industry and related concerns about stability of the U.S. insurance industry, NAPSLO believes it’s important to reiterate the strength and solvency of the specialty lines insurance market, including wholesale brokers and surplus lines carriers,” said NAPSLO President John Wood. “The member companies and wholesale brokers that make up NAPSLO provide strong, stable markets for placement of specialty insurance.”

NAPSLO is comprised of approximately 500 wholesale brokers and 100 insurance companies, and the surplus lines industry wrote more than $36 billion in premium in 2007.

According to Wood, the industry’s stability was reaffirmed by the 2008 Special Report, “U.S. Surplus Lines – Market Review,” published by the A.M Best Company. The survey of the excess and surplus lines market reported that “surplus lines insurers outperformed the property/casualty industry in underwriting and operating performance in 2007.” Since 1994, the annual A. M. Best report has found that the solvency record of the specialty insurance industry is as good, if not better, than the overall industry.

“We encourage retail agents and brokers looking to place specialty insurance to work through wholesale brokers, who have access to a broad array of strong, stable specialty lines carriers and can find the best coverage often using innovative solutions for the difficult insurance problems retailers and their clients face,” Wood said.