Catastrophe-Reserve Board Examiner — Global Reinsurance

The mandate

Several weather events span underwriting years, perils and cedants, while early loss notices contain duplicated locations and uncertain coverage. Catastrophe models, claims views and finance overlays have moved on different calendars. Committee papers report a central estimate and range but do not clearly show event definition, exposure reconciliation, paid development, retrocession collectability or which uncertainty is already captured elsewhere.

The examiner will reserve three days monthly for event-file review, private challenge with Reserving and Claims, and chair preparation; five Hamilton committee sessions and three detailed event examinations are included. Focus will follow materiality, uncertainty and aggregation risk. A newly declared material event receives an initial evidence challenge within two Bermuda business days, not an independent reserve estimate.

The appointment lasts nine months through two quarter-ends and annual reserve approval. A maximum three-month renewal may be approved for one named continuing catastrophe, subject to refreshed independence and recorded committee rationale. Unused days lapse, and the mandate cannot become outsourced actuarial work, claims handling or recurring production of committee estimates.

The examiner has no line authority, executive responsibility, actuarial-signing role, accounting ownership, claims authority, model-validation mandate, audit function or committee vote. Management and the appointed actuary own reserves; Claims determines case handling; auditors form assurance conclusions. The examiner may expose inconsistent evidence and request scenarios but cannot select or approve the booked amount.

Relationships involving cedants, brokers, retrocessionaires, catastrophe modellers, claims adjusters, actuarial firms, auditors, investors or competitors require disclosure. Prior authorship of a reviewed event estimate triggers recusal. Compensation cannot vary with reserve level, earnings, loss-ratio outcome, claim settlement or renewal, and event-level confidential data stays within authorised board channels.

Why the board wants this voice

Actuarial, Claims, Underwriting and Finance each view catastrophe uncertainty through a different accountable lens, while external auditors cannot become the committee’s reserve designer. An independent former reserve leader can help directors challenge aggregation, evidence and bias across those views without issuing another estimate or diluting management responsibility.

What you will own

• Challenge event definition across date, peril, geography, programme, cedant, underwriting year and potential aggregation.
• Trace exposure, notification, case estimate, paid movement, development pattern, model output and management overlay coherently.
• Examine gross-to-net treatment, reinstatement, occurrence limits, hours clauses, retrocession response and collectability uncertainty.
• Test whether model, claims and expert-judgement uncertainty overlap, contradict or leave material risks unrepresented.
• Frame scenarios for demand surge, coverage dispute, inflation, late cedant reporting, trapped collateral and correlated retrocession failure.
• Compare earlier committee ranges and rationales with emerging paid and reported outcomes to expose bias or stale assumptions.
• Give directors an event dossier, contradiction log, sensitivity questions, conflicts, follow-up triggers and outcome-testing agenda.

Candidate qualifications

• Held chief reserving, actuarial-finance or comparable authority within global property catastrophe insurance or reinsurance.
• Challenged event aggregation, early-loss information, model output, claims development and overlays across major catastrophes.
• Understands gross-to-net effects, reinstatement, occurrence terms, retrocession, collateral and collectability at board depth.
• Presented reserve uncertainty to audit committees without issuing an independent actuarial, accounting or assurance conclusion.
• Back-tested prior ranges and management judgements against event development while preserving claims and actuarial ownership.
• Managed conflicts across cedants, brokers, modellers, adjusters, retrocessionaires, actuarial advisers and audit firms.

Non-negotiables

• Can attend all five Hamilton sessions and complete three authorised event-file examinations within nine months.
• Will disclose cedant, broker, retrocession, model, adjustment, actuarial, audit, investor and competitor relationships.
• Brings global catastrophe-reserve challenge through live events; broad insurance board work alone is insufficient.
• Accepts no actuarial, accounting, claims, model-validation, audit, executive or voting authority.

1. 49 words maximum. Describe a catastrophe reserve you challenged after event aggregation or net recovery changed.
2. 49 words maximum. Which current cedant, broker, modeller or retrocession relationship may require your recusal?
3. 49 words maximum. What late-reporting scenario would you place before the committee first?