Catastrophic Insurance Futures And Options
Definition of "Catastrophic insurance futures and options"
First exchange-traded risk management tool specifically developed for the insurance industry by the Chicago Board of Trade as a way for the primary insurance company to offset its underwriting exposures. See also futures tied to reinsurance. These contracts are designed to provide the insurance company with a hedge against underwriting losses resulting from catastrophic occurrences. The futures contract is an agreement to buy or sell a commodity or financial instrument at a set price on a given date. The option permits the owner to decide whether or not to exercise the option to buy or sell the commodity or financial instrument by the stipulated exercise date. The insurance option trading is based on the loss ratio concept (losses incurred over a stipulated time period divided by premiums earned over the same time period). For example, assume an insurance company buys an option on the loss ratio that will fall within the range of 50% to 70%. Should losses fall within that range, the insurance company would then exercise the option and sell the contract, thereby enabling the company to make a profit on the option. This profit could then be used by the company to offset losses. Should the loss portion not fall within the 50% to 70% range, the option would expire at zero value.
Popular Insurance Terms
Payment under a state-sponsored program for victims of crimes. ...
States that allow the placement of surplus lines only with insurance companies that the states have approved. ...
Interest earned but not yet paid for a period of time that has elapsed since the last interest payment. ...
Date, in insurance, on which a person becomes one year older. Depending on the insurance company, premiums in life and health insurance manuals are figured to the age-nearest-birthday or ...
Government-supervised health care system with economic incentives for providers and consumers. ...
Funding of an employee's benefits in a pension plan for his or her beginning past service of employment. This is a significant cost factor in pension planning and financing of future ...
Insurance that combines features of flexible premium life insurance and universal life insurance into one policy in the following manner: Premiums after the required minimum initial premium ...
Coverage that pays a fixed dollar amount of interest at regular intervals. ...
Illness contracted as the result of employment-related exposures and conditions. Coverage for such diseases is found under workers compensation insurance. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.