Assignment of PA-2 includes “excellent” scores on all five components
Castel Underwriting Agencies Ltd (Castel), including Castel Underwriting Europe BV, has become the first UK MGA to receive a Performance Assessment from credit rating agency AM Best. Castel is the only UK MGA to date and one of the first MGAs globally to receive an AM Best Performance Assessment in the initial launch of the service.
AM Best’s Performance Assessment reviews five components – underwriting capabilities; governance and internal controls; financial condition; organisational talent; and depth and breadth of relationships. Castel was assessed by AM Best as “excellent” with an overall Performance Assessment of PA-2.
AM Best announced its intention to evaluate delegated authority providers in March 2021 in response to the increasing number of MGAs globally and the growing amount of premium income they generate. The move also reflected the growing prominence of the delegated underwriting authority model in the insurance industry ecosystem.
Responding to the Performance Assessment, Mark Birrell, chief executive of Castel, said: “The decision to put Castel forward as the first UK MGA for this kind of independent, high-profile and detailed scrutiny was an easy one. I have the utmost confidence in our organisational talent, business model and internal governance structures.”
“I’m delighted with the “excellent” Best Performance Assessment of PA-2 with a stable outlook. These Performance Assessments play a valuable role in providing insurance carriers with the assurance of working with a trusted organisation that demonstrates the highest standards across all aspects of its operations.”
“We are pleased that Castel Underwriting Agencies Ltd perceived the value of and elected to participate in this process, the Performance Assessment for Delegated Underwriting Authority Enterprises (DUAEs),” said Nick Charteris-Black, managing director, market development, AM Best EMEA. “The new service was launched globally on 1 February, 2022.”