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
Found under the "Exceptions and Exclusions Section for All Medical Benefits" in many health insurance policies that exclude: complications arising from elective, nontherapeutic voluntary ...
Agreement by the insurance company to keep the universal life insurance policy in force, even if the cash value becomes zero or less than zero, provided that a specified minimum ...
Amount of uncertainty in a given situation. Probability that actual experience will be different from what is expected. ...
Employee of a state insurance department who audits statements of insurance companies to determine their continued solvency. ...
Compensation in which an insurance agent's fee for the sale of a policy is the same year after year. Most life insurance companies pay a high first year commission and lower commissions in ...
Coverage in which the face amount of a policy remains uniform, neither increasing nor decreasing for as long as the policy is in force. ...
Annual premium expressed on a proportionate basis such as monthly, quarterly, or semiannually. ...
Chart showing rate of death at each age in terms of number of deaths per thousand. ...
Index that reflects changes in industrial output by manufacturers, mines, electric utilities, and natural gas utilities. This is a monthly index published by the Federal Reserve. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.