Bermuda Monetary Authority Concludes Pact with Florida Insurance Regulator

The Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (FLOIR).

The bulletin noted that it “is the latest in a number of such agreements that the Authority has signed to formalize existing working relationships and interaction with its regulatory counterparts overseas.”

BMA CEO Matthew Elderfield and Kevin McCarty, Florida Insurance Commissioner, signed the MOU on Thursday. The agreement takes immediate effect and establishes a formal basis for consultation, cooperation and coordination between the Authority and the FLOIR, “including the exchange of information relevant to each agency’s supervisory, regulatory and examination responsibilities in relation to insurance companies of mutual interest,” said the announcement.

On signing the agreement, Elderfield commented: “We are very happy to be building on our existing history of cooperation with our colleagues at the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation by establishing this MOU. The Bermuda reinsurance market provides a critically significant level of support to Florida-based insurers.

“The MOU means we can assist each other on supervisory matters involving companies of common interest within our respective markets. Taking such actions is in the ultimate interests of policyholders and supports overall stability in the insurance market.”

McCarty noted: “Just as we work closely with other state regulators in this country to monitor company solvency and implement consumer protections, we must also increase our cooperation with our international counterparts. As we observed during the downturn in our economy a year ago, America’s insurance markets are systemically intertwined with those of other countries.”

According to data published by the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers, Bermuda’s reinsurers paid $22 billion to rebuild the US Gulf and Florida coasts from the hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005, and Bermuda carriers currently provide more than 60 percent of the hurricane reinsurance in Florida and Texas.

Elderfield stressed the importance of working together “to develop and confirm this agreement,” and thanked those involved in creating it for their efforts.

Source: Bermuda Monetary Authority – www.bma.bm

Topics Florida Legislation Reinsurance