Amwins SRU confirms launch of new excess casualty sidecar program

By Chris Munro

April 16 - (The Insurer) - Amwins has announced the launch of its new excess casualty sidecar program, confirming earlier reporting from this publication that the wholesaler’s Special Risk Underwriters (SRU) unit had brought the new MSIG capacity-backed offering to market.

As E&S Insurer exclusively reported earlier in April, the new offering will allow Amwins’ brokers to bring additional capacity to placements.

Sources familiar with the situation previously told E&S Insurer that the sidecar structure provides exclusive capacity for Amwins brokers to access.

The facility has been designed to provide follow-form quota share limit alongside carrier markets that write lead terms on placements across multiple industry classes of excess casualty business.

The sources said Amwins has identified around 15-20 carriers that the sidecar could support on excess casualty deals, initially allowing brokers to potentially double the capacity they can bring to retail clients.

E&S Insurer had first reported in October that Amwins was working on securing additional capacity for its brokers in a rehardening excess casualty market with the creation of a sidecar facility.

In announcing the sidecar program’s launch, Amwins said the new offering has been designed “to provide comprehensive coverage solutions across a broad range of industries."

Amwins SRU said key features of the sidecar program include broad industry appetite, capacity ventilation and nationwide availability.

The sidecar program has been designed to meet the evolving and dynamic needs of today's casualty market, the wholesaler said.

“SRU has traditionally focused on exclusive property capacity over the years, and we are excited to introduce their first multi-industry casualty product into the marketplace,” said Mark Bernacki, Amwins chief underwriting officer.

“Providing matching quota share support gives our brokers the ability to double capacity with our carrier partners or seamlessly fill capacity gaps; it will prove to be an invaluable offering in today's market environment,” Bernacki added.

Amwins SRU is the Charlotte, North Carolina-based wholesaler’s in-house MGA platform. Currently, Amwins SRU offers 14 specialized products.