AIG Specialty Excess raises capacity for public entity

NEW YORK—AIG Specialty Excess, an umbrella and excess casualty underwriting unit of American International Group Inc., has increased its capacity of excess liability insurance for public entities to $25 million from $15 million.

AIG Specialty Excess will offer the increased capacity on all commercial umbrella and excess casualty policies for public entities. The new capacity will be available for states, counties, cities, educational institutions, transit authorities, utilities and other public agencies.

The $25 million capacity will be available on a broad occurrence-based form.

For more information, contact Todd Germano, executive vp of AIG Specialty Excess, at 212-820-2637, or at todd.germano@aig.com.

Hiscox USA offers media liability coverage

NEW YORK—Hiscox USA is now providing media liability coverage on both an admitted and nonadmitted basis to U.S. businesses, including publishers, broadcasters, production companies, and marketing and advertising agencies.

The nonadmitted insurance will be written on Hiscox paper from its three U.S. locations in Armonk, N.Y.; New York; and San Francisco.

The stand-alone product is designed to complement Hiscox USA's existing technology errors and omissions product.

Features of the insurance include: broad all-risk coverage and the ability to write media and technology coverage under one policy form.

Limits up to $10 million are available for admitted coverage and up to $30 million for nonadmitted coverage.

For further information, contact Joanne Richardson, managing director, U.S. media, at 646-452-2355, or at joanne.richardson@hiscox.com.

PERI publication highlights risk management resources

FAIRFAX, Va.—The Public Entity Risk Institute, a nonprofit risk management training and educational organization, has launched a publication that features a large listing of risk management resources.

PERI's 2007 Risk Management Resource Guide is an aggregation of references and training sources intended to advance the practice of risk management.

The guide's 194 pages cover subjects ranging from benchmarking and performance management, disaster management and hazard mitigation, to workers compensation and occupational therapy.

The publication also contains information on credentialing agencies; educational institutions offering degrees in emergency management, homeland security and risk management; and relevant publications and publishers.

Also detailed in the guide are sources for information relating to environmental liability, human resources and employment practices, risk financing and insurance, risk management, and safety and health.

To purchase the $20 guide in book form or on a CD-ROM, click the "Bookstore" link at www.riskinstitute.org/peri.

RiskMeter expands storm surge report

BOSTON—CDS Business Mapping L.L.C. has added a new storm surge report to its RiskMeter Online real-time natural hazard risk report service.

The report is available for the following states: Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Texas.

RiskMeter Online's Storm Surge report is based upon the SLOSH (Sea, Lake, and Overland Surges from Hurricanes) storm surge model. This report will let users know if a property falls within an area likely to flood from a hurricane of a specific strength, as well as the maximum storm surge height for each category of storm.

For more information about this report, contact Dan Munson, founder of RiskMeter Online, at 617-737-4444 or at dmunson@cdsys.com.

Cybersettle upgrades online claim system

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.—Cybersettle Inc. has launched Cybersettle 6.0, an online double-blind settlement system that allows users to resolve a greater number of disputes, including unrepresented claims and complex multidefendant claims.

The system enables insurance adjusters and claimants to work together online to settle small claims. By allowing direct access between insurance adjusters and claimants, Cybersettle's interface lets both parties resolve claims that are often considered too small to warrant attorney representation but that are important to the claimant.

According to Cybersettle, the system streamlines the settlement process for these claims, cutting time from the settlement process and lowering administrative costs on thousands of cases while helping adjusters handle a larger caseload.

Cybersettle's system allows several defendants to collaborate on a single offer to a claimant while negotiating the division of responsibility among themselves. The system allows parallel blind bidding, which simplifies the process.

For more information, contact Maryann Jennings, senior vp, at 914-286-5665, or at mjennings@ cybersettle.com.

ACE USA launches M&A liability product

PHILADELPHIA—ACE USA Legacy Liability, a new product from Philadelphia-based ACE USA, offers coverage for transactions related to merger and acquisition activity or historical and future liability issues of policyholders.

This product is aimed at organizations going through the merger and acquisition or divestiture transaction process.

The program offers primary and excess limits, with minimum account premiums starting at $25,000. Coverage is customized to exposures including, but not limited to: mergers and acquisition liabilities, including successor liabilities; isolated liability exposures, which include discontinued products/services coverage; and retroactive limits of liability, adding limits to past policies and replacing coverage for insolvent insurers.

The coverage includes a single aggregate limit provided over a policy period of up to five years. It can be tailored not only for future events from past operations, but also future claims from past events.

The policy is noncancelable once bound.

The Legacy Liability Insurance Coverage product is underwritten by ACE Custom Casualty, part of ACE USA's casualty risk division. For more information or to submit an account, contact Mitchell Schmidt, senior vp at ACE Custom Casualty, at 215-640-1816 or mitchell.schmidt@ace-ina.com.