P&C RAROC: A Catalyst for Improved Capital Management in the Property and Casualty Insurance Industry

Is the U.S. property & casualty (P&C) insurance industry overcapitalized? Many practitioners and industry observers claim that the industry is awash in capital, and that this excess capital has driven prices to historical lows. Others claim that the industry is undercapitalized relative to a large but plausible natural disaster, such as a large Tokyo earthquake, or a Category 5 hurricane through Miami — a “super catastrophe” in industry jargon.