Ascot Group is watching the drop in directors and officers (D&O) insurance pricing carefully but believes there are enough disciplined underwriters in the market to keep it stable, says underwriter Justin Keith.

Keith, who is chief underwriting officer for casualty/specialty for Ascot in Bermuda, says pricing has fallen dramatically in the last year and Ascot will be working closely with its clients as the January 1 renewal season approaches.

In a video interview with Bermuda:Re+ILS, he says Ascot has increased its own capabilities to monitor its portfolio.

“We are looking for clients who are focused on the fundamentals.”

“We are looking at the mid-year updates and conference season to hear from our clients and how they are navigating what seems to be a very challenging rating environment,” he says. “We are looking for clients who are focused on the fundamentals: are they getting in terms of rate year over year, how is their limit deployment? What are their terms and conditions?

“In terms of limit, it seems to be holding for the most part. But we’re hearing concerning things in terms of the rating environment.

“But it’s a big market. A lot of underwriters seem to be managing this well. We are very interested in sitting down with their data and their teams and trying to understand how they’re navigating the challenges.”