if several (re-)insurers participate in a contract, one company assumes the role of leader. The policyholder deals exclusively with this lead company. The lead (re-)insurer normally carries a higher percentage of the risk for own account.

bank guarantee; at the request of the guaranteed party, the bank undertakes to render payment to the said party up to the amount specified in the LOC. This method of providing collateral in reinsurance business is typically found in the USA.

collective term for the lines of business concerned with the insurance of persons, i.e. life, pension, health and personal accident insurance.

this term is used to designate business activities in our life and health reinsurance business group.

in general terms, the actuarial risk that a person receiving regular living benefits – such as annuities or pensions – lives longer than expected.

total loss incurred by the affected economy as a whole following the occurrence of a loss. The economic loss must be distinguished from the insured loss.

the insured loss reflects the total amount of losses covered by the insurance industry (insurers and reinsurers).

proportion of loss expenditure (gross or net) relative to the (gross or net) premium earned.