ACE Bermuda has released its 2013 Liability Limit Benchmarks and Large Loss Profile Report, an annual publication that provides insights into prevailing trends in the re/insurance industry.The annual publication provides illustrative snapshots of the types of large third party liability losses that have occurred over the last ten years within various industry sectors.In addition, the report provides data on average liability limits that companies operating within these industry sectors are purchasing.“ACE Bermuda typically deploys its large-limit capacity at or near the top of a liability insurance programme and clients often ask us for an indication of the total insurance limits their peers are purchasing,” said Judy Gonsalves, executive vice president of ACE Bermuda’s Excess Liability division.“This marks the third year we have produced this report, and it continues to be extremely well received by our customers as an additional tool for benchmarking their insurance purchasing decisions against peers, as well as for understanding the potential scope of large, unexpected losses they could experience within their respective industries.”The annual publication provides some useful insights into prevailing trends. For example, since the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, ACE Bermuda’s data shows there has been a meaningful uptick, of more than 50 percent, in terms of average total limits being purchased by Tier 2 and 3 companies engaged in the exploration, drilling and production of oil and gas. By contrast, the lack of significant catastrophic losses experienced in the Telecommunications industry over the last few years correlates to substantially reduced limits being purchased by the smaller asset-based companies in this sector.ACE Bermuda generates its limits benchmarking data using a variety of exposure metrics that are unique to the industry in question. For example ‘daily throughput capacity’ has been considered in evaluating risk for a refining company, whereas ‘miles of track’ has been used in analysing railroad risk. “Our ability to customise data allows us to provide meaningful and relevant industry analytics to assist clients, both current and prospective, in making informed decisions,” said Ms Gonsalves. “Our clients operate in an increasingly uncertain world where catastrophic losses can and do occur. How much insurance limit to buy to adequately protect against the unexpected is a critical decision every risk manager faces. We are pleased to provide our annual Liability Limit Benchmarks and Large Loss Profile Report as an additional tool to help them reach this decision.”