Bermuda-based Hiscox Ltd said its first-quarter revenue rose on higher demand and casualty premium rates in the US.The second-largest Lloyd’s of London insurer by market value reported gross written premiums advanced 12.3 percent to £506.1 million ($787 million) in the three months through March 31, compared with £450.7 million in the year-earlier period, the firm said in a statement. The period was “benign” for claims, it said.“We are in a good position to benefit from rate rises in the US casualty market and it is pleasing to see substantial growth here,” chief executive officer Bronek Masojada said in the statement.Hiscox’s revenue has been bolstered by rising demand in the US, the world’s biggest insurance market, after investing in a dedicated division in the country over the last three years. The insurer, which also sells policies to US clients through its unit at Lloyd’s, is seeking to benefit from faster economic growth and sales of specialist insurance to retail customers.Hiscox USA posted a 35 percent rise in premiums to $64.3 million, the company said. Its UK and Bermuda divisions grew 8.5 percent and 6 percent, respectively.Hiscox is the third-best performer on the nine-member FTSE ASX Nonlife Insurance Index this year, increasing 20.2 percent, compared with the index’s 5.9 percent climb.