CAPTIVE insurance experts are staging a forum in London for the first time. Guernsey is Europe’s largest centre for captive insurance and the industry’s association is staging a conference, The Guernsey Insurance Forum, and a supporting exhibition in London in October. It is a development of the annual Risk conferences that have been held in the island for many years.

‘This is a major step for us,’ said Kevin Rye, chairman of the Guernsey Insurance Company Management Association, which represents the interests of more than 100 island captive managers, owners and service providers.

‘The conferences in Guernsey have always been well supported, but the time had come to take the event off-island to make it easier for the insurance industry in the UK to attend and to reach a new audience.’

The conference theme of long-term solutions to breaking the insurance cycle was chosen to appeal to the traditional insurance market. Industry speakers will outline how captives are not just the preserve of the largest corporations, but can also be cost-effective risk-management tools for smaller companies.

‘There are many positive messages we are able to convey about captives when compared to traditional insurance,’ said Mr Rye.

‘The forum is a great vehicle to do this. It will allow delegates to get their key questions answered and meet managers with many years of practical captive experience.’

The forum will also feature an exhibition, giving delegates the opportunity to network. Captive management companies, banks, actuaries, law firms and accountants will be exhibiting at the event, being held at the Tower Thistle Hotel, close to the financial centre of the capital. Organisers are expecting a good level of interest from insurers in the UK and support from the local captive industry, which employs about 350 people, with £13bn of premiums paid to management companies in the island every year.

More information about the event is available from organiser CMA Public Relations on 246700.