Allied World Specialty Offers Greater Protection for Insurance Companies and Risk-Transfer Organizations

PEMBROKE, Bermuda, June 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, Ltd (NYSE: AWH - News), today announced enhancements to its suite of professional liability products for insurance companies and risk-transfer organizations.

The company now offers, as part of its Darwin-branded errors and omissions (E&O) product line, a new Insurance Company Professional Liability (ICPL) product aimed at providing coverage to larger insurers. In conjunction with the ICPL product launch, the company's product formerly known as Alternative Risk Transfer Structures (A.R.T.) has been enhanced and renamed Private Risk-Transfer Organizations (P.R.O.).

Gordon Knight, President of Allied World U.S., commented, "This industry segment has historically been underserved in the market. Our new ICPL and enhanced P.R.O. products respond to the current industry landscape and recent growth of this segment by providing a comprehensive coverage solution, effectively expanding our E&O footprint and meeting the needs of the marketplace."

ICPL targets any insurance company or risk transfer organization -- mono or multi-line, public or private -- with an annual gross written premium of up to $2 billion, and provides limits up to $10 million, with excess capability available.

Nicole Haggerty, Senior Vice President, E&O Practice Lead, said, "Our ICPL product is a stand-alone E&O policy tailored to the unique needs of larger, more complex insurance and risk-transfer entities who are looking to keep their E&O and D&O limits separate. As an A.M. Best A rated company, we believe our conservative balance sheet and solid capital base put Allied World in an excellent position to withstand future economic upheavals and most importantly, provide our insureds with the protection they need."

The enhanced P.R.O. product addresses the unique needs of smaller insurance companies and private risk-transfer organizations, offering E&O coverage with optional D&O and Employment Practices Liability (EPL) insurance. Additional highlights in the P.R.O. product include full prior acts coverage and $25,000 in privacy liability coverage, included with no additional premium. Target classes include private, small-to-mid-sized companies that offer property, casualty, workers compensation or other types of insurance.

Allied World's P.R.O. product offers worldwide coverage with an increased appetite, including organizations with gross annual premiums of up to $2 billion.

To learn more about the company's new ICPL coverage or enhanced P.R.O. product, contact Ms. Haggerty at nhaggerty@darwinpro.com.

About Darwin and Allied World Assurance Company

Darwin, a Farmington, CT-based specialty insurance group focused on the professional liability insurance market, underwrites errors and omissions liability insurance, medical malpractice liability insurance and other specialty coverages. Darwin member companies (Darwin National Assurance and Darwin Select Insurance) are subsidiaries of Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, Ltd, a global provider of innovative property, casualty and specialty insurance and reinsurance solutions, offering superior client service through offices in Bermuda, the United States and Europe. Allied World's insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries are rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best Company. For further information on Darwin and Allied World, please visit our websites at www.darwinpro.com and www.awac.com.

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Any forward-looking statements made in this press release reflect our current views with respect to future events and financial performance and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in these statements. For example, our forward-looking statements could be affected by the ability to recognize the benefits of the Darwin acquisition; pricing and policy term trends; increased competition; the impact of acts of terrorism and acts of war; greater frequency or severity of unpredictable catastrophic events; investigations of market practices and related settlement terms; negative rating agency actions; the adequacy of our loss reserves; the company or its subsidiaries becoming subject to significant income taxes in the United States or elsewhere; changes in regulations or tax laws; changes in the availability, cost or quality of reinsurance or retrocessional coverage; adverse general economic conditions including those related to the ongoing financial crisis; and judicial, legislative, political and other governmental developments, as well as management's response to these factors, and other factors identified in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. We are under no obligation (and expressly disclaim any such obligation) to update or revise any forward-looking statement that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.