Everything you need to know about Starr Companies
Fast facts:
· Founded: Shanghai, 1919
· Founder: Cornelius Vander Starr
· Total assets (2017): $5,098,954 (Expressed in thousands of US dollars)
· Net premiums written (2017): $503,527 (Expressed in thousands of US dollars)
Starr Companies is a global insurance and investment organisation, which provides property and casualty insurance solutions to business and industry. The firm has a presence on five continents, providing property, casualty, and accident & health insurance products as well as a range of specialty coverages including aviation, marine, energy and excess casualty insurance through its various operating insurance companies. In addition to offering products, Starr Companies also provides a broad spectrum of insurance-related services, including claims handling and settlement, reinsurance, risk assessment, and loss control.
Starr Companies is the worldwide marketing name for the services offered by the operating insurance and travel assistance companies and subsidiaries of Starr International Company, Inc., which can trace its roots back to December 1919, when Cornelius Vander Starr founded an insurance enterprise in Shanghai, China. Starr formed Starr International in September 1943 in Panama, and during the 1940s, Starr International became the parent company to all of the overseas companies. C.V. Starr & Co was later established in 1950, becoming the parent company for various Starr insurance enterprises.
The star of Starr - Maurice R. Greenberg
Anyone with an inkling of insurance knowledge cannot think of Starr Companies without nodding towards Maurice R. Greenberg, the current chairman and CEO of C.V. Starr & Co. Greenberg is the former chairman and CEO of American International Group (AIG), which was set up by C.V. Starr & Co in 1919. Cornelius Vander Starr picked Greenberg as his successor to lead AIG in 1968, and under his leadership, AIG grew into one of the largest insurance and financial services company in the world. He retired as chairman and CEO of AIG in March 2005.
The industry veteran, who is currently 93-years-old as of February 2019, also serves on the president’s council on international activities of Yale University, and serves as honorary vice chairman of the Council on Foreign Relations and vice chairman of the National Committee on United States-China Relations. He’s the past chairman and director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and is active on the boards of many organisations throughout the US and Asia.
Greenberg is married and has four children. He served in the United States Army during World War II, and, on June 06, 2014, he was awarded the French Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur at the 70th Anniversary celebration of D-Day at the Statue of Liberty in New York. He’s also the recipient of The Bronze Star Medal from the United States. On November 09, 2015, Greenberg received the insignia of Commandeur de l’Ordre National de la Legion d’Honneur for his leadership and contributions as chairman of AIG.
Starr on the map
Starr Companies has offices on five continents. In the Americas, it has offices in the US, Canada, Bermuda, Argentina, Chile and Brazil. In Asia Pacific, the firm has offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Melbourne, Singapore and Tokyo. In Europe, Starr has office presence in London, Istanbul, Oslo, Rotterdam, Moscow, Bratislava, and Zurich.
Insurance solutions
Starr Insurance offers a wide range of insurance solutions, including:
· Accident & health
· Auto liability
· Aviation & aerospace
· Blanket accident liability & special risks
· Primary general casualty
· Contaminated products
· Contractor pollution
· Construction primary & excess
· Crime & fidelity
· Cyber risk
· Directors & officers
· Employment practice liability
· Energy casualty primary & excess
· Environmental
· Excess casualty
· Excess construction
· Financial lines
· Group and individual AD&D
· Kidnap, ransom & extortion
· Leisure & travel
· Marine
· Political risk
· Primary general liability
· Product recall
· Professional liability
· Property
· Site pollution
· Small business
· Space
· Sports & special events
· Statutory
· Transportation
· Business travel accident
· Workplace violence
· Workers’ compensation & employer’s liability
Starr in the sky
Aviation insurance is a particular focus for Starr Companies. In August 2018, Starr Insurance purchased the renewal rights of Aspen Insurance’s aviation business, which was estimated to be worth in excess of $50 million in gross written premiums. Starr chief exec Greenberg commented: “This agreement will provide Aspen customers with a seamless, efficient way to transfer their business to one of the world’s leading aviation insurance carriers. Starr’s aviation clients benefit from our extensive industry experience, world-class underwriting, loss control and our A.M. Best ‘A’ rated financial strength. The aviation business will continue to be a focus for us for years to come.”
Starr’s aviation group offers products for commercial and regional airlines; aircraft and aerospace manufacturers; charter and cargo operations; corporate fleets; private pilots and light aircraft; aviation service providers; and airports and fixed-base operators. The insurer also plays in the UAV, drone insurance space. In March 2018, it announced a collaboration with drone-focused risk assessment platform SkyWatch to provide on demand insurance for qualified unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operators.
But perhaps the insurer’s coolest foray into the sky is its space coverage. Starr’s space coverage helps companies in the commercial space industry manage specialised high-risk exposures in the launching of spacecraft and vehicles. It provides coverages, such as: launch & in-orbit risks, in-orbit coverage, satellite incentive coverage, launch risk guarantee, and space third-party legal liability.
The Starr Foundation
The Starr Foundation is a philanthropic organisation, which was initially funded by Cornelius Vander Starr’s estate. Now under Greenberg’s leadership, the Starr Foundation has grown to become one of the largest private foundations in the US. It has paid more than $3 billion in grants worldwide to many academic, medical, cultural and public policy organisations around the world.
