News from Mexico

It’s been two years since we opened our Mexico City hub, as part of our Latin American strategy. So, we spent some time with Roberto Gomez (RG) and Jocelyn Naranjo (JN) to find out what’s been happening.

RG: “We entered the Latin American market in January 2018, with a long-term strategy. From day one, we’ve been prepared to take it slow and steady, starting small and growing organically. Diligently assessing risks that we are shown and settling in as a respected specialist (re)insurance syndicate and standard-bearer for Lloyd’s.”

Offering a wealth of experience, the LatAm team already had robust relationships and contacts across the region, which gave us a foundation to continue to develop from. Their knowledge of the local market has enabled us to build a diversified and profitable portfolio to date. Importantly, our book of business in Mexico City complements the wider Probitas global strategy.

JN: “We regularly converse with the London office teams. Discussing risks we’re seeing, debating local market pressures, what’s happening in the Lloyd’s market and our approaches to underwriting and pricing.

We are currently seeing a change in the market capacities. Despite the terms we’re seeing being competitive, we are also writing more business. It can certainly make conversations with London interesting, as the rating and pricing can be very different.”

RG: “Outside of Mexico, the Central & South American rates are out of sync. So we have to take our time to review the terms and conditions alongside the CAT exposure. We believe our detailed approach actually enables us to be more flexible and, therefore, more competitive on a ‘non-proportional’ basis. It’s how we write business.”

Broker partners have always been an important element of our plans for the Latin American office. As a syndicate, we believe in treating brokers fairly and our relationships are vital. This doesn’t change with the geography. And, over the past 24 months, we have nurtured our relations across LatAm from the Mexico office and also from London.

RG: “Transparency plays a crucial role in our approach to customer service. We ensure that we’re always giving a fair answer. Even if we’re declining to write the risk, we’ll explain why and, perhaps, make suggestions. For us, it’s about maintaining high-quality standards, regardless of industry or sector. Our appetite is the fulfilment of our standards, underwriting good quality business.”

What does the future hold for the Mexico office?

There are certainly more opportunities ahead, partly due to the change in market appetite  – we’re seeing insurers pulling out of the local market. Which opens the door.

JN: “After 2 years, we’re in a solid position to support brokers with these changes and local capacity limitations. But, we’re also seeing terms improve in some countries across Latin America as a result, and we certainly expect more improvements. We’re well placed to capitalise on this and support our broker partners.”

RG: “Working closely with our colleagues in London, the Mexico office will continue to grow and flourish in accordance with our initial plans. We believe we’re truly bringing the Lloyd’s market to Latin America.”