Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) today issued the following statement applauding the bipartisan letter of Congressman Gary Miller (CA-42) and Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy (NY-04) to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on their concerns about the impact that Basel III could have on the insurance industry:"PCI applauds Congressman Miller and Congresswoman McCarthy for their commonsense, bipartisan efforts to protect the insurance industry from Basel III's bank-centric regulations. They recognize what PCI has consistently urged, that policymakers should re-consider forcing capital standards that are designed for banks on insurers, which have very different business models and risk profiles.
"PCI will continue to work with elected officials, policymakers and regulators to ensure that a careful balance is struck between protecting the economy at large and preserving the standards that successfully safeguarded our members and their customers."
PCI is composed of more than 1,000 member companies, representing the broadest cross-section of insurers of any national trade association. PCI members write over $190 billion in annual premium, 40 percent of the nation's property casualty insurance. Member companies write 46 percent of the U.S. automobile insurance market, 32 percent of the homeowners market, 38 percent of the commercial property and liability market, and 41 percent of the private workers compensation market.