International ratings agency Moody's has put a "negative outlook" on Lloyd's Syndicate 435, a property casualty syndicate.
The agency said it was concerned about the commitment of the syndicate's managing agency, Faraday Underwriting, to the Lloyd's insurance market, and the impact a withdrawal would have on potential returns.
The concerns stem from Faraday's announcement, during the Lloyd's auctions, that it would not be taking up its pre-emption on syndicate 435 for 2002.
Subsequently, Faraday has said it will take up at least £400m of capacity for 2002. This compares to the original pre-emption announced, which would have increased capacity to £500m.
Faraday is owned by US-based General Reinsurance Corporation (Gen Re), which also holds 61% of Syndicate 435's capacity.
Moody's said Syndicate 435's open years 1999 to 2001 had suffered from its US D&O book, reinsurance bad debt provisions, soft market conditions and losses from the terrorist attacks in the US.
