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Bridgemarq Real Estate Services Inc.

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FY2021 Annual Report · Bridgemarq Real Estate Services Inc.
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Brit Limited
Annual Report 2021

writing the future
If the future was predictable, there would be no risk and if change was linear, there’d be no need for 
experts. There’d be no need for the insurance industry.

But the truth is, the world we live in is unpredictable. It’s volatile, uncertain, and subject to change.

At Brit, we believe that the uncertainty of the future should never stand in the way of progress.

That’s why we exist. To help people and businesses face the future and thrive.

Every day, we channel our entrepreneurial expertise to write the most opaque risk that the future holds, 
embracing the change faced by our clients by delivering a service that’s open, honest, and fair. One that 
invests in the new products and claims delivery they need in a world of complex risk.

We are dedicated to innovation, developing client solutions, efficient capital vehicles and a technology-led 
service that not only lead the market, but drive the future.

Investing in distribution so that we can deliver market-leading analytics to further deepen our 
relationships with key partners, and investing in our people, so we can amplify the integrity, agility and 
innovation that define our shared future.

So if you’re our partner, broker or an employee, we make you this promise: we won’t just react to change, 
we’ll create it for the better. 

We won’t just write risk, we’ll write the future.

Let’s do it together.

2021 – a strong and resilient result

•  Profit on ordinary activities before the impact of FX and tax of $247.1m.

•  GWP for 2021 of $3,238.3m, an increase of 31.8% over 2020 ($2,424.4m) at constant rates of exchange.  

•  We achieved a combined ratio (CoR) of 95.7%1 despite exposure to a number of major loss events and the continued 

impact of COVID-19, demonstrating the increased resilience of our business.

•  We delivered a strong full year attritional ratio of 47.7% 1, a 4.8pps improvement over 2020.

•  Major losses of $324.4m contributed 15.5pps to the combined ratio, with 2021 being the fourth-costliest year on 

record for natural catastrophes. 

•  We have maintained our record of reserve releases, which amounted to $100.1m in the year, a 4.8pps1 reduction in 

the CoR, including a $35.0m reserve resulting from the additional protection afforded by a loss portfolio reinsurance 
contract. 

•  Our investment return was an excellent $171.9m or 3.3% (2020: $44.6m or 1.0%).

•  Brit’s capital position remains strong, with our capital surplus increasing by 81.2% during 2021. At 31 December 2021 

there was a surplus of $617.9m or 39.1% (2020: $341.0m or 22.1%). Our investment portfolio remains conservatively 
positioned, 85.9% of the portfolio invested in cash and fixed income securities (2020: 87.0%).

•  During 2021, we sold two subsidiaries, the Commonwealth Insurance Company of America and Scion Underwriting 

Services, realising a gain of $22.0m. 

•  A highly successful first year of trading for Ki, receiving a very positive reception from its broking partners and 

recording GWP of $395.6m. 

•  Market conditions continue to give cause for optimism. We achieved risk-adjusted rate increases of 12.9%, bringing 

the increase since 1 January 2018 to 33.1%. 

• 

 Leadership, Innovation and Distribution are at the heart of our strategy. In 2021, we have:

•  Combined our US operations under our Ambridge brand to create a single leading MGA;
•  Acquired the remaining shares of Camargue Underwriting Managers (Proprietary) Limited; 
•  Continued to focus on our customers with the launch of our algorithm to enable a faster claims response to 

catastrophe events and our Direct Pay claims solution; 

•  Piloted the first continuous binder at Lloyd’s; and
•  Launched the Keel Marine Consortium.

Note 1: The calculation of the combined ratio and other ratios is set out on page 181. The calculation of underwriting ratios contains an adjustment whereby 
the premium paid for the loss portfolio reinsurance ($344.1m) is added back to premium earned net of reinsurance, with an equal and opposite adjustment  
to net claims incurred. The benefit of a $35.0m reserve release resulting from the additional protection afforded by the contract is included in the calculation. 
The Directors believe that the ratios when calculated after these adjustments present a more consistent and understandable view of the Group’s performance. 

Strategic Reportcontents

Strategic Report
The Strategic Report contains information about 
the Group, how we make money and how we run 
the business. It gives an insight into our markets, 
approach to governance, sustainability and risk 
management. It provides context for our financial 
statements, sets out our key performance 
indicators (KPIs) and analyses our financial 
performance. It also sets out how we engage with 
our people and other stakeholders and includes our 
Section 172(1) Statement. 

Governance
This report sets out other information of interest 
to our stakeholders. It includes our Directors’ 
responsibility statement and our Directors’ 
statement on going concern. It also explains our 
governance framework and contains our Modern 
Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement. 

Financial statements
This section presents the financial position, 
performance and development in accordance with 
generally accepted accounting practice for both 
the Group and the Company. It also contains the 
Auditors’ Report. 

Officer statements
Brit at a glance
Our underwriting
Underwriting review
Financial performance review
Financial position and capital strength 
Risk management, principal risks and uncertainties
Our people, culture, social, community  
and environmental matters
Stakeholder engagement
Section 172(1) statement

4
6
9
18
22
35
38

45
51
57

Directors’ Report
Corporate Governance Report
Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement

62
65
67

Independent Auditors’ Report
Consolidated Income Statement
Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income
Consolidated Statement of Financial Position
Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows
Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity
Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements
Parent Company Financial Statements

70
80
81
82
83
84
86
172

Additional information
This section explains how we calculate our KPIs 
with reference to data contained within the 
financial statements. We also summarise other 
information, relating to the Company that is useful 
to stakeholders.

Reconciliation of Key Performance Indicators  
to the Financial Statements
Company information

Glossary
In this section, we include definitions of the terms 
used in this Annual Report, focusing on terms 
specific to the insurance industry and to Brit.

Glossary of terms

180
183

184

Disclaimer
This document does not constitute or form part of, and should not be construed as, an offer for sale or subscription of, or solicitation 
of any offer or invitation or advice or recommendation to subscribe for, underwrite or otherwise acquire or dispose of any securities 
(including share options and debt instruments) of the Company nor any other body corporate nor should it or any part of it form the 
basis of, or be relied on in connection with, any contract or commitment whatsoever which may at any time be entered into by the 
recipient or any other person, nor does it constitute an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity under Section 21 of 
the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA). This document does not constitute an invitation to effect any transaction with 
the Company or to make use of any services provided by the Company. Past performance cannot be relied on as a guide to future 
performance. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

1

Strategic Report 
 
strategic report

This Strategic Report contains information about our business and provides an insight into 
how we operate and our approach to sustainability and risk management. It provides context 
for our Financial Statements, sets out our key performance indicators (KPIs) and analyses 
our financial performance. All monetary figures in this report are presented in US dollar ($), 
unless otherwise stated.

The calculations of the combined ratio and other underwriting ratios are set out on page 181. The calculations contain an 
adjustment whereby the premium paid for the loss portfolio reinsurance ($344.1m) is added back to premium earned net of 
reinsurance, with an equal and opposite adjustment to net claims incurred. The benefit of a $35.0m reserve release resulting from 
the additional protection afforded by the contract is included in the calculation. The ratios for the year ended 31 December 2018,  
during which a similar loss portfolio reinsurance was entered into, were prepared on a consistent basis. The Directors believe 
that the ratios when calculated after these adjustments present a more consistent and understandable view of the Group’s 
performance. 

9

Our underwriting 
We discuss our 
underwriting philosophy 
and the Brit offering.

4

Officer statements
Martin Thompson, our 
Interim Group CEO, and 
Gavin Wilkinson, our 
Group CFO, comment on 
the Group’s performance 
and business developments  
during 2021 and look 
ahead to 2022.

6

Brit at a glance
We introduce the Brit 
Group, explain who we 
are and what we do. We 
examine our track record, 
financial strength and 
look ahead to 2022.

18

Underwriting review
We discuss our 2021 
performance and 
business developments.

22

Financial performance 
review
We set out our KPIs. 
We explain how we use 
them to monitor our 
performance and outline 
their performance from 
2016 to 2021. We then 
provide an analysis of 
the performance of our 
business during 2021.

35

Financial position and 
capital strength
We review our financial 
position at 31 December 
2021. This section 
includes a discussion of 
our investment portfolio.

38

Risk management. 
principal risks and 
uncertainties
We set out our risk 
management framework 
and explain how we will 
manage the principal 
risks facing our business 
in 2022, to ensure we 
deliver our strategic 
priorities. We also consider 
emerging risks including 
climate related risk.

45

Our people, culture, 
social, community and 
environmental matters
We provide information on 
our people (including how 
we engage with them) and 
on social, community and 
environmental matters, 
to the extent that it is 
necessary to understand 
our business.

51

Stakeholder 
engagement
We set out our key 
stakeholders, as identified 
by the Board, together 
with why and how we 
engage with them and 
the outcomes of that 
engagement.

57

Section 172(1) 
statement
We set out how the 
Directors promote the 
success of the Company 
and discharge their 
responsibilities under 
Section 172(1) of the 
Companies Act.

This Strategic Report was approved by the Board on 22 February 2022.

Martin Thompson
Interim Group Chief Executive Officer 

Gavin Wilkinson
Group Chief Financial Officer 

2 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportBrit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

3

Strategic Report 
 
officer statements

‘In early October I was asked to 

step into Brit as Interim CEO, 
following the announcement 
that Matthew Wilson was to take 
a leave of absence due to health 
reasons. All of us at Brit and Fairfax 
wish Matthew well and look forward 
to his return.

I am pleased to report a positive 

2021 for Brit, with our underwriting performance and 
investment return delivering a strong overall result. 
Underpinning this performance was our continued successful 
execution against our strategy of Leadership, Innovation and 
Distribution. Against the ongoing backdrop of COVID-19, and the 
impact it continues to have on our lives, the progression of 
our business is testament to the dedication of our people and 
the unique culture Matthew and his team have created at Brit. 

Our strategy delivered a strong combined ratio for the year 
of 95.7%. This reflected the combination of an excellent 
attritional ratio, strong prior year reserve releases and 
increased income from our third party capital management 
and MGA businesses. That we delivered this performance 
despite exposure to a number of major loss events and the 
continued impact of COVID-19 was particularly encouraging, 
demonstrating the increased resilience of our business and 
our firm focus on disciplined underwriting.

As well as delivering a strong underwriting result, we grew 
our written premium by 31.8% at constant exchange rates, 
to $3,238.3m. This reflects a very successful first year of 
trading for Ki, together with strong growth in our core direct 
and reinsurance books, reflecting strong market conditions 
and targeted growth, partly offset by planned contractions 
across a number of less attractive classes. Strong risk 
adjusted rate increases have continued with 12.9% achieved 
in 2021. Cumulative rate increases since 1 January 2018 now 
stand at 33.1%. 

Championing the potential of data and technology is central 
to Brit’s future success and Ki is the embodiment of this. 
Its launch has been an important focus for us and it gained 
excellent traction in its first year of trading writing $395.6m 
of premium, having received a very positive reception from its 
broking partners. Working closely with those partners, Ki has 
continued to update and enhance its underwriting platform, 
including the development and release of its broker API,  
a landmark in the Lloyd’s market. 

In 2021, we combined our US operations to create a single 
operation under the Ambridge brand. It now operates as 
a global MGA, managing over $600m of premium in the US 
and internationally. Our clients have the benefit of the well-

recognised Ambridge MGA model giving them better access to 
products and enhanced service, and our underwriting teams 
are better able to capitalise on business opportunities. 

Delivering a best-in-class claims service is an important 
focus for Brit. We have continued to support our clients when 
they need it most, with innovation at the heart of our Claims 
approach. In 2021 this has included deploying our machine 
learning algorithm to enable a faster claims response to 
catastrophe events and launching Brit Direct Pay, the first 
direct-to-bank card account claims payment solution in the 
London Market. 

We continue to develop and launch new innovative products 
and expand our underwriting offering. We launched the 
Keel Marine Consortium, to transform the writing of marine 
war and breach call risks. We also continued to expand 
our e-trading portal, which provides a more efficient and 
convenient method of placing business. We have also been 
working closely with Lloyd’s on the continuous binder, which 
went live in January 2022. 

During 2021 we made a number of important appointments.  
We welcomed Gavin Wilkinson as Group CFO, taking over 
from Mark Allan who is now focused on his Ki CEO and Brit 
Executive Director roles.  We appointed Wayne Page as our 
first Head of Inclusion and Diversity. Under Wayne’s guidance, 
we have made good progress in implementing our I&D vision, 
introducing a number of policies, actively raising awareness 
amongst our colleagues and launching a number of initiatives.  
We also appointed of Bilge Mert as Chief Technology Officer 
and Kanika Chaganty as Chief Data Officer, reflecting the 
importance of digital and data to our strategy. 

We have an important role in fighting climate change, and 
we believe firmly that insurance is a social good. In 2021 
we published our ESG strategy and made solid progress in 
its implementation. This included Ki entering into a $130m 
sustainability linked letter of credit agreement with its 
banking partners.

Looking ahead to 2022, uncertainty still surrounds 
COVID-19, as well as wider market and inflationary concerns. 
Insurance markets also face other challenges such as the 
potential for increased frequency and severity of major loss 
events. However, strong compound rate rises, a continued 
improvement in our attritional claims ratio from underwriter 
actions and our clear strategy gives us continued optimism 
and positions us well to respond to the opportunities and 
challenges ahead.’

Martin Thompson  
Interim Group Chief Executive Officer

4 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Report‘After a challenging 2020,  

it is very pleasing to report 
a strong result, reflecting 

the continued commitment of 
all our staff, the support of our 
majority shareholder, Fairfax, 
and the increasing resilience of 
our business. During 2021, Brit 
delivered a profit on ordinary 

activities before FX and tax of $247.1m and a profit after tax 
of $236.9m. Our return on net tangible assets was 19.4%. 

Underwriting contributed $90.6m to the result, with  
a combined ratio of 95.7%. The attritional ratio for the 
period improved by 4.8pps to 47.7%, reflecting our good 
underwriting discipline, rigorous risk selection, and healthy 
compound rate increases. 

Major losses of $324.4m contributed 15.5pps to the combined 
ratio, comprising Hurricane Ida ($200.5m), the Texas winter 
storms ($77.7m), the European floods ($18.0m) and current 
year COVID-19 related losses ($28.2m). The overall impact 
of COVID-19 related claims on our 2021 performance, after 
a release of $12.3m from our 2020 year loss estimates, 
reduced to $15.9m.

We have maintained our long-standing track record of 
prior year reserve releases, and as part of our reserving 
process, we released $100.1m, the equivalent of a combined 
ratio reduction of 4.8pps. These releases reflect increased 
certainty across a number of portfolios in both our direct and 
reinsurance books, together with overall net loss estimate 
reductions on the 2017 to 2020 catastrophe events and the 
reduction in our 2020 COVID-19 related loss estimates. 

Our release also reflects the additional reinsurance 
protection afforded by a loss portfolio reinsurance we 
completed with RiverStone Managing Agency Limited 
(RiverStone) in late 2021. The agreement provides protection 
against potential adverse development on predominantly 
legacy years of account underwritten by Brit Syndicate 2987, 
thereby providing Brit with certainty on discontinued lines and 
reducing its exposure to US Casualty claims inflation. 

Our investment return was $171.9m (net of fees), providing 
a return of 3.3%. This was driven by the strong performance 
across our main equity and fund portfolios as markets 
responded to additional stimulus measures and vaccine 
rollouts.

We have continued to benefit from the growth of our third 
party capital vehicles and our investments in MGAs. Working 
with our capital and distribution partners is an important 
part of Brit’s strategy, enhancing our leadership position, 
strengthening our client proposition and making our expense 
base more efficient. 

In 2021, we sold two subsidiaries, the Commonwealth 
Insurance Company of America and Scion Underwriting 
Services, realising a gain of $22.0m. Brit founded Scion,  
a US casualty MGA, in 2018 and it has grown to over $80m 
of premium in three years. In 2021, we also completed the 
purchase of the remaining shares in our South African 
coverholder Camargue Underwriting Managers (Proprietary) 
Limited. As part of this acquisition we revalued our initial 
50% investment, made in 2016, recognising a gain of $6.1m. 
These gains generated by our corporate activity illustrate the 
embedded value we are generating from such relationships.

Our balance sheet remains strong, with adjusted net 
tangible assets increasing to $1,740.6m (31 December 
2020: $1,436.8m). As a result, the capital surplus we hold 
increased by 81.2% to $617.9m or 39.1% over the Group’s 
management capital requirement. During the period, our 
capital requirements increased from $1,540.3m to $1,581.6m, 
primarily reflecting increased requirements resulting from 
growth in our 2022 underwriting plans, offset by reduction in 
capital requirements due to increases in interest rates.

Our investment portfolio remains conservatively positioned 
in line with our risk appetite, with a large allocation to cash 
and cash equivalents ($1,549.3m or 27.9%) and fixed income 
securities ($3,213.8m or 57.9%). Brit’s equity and fund 
allocation stands at $778.0m, or 14.0%. At 31 December 
2021, 83.2% of our invested assets were investment grade 
and the duration of the portfolio was 1.5 years. 

We have seen some positive market developments in 2021 
and we look forward to 2022 with optimism. Challenges 
and uncertainty remain, but we believe that our strategy, 
discipline and financial strength, position us well to take 
advantage of opportunities as they arise.’

Gavin Wilkinson  
Group Chief Financial Officer

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

5

Strategic Report 
 
Brit at a glance

Overview
We are a market-leading global specialty (re)insurer and one 
of the largest businesses that trades primarily on the Lloyd’s 
of London platform, the world’s leading specialist commercial 
insurance market. We provide highly specialised insurance 
products to support our clients across a broad range of 
complex risks. 

We care deeply about our clients’ needs, ensuring that we not 
only surround them with the best talent in the industry, but also 
combine the depth of our experience with the latest technology 
to deliver innovation. Acting in open, honest partnership, our 
clients can be sure that with Brit by their side the future is not 
something to be feared, it is something to be seized.

We operate globally via a combination of our own international 
distribution network that benefits from Lloyd’s global licences 
and our broker partners. Our underwriting capabilities 
are underpinned by a strong financial position and our 
commitment to deliver superior returns to our shareholders.

A full history of Brit can be found at www.britinsurance.com.

The Fairfax group
Since June 2015, Brit has been a member of the Fairfax 
Financial Holdings Limited group (Fairfax), a Canadian company 
whose shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange  
(www.fairfax.ca). At the start of 2021, Brit was 100% owned by 
Fairfax. On 27 August 2021, Brit issued 92,364,532 new Class 
A shares to OMERS Administration Corporation (OMERS), the 
defined benefit pension plan for municipal sector employees 
in the Province of Ontario, Canada, for a net contribution of 
$375.0m. At 31 December 2021, Fairfax owned 86.2% of Brit 
Limited while the remaining 13.8% was owned by OMERS. 
Fairfax has the option to purchase OMERS’ interest in Brit at 
certain dates commencing in October 2023.

We believe that Fairfax is an excellent partner for Brit, enabling 
us to enhance our global product offering. It provides us with 
expanded underwriting opportunities and distribution channels 
and supports our ability to be a leading global specialty (re)insurer. 

Underwriting
Brit has a long and successful track record of leading an 
extensive range of insurance and reinsurance programmes, 
based on rigorous risk selection and a disciplined approach to 
underwriting. We hire the best people and develop their skills. 
Combining technical expertise with industry knowledge, we 
listen, we share and we collaborate to create best-in-class 
insurance solutions for our clients. We are an influential and 
respected presence at Lloyd’s of London and, in Syndicate 
2987, we have one of the largest and most diverse portfolios.

We predominantly underwrite complex, high value insurance 
and reinsurance risks. Insurance represents 77.2% of our 
GWP while treaty reinsurance represents the balance. Our 
largest source of business is the US Excess and Surplus 
lines market and the majority of our premium income is 

6 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

denominated in US dollars, although the risks underwritten 
are distributed globally. 

We complement our core classes with highly specialised niche 
lines which provide both diversification and the potential for high 
returns. We source our business through trading relationships 
with Lloyd’s brokers, wholesale brokers, retail agents and 
reinsurance intermediaries. The majority of reinsurance 
business is sourced through the global reinsurance brokers.

Through Ki Syndicate 1618, Syndicate 2988 and Sussex Re, 
we provide over $1.3bn of underwriting capacity. These 
underwriting platforms, backed by diversified sources of 
capital, reflect our desire to increase our flexibility, enhance 
our relevance to clients and brokers, and reinforce the long-
term relationships we have in the market.

We underwrite primarily in London, but have developed 
an extensive network of local offices in the US and have a 
presence in Bermuda and Japan. This enables us to access 
business that does not usually reach Lloyd’s. We lead or are 
second agreement party on over 70% of the business we 
write through Syndicate 2987, underlining our underwriting 
strength and expertise.

Our platform and operations
Our strong and efficient capital model results from our focus 
on the Lloyd’s platform. As part of the Fairfax group we also 
benefit from the group’s financial strength. We believe that 
our efficient, flexible and scalable operating platform provides 
a stable foundation that enables us to pursue our strategy 
of focusing on maximising profitability of the underwriting 
business and extending our global distribution network.

Investment management
At Brit we have a significant investment portfolio comprising 
financial investments, investments in associates, investment-
related derivatives and cash. The value of our invested 
assets at 31 December 2021 was $5,546.2m. The portfolio, 
on a look-through basis and when compared to 31 December 
2020, ended 2021 with reduced holdings in fixed income 
securities ($3,213.8m) and equities and funds ($778.0m) 
and an increased allocation to cash and cash equivalents 
($1,549.3m). Other invested assets totalled $5.1m.

The investment portfolio is managed for the most part by 
Hamblin Watsa Investment Counsel Limited, a Fairfax subsidiary 
with an excellent long-term track record, whose sole business 
is managing investment portfolios of Fairfax companies.

Our culture, values and people
We are passionate about our business, our people and our 
customers and we have focused on cultivating a franchise 
that is built on delivering exceptional service. 

Our culture is centred on achievement with four key tenets: 
delivering on commitments and ensuring the same from 
others; actively managing risk to optimise reward; focusing 

Strategic Reportefforts to maximise results; living a distinct ethos. In addition, 
we encourage enthusiasm for improvement, be it changes 
to process, policy or working practices, we encourage new 
thinking, and we encourage collective working and open and 
honest communication.

Our values are:

•  Absolute precision: The pursuit of excellence in every 
aspect of our business, setting high standards for 
ourselves and ensuring accuracy of execution. Getting it 
right the first time;

•  Respect: Build and maintain respectful relationships both 
internally and externally. Treat people the way we’d like to 
be treated. Behave with integrity with brokers, clients and 
other stakeholders. Our success depends on their success;
Innovation: Exceed the expectations of our brokers, 
clients and other stakeholders through innovation and 
collaboration. Act with speed and diligence; and

• 

•  Pride: Having attracted the best talent, take time and effort 
to recognise success and excellence. Foster a culture of 
achievement, encourage and instil a sense  
of pride in everything we do.

We are change-makers enabled by a global workforce who  
collaborate to deliver a risk service. A team empowered not 
only to survive the risks we face, but to stay on the front  
foot and keep moving forward. We believe the uncertainty  
of tomorrow isn’t something to fear but to seize; that it’s full of 
potential. Not only for our customers but our employees too. 
Our people are valued for the unique perspective they bring to 
our business, no matter their age, race, religion or background. 
It’s about doing our best work; our passion and dedication.

Our track record 
Since 2009, we have successfully transformed Brit into a more 
focused, more profitable, more efficient and more dynamic 
business, driven by some of the industry’s best talent. We have 
been proactive in aiming to deliver the best service for our 
clients and attractive returns to shareholders.

Brit has demonstrated a strong track record of delivering 
growth in core business lines, disciplined underwriting and 
portfolio management, and innovative capital management.

In 2021, the insurance market continued to be impacted by 
COVID-19. It was also the fourth-costliest year on record for 
non-COVID related natural catastrophes and man-made events. 
Against this backdrop, Brit delivered a strong combined ratio 
of 95.7%. Major loss activity, including the impact of COVID-19, 
totalled $324.4m and contributed 15.5pps to our combined ratio. 
The impact of these events was mitigated by a strong attritional 
claims ratio of 47.7% and reserve releases of $100.1m (4.8pps), 
demonstrating the resilience of our business. Our five-year 
average combined ratio is 103.8%, despite the impact of 
COVID-19 and the extreme catastrophe years of 2017 and 
2018. This year’s net investment gain, after fees, was $171.9m 
or 3.3%, resulting in a five-year average investment return of 

2.2%. Brit’s result after tax was a profit of $236.9m and return 
on adjusted net tangible assets before FX was 19.4%. 

Our combined ratio excluding the impact of COVID-19 related 
claims, and our attritional ratio show a clear downward trend 
over the last five years:

2021
%

2020
%

2019
%

2018
%

2017
%

Five year 
average

Combined ratio 
excluding COVID-19 
related claims
Attritional ratio

94.9
47.7

96.8
52.5

95.8 103.2 111.8 100.5
53.6
54.8

56.5

56.7

Any benefit arising from the effects of COVID-19 related restrictions, such 
as reduce volumes of commercial activity and the suspension of court 
hearings, is reflected within the attritional claims ratio.

Our financial strength
Our capabilities and ambition are underpinned by our strong 
financial position. Our business is underwritten primarily 
through our wholly-aligned Lloyd’s Syndicate 2987 and partly-
aligned Lloyd’s Syndicate 2988, which benefit from Lloyd’s 
ratings of A (Excellent) from A.M. Best, AA- (Very Strong) 
from Fitch and A+ (Strong) from Standard & Poor’s. 

During 2021, A.M. Best reaffirmed a Financial Strength Rating 
of A (Excellent), with a ‘stable’ outlook, to Brit Reinsurance 
(Bermuda) Limited (Brit Re). This rating reflects Brit Re’s 
financial strength, which A.M. Best assesses as ‘very strong’, 
and the positive impact of having Fairfax as its ultimate parent. 

At 31 December 2021, we had capital resources equal to 
139.1% of the management capital requirement needed to 
support our business and Fairfax has supported our continued 
capital strength allowing us to take advantage of business 
opportunities as they arise. Our capital strength provides 
the flexibility to allow us to cope with major losses while not 
deviating from our commitment to fund profitable expansion 
and to provide attractive returns.

Year
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011

RoNTA1,2
%
19.4
(20.1)
18.9
(15.2)
1.3
13.1
8.5
22.4
25.9
18.0
8.0

Combined ratio1,3
%
95.7
112.7
95.8
103.2
111.8
95.9
92.2
88.9
85.6
93.0
99.0

Attritional ratio1,3
%
47.7
52.5
54.8
56.7
56.5
54.8
55.6
50.5
51.4
50.9
57.7

Investment return1 
(net of fees) 
%
3.3
1.0
3.6
(2.0)
4.9
2.6
0.1
2.9
2.1
2.9
2.4

Note 1: The calculations for 2021 and 2020 are set out on pages 180 to 182.
Note 2: RoNTA shows the return generated by our operations for the owners 
of Brit Limited before foreign exchange movements, compared to the 
adjusted net tangible assets deployed in our business attributable to them.  
The impact of the Group’s defined benefit pension schemes are excluded 
from both the return and the assets in the calculation. RoNTAs for 2011 to 
2020 have been re-presented on this basis.
Note 3: Ratios for 2011 to 2020 have been re-presented, and are now 
presented after FX movements on non-monetary items, after the impact  
of gains/losses on other financial liabilities and before any adjustment for 
non-controlling interests. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

7

Strategic Report 
 
Brit at a glance

Outlook 
Looking ahead to 2022 and beyond, significant uncertainty 
exists for the insurance industry. 

•  The frequency of major events and magnitude of the 

resulting claims, with 2021’s experience following on from 
those of recent years including 2017 and 2018, the most 
costly back-to-back years on record; 

•  The impact of medium loss events, with commentators 
attributing an increase in the frequency and severity of 
such events to climate change and other factors such as 
population growth and increasing insured values;

•  Further pressures on attritional ratios continue, largely 
driven by the soft market years of 2017 and 2018 and by 
social inflation in the US Casualty market; 

•  The cost of doing business in the London market remains 
elevated. The market needs to become more efficient in 
processing and work with distribution partners to become 
more competitive in local markets;

•  Despite the welcome withdrawal of some capacity, available 

capacity continues to exceed demand; 

• 

In a number of markets there is increasing competition 
from local carriers; and

•  The industry continues to face political and economic 

uncertainty and challenges. 2021 saw the economy start to 
return to normal, albeit progress was impacted by further 
COVID-19 related restrictions and supply chain imbalances. 
We anticipate lower, but still above trend growth as we go 
through 2022 with heightened volatility as the economy 
navigates higher inflation and the gradual withdrawal of 
monetary stimulus.

However, there are a number of indicators to give us 
cause for optimism, including continued rate increases, the 
withdrawal of capacity in the market from certain classes 
and our improving attritional claims ratio. In this environment, 
our clear strategy of embracing data driven underwriting 
discipline, and rigorous risk selection, coupled with innovative 
capital management solutions and continued investment in 
distribution, positions us well to respond to the opportunities 
and challenges ahead.

Preserving a strong financial position is critical to the 
long-term success of an insurance business. Our financial 
position remains strong as we maintain our ‘conservative best 
estimate’ reserving policy which provides us with a secure 
foundation. We also benefit from the financial strength of 
our ultimate parent, Fairfax, and from our relationships with 
our capital partners supporting Ki, Syndicate 2988 and the 
Sussex vehicles.

We also continue to take action to improve our performance 
and maintain our underwriting discipline and rigorous risk 
selection criteria in all areas of the business. 

We remain focused on our strategy:

•  Leadership – We strive to provide direction and authority 

within our business and to our industry. We are supportive 
of the Future at Lloyd’s Blueprint and are proud to have 
worked with Lloyd’s in a number of areas, including the 
continuous contracts for coverholders and the changes to 
the Lloyd’s Europe’s operating model. 

• 

Innovation – Our purpose is to help our clients and partners 
thrive in an uncertain world and drive the industry 
forward in terms of products, services and technology, 
and innovation is at the heart of our strategy. BritX, our 
Innovation team, was launched in 2019 to create real 
change and action, and was the driving force behind Ki. It is 
aimed at targeting opportunities to disrupt our market and 
has identified a number of opportunities of real potential. 
Initiatives in 2021 included the launch of our machine 
learning algorithm to enable faster claims response to 
catastrophe events.

•  Distribution – Our strategy is to deliver our products to 
our customers in a more efficient manner. This includes 
increased digital distribution and positioning ourselves 
closer to our customers. We have an established local 
distribution platform in the US, our largest market, with 
our operations combining in 2021 under our Ambridge 
brand. We also have an established Bermuda operation, 
which houses Brit Re (our captive reinsurer and ‘A’ rated 
reinsurance carrier), Sussex Re (our ILS vehicle) and BGSB 
(our reinsurance service company). 

We are ready to face the future with optimism.

8 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Reportour underwriting

writing the future
The world we live in is unpredictable. It’s volatile, uncertain, and subject to change. At Brit, 
we believe that the uncertainty of the future should never stand in the way of progress. 
That’s why we exist. To provide a risk service and help people and businesses face the future 
and thrive.

Our vision
A world where uncertainty never stands in the way of 
progress. Because we believe the uncertainty of tomorrow 
isn’t something to fear, but something to seize.

Our promise
We don’t react to the future, we write it. It’s why we’re the 
proud home of forward-thinkers, pioneers and leaders. And 
it informs a set of core philosophies:

Our mission
To help people and businesses face the future, and thrive.

At Brit, we start with the customer, and we never forget 
the value we deliver. A promise that provides confidence in 
an uncertain world.

A mission that requires us to do things differently. 

If we are to help people seize the potential of the future we 
can’t just sell insurance products, we have to provide a risk 
service:

•  A risk service that helps clients not only prepare for, but 

manage and mitigate the risks they face;

•  A risk service that doesn’t just react to change, but sees 
the opportunity to create change for the better; and

•  A risk service that helps people not only move on from 
an event, but helps them to move forward rapidly with 
confidence.

This forward-thinking approach comes to life in our promise, 
and that promise lives at the heart of everything we do.

The Brit difference
At Brit, LEADERSHIP, INNOVATION and enhancing our product 
DISTRIBUTION are at the heart of our strategy, underpinned 
by our strong underwriting and claims expertise.

We are a leading global specialty insurer and reinsurer, focused 
on underwriting complex risks. We have a keen appetite for 
leadership.

The breadth of classes we support, the depth of our 
experience and commitment to our clients is second to none. 
We strive for innovation – across our products, processes 
and people. We have created a stimulating environment 
where talented original thinkers flourish, and we channel this 
creativity towards meeting real customer needs: turning 
smart ideas into cutting-edge insurance solutions.

•  We provide a risk service, not sell insurance products;

•  We treat people fairly – conducting ourselves with 

honesty and integrity at all times;

•  We think proactively to help us and our clients live life on 

the front foot;

•  We always speak with openness, consistency and clarity;

•  We take time to make thoughtful and disciplined 

decisions; and

•  We put innovation at the heart of our business.

We are committed to creating lasting relationships with brokers 
and clients. Hence, we are happy to meet face-to-face, (in-
person or virtually), and make ourselves available when many 
others do not. Distribution is one of the key strands of Brit’s 
‘LID’ strategy – we are focused on understanding our key 
customers and tailoring our distribution strategy across four 
key areas: open market, coverholders, reinsurance and digital. 

We also have a longstanding ethos of social responsibility 
and we have a strong culture of ‘doing the right thing’; from 
volunteering in our local communities to supporting good 
causes further afield. The projects we choose align with our 
strategic priorities and each year, ten charities are chosen  
by our employees for significant support.

Our ultimate parent company – Fairfax Financial Holdings 
Limited – provides us with the best of both worlds: a strong 
and stable base for long-term growth, combined with the 
freedom to pursue our own identity, philosophy and ambitions.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

9

Strategic Report 
 
our underwriting

Providing a risk service
Choosing to work with Brit means clients are choosing  
a service, not just buying a product.

Every day, our multidisciplined team brings diverse skills and 
experience to our clients’ businesses, and this deep underwriting 
expertise helps clients to effectively mitigate their risks.

By working in close collaboration across Underwriting, 
Claims, Actuarial and Technology, our teams gain and share 
unparalleled insight into the risks that our clients face.

• 

• 

• 

• 
• 

Insight that helps us understand our client intimately, and 
enables us to deliver a global service.
Insight that helps us not only lead the business we write, 
but also to be a meaningful and valuable partner to those 
we work with.
Insight that helps us select and price risk with industry 
leading accuracy.
Insight to respond to events efficiently and effectively.
Insight that drives us to deliver market-leading innovation 
across all four phases of the customer experience – 
pricing, risk management, claims and renewals.

Underwriting and claims excellence
Underscored by comprehensive underwriting, claims and 
risk services, we operate as a market lead across our 
primary underwriting classes. At Brit we pride ourselves on 
Underwriting and Claims excellence, deploying the latest tools 
and a disciplined approach, we have a long record of strong 
performance. 

Underwriting excellence
We have a long and successful track record of leading an 
extensive range of insurance and reinsurance programmes, 
based on rigorous risk selection and a disciplined approach to 
underwriting. We hire the best people and develop their skills 
and expertise. Combining technical expertise with industry 
knowledge, we listen, we share and we collaborate – to create 
best-in-class insurance solutions for our clients.

We are an influential and respected presence at Lloyd’s of London. 
With one of the largest and most diverse portfolios, we underwrite 
primarily through our Syndicates 2987, 2988 and Ki 1618. We 
are also helping lead Lloyd’s market modernisation project and 
have met the 2021 implementation targets set by Lloyd’s. 

Claims excellence
Should the worst happen, our team of claims professionals 
are committed to helping those affected not only to move on 
from the incident, but to move forward.

When a customer has a claim, their life or business has been 
disrupted, or even put in peril. They expect their insurance to 
deliver – and it is our responsibility to fulfil that commitment. At 
Brit, we do not treat claims as a process; we see every claim as 
an opportunity to help customers move forward with their lives.

Our team is highly experienced at both senior and adjuster 
levels, and has successfully managed claims arising from 

10 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

some of the market’s most challenging events. We know when 
to fast track the simple things – and how best to address 
more complex issues. Our claims professionals work closely 
with our underwriters. It is this collaborative approach 
that gives us real insight into the risks that our clients face, 
enabling us to tailor our responses appropriately.

Our claims professionals continue to help the London Market 
innovate and develop, with leaders from our claims team 
chairing several market-wide working groups. We also 
continue to innovate, launching our machine learning algorithm 
to enable faster claims response to catastrophe events and 
Direct Pay solution.

Broker surveys consistently highlight Brit’s efficient client 
engagement, proactive communications and case-by-case 
approach, all of which underpinned our response to the 
pandemic. In difficult circumstances, the team demonstrated 
agility and empathy in managing the high volume of COVID-19 
claims.

In 2021, Brit’s Claims team was named ‘Claims Team of the Year’ 
at both the National Insurance Awards and the British Claims 
Awards . The awards recognise excellence across the sector – 
and are a testimony not just to the hard work of our 60-strong 
team, but to its collaborative and innovative approach. In 2018 
and 2019 our claims team won the ‘Claims Team of the Year’ at 
the Insurance Day London Market Awards, and the ‘Claims Team 
of the Year’ at the LMA awards.

Market-Leading Innovation
By putting innovation at the heart of our business we are 
constantly looking for ways to provide the ongoing value 
that will help our customers thrive in a changing world. Our 
ultimate parent company, Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited, 
gives us the perfect foundation to do just that, providing a 
strong and stable base for long-term growth, while allowing 
us the flexibility to be agile in an ever-evolving industry.

Brit has continued to deliver market-leading innovation. 2021 
was the first year of trading of Ki, a standalone business and 
the first fully digital and algorithmically-driven Lloyd’s of London 
Syndicate 1618. Further details are included on page 16.

Extensive network
We are proud of our extensive distribution network. We 
have strong links with local producers, which enable us to 
efficiently provide long-term capacity for risks that would  
not otherwise reach the Lloyd’s market.

We are absolutely committed to building relationships and 
working closely with our clients to understand and exceed their 
needs. With offices in the UK, the US, Bermuda, South Africa and 
Japan, our network allows us to reach and serve clients globally.

In such a competitive industry, we never forget that it is a 
privilege to manage someone’s insurance business. Hence, 
we value and nurture our relationships with brokers and 
coverholders; they are integral to our distribution capability. 

Our specialist Delegated Underwriting Management team has  
a reputation for its commitment to excellent customer service.

Strategic ReportGroup GWP by line of business ($m)

Total
$3,238.3m

■ London Market Direct, $1,663.9m  

■ London Market Reinsurance, $639.6m  

Group GWP ($m)

Group combined ratio (%)

Group attritional ratio (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

3,238.3
2,424.4
2,293.5
2,239.1
2,057.0

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

95.7
112.7
95.8
103.2
111.8

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000

3,500

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Direct underwriting GWP ($m)

Direct underwriting 
combined ratio (%)

Direct underwriting 
attritional ratio (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

2,385.6
1,766.1
1,713.5
1,758.0
1,675.0

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

92.4
115.5
98.7
101.1
117.5

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Reinsurance underwriting GWP ($m)

Reinsurance underwriting 
combined ratio (%)

Reinsurance underwriting 
attritional ratio (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

737.3
574.3
537.7
451.7
383.3

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

104.6
101.3
91.7
111.3
86.8

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

47.7
52.6
55.0
57.2
56.4

46.3
51.5
54.6
58.0
56.5

51.7
57.0
55.5
54.1
53.2

Other underwriting GWP ($m)

The 2020 combined ratios excluding COVID-19 
related claims were: Direct 100.9%; Reinsurance 
80.6%; Group 96.8%

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

115.4
84.0
42.3
29.4
(1.3)

-20

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

11

Strategic Report■ Financial and Professional Liability, $412.0m■ Programmes and Facilities, $471.4m■ Property, $363.0m■ Ambridge, $85.2m■ Specialty, $332.3m■ Casualty Treaty, $255.0m■ Property Treaty, $384.6m■ Overseas Distribution, $407.9m  ■ Ambridge Specialty Casualty, $237.9m ■ Ambridge Re, $97.7m ■ Scion (USA), $72.3m■ Discontinued, $15.9m■ Other, $115.4m  ■ Ki, $395.6m   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
our underwriting

writing the future
The breadth of classes we support, the depth of our experience and our commitment to our 
clients differentiates us. 

Direct Underwriting
Fin Pro

Property

Financial Lines

Directors’ and Officers’ (D&O)
As recognised experts in the D&O 
market, we are known for our 
underwriting precision, specialising in 
tailoring products to precisely match 
individual clients’ needs.

Financial Institutions
As acknowledged leaders in the 
traditional insurance lines, we also 
offer exclusive, innovative solutions for 
organisations of all sizes across mature 
and emerging economies.

FI

Cyber

Global Cyber Privacy and Technology
Our knowledge of the cyber risk 
landscape gives us a deeper 
understanding of the different types 
of cyber risk. We provide cutting-edge 
products to clients ranging from agile 

start-ups to multinational corporations.

Healthcare

Healthcare Liability
With a wealth of industry expertise, 
our healthcare team is committed to 
providing tailored insurance solutions, 
innovative products and related 
healthcare risk services, backed by 

exceptional service. We focus on hospitals, allied health 
and medical liability coverage.

US PI

North American Professional Liability
An established leader in this sector,  
we provide cover on both an open 
market and binding authority basis. 
Clients range from small start-ups to 
the largest multinationals.

12 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Political and Credit Risk
We cover financial losses as a result 
of non-payment or performance of 
counterparties and confiscation, 
expropriation, nationalisation, deprivation, 
sequestration or forced abandonment of 

fixed and mobile assets in foreign countries.

Political Violence/Terrorism
We offer a range of covers including 
physical damage, denial of access and 
business interruption losses arising 
from perils including terrorism, strikes, 
riots, civil commotion, malicious damage, 
insurrection, revolution, rebellion, mutiny, war and civil war.  

International Property
Our underwriting team offers significant 
breadth and depth of experience, and has 
access to our technical expertise in the 
areas such as catastrophe modelling and 
policy wordings. We offer a diverse range 

of market-leading property products throughout the 
world and insure a wide range of clients, diverse in size 

and occupancy. North American Open Market Property

Our technical expertise in the areas of 
catastrophe modelling, pricing, policy 
wordings and claims has made our North 
American Open Market Property team a 
market of choice for both brokers and clients.

UK Property
We have a proven track record of 
writing and delivering flexible commercial 
solutions to address the precise nature 
of our customers’ requirements, covering 
both commercial and residential property.

Private Client
Our team has over 25 years of 
underwriting experience in the high net 
worth market, specialising in tailoring 
products to clients’ unique needs.  

Fine Art and Specie
We offer broad flexible coverage on all 
risks of physical loss or damage basis.  
We have the ability to design bespoke 
policies in niche market areas. 

Strategic ReportProgrammes and Facilities

Accident and Health (A&H)

Personal Accident and Medical Expenses
We are a leading Lloyd’s market 
offering a range of specialist products 
in the Accident and Health market, 
offering a broad range of products 
and concentrating on adding value to 

our clients and commercial partners. Our dynamic 
underwriting team is renowned for its diligence and 
responsiveness.  We can structure bespoke coverage to 
a client’s specific needs. We have a proven track record 
of working with our clients to respond to complex claims 
in a timely and efficient manner.

Contingency
A recognised lead market in Lloyd’s, we 
are able to offer extensive knowledge 
and significant capacity. We offer  
three main products (event cancellation, 
production, non-appearance, and film 

and prize indemnity) and also offer specialist cover for 
diverse and esoteric risks.

Property Facilities

Commercial Property
Our long-established portfolio insures  
a variety of commercial risks throughout 
North America, including the Gulf and 
Atlantic coast territories as well as 
Canada.

Homeowners
We offer coverage for primary, 
secondary and vacant dwellings as well 
as condominium unit owners in both the 
USA and Canada. We have the ability to 
include flood, earthquake and landslide, 
separately or as a package.

Flood
We offer primary and excess flood 
solutions for residential, condominium 
and commercial risks throughout the 
USA. Optional loss of rents and business 
interruption cover is also available.

Property Financial
Where a financial institution forecloses 
on a property following loan default or 
an investor purchases a portfolio of 
properties, it can be covered under a 
real estate owned (REO) policy. We also 
offer mortgage impairment coverage, which protects a 
financial institution’s owned and serviced loan portfolio 
against physical loss or damage where no other 
insurance exists and the loan is in default.

High Value Homeowners
We provide underwriting solutions to 
individuals, trusts or corporations owning 
or occupying high value or unusual 
residential dwellings or condominiums. 
Our underwriters have lead market 

expertise in high value or high risk personal lines 
exposures focusing on North America. This includes 
primary, secondary, seasonal, rental, vacant and under 
construction or renovation. Our ‘HomeGuard’ product  
can be tailored to a client’s precise requirements.

Small Commercial General Liability
We write premises risk exposure,  
as a package with property coverage 
or on a monoline basis. We also 
write liability coverage for artisan 
contractors, truckers’ general liability 

and non-trucking liability. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

13

Strategic Report 
 
our underwriting

Direct Underwriting (continued)
Programmes and Facilities

Specialty
Marine

Transport

Transportation
Commercial transportation is the 
lifeblood of industry and commerce 
across North America and we 
understand what it takes to help clients 
move their business forward. We insure 

commercial Automobile Physical Damage and Motor 
Truck Cargo across the US and Canada. We support all 
sizes of fleet through our network of Lloyd’s brokers 
and coverholders.

Long Tail Facilities

Small North American Liability
We insure small and medium-sized 
(SME’s) enterprises in North America for 
errors and omissions liability through 
our dedicated team. Smaller enterprises 
are no less complex and we take the time 

to write risks that enable a small business to continue 
on growth path.

14 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Cargo
Our experienced and respected team 
provide cargo insurance for goods 
on land, sea, air and in storage in 
warehouses worldwide as well as 
project cargo for construction and  

pre-launch for satellites.

Marine Hull and War
An expert team providing market-
leading Hull insurance across the 
Lloyd’s platform. Brit insures a range 
of bluewater, in-land and war risks and 
specialist operations on a worldwide 
basis.

Marine Liability
We offer specialist Marine Liability cover 
not limited to P&I, Charterers’ Liability, 
Pollution, Terminal Operators’ Umbrella 
Liability and MEL. We also offer Energy 
Liability with a focus on Upstream, 

Midstream and Onshore and Offshore Renewable Energy.

Energy

Space

Energy
A highly technical class with an 
experienced and well-respected team 
offering coverage for all aspects of 
Upstream and Midstream Energy 
operations, including Renewables.

Space
For over twenty years we have led the 
Brit Space Consortium, offering bespoke 
wordings for both launch and in-orbit 
risks to carefully selected clients. Our 
product provides cover for damage to or 

failure of the satellite or launch vehicle.

General Liability

EL/PL
Our experienced team works with their 
clients to provide liability coverage to their 
specific market needs. Products include 
Public and Products Liability, Employers’ 
Liability and Environmental Liability.

Strategic ReportReinsurance

Casualty

Casualty Treaty
We have dedicated teams for North 
America and International based in 
London and a USA-based team writing 
Casualty Treaty and Programmes 
focused on the North American Market. 

We are therefore able to offer our clients a considerable 
breadth of expertise. We underwrite on a Worldwide 
basis and are a recognised quoting market. We are a 
lead market on approximately half of our business, with 
capacity varying according to class and source of risk. 
Retrocessional risks are also actively considered.

Property

Property Treaty
Our teams of specialist underwriters 
in both London and Bermuda operate 
together to provide superior service and 
tailored solutions to brokers and clients 
utilising a blend of up-to-date technical 

expertise, embedded modelling capability and real-
world market experience. Our client base represents 
a significant and established cross-section of carriers 
writing simple policies to complex risks. Our London 
office is focused on catastrophe excess of loss and 
risk excess of loss where significant capacity can be 
offered. The portfolio has global scope, focussing on US, 
Europe, Japan and Australia. Our Bermuda office writes 
US property catastrophe reinsurance, retrocession and 
industry loss warranties. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

15

Strategic Report 
 
our underwriting

Ki, the first algorithmically driven  
Lloyd’s of London syndicate 

Ki, the first algorithmically driven Lloyd’s of London syndicate, 
has successfully delivered a transformational business 
model in Lloyd’s and represents a major breakthrough in how 
brokers work with underwriters in the market with its digital, 
data driven approach. As a result, Ki has the opportunity to 
grow profitably. 

Ki’s platform has marked a step change for an industry 
that is yet to face significant technology-driven disruption. 
Google Cloud has brought to Ki enterprise-grade cloud 
solutions powered by innovative technologies that enable 
rapid transformation at scale. Ki's algorithm, developed with 
support from University College London and its Computer 
Science department, is able to evaluate Lloyd's policies and 
automatically quote for business through a digital platform 
which brokers can access directly. 

Ki truly embraces all that is represented in ‘The Future at 
Lloyd's’ by bringing data, technology, innovation and artificial 
intelligence to the fore in the complex world of corporate and 
specialty underwriting. Ki is backed by its capital partners, 
Blackstone Tactical Opportunities (Blackstone) and Fairfax. 
This support will enable the business to grow rapidly to 
significant scale. 

In its first year of trading, Ki has gained excellent traction, 
with GWP recorded during 2021 of $395.6m. Its full year 
combined ratio of 113.6% reflects first year earnings drag as 
it grows to scale and includes 16.0pps of catastrophe claims. 
Ki returned its first profit in the fourth quarter of the year.

It has had a very positive reception from the Lloyd’s broking 
community since launch and has transacted with each of its 
broking partners and in all of its planned classes of business. 
It has also significantly expanded its market presence by 
onboarding the reinsurance divisions of its partner brokers.

Ki’s underwriting, data and digital teams work as partners 
in a new organisational model for the market, with a focus 
on innovation and driving improvements in Ki’s technology 
product. 

Working closely with its partner brokers, Ki has continued 
to update and evolve the platform, further streamlining the 
placement of risks. Ki now has over 1,200 active users and  
is generating approximately 40 quotes per day. 

Ki also launched its API in Q1 which allows partner brokers 
to integrate digitally with Ki and create a totally seamless 
connection to Ki’s algorithm to obtain quotes within their own 
broking platform. 

In November, Ki entered into a $130m sustainability linked 
‘Funds at Lloyd’s’ letter of credit agreement with its banking 
partners. The facility, which is structured to support 
Syndicate 1618 as Ki grows, is linked to the ESG rating of Ki’s 
‘Funds at Lloyd’s’ investment portfolios and Syndicate 1618’s 
assets, with its pricing depending on the compliance of Ki’s 
investment portfolios with ESG targets. This builds on the 
investment guidelines Ki has established for its third-party 
managers, which incorporate ESG principles and targets, and 
will help Ki build a sustainable footprint.

During 2021, Ki has continued to strengthen its team. In 
August we were pleased to welcome Richard Hodgson to the 
newly created role of Ki Chief Technology Officer. Richard is 
responsible for leading Ki’s technology strategy and execution, 
including its engineering function, helping the business in its 
mission to define the future of digital trading in the market.

We look forward to 2022, and building on the success of our 
first year of trading, while taking advantage of the significant 
opportunities presented by the Ki model. 

Further information can be found at www.ki-insurance.com.

16 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportBrit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

17

Strategic Report 
 
underwriting review

2021 underwriting review

COVID-19
COVID-19 continues to have a significant impact on the 
insurance industry.

During 2021, our priorities have remained the safety of 
our employees and continuity of our service to our clients 
and brokers. We have maintained a high level of service 
to our clients and our collaborative culture has shown 
itself at its best. Our underwriters have been actively 
engaging with clients and brokers, delivering market-leading 
responsiveness. Our Claims team continues to service our 
policyholders in these challenging circumstances, proactively 
working with our third party adjusters to ensure claims 
continue to be handled promptly and to our usual high 
standards. 

The financial impact of COVID-19 on Brit in 2021 was lower, 
with an overall net impact of $15.9m, or 0.8pps of the 
combined ratio (2020: $271.4m/15.9pps). This $15.9m loss, 
which was driven by Contingency (event cancellation) and 
Property Treaty, arose as follows:

•  $28.2m (1.3pps) of net claims incurred in respect of 

current year losses recorded within current year claims; 
and

•  $12.3m (0.5pps) of reserve releases in respect of 2020 

year losses, recorded within prior year releases.

Any benefit arising from the effects of COVID-19 related 
restrictions, such as reduce volumes of commercial activity 
and the suspension of court hearings, is reflected within the 
attritional claims ratio. 

COVID-19 is a highly unusual insurance event, ‘earning’ over 
a prolonged period. Estimating the overall cost is highly 
subjective and there remains uncertainty around losses from 
COVID-19. We would expect the level of uncertainty around 
Contingency to reduce over time, however, within areas of the 
account such as Casualty Treaty, Property Treaty and Open 
Market Property the ultimate loss outcome is still to emerge 
and will be influenced by factors such as coverage issues and 
the interpretation of contract wording. 

We also continue to monitor our wider business, which may 
be impacted by claims arising directly or indirectly from the 
events unfolding, and we continue to consider the potential 
impact on medium-term claims from a global recession, which 
typically brings increased moral hazard, fraud and a more 
litigious environment generally.

In 2020, investment markets were also significantly impacted 
by COVID-19. In 2021, while volatility remains, the market 
rebound has continued. Brit’s investment return for the 
twelve months to 31 December 2021 was a positive $171.9m 
(2020: $44.6m).

18 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Major loss activity
2021 also saw a high level of non-COVID-19 related major loss 
activity, with an estimated $112bn of global insured losses 
arising from natural catastrophes and man-made events,  
a 13% increase over 2020, and the fourth-costliest on 
record. Natural catastrophes, including a winter freeze, 
floods, thunderstorms, heatwaves and a major hurricane 
accounted for $105bn of the estimate, as well as having a 
devastating impact on people’s lives, homes and businesses. 
The estimated global economic loss arising from natural 
catastrophes and man-made events in 2021 is approximately 
$259bn (2020: $216bn). (Source: Swiss Re)

The main events impacting Brit in 2021 were Hurricane Ida, 
the Texas winter storms and the European floods. The net 
impact to Brit of the claims incurred from these events, 
before reinstatements, was $296.2m, or 14.2pps on the 
combined ratio (2020: $133.4m/7.8pps). They accumulate to  
a significant total, well above average expectations. 

Rate increases
The market has continued to benefit from strengthening 
premium rates during 2021. Brit achieved an overall risk 
adjusted rate increase of 12.9% (2020: 10.6%). All Divisions 
achieved rate increases, with the largest increases achieved 
in Professional Lines, Ambridge Transactional, Ambridge 
Specialty Casualty, Property Open Market, Specialist Liability 
and Marine.

Risk adjusted rate increases since 1 January 2018 now total 
33.1%, analysed across portfolios as follows:

London – Direct
London – RI
Overseas Distribution
Total

2018
%
3.6)
3.1
4.5
3.7

2019
%
7.1
2.4
6.4
5.9

2020
%
10.7
7.2
14.6
10.6

2021
%
15.3
7.3
13.6
12.9

Total
%
36.7
20.0
39.1
33.1

Our customers
Our customers are our priority. When a customer has a 
claim, we understand they are facing difficult and unexpected 
challenges. They expect the insurance they have purchased to 
respond and deliver when they need it most. We see each and 
every claim as an opportunity to deliver the claims service our 
customers need to move forward with their lives. 

The Brit claims team have maintained a focus on responding 
to our customers and pursuing opportunities to reduce claims 
lifecycle and bring claims to resolution at every opportunity 
through innovation and technology:

•  Launch of machine learning algorithm to enable faster 

claims response to catastrophe events
Brit continues to lead the London Market in its use of 
geospatial technology to advance property claims adjusting 
capabilities post catastrophe and in normal course  
claims response. By capturing high resolution images  

Strategic Reportof Brit-insured properties, we can expedite the adjusting 
process. In 2021, we expanded the capability by deploying 
a proprietary machine-learning algorithm, developed by the 
Company’s data science team, which assesses ultra-high-
resolution aerial images and data to further improve our 
claims service and expedite payments for customers. The 
algorithm allows Brit’s claims team and its delegated claims 
adjusters to identify, triage and assign response activity 
even before claims are reported. It was used successfully 
in the wake of Hurricane Ida and the US tornados. 

has also benefited from improved market conditions and 
increased traction.

•  Our Bermuda operation continues to selectively write 

reinsurance business in lines and markets that we believe 
are well rated. Premiums generated by our Bermuda office 
in 2021 equated to $86.0m (2020: $83.1m). 

•  Camargue Underwriting Managers (Proprietary) Limited, 

our South African coverholder, generated $9.9m of 
premium for Brit in 2021.

•  Direct Pay solution 

We expanded adoption of the Direct Pay solution in the 
UK, with very favourable feedback from customers, 
coverholders and brokers. Direct Pay offers end 
customers the ability to receive claims payments securely 
and instantly to their bank cards. The technology and 
concept for Direct Pay is expected to be deployed more 
widely as a Future of Lloyd’s solution for the market.

Our underwriting 
Our overall GWP for 2021 was $3,238.3m, an increase of 
33.6% over 2020 ($2,424.4m), or 31.8% at constant rates 
of exchange. Of this, $395.6m was generated by Ki in its 
successful first year of trading. 

We experienced strong growth in our core London Market 
Direct (Financial and Professional Liability, Property, and 
Ambridge Transactional) and Reinsurance classes (Property 
Treaty), reflecting the strong rating environment and 
targeted growth. Growth was also strong in Overseas 
Distribution (Ambridge Specialty Casualty and Ambridge Re), 
reflecting rate increases and new business opportunities.

Our retention ratio, the proportion of our premium that 
renews, improved to 83.7%, (2020: 76.1%). Across all 
lines, we have retained our underwriting discipline and 
are prepared to discontinue accounts that we believe are 
inadequately priced or outside of our appetite.

Distribution remains central to our strategy, and we continue 
to build our network. In 2021 we combined our Ambridge and 
Brit Global Specialty USA (BGSU) operations under the Ambridge 
brand (see below). We also disposed of our Scion US MGA, but 
have retained an underwriting relationship with the team.

Our overseas offices made a significant contribution to the 
Group, providing 16.0% of GWP, and allowing us to access 
business not generally available in London. In 2021 they 
generated $516.7m of premium (2020: $400.6m).

•  Ambridge Partners LLC, our New York based MGA, 

generated $420.8m of premium for Brit (2020: Ambridge 
and BGSU combined: $317.5m). This reflects the 
increase in corporate transactional activity which was 
impacted in 2020 COVID-19 and other factors such as 
Brexit uncertainty. The remodelled BGSU portfolio, now 
rebranded Ambridge Specialty Casualty and Ambridge Re, 

Our business developments during 2021
During 2021 we continued to focus on our strategy of 
Leadership, Innovation and Distribution. Key developments 
have included:

•  Ki: A successful first year of trading

Ki, a standalone business and the first fully digital and 
algorithmically-driven Lloyd's of London syndicate, has 
gained significant traction in its successful first year  
of trading. Further details are included on page 16.

•  Loss portfolio reinsurance (LPR) agreement with 

RiverStone Managing Agency Limited
In November, Brit completed a LPR with RiverStone 
Managing Agency Limited (RiverStone). The agreement was 
effective from 1 October 2021, and is for predominantly 
legacy years of account underwritten by Brit Syndicate 
2987. Under the agreement, RiverStone’s Syndicate 3500 
has indemnified Brit against potential adverse development 
in respect of net liabilities for a premium of $344.1m, 
thereby providing Brit with certainty on discontinued lines 
and reducing its exposure to US Casualty claims inflation. 
RiverStone will assume all claims handing responsibility 
for the transferring business. As a result of the additional 
reinsurance protection afforded by this contract, Brit was 
able to release $35.0m of net reserves established for 
prior year claims.

•  US strategy 

During the period, Brit combined BGSU with Ambridge to 
create a single operation under the Ambridge brand. It will 
operate as a global MGA, managing 14 products and over  
of $600m of premium in the US and internationally.

In considering our future strategy for the US, the 
rationale for bringing these two businesses together was 
compelling, allowing an increased focus on underwriting 
profit and fee generated income. By leveraging the well-
recognised Ambridge MGA model to source potential 
third party underwriting capacity and utilise its strong 
market reputation, clients will benefit from better access 
to products and enhanced service, and our underwriting 
teams will be better able to capitalise on business 
opportunities. The additional capacity will provide the ability 
to offer larger line sizes, drive a reduction in operating 
expenses and ultimately allow the US operations to be more 
opportunistic and competitive in the long-term. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

19

Strategic Report 
 
underwriting review

•  Continuous contracts for coverholders

•  Continued portfolio management 

In December Brit announced that, working closely with 
Lloyd’s, it had piloted the first continuous binder at Lloyd’s, 
which will go live in January 2022. Continuous contracts 
form a key part of the Future at Lloyd’s vision for delegated 
underwriting. The new forms of contract aim to improve 
efficiencies by replacing the traditional annual renewal 
cycle, which can often be time and labour intensive and 
prove highly disruptive to a coverholder’s business. The 
continuous contracts will be powered by a regular, data 
driven, review process throughout the life of the contract, 
this will also increase overall visibility of performance. 

Where classes remain challenging, we have continued to 
take action to improve our performance and maintained our 
rigorous risk selection criteria. During 2021, we ceased 
writing Kidnap for Ransom and the Legal Expenses account 
was put into run-off.

•  New in-house broker facilities

We have re-modelled our 40th floor to provide a broker 
facility. The Brit Broker Sky Lounge is a new environment 
with a variety of collaboration areas where we can host our 
brokers and clients, in an environment where they will want 
to meet and do business. 

•  Product innovation

We have continued to develop and launch new products. 
This has included:

•  Keel Marine Consortium: In June, Brit launched ‘Keel’,  
a new marine consortium, to revolutionise the writing  
of Marine War and breach call risks. Keel is an innovative 
compliance and placement platform that provides 
instant, fully sanctioned screened and fully supported 
quotes for breach calls, where vessels enter high risk 
areas excluded from their annual protection. The new 
trading platform has transformed the placement of such 
cover, which is traditionally a time-consuming process. 
The platform has been well received by brokers and 
should allow the class to grow market share in this 
historically profitable segment.

•  E-trading portal: Brit has continued to expand its 

e-trading portal. The e-trading portal provides a more 
efficient and convenient method of placing business than 
traditional placement methods.

•  Camargue Underwriting Managers (Proprietary) Limited 

(Camargue)
In October, Brit completed the acquisition of the second 
50% of Camargue, the South African coverholder and long 
standing partner of Brit, at a cost of $12.6m. Brit acquired 
the initial 50% of Camargue in 30 August 2016. 

•  Scion Underwriting Services Inc.

In June, Brit completed the sale of Scion, recognising a 
gain on sale of $18.3m. Brit founded Scion, a US casualty 
MGA, in 2018 and it has grown to over $80m of premium in 
three years. Following the purchase of 100% of Ambridge 
and the subsequent restructuring of BGSU under the 
Ambridge brand, together we felt that a sale of Scion to 
an MGA aggregator would be a better fit for their strategy 
and ambitions. Brit will continue to provide lead capacity 
to Scion and as such will retain a strong coverholder 
relationship with the team going forward. 

•  Commonwealth Insurance Company of America (CICA)

The sale of CICA completed in February for a consideration 
of $19.7m. CICA is a US admitted carrier that holds a 
number of licences to operate as an insurance company. 
Brit originally acquired CICA in April 2018 at a cost of $16.4m.

20 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

•  2022 business planning

In 2022, Lloyd’s market GWP is expected to grow to 
£43.7bn, an increase of c.13% over planned 2021 levels. 
Lloyd’s will also permit growth in net exposure for the first 
time in four years. Aggregate market stamp capacity is set 
to increase by 7.3%, with 58% of established Syndicates 
allowed to grow. 

For 2022, Brit (Syndicates 2987, 2988 and 1618 collectively) 
has a stamp capacity of £2,513m, a 17.3% increase over 
2021. This makes Brit one of the fastest growing large 
managing agents in the market, demonstrating the value and 
strength of Brit to the Lloyd’s Market.

Syndicate 2987’s GWP is planned to grow by 11.8% over 
its current 2021 year of account forecast. As in previous 
years, we continue to actively manage the portfolios 
by segmenting classes into ‘high performing’, ‘core 
growth’, ‘core new initiatives’, ‘core opportunistic’ and 
‘portfolio management’. Growth (excluding RARC) is driven 
primarily by the ‘high performing’, ‘core growth’ and ‘core 
opportunistic’ segments, while the largest increases in 
RARC are targeted on the weakest performing segments  
of the portfolio.

Syndicate 2988’s GWP is planned to grow by 26.3% over 
its current 2021 year of account forecast. The 2022 plan 
promotes continued diversification of the Syndicate’s 
portfolio, by growing the ‘high performing’, ‘core growth’ 
and ‘core opportunistic’ segments in such a way as to 
generate a better balance between Property, Specialty and 
Casualty line. Growth in Syndicate 2988 premium is largely 
a function of greater penetration into Syndicate 2987’s 
business plus selective growth of existing business. 

Syndicate 1618’s GWP is planned to grow in its second 
year of trading. The first year of trading has been a great 
success and its plan for 2022 reflects its rapid progress 
to date and the significant opportunity that the Ki model 
presents. Growth is planned to come from a combination 
of both its syndicate’s renewal portfolio and greater 
penetration into the follow market. 

Strategic ReportBrit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

21

Strategic Report 
 
financial performance review

Key Performance Indicators 
At Brit we monitor and measure our performance by 
reference to certain key performance indicators (KPIs). 
These KPIs are used by us to manage our business and allow 
us to see, at a glance, how we are performing.

Our four KPIs show the returns that we are generating, the 
performance of our underwriting activities, our investment 
portfolio and our financial strength. The development of our 
KPIs over the five years (set out below) reflects our focus 
on underwriting performance and improving underwriting 
market conditions, together with the challenges presented by 
the increased frequency and severity of catastrophe events, 
COVID-19, and the increase in investment market volatility.

A reconciliation of each KPI to the amounts presented in the 
financial statements, where relevant, is included in the Annual 
Report and Accounts starting on page 180 and definitions  
of each of our KPIs are included in the Glossary starting on 
page 184. 

For 2021, we have simplified our approach to calculating a 
number of our ratios, and have re-presented previous years’ 
ratios on this basis:

•  Underwriting ratios (combined ratio, claims ratios, 
commission and expense ratios) are now presented 
after FX movements on non-monetary items, after the 
impact of gains/losses on other financial liabilities and 
before any adjustment for non-controlling interests. The 
calculations contain an adjustment whereby the premium 
paid for the loss portfolio reinsurance ($344.1m) is 
added back to premium earned net of reinsurance, with 
an equal and opposite adjustment to net claims incurred. 
The benefit of a $35.0m reserve release resulting from 
the additional protection afforded by the contract is 
included in the calculation. The Directors believe that the 
ratios when calculated after these adjustments present a 
more consistent and understandable view of the Group’s 
performance.

•  Return on net tangible assets (RoNTA) now represents 
the profit/(loss) for the year after tax attributable to 
the owners of Brit Limited (adjusted for amortisation net 
of tax, defined benefit pension scheme charges/credits 
net of tax, and foreign exchange movements net of tax), 
divided by the total equity attributable to the owners of 
Brit Limited at start of year (less intangible assets net 
of deferred tax, and pension asset net of deferred tax), 
adjusted on a time weighted basis for any distributions and 
shares issued during the year. 

22 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportOverall performance
Return on net tangible assets (RoNTA) 

19.4%

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

Underwriting
Combined ratio 

95.7%

19.4%
( 20.1) %
18.9%
(15.2)%
1.3%

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

95.7%
112.7 %
95.8%
103.2%
111.8%

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

5

10

15

20

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

RoNTA shows the return generated by our operations 
for the owners of Brit Limited before foreign exchange 
movements, compared to the adjusted net tangible 
assets deployed in our business attributable to them. 
The impact of the Group’s defined benefit pension 
schemes are excluded from both the return and the 
assets in the calculation. RoNTAs for 2017 to 2020 have 
been re-presented on this basis.

In 2021, our RoNTA was 19.4%, reflecting a strong 
attritional performance, solid prior year reserve 
releases, an excellent investment return and gains on 
disposals of two subsidiaries, partly offset by major  
loss activity and the continued impact of COVID-19.

This return resulted in a five-year average RoNTA 
of 0.9%. RoNTA for 2021 after foreign exchange 
movements was 18.2% (2020: (19.6)%).

The combined ratio is our key underwriting metric and 
measures the profitability of our underwriting. It shows 
how much of every $1 of premium is spent in the total 
costs of sourcing and underwriting the business and 
settling claims. A combined ratio under 100% indicates 
underwriting profitability.

Our combined ratio in 2021 was 95.7%, including 
14.2pps in respect of major losses and 1.3pps in 
respect of current year COVID-19 related claims, partly 
offset by 4.8pps of reserve releases. Over the past  
five years, we have delivered an average combined ratio 
of 103.8% despite the impact of COVID-19 and extreme 
catastrophe years of 2017 and 2018.

Excluding COVID-19 related claims, our five-year 
average combined ratio was 100.5%. 

Investment management
Investment return 

3.3%

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

Capital management
Capital ratio 

139.1%

3.3%
1.0%
3.6%
(2.0)%
4.9%

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

139.1%
122.1%
128.4%
130.4%
136.8%

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

4

5

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

We assess the performance of our investment portfolio 
by comparing the return generated by our invested 
assets, net of external investment related expenses, 
against the average value of those invested assets. 

Our investment strategy takes a long-term view of 
markets, which can lead to significant variations in our 
year-on-year return figures. Over the past five years, 
we have delivered an average investment return of 2.2%.

The capital ratio measures our financial strength 
position by comparing our available capital resources 
to the capital we need to hold to meet our management 
entity capital requirements.

Our financial position remains strong. At 31 December 
2021, Group capital resources totalled $2,199.5m 
giving surplus management capital of $617.9m (2020: 
$341.0m), or 39.1% (2020: 22.1%) over our Group 
management capital requirement. During the period, 
our capital requirements increased from $1,540.3m to 
$1,581.6m, primarily reflecting increased requirements 
resulting from growth in our 2022 underwriting plans, 
offset by reduction in capital requirements due to 
increases in interest rates.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

23

Strategic Report 
 
financial performance review

Overview of Results
The Group’s income statement, re-analysed to show the key components of our result, is set out below:

Gross written premium 
Net written premium
Net earned premium (Note 1)
Underwriting result 
Return on invested assets, net of fees 
Gain on deconsolidation of subsidiaries
Gain on business combination
Corporate expenses 
Finance costs 
Other items 
Profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before tax and FX 
FX movements 
Profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before tax 
Tax 
Profit/(loss) for the year after tax 

Note 1: Including the effects of foreign exchange on non-monetary items.

2021
$m
3,238.3 
1,998.3 
1,754.3 
90.6
171.9
19.8
6.1
(44.7)
(18.3)
21.7 
247.1
(19.8)
227.3
9.6
236.9

2020
$m
2,424.4 
1,775.6 
1,710.7 
(217.3)
44.6 
–
–
(23.6)
(23.6)
(15.6)
(235.5)
5.0 
(230.5)
(1.5)
(232.0)

2019
$m
2,293.5 
1,656.2 
1,641.9 
69.7 
148.1 
–
10.2
(20.3)
(23.7)
0.3 
184.3 
2.0 
186.3 
(6.4)
179.9 

2018
$m
2,239.1 
1,482.4 
1,468.0 
(52.4)
(83.3)
–
–
(20.0)
(18.8)
(3.4)
(177.9)
(12.4)
(190.3)
23.8 
(166.5)

2017
$m
2,057.0 
1,530.8 
1,536.8 
(181.5)
204.2 
–
–
(24.0)
(17.1)
2.6 
(15.8)
21.3 
5.5 
16.0 
21.5 

Group performance
Our 2021 result reflected premium growth, strong attritional performance, solid prior year reserve releases, good investment 
return and a gain on the deconsolidation of subsidiaries, partly offset by major loss activity and the continued impact of 
COVID-19. We also saw a further improvement in market conditions. 2020 was dominated by COVID-19 and other major losses. 

The result on ordinary activities for the year before tax and FX was a profit of $247.1m (2020: loss of $235.5m), profit before 
tax was $227.3m (2020: loss of $230.5m) and profit after tax was $236.9m (2020: loss of $232.0m). Return on adjusted 
net tangible assets (RoNTA), excluding the effects of FX, was 19.4% (2020: (20.1)%). RoNTA for 2021 after including foreign 
exchange movements was 18.2% (2020: (19.6)%). 

Our adjusted net tangible assets at 31 December 2021 totalled $1,740.6m (2020: $1,436.8m). 

Performance measures
In addition to our KPIs, we have other measures that offer further insight into the detail of our performance. These  
measures include:

•  Premium related: Risk adjusted rate change; Retention rate;

•  Claims related: Claims ratio; Attritional claims ratio; Major claims ratio; Reserve release ratio; and

•  Underwriting expense related: Expense ratio; Commission expense ratio; Operating expense ratio.

A reconciliation of each performance measure to the amounts presented in the financial statements is included in the  
Annual Report and Accounts starting on page 180 and a definition of each measure is included in the Glossary starting on  
page 184. The calculations of the claims and underwriting expense related measures include the adjustment for the loss 
portfolio reinsurance contract as referenced on page 19.

24 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportUnderwriting 

Overview
Our underwriting result for the year was a profit of $90.6m (2020: loss of $217.3m) and our combined ratio was 95.7% (2020: 
112.7%). The premiums, claims and expenses components of this result are examined below.

Premiums written

Premium growth
London Market Direct
London Market Reinsurance
Overseas Distribution
Discontinued underwriting
Other underwriting

Ki
Group total

2021
$m
1,663.9
639.6
407.9
15.9
115.4
2,842.7
395.6
3,238.3

2020
$m
1,344.7
533.4
327.6
127.8
90.9
2,424.4
–
2,424.4

Growth at 
constant 
FX rates
%
21.7
18.8
24.5
(88.0)
25.4
15.7
–
31.8

Growth
%
23.7
19.9
24.5
(87.6)
27.0
17.3
–
33.6

Note 1: The 2020 figures have been re-analysed to reflect the changes to the underwriting class monitoring structure introduced in 2021.

Premiums by division and class
London Market Direct

Financial and Professional Liability
Programmes and Facilities
Property
Ambridge Transactional
Specialty

London Market Reinsurance

Casualty Treaty
Property Treaty

Overseas Distribution

Ambridge Specialty Casualty
Ambridge Re
Scion (USA)

Discontinued (Note 2)

Other (Note 3)

Discontinued

Other

Ki

Total

2021
$
412.0
471.4
363.0
85.2
332.3
1,663.9

2020
$
260.1
461.9
287.7
27.8
307.2
1,344.7

255.0
384.6
639.6

237.9
97.7
72.3
407.9

242.6
290.8
533.4

193.7
69.1
64.8
327.6

15.9

127.8

115.4

395.6

90.9

–

3,238.3

2,424.4

Note 1: The 2020 figures have been re-analysed to reflect the changes to the underwriting class monitoring structure introduced in 2021.

Note 2: ‘Discontinued Underwriting’ represents lines of business in run-off.

Note 3: 'Other Underwriting' comprises the Group’s special purpose vehicles and Brit’s share of Syndicate 2988. 

Gross written premium (GWP) increased by 33.6% to $3,238.3m (2020: $2,424.4m). At constant exchange rates, the increase 
was 31.8%. London Market Direct business increased by 23.7% to $1,663.9m (2020: $1,344.7m), London Market Reinsurance 
increased by 19.9% to $639.6m (2020: $533.4m), Overseas Distribution increased by 24.5% to $407.9m (2020: $327.6m) 
and Other Underwriting increased by 27.0% to $115.4m (2020: $90.9m). Ki, in its first year of underwriting, gained significant 
traction, writing $395.6m.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

25

Strategic Report 
 
 
financial performance review

The drivers of the increase in Group GWP, which was in line with expectations, were as follows:

•  Current year premiums: In addition to the increase attributable to Ki, we experienced growth in our core London Market 
Direct (Financial and Professional Liability, Property, and Ambridge Transactional) and Reinsurance classes (Property 
Treaty), reflected the strong rating environment and targeted growth as we capitalise on market opportunities. These 
increases were partially offset by our withdrawal from a number of underperforming classes, and the non-renewal of 
certain accounts due to poor performance or pricing inadequacy. Within Overseas Distribution, premium growth was seen  
in Ambridge Specialty Casualty and Ambridge Re, reflecting rate increases and new business opportunities.

•  Prior year premium development: The book again experienced favourable development on prior years, at a similar rate to 

that experienced in 2020. This resulted in a year-on-year increase of $6.5m. 

•  Foreign exchange: The impact of foreign exchange resulted in a $32.7m year-on-year increase in premium, which reflects 

the movement during 2021 of the US dollar against a number of currencies in which the Group writes business.

Premium rate change

Measure
Risk adjusted rate change

Commentary
The risk adjusted rate change (RARC) shows 
whether premium rates are increasing, reflecting 
a hardening market, or decreasing, reflecting 
a softening market. A hardening market is one 
indicator of increasing profitability. The data 
reflects internal estimates by Brit’s underwriters, 
based on available year-on-year underlying 
renewal data after allowing for changes to terms 
and conditions. Generally, no adjustment is made to 
the figures to reflect the impact of inflation beyond 
the level of inflation in the underlying exposure 
measure used in pricing.

In 2021, we achieved an overall RARC of 12.9%, 
bringing the RARC since 1 January 2018 to 33.1%.

Track record
Risk adjusted rate change (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

12.9%
10.6%
5.9%
3.7%
(1.3)%

-2

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

2021 saw a continued positive rate environment, building on that of 2020, 2019 and 2018, with an overall risk adjusted premium 
rate increase of 12.9% across the portfolio (2020: 10.6%), bringing the total increase since 1 January 2018 to 33.1%.

In 2021, London Direct increased by 15.3% (2020: 10.7%), London Reinsurance by 7.3% (2020: 7.2%) and Overseas 
Distribution by 13.6% (2020: 14.6%). All Divisions achieved rate increases, with the largest increases achieved in Professional 
Lines, Ambridge Transactional, Ambridge Specialty Casualty, Property Open Market, Specialist Liability and Marine.

Retention rate

Measure
Retention rate

Commentary
The retention rate shows the proportion of our 
business that renews, on a premium weighted 
basis, compared to the previous year.

Track record
Retention rate (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

83.7%
76.1%
78.0%
80.2%
83.6%

0

20

40

60

80

100

Our retention rate for the period was 83.7% (2020: 76.1%). The increase reflects the action we have taken to improve our 
performance by discontinuing underperforming business lines over the last four years and increased lines on renewals through 
utilisation of its broker relationships and market presence with increased lead positions.

Outwards reinsurance
Our reinsurance expenditure in 2021 was $1,240.0m or 38.3% of GWP (2020: $648.8m/26.8%), an increase of $591.2m.

This increase primarily reflects a loss portfolio reinsurance contract with RiverStone Managing Agency Limited (for and on 
behalf of Lloyd’s syndicate 3500). Under the terms of this reinsurance, Brit ceded predominantly legacy years of account on 
certain classes and certain discontinued classes of business underwritten by Brit Syndicate 2987, for a premium of $344.1m. 

26 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportExcluding this transaction, reinsurance expenditure was $895.9m or 27.7% of GWP, representing an increase of $247.1m 
over 2020. This increase reflects the impact on higher premium levels on adjustable excess of loss contracts and proportional 
reinsurance treaties, a new XL contract supported by the Brit-sponsored Cat Bond issued in late 2020 by a segregated cell of 
Sussex UK, additional Cyber protections and the reinsurance programme for Ki.

Net earned premium
Net earned premium (NEP) in 2021 increased by 2.5% to $1,754.3m (2020: $1,710.7m). At constant exchange rates, the 
increase was 1.2%. London Market Direct business increased by 19.8% to $1,111.2m (2020: $927.5m), London Market 
Reinsurance increased by 8.8% to $392.4m (2020: $360.7m), Overseas Distribution decreased by 75% to $60.0m (2020: 
$239.8m), Other Underwriting increased by 57.3% to $98.5m (2020: $62.6m) and Discontinued decreased by 161.1% to 
$(73.4)m (2020: $120.1m). Ki’s first year NEP was $165.6m. These movements reflected premium growth, partly offset  
by the additional reinsurance spend.

Excluding the impact of the loss portfolio reinsurance contract, which impacted Overseas Distribution and Discontinued,  
NEP increased by 22.7%, to $2,098.4m.

Claims

Measure
Claims ratio

Commentary
The claims ratio measures the performance of 
the whole underwriting book, encompassing risks 
written in the current year and in prior years. 

Track record
Claims ratio (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

25

50

75

The claims ratio can be further analysed into its underlying components, as follows:

Measure
Attritional claims ratio

Commentary
The attritional claims ratio measures the 
performance of the underlying underwriting book 
by measuring the effect of attritional claims. 

Track record
Attritional claims ratio (%)

Major claims ratio

Reserve release ratio

The major claims ratio measures the effect 
of claims arising from major losses on our 
performance. 

The 2021 ratio reflects the impact of catastrophe 
events of 14.2pps (2020: 7.8pps) and COVID-19 
related claims of 1.3pps (2020: 15.9pps). 

The reserve release ratio measures the 
performance of reserves held on the statement  
of financial position at the start of the year.  
A negative ratio indicates an overall net release, 
which means that prior year claims are performing 
better than estimated at the start of the year.  
A positive ratio indicates that over the course of 
the year, the amount required to meet those prior 
year claims has increased. 

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

25

50

75

Major claims ratio (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

25

50

75

Reserve release ratio (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

-6

-4

-2

0

58.4%
72.4%
55.7%
63.7%
72.1%

47.7%
52.5%
54.8%
56.7%
56.5%

15.5%
23.7%
3.8%
13.0%
16.3%

(4.8)%
(3.7)%
(2.8)%
(6.0)%
(0.6)%

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

27

Strategic Report 
 
financial performance review

Our underlying claims performance in 2021 was strong, with a reduction in our attritional claims ratio of 4.8pps to 47.7% 
(2020: 52.5%). This reflects favourable underlying claims experience across our London Market Direct portfolio (principally 
Property, Specialty and Programs and Facilities) and the effect of strong compound rate increases, combined with a change  
in mix as we target growth on our high-performing segments while taking remedial action on more marginal business. 

The financial impact of COVID-19 related claims on Brit was significantly lower in 2021, with current year loss estimates of 
$28.2m (2020: $271.4m) being reported within major losses in the period. In 2021, COVID-19 predominantly impacted our 
Contingency (Event Cancellation) book. These losses have driven an increase of 1.3pps (2020: 15.9pps) in our combined ratio.

Any benefit arising from the effects of COVID-19 related restrictions, such as reduce volumes of commercial activity and the 
suspension of court hearings, is reflected within the attritional claims ratio. 

Major losses
Texas winter storms 
Hurricane Ida
European floods (Bernd) 
Nashville tornado
US civil unrest
Hurricane Laura
Hurricane Sally
Hurricane Zeta
Total before COVID-19 related losses
COVID-19 related losses
Total 

CoR

2021
$m
77.7
200.5
18.0
–
–
–
–
–
296.2
28.2
324.4

2020
$m
–
–
–
13.7
11.7
65.4
27.1
15.5
133.4
271.4
404.8

15.5%

23.7%

As part of our standard reserving process, we released a $100.1m of net reserves established for prior year claims, the 
equivalent of a combined ratio reduction of 4.8pps (2020: $63.4m/3.7pps), maintaining trend of reserve releases since we 
started disclosing them in 2004.

The 2021 release reflected:

•  Favourable claims experience across recent underwriting years within London Market Direct (principally Property, Specialty 

and Ambridge Transactional) and London Market Reinsurance (across both Casualty and Property Treaty);

•  A release of $12.3m in respect of 2020 COVID-19 related claim estimates;

•  Continued overall net favourable development of other prior year catastrophe events; and 

•  A release of $35.0m reflecting the additional reinsurance protection afforded by the loss portfolio reinsurance with 

RiverStone. 

Our financial position remains strong and we continue to operate a robust reserving process. 

Underwriting expenses
Our underwriting expense ratio was 37.3% (2020: 40.3%). 

Measure
Expense ratio

Commentary
The expense ratio measures the cost we incur  
to acquire every $1 of premium. There are two  
key components to this – commission expenses  
and operating expenses.

Track record
Expense ratio (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

10

20

30

40

37.3%
40.3%
40.1%
39.5%
39.7%

28 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportThe expense ratio can be further analysed into its underlying components, as follows:

Measure
Commission expense ratio

Commentary
The commission expense ratio measures our 
distribution costs and shows how much of every 
$1 of premium is paid to acquire our business.

Track record)

Commission expense ratio (%)

Operating expense ratio

The operating expense ratio helps us understand 
how much it costs us to support the underwriting 
activities. This ratio shows how much of every $1 
of premium we spend supporting our underwriting 
activities.

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Operating expense ratio (%)

2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

25.2%
26.5%
27.1%
27.6%
27.6%

12.1%
13.8%
13.0%
11.9%
12.1%

Commission costs were $528.4m and the commission expense ratio was 25.2% (2020: $453.3m/26.5%). This $75.1m increase 
was driven by the increase in NEP, including Ki ($42.8m), while the decrease in the ratio principally reflects a change in business 
mix towards lower commission business and a continued drive to reduce overall acquisition costs.

Our expenses are analysed below.

Operating expense ratio
Our operating expense ratio decreased to 12.1% (2020: 13.8%). The ratio consists of the following components, each of these 
is discussed in the sections below.

•  Underwriting related operating expenses for 2021 were $312.8m and contributed 14.9pps to the operating expense ratio 

(2020: $259.3m/15.2pps). 

•  Underwriting related fee and commission income totalled $56.6m, reducing the operating expense ratio by 2.7pps (2020: 
$29.7m/1.7pps). These amounts are included in the expense ratio as the expenses incurred in generating these fees are 
included within underwriting expenses.

•  Gains on other financial liabilities were $2.5m, reducing the operating expense ratio by 0.1pps (2020: losses of $6.0m, 
increasing the ratio by 0.4pps). These amounts are included in the operating expense ratio as they represent the 
underwriting result in Brit’s consolidated income statement attributable to third party capital providers.

Expenses
Total operating expenses during 2021 increased by 26.4% to $357.5m (2020: $282.9m). At constant rates of exchange, the 
increase was 20.4%, reflecting that the majority of our expense base is in Sterling. The main contributors to this increase were 
staff costs, reflecting headcount growth, bonus accrual, and regulatory charges and levies. These increases also include the 
costs resulting from the launch of Ki.

At 31 December 2021, Group headcount was 854 (2020: 748). The increase was primarily due to the launch of Ki, targeted 
underwriting expansion in favourable market conditions, the acquisition of Camargue and the related growth of support 
functions. These were partly offset by reductions resulting from the withdrawal from certain classes of business and the sale 
of Scion.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

29

Strategic Report 
 
financial performance review

The allocation of expenses within the Consolidated Income Statement and the Segmental Information is as follows:

Disclosure of operating expenses
Acquisition costs
Other insurance related expenses
Total insurance related operating expenses 
Other operating expenses 
Total operating expenses

Other income 
Other income totalled $78.3m (2020: $14.1m), as set out below: 

Other income
Fee and commission income (Note 1)
Change in value of ultimate parent company shares (Note 2)
Total other income

2021
$m
179.9
132.9
312.8
44.7
357.5

2020
$m
145.4
113.9
259.3
23.6
282.9

2021
$m
56.6
21.7
78.3

2020
$m
29.7
(15.6)
14.1

Note 1: Total fee and commission income is included within our underwriting result and our combined and expense ratios.

Note 2: Change in value of ultimate parent company shares is included within our corporate result.

Fees and commissions generated by the Group’s underwriting management activities increased in 2021 by 90.6% to $56.6m 
(2020: $29.7m). The increase reflects increased business written by our MGA Ambridge Partners LLC, increased third party 
fee income in respect of Syndicate 2988 and consortia, and the inclusion of income generated by Camargue following its 
acquisition in 2021.

The generation of such underwriting-related income, derived from the management of third party underwriting capital and 
from our MGAs placing business with third parties, remains an important part of Brit strategy and has the benefit of assisting 
Brit in managing its expense base. 

Included in other income was a gain of $21.7m in respect of the change in value of shares held by Brit in its ultimate parent.

Gains on other financial liabilities
The statement of financial position of the Group includes liabilities representing third party investors’ share in structured 
undertakings consolidated by the Group. In 2021, the structured undertaking is Sussex Capital and in 2020 were Sussex 
Capital and Versutus II. Changes in the value of these liabilities during the year are recorded in the Group’s consolidated income 
statement as ‘(losses)/gains on other financial liabilities’.

In 2021, the income statement impact was a gain of $2.5m (2020: loss of $6.0m). Brit allocates these gains/losses to its 
underwriting result.

Return on invested assets
The investment portfolio is managed, for the most part, by Hamblin Watsa Investment Counsel Limited, a Fairfax subsidiary with 
an excellent long-term track record, whose sole business is managing investment portfolios of Fairfax group companies. They 
are supported by a number of external managers with multi-asset, core fixed income and specialised credit mandates.

30 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportThe return on our invested assets was $171.9m or 3.3% (2020: $44.6m/1.0%). This result is analysed below:

Investment return
Income
Realised gains 
Unrealised gains/(losses) 
Investment return before fees
Investment management fees
Investment return, net of fees
Investment related derivative return
Return on associated undertakings
Total return
Total return 

Return on invested assets (net of fees)

Year
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

2021
$m
58.4
59.4
63.6
181.4
(14.2)
167.2
3.0
1.7
171.9
3.3%

2020
$m
73.2
7.5
(11.6)
69.1
(12.6)
56.5
(13.9)
2.0
44.6
1.0%

%
3.3
1.0
3.6
(2.0)
4.9

Equities rallied over the year, generating $125.9m (2020: loss of $42.5m) of return as markets responded to additional 
stimulus measures and the COVID-19 vaccine rollout. The return on funds was also positive for the year, with a gain of $59.8m 
(2020: loss of $32.8m).

The fixed income portfolio generated a small loss of $4.8m (2020: gain of $141.5m), as income was offset by capital losses. 
The short duration position benefited the portfolio as yields rose towards the end of the year. The US government bond yield 
curve rose by up to 90 basis points across the yield curve over the year. Investment grade credit spreads widened marginally 
while high yield spreads narrowed as investors responded to positive growth early in the period amid the vaccine rollout, higher 
inflation expectations and the more hawkish tone from the US Federal Reserve Bank towards year end.

Cash and cash equivalents generated $0.5m (2020: $2.9m). Our approach to cash management during the year has, and 
continues to be, to limit the amount of operational cash and to maximise amounts held within short-term government bills.

At 31 December 2021, the running yield (expressed as yield as a percentage of invested assets) of our total portfolio was 0.9% 
(2020: 0.6%). This has increased over 2021 in line with the increase in the yield curve in the US and continues to represent a 
challenging environment for insurance groups. 

Our share of our associated undertakings’ net profit was $1.7m (2020: $2.0m). 

•  Sutton Special Risk Inc., a leading Canada-based managing general underwriter specialising in Accident & Health business in 

which Brit acquired a 49% share on 8 January 2019, contributed $1.2m (2020: $1.0m) to this return; and

•  Camargue Underwriting Managers Proprietary Limited, a leading managing general underwriter of a range of specialised 
insurance products and specialist liability solutions in South Africa in which Brit held a 50% share, contributed $0.5m to 
this return (2020: $1.0m). On 4 October 2021, Camargue became a 100% subsidiary of the Group and ceased to be an 
associated undertaking. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

31

Strategic Report 
 
financial performance review

Gain on deconsolidation of subsidiaries 

Commonwealth (CICA)
Scion Underwriting Services Inc
North America Property Insurance Series 2017 Account A-3
Total

2021
$m
3.7
18.3
(2.2)
19.8

2020
$m
–
–
–
–

•  Commonwealth (CICA): On 5 February 2021, Brit completed the sale of CICA, realising a gain on disposal of $3.7m.  

Brit originally acquired CICA in April 2018. 

•  Scion Underwriting Services Inc. (Scion): On 28 June 2021, Brit completed the sale of Scion, recognising a gain on sale  

of $18.3m. 

•  North America Property Insurance Series 2017 Account A-3 (‘Account A3’) (a segregated account within Versutus 

Limited): From 25 March 2021, Account A3 was deconsolidated by virtue of Brit no longer having an economic interest in it.  
A loss on deconsolidation was realised of $2.2m.

Gain on a business combination 
On 4 October 2021 the Group acquired the remaining 50% of the share capital of Camargue. At the acquisition date the 
investment in associate was derecognised from the balance sheet of the Group and remeasured at fair value for the purposes 
of acquisition accounting under IFRS 3. This process resulted in the recognition of a gain of $6.1m (2020: nil).

Foreign exchange
As explained on page 37, we manage our currency exposures to mitigate the impact on solvency rather than to achieve a 
short-term impact on earnings. We experienced a foreign exchange loss of $19.8m in 2021 (2020: gain of $5.0m), reflecting the 
movement of the US dollar against other currencies in which we trade and hold assets, and the impact of FX related derivatives 
purchased by the Group. 

The allocation of the FX result within the Consolidated Income Statement is as follows:

Foreign exchange gains and (losses)

Net foreign exchange (losses)/gains 
(Losses)/gains on derivative contracts – FX related instruments 

2021
$m

(1.1)
(18.7)
(19.8)

2020
$m

(7.8)
12.8
5.0

Tax
Our tax on ordinary activities for 2021 resulted in a tax credit of $9.6m (2020: tax charge of $1.5m), based on a Group profit 
before tax of $227.3m (2020: loss before tax of $230.5m). This credit comprised a current tax charge of $10.0m and a 
deferred tax credit of $19.6m. The deferred tax credit reflects the change in the UK tax rate from 19% to 25% from 1 April 
2023 in accordance with the Finance Act 2021 which was substantially enacted on 24 May 2021.

The Group is liable to taxes on its corporate income in a number of jurisdictions where its companies carry on business, 
most notably the UK, Germany and the US. Corporate profits and losses in Bermuda are exempt from tax. The tax charge is 
calculated in each legal entity across the Group and then consolidated. Therefore, the Group effective rate is sensitive to the 
location of taxable profits and is a composite tax rate reflecting the mix of tax rates in those jurisdictions.

The 2021 Group rate varies from the weighted average rate in those jurisdictions due to a number of factors. The principal 
factors are an increase of $27.4m in the unrecognised deferred tax asset in respect of undeclared Lloyd’s syndicate years 
of account, and the impact of the change in the UK tax rate used for the calculation of deferred taxes, from 19% for brought 
forward balances to 25% for carried forward balances due to the increase in the UK corporation tax rate to 25% from 1 April 
2023 which was substantively enacted on 24 May 2021. The rate is further influenced by the impact of utilisation of US losses 
which were previously unrecognised, exempt income such as dividend income, disallowable expenses and by non-UK taxes 
arising in our Lloyd’s syndicates.

32 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportBrit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

33

Strategic Report 
 
34 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Reportfinancial position and capital strength 

Financial position
At 31 December 2021, our adjusted net tangible assets 
totalled $1,740.6m (2020: $1,436.8m). 

Summary consolidated statement of financial position

Assets
Intangible assets
Reinsurance contracts
Insurance and other receivables
Financial investments, investments in 
associated undertakings and cash

Assets classified as held for sale
Investment related derivatives
FX related derivatives
Other assets
Total assets

Liabilities
Deferred tax on intangible assets
Insurance contracts
Borrowings
Investment related derivatives
FX related derivatives
Insurance and other payables
Other liabilities
Total liabilities

2021
$m

2020
$m

205.3
2,291.2
1,615.3

5,540.3
–
6.2
8.9
551.7
10,218.9

33.5
6,532.9
227.9
0.3
12.2
1,184.1
81.4
8,072.3

181.2
1,764.1
1,302.0

4,852.8
17.8
4.3
10.6
414.9
8,547.7

25.4
5,813.0
314.5
–
9.2
620.7
50.6
6,833.4

Net assets
Adjusted net tangible assets (Note 1)

2,146.6
1,740.6

1,714.3
1,436.8

Note 1: Calculated as net assets, less intangible assets net of the deferred 
tax liability on those intangible assets, less non-controlling interest, 
comprising of $233.5m attributable to Blackstone and $0.7m attributable to 
Riverstone Holdings Limited.

Of our net assets of $2,146.6m at 31 December 2021, $1,912.4m 
(2020: $1,592.6m) were attributable to the owners of Brit 
Limited, while $234.2m (2020: $121.7m) were attributable 
to non-controlling interests. The non-controlling interests, 
comprising of $233.5m attributable to Blackstone and $0.7m 
attributable to Riverstone Holdings Limited.

On 4 October 2021, the Brit Group acquired the remaining 
50% of the issued shares of Camargue. Prior to that date, 
Brit’s investment in Camargue was recorded as an investment 
in associated undertaking and after that date as a subsidiary. 
Following the acquisition, an exercise to allocate the purchase 
price under IFRS 3 was performed, including the identification 
and valuation of acquired intangible assets. The findings  
of this exercise included the identification of $8.2m of 
acquired intangible assets and $16.4m of goodwill, which  
are included within intangible assets at 31 December 2021  
in the table above.

In addition to the result recognised through the consolidated 
income statement, the other movements in our net assets 
included defined benefit pension scheme related gains and 
charges (2021: $12.2m net gain; 2020: $3.7m net loss); 
changes in unrealised foreign currency translation gains on 

foreign operations (2021: $1.1m net loss; 2020: $2.3m gain); 
issuance of share capital (2021: $406.1m; 2020: $524.0m); 
dividends paid (2021: $375.0m; 2020: $20.6m); recognition  
of a surplus net of deferred tax on the acquisition of  
a defined benefit pension scheme (2021: $28.5m; 2020: nil) 
and investment in a subsidiary by non-controlling interests 
(2021: $124.1m; 2020: $124.4m).

Capital strength 
Our financial position remains strong, with our capital surplus 
increasing by 81.2% in the year. At 31 December 2021, Group 
capital resources totalled $2,199.5m (2020: $1,881.3m), giving 
surplus management capital of $617.9m (2020: $341.0m), or 
$39.1% (2020: 22.1%) over our Group management capital 
requirement of $1,581.6m (2020: $1,540.3m). 

Share capital 
During 2021, FFHL Group Limited (Fairfax) subscribed for 
8,299,909 new Brit Limited class B shares for a contribution 
of $31.1m. 

During 2021 OMERS Administration Corporation (OMERS), the 
defined benefit pension plan for municipal sector employees in 
the Province of Ontario, Canada, subscribed for 92,364,532 
new Brit Limited class A shares for a contribution of $375.0m. 

Following the issuances during the year, Fairfax owns 86.2% 
of Brit Limited while the remaining 13.8% is owned by OMERS.

Dividends
A $375.0m dividend was paid to the Class B shareholders on  
7 September 2021.

RiverStone Management Pension and Life Assurance Plan
On 18 August, Brit Insurance Holdings Limited assumed 
responsibility for the liabilities of the RiverStone Management 
Pension and Life Assurance Plan from Riverstone Holdings 
Limited and RiverStone Management Limited, through a 
Flexible Apportionment Agreement (FAA). On the transfer 
date, the Plan’s surplus on an IAS19 basis was $44.9m which 
was recognised through equity. 

Reserving policy
Preserving a strong financial position is critical to the long-
term success of an insurance business. The Group maintains 
appropriate loss reserves to cover its estimated future 
liabilities. Reserves are estimates that involve actuarial and 
statistical projections of the expected cost of the ultimate 
settlement and administration of claims. The reserving 
process is robust and managed by the Chief Risk Officer 
and Chief Actuary and under the oversight of the Reserving 
Committee. Reserving estimates are prepared quarterly 
and are based on facts and circumstances then known, 
predictions of future developments, estimates of future 
trends in claims frequency and severity and other variable 
factors such as inflation. Movement in these reserves forms 
an integral element of our operating result. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

35

Strategic Report 
 
financial position and capital strength

Our reserving policy is to reserve to a ‘conservative best estimate’ and carry an explicit risk margin above that ‘conservative 
best estimate’. This policy has led to a track record of modest annual reserve releases. In 2021, this trend, first reported in 
2004, continued with net releases of $100.1m (2020: $63.4m).

Maintaining reserves is critical to safeguard future obligations to policyholders and the ‘conservative best estimate’ approach 
provides a secure foundation. It also provides a secure foundation for the pricing of new business which is particularly critical 
in a soft rating environment.

Asset allocation
Brit’s invested assets (financial investments, investments in associates, cash and cash equivalents and derivative contracts) at 
31 December 2021 were $5,546.2m (31 December 2020: $4,857.1m). 

Our asset allocation, on both a look-through basis and statutory disclosure basis, is set out in the tables below:

31 December 2021

i

s
s
a
b
h
g
u
o
r
h
t
-
k
o
o
L

Government debt securities
Corporate debt securities
Structured products
Loan instruments
Equity securities
Alternative investments
Cash and cash equivalents
Investment related derivatives
Total invested assets (statutory)

31 December 2020

i

s
s
a
b
h
g
u
o
r
h
t
-
k
o
o
L

Government debt securities
Corporate debt securities
Structured products
Loan instruments
Equity securities
Alternative investments
Cash and cash equivalents
Investment related derivatives
Total invested assets (statutory)

Statutory basis

Debt 
securities
$m

Loan instruments
$m

Specialised 
investment funds
$m

Cash and cash 
equivalents
$m

Associated
undertakings
$m

Investment 
Derivatives
(net)
$m

2,232.6
907.2
–
–
–
–
–
–
3,139.8

1,814.9
1,577.6
–
–
–
–
–
–
3,392.5

–
–
–
38.3
–
–
–
–
38.3

–
–
–
23.0
–
–
–
–
23.0

21.8
10.9
21.3
3.0
261.6
–
39.0
(0.8)
356.8

27.3
1.7
18.7
–
212.5
–
5.6
(1.4)
264.4

–
–
–
–
–
–
1,510.3
–
1,510.3

–
–
–
–
–
–
775.7
–
775.7

–
–
–
–
15.0
–
–
–
15.0

–
–
–
–
20.5
–
–
–
20.5

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
5.9
5.9

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
4.3
4.3

Total
invested 
assets
(look-through)
$m

2,254.4
918.1
21.3
41.3
756.7
– 
1,549.3
5.1
5,546.2

1,842.2 
1,579.3
18.7 
23.0
609.7 
– 
781.3 
2.9 
4,857.1 

Equity 
securities
$m

–
–
–
–
480.1
–
–
–
480.1

–
–
–
–
376.7
–
–
–
376.7

The short duration position relative to Brit’s liabilities was maintained over the year, which has benefited as the yield curve has 
risen. Further rises could represent a better entry point to longer dated bonds. 

We reduced our credit allocation in the fourth quarter due to continued spread tightness and inflation concerns. The allocation 
to credit risk, is primarily defensive, focused on high quality, investment grade non-cyclical companies. Equity allocations are 
invested in a portfolio of both listed and private (non-listed) equities and funds.

The assets remain primarily invested in cash and fixed income securities (2021: $4,763.1m or 85.9% of the portfolio; 2020: 
$4,225.8m or 87.0% of the portfolio). The fixed income portfolio is short dated, with a majority allocation to government bills. 
Corporate bonds represent 16.6% (2020: 32.5%) of the total portfolio with 2.1 pps (2020: 1.0pps) of this figure being below 
investment grade. 

The exposure to equities and funds has increased over 2021 (2021: $778.0m or 14.0% of the portfolio; 2020: $628.4m/12.9%), 
predominately due to market movements. 

36 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Report 
 
The duration of our portfolio at 31 December 2021 was  
1.50 years (2020: 1.45 years), which is shorter than the 
duration of our liabilities. US rates rose across the curve  
over 2021, as markets priced in interest rate increases  
due to inflation. 

Foreign exchange management
At 31 December 2021, our US-dollar denominated net assets 
were 83.3% of our total net assets (2020: 90.8%), reflecting 
the currency denomination of the majority of the business we 
write. Our net assets, analysed by currency, are as follows:

Net assets/(liabilities) by currency
US dollar
Sterling
Canadian dollar
Euro
Australian dollar
Total 

2021
%
83.3
8.0
4.7
2.8
1.2
100.0

2020
%
90.8
(1.9)
6.3
4.1
0.7
100.0

The reporting currency for the Group’s consolidated Financial 
Statements is US dollars, as are the functional and reporting 
currencies of a number of our subsidiaries, including all of 
our underwriting subsidiaries. A portion of our revenues 
and expenses, and assets and liabilities, are denominated 
in currencies other than US dollars, hence we are exposed 
to fluctuations in the values of those currencies against the 
US dollar. These fluctuations impact our reported operating 
results and our assets and liabilities.

We have sought to reduce the impact on our stakeholders 
of the effects of movements in foreign exchange rates 
by matching the currencies of our liabilities and capital 
requirements with the assets we hold. As a consequence of 
this, because we report our results in US dollars, we import 
some exchange rate volatility into the income statement 
through the revaluation of our net tangible assets. The 
Group’s NTA is, however, largely matched against our capital 
requirement, protecting our shareholders against the risk 
of additional capital being required as a result of FX volatility. 
Any excess is held in US dollars.

At 31 December 2021, 83.2% of our invested assets were 
investment grade quality (2020: 83.7%). An analysis of the 
credit quality of our invested assets is set out below:

Invested assets by rating
AAA
AA
A
BBB 
P-1 and P-2
Other
Total 

2021
%
51.7
10.2
11.1
7.8
2.3
16.8
100.0

2020
%
37.9
9.1
24.7
10.8
1.2
16.3
100.0

Other includes equities, funds and investment related derivatives

Gearing
At 31 December 2021, our gearing ratio was 20.0% (2020: 
28.0%). 

Brit has in place a $450m revolving credit facility (RCF), the 
expiration date of which was extended by two years during 
2021 to 31 December 2025. Under our capital policy we have 
identified a maximum of $250.0m (2020: $250.0m) of this 
facility to form part of our capital resources, with the balance 
available for liquidity funding. 

At 31 December 2021, the cash drawings on the facility were 
$45.0m (2020: $130.0m) and a $130.0m uncollateralised 
letter of credit (LoC) was in place (31 December 2020: 
$130.0m/uncollateralised) to support our underwriting 
activities. At the date of this report, cash drawings had 
reduced to $15.0m and the $130.0m uncollateralised LoC 
remained in place. 

At 31 December 2020, Ki Financial Ltd was party to a $50m 
LoC facility to provide a proportion of the FAL for Syndicate 
1618 through a segregated account of Sussex Re. This  
was fully utilised and uncollateralised at 31 December 2020. 
During 2021, this facility was increased to $130m and at  
31 December 2021 it was fully drawn and uncollateralised. 

In addition, we have in issue £135.0m of 3.6757% 
subordinated debt with a carrying value of £135.0m/$182.9m 
(31 December 2020: £135.0m/$184.5m). This instrument, 
which is listed on the London Stock Exchange, was issued in 
December 2005, matures on 9 December 2030. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

37

Strategic Report 
 
risk management, principal risks and uncertainties

Risk Management Framework
Brit delivers shareholder value by actively seeking and 
accepting risk within agreed limits. Risk management at Brit is 
a continuous process that links directly to the organisation’s 
business and risk management strategies and the associated 
Board risk tolerances. 

Brit’s Risk Management Framework (RMF) applies a consistent 
methodology and structure to how risks are identified, 
measured, managed and monitored. This process enables us 
to protect policyholders and maximise shareholder value by 
ensuring the risk and capital implications of business strategy 
are well understood. 

The RMF has the following key elements:

• 

Identification: Risk events, risks and relevant controls 
are identified and classified. This is a continuous process 
which considers any emerging and existing risks. The 
risk register sets out the significant risks faced by the 
business and identifies the potential impact and likelihood 
of each risk.

•  Measurement: Risks are assessed and quantified 
and controls are evaluated. This is done through a 
combination of stochastic modelling techniques, stress and 
scenario analysis, reverse stress testing and qualitative 
assessment using relevant internal and external data.

•  Management: The information resulting from risk 

identification and measurement is used to improve how the 
business is managed.

A key part of the RMF is the setting of risk tolerances and risk 
appetite. Risk tolerances are set by the Board and represent 
the maximum amount of risk Brit is willing to accept to meet 
its strategic objectives. Risk appetite is set by management 
and reflects the maximum amount of risk that Brit wishes to 
take in the current market environment. The actual amount of 
risk taken is monitored against the tolerances and appetites 
on an ongoing basis.

The RMF, including the risk tolerances and appetite, reflects 
Brit’s strategy and seeks to ensure that risk is accepted in 
the areas which are expected to maximise shareholder value 
whilst continuing to protect policyholders against extreme 
events. The process applies to both the Brit Group and to the 
individual underwriting entities (such as Lloyd’s syndicates).

Strategy

Business strategy

Risk tolerances and appetites

Risk management framework

Planning and capital processes

Identification

Business plan

Measurement

Economic capital requirements

Management

Capital allocation

The Risk Management function, led by the Chief Risk Officer 
(CRO), monitors whether Brit is operating within the risk 
tolerance levels approved by the Board. This includes 
assessments of any new strategic initiatives and the principal 
risks and uncertainties faced by the business as detailed below. 

All Brit staff are involved in ensuring there is an appropriate 
risk culture which promotes the identification and 
management of risk. Brit’s risk culture aims to ensure the risk 
and capital implications of decisions are understood and there 
is open communication about risks and issues in all areas of 
the business. 

Brit’s approach to risk management is designed to encourage 
clear decision-making as to which risks Brit takes and 
how these are managed based on the potential strategic, 
commercial, financial, compliance and legal implications of 
these risks.

The sections below set out the approach to risk governance, 
and the key risks identified, measured and managed under  
the RMF.

Risk Governance
The Board is responsible for overseeing our risk management 
and internal control systems, which management is 
responsible for implementing. 

Brit maintains a strong risk governance framework using Risk 
Oversight Committees and Audit Committees whose membership 
consists of independent non-executive Directors. The Board, 
Risk and Audit Committee agendas are designed to ensure all 
significant areas of risk are reported on and discussed. The Risk 
Oversight Committees monitor and review the risk profile and the 
effectiveness of all risk management activities and, in particular, 
monitor adherence to agreed risk limits. 

Our Internal Audit function provides assurance to the Risk 
Oversight Committees, Audit Committees and Boards, 
while external experts are regularly used for independent 
assessments. 

38 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportBrit operates a three lines of defence model for governing 
risk. Within the first line of defence individual risk committees 
monitor day-to-day risk control activities. The risk 
management function, as a second line of defence, provides 
oversight over business processes and sets out policies and 
procedures. Internal Audit, as a third line of defence, provides 
independent assurance and monitors the effectiveness of the 
risk management processes.

Key risks
The RMF categorises the risks to Brit as follows:

•  Overarching risk: strategic, earnings and solvency; and

• 

Individual risk categories: insurance, market, liquidity, 
credit and operational and group.

Insurance risk is the key driver of our Group capital requirements. 

The key risks and uncertainties are set out in the following 
table and the principal risks in the current environment are 
further described below.

Risk category
Overarching

Risk 
Strategic

Description
Risk that Brit’s strategy is not appropriate or is not implemented effectively

Earnings

Solvency

Unexpected earnings volatility leads to unexpected losses.

Capital ratio falls below the level targeted by management.

Insurance

Underwriting – 
pricing

Emerging experience is inconsistent with the assumptions and pricing  
models used.

Underwriting – 
natural catastrophe

Natural catastrophe events impacting Brit’s (re)insureds, leading to large 
volumes of claims.

Underwriting – man 
made catastrophe

Extreme man-made events, such as terrorist attacks, impacting Brit’s (re)
insureds, leading to large volumes of claims.

Principal 
risks

✓
✓

Underwriting – 
reinsurance

Reserving

Market

Investment market 
risk

Liquidity

Credit

Currency

Liquidity

Counterparty risk

Failure to obtain reinsurance on attractive terms, or failure to recover under 
reinsurance arrangements.

Prior year reserves are insufficient to cover claims (net of reinsurance).

✓
Invested assets adversely affected by changes in economic variables, such 
as interest rates, bond yields, equity returns, credit spreads, credit ratings. ✓
Exchange rate fluctuations materially impact our financial performance.

Insufficient financial resources available to meet liabilities as they fall due.

Deterioration in the creditworthiness of, defaults by, or reputational issues 
related to, premium debtors, reinsurers or other third parties with whom we 
transact business.

Operational 
and group

People

Failure to attract, motivate and retain key Directors, senior underwriters, 
senior management and other key personnel, on whom our future success is 
substantially dependent.

✓

Systems and 
processes

Failure of our systems or processes, impacting our ability to conduct 
business and our ability to provide continuity of service to our clients.

Information security

Failure to properly protect information could compromise the confidentiality, 
integrity or availability of our information and data, potentially resulting in 
financial loss and legal, regulatory and reputational consequences.

Outsourcing 
arrangements

Reputational

Failure on the part of any third-party to perform agreed outsourced 
services, on which we are heavily reliant.

Damage to reputation due to actions taken by Brit or related parties and the 
impact this has on Brit’s business and operations.

Regulatory & legal

Legislation or regulation adversely affects Brit’s operations.

Conduct

Failure to ensure Group’s products and services deliver the right outcomes 
for consumers.

Change management

Major projects or other key changes are not implemented effectively.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

39

Strategic Report 
 
principal risks and uncertainties

Principal risks 
The table below provides additional information on the principal risks in the current environment and how we manage them. 

Principal risk 

Mitigation tools

Metrics

Status

Underwriting – pricing

Inadequate pricing 
could have a material 
adverse effect 
on our results 
for underwriting 
operations and 
financial condition. 

Strategic focus on underwriting 
performance rather than on top 
line growth.

Risk adjusted rate change  
(2021: increase of 12.9%;  
2020: increase of 10.6%).

Strong governance processes 
around strategy and planning.

Pricing discipline is maintained 
through strict underwriting 
guidelines, monitoring of the 
delegated authorities and 
enforcement of the technical 
pricing framework. 

Efficient use of the outwards 
reinsurance programme.

Monitoring of risk adjusted rate 
change.

Largest realistic disaster scenarios 
(1 October 2021 estimated loss in $m):

Event

Gulf of Mexico windstorm

Florida Miami windstorm

Gross

1,072

1,190

US North East windstorm

1,103

San Francisco earthquake

1,581

Japan earthquake

Japan windstorm

European windstorm

326

58

98

Net

216

170

142

415

190

35

63

Reserve release ratio (2021: 4.8%; 
2020: 3.7%).

Underwriting – natural catastrophe

A catastrophic event 
or catastrophic 
events could result in 
large insured losses 
that adversely impact 
our financial results 
and potentially our 
capital position. 

Reserving

Estimating insurance 
reserves is inherently 
uncertain and, if 
insufficient, may 
have a material 
adverse effect on our 
results and financial 
condition.

Diverse portfolio of risks written 
between lines of business and 
geographic location.

Regular modelling and monitoring 
against the Board catastrophe 
risk appetite by our exposure 
management team.

Effective outwards reinsurance 
programme in place, with 
particular emphasis on managing 
accumulation of risks.

Clear limits set for key 
accumulations and conservative 
use of line size by our 
underwriters.
Identification and monitoring of 
emerging risks such as climate 
change.

Conservative best estimate 
reserving philosophy with track 
record of releases.

Actuarial team recommend 
reserves independently from 
underwriting division using 
established actuarial techniques.

Independent external review of 
reserving is performed annually.

40 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

We have seen positive 
rate rises since 
2018. However, these 
increases follow 
four years of rate 
reductions.

Active rebalancing of 
the portfolio remains 
a key focus for 
management.
Follow business only 
follows lead syndicates 
with a proven profitable 
track record.

An aggregate 
catastrophe excess 
of loss cover is in 
place to protect 
the Group against 
combined property 
claims from multiple 
policies resulting from 
catastrophe events. 
This is supplemented by 
specific covers for peril 
regions, catastrophe 
swaps, catastrophe 
bonds and industry loss 
warranties where they 
are a cost-efficient 
means to ensure that 
the Group remains 
within its catastrophe 
risk appetite.

Reserves are held at 
a ‘conservative best 
estimate’ and we also 
carry an explicit risk 
margin.

No change in approach 
from prior years.

Strategic ReportPrincipal risk 

Mitigation tools

Metrics

Status

Investment risk

Invested assets 
are susceptible 
to changes in 
economic conditions. 
A decrease in the 
value of our invested 
assets may have a 
material adverse 
effect on our results, 
financial condition and 
liquidity.

People

We could be adversely 
affected by the loss 
of key employees 
or by an inability to 
attract and retain 
qualified personnel. 

Strong governance processes 
around investment strategy.

Return on invested assets, net of 
fees (2021: 3.3%; 2020: 1.0%).

Running yield (2021: 0.9%; 2020: 0.6%).

Staff turnover (2021: 14.3%;  
2020: 10.5%).

Regular monitoring against 
investment risk appetite which 
includes defined limits for 
solvency, earnings risk and 
liquidity risk.

Investment guidelines in place 
for individual asset classes and 
monitored regularly.

Our remuneration strategy 
(including share-based 
remuneration) is designed to 
reward talent and success. We 
have a proven track record 
in being able to retain high-
performing staff.

Succession and contingency 
plans are in place in the event of 
the loss of a key employee.

Regular monitoring of employee 
turnover and morale. 

Financial markets 
remain volatile 
following the COVID-19 
pandemic. Although 
markets have almost 
recovered to pre-
pandemic levels, 
interest rates remain 
low and inflation is at 
a ten-year high. Our 
portfolio remains 
highly liquid, and was 
primarily invested in 
cash and investment 
grade fixed income 
securities as at  
31 December 2021.

The Group’s key 
functions have 
continued to operate 
effectively despite 
the disruption caused 
by COVID-19 related 
measures. Feedback 
from brokers indicates 
Brit is performing well 
operationally relative 
to its competitors.

The current 
environment remains 
competitive with a 
number of our peers 
actively seeking 
talented staff. We 
actively manage our 
remuneration and HR 
policies to ensure we 
continue to retain and 
attract the best staff. 
Current turnover rates 
remain well within our 
appetite.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

41

Strategic Report 
 
principal risks and uncertainties

COVID-19 risk management
While 2021 has seen the relaxation of some of the measures 
Governments implemented to try to contain the pandemic, 
there continues to be uncertainty and challenges.

• 

Pandemic exclusions offer some protection against new 
insurance claims. However, there remains uncertainty 
around losses from COVID-19. We would expect the level of 
uncertainty around Contingency to reduce over time, however, 
within areas of the account such as Casualty Treaty, Property 
Treaty and Open Market Property the ultimate loss outcome 
is still to emerge and will be influenced by factors such as 
coverage issues and the interpretation of contract wording. 

COVID-19 has also caused significant volatility in the financial 
markets. Interest rates, while rising remain at depressed 
levels and inflation continues to increase.

The Group continues to manage the risks associated with 
COVID-19 in line with the requirements of its risk management 
policies. Further details are provided below.

•  Operational risk

COVID-19 caused a temporary shift from an office-based 
working environment to a remote working environment 
for all staff. Brit continues to monitor the situation and 
adapt its approach to reflect current circumstances. Brit 
and its outsourced service providers have adapted well to 
the changing situation and operational performance has 
generally been strong. 

Support mechanisms remain in place for our employees, 
and we continue to communicate regularly to ensure that 
people feel engaged and supported. We regularly monitor 
and report on the performance of controls and operational 
effectiveness. The ongoing monitoring of operational risk 
has not identified any material concerns or failings. 

• 

Insurance risk
In 2020, COVID-19 resulted in additional claims to the 
Group, principally relating to event cancellation covers. 
The impact in 2021 has been limited. The Group has a 
rigorous process for establishing reserves for insurance 
claim liabilities, including those associated with COVID-19. 
However, significant uncertainties remain around loss 
estimates given that the pandemic is ongoing. We also 
continue to monitor the potential for claims arising 
indirectly from the pandemic. For example, due to the global 
recession which may lead to an increased risk of moral 
hazard, fraud and a more litigious environment generally.

The underwriting portfolio is actively managed to reflect 
market developments, and action has been taken to ensure 
Brit is appropriately positioned for both the pandemic and 
the recessionary economic conditions. The Group is now 
applying communicable disease exclusions across the vast 
majority of its business. 

42 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Investment and Market risk
The investment portfolio is actively managed to reflect 
market developments and, in 2020, action was taken to 
ensure Brit’s portfolio is appropriately positioned for the 
recessionary economic conditions and to take advantage 
of opportunities in asset prices where these arose. This 
action has continued in 2021. The volatility in investment 
returns experienced over the course of 2020 and 2021 is 
within the range of stress and scenario tests carried out 
by the Group. 

•  Credit risk

COVID-19 has caused economic disruption around the 
world with many businesses and individuals forced to 
cease business activity in light of government lockdowns. 
As at 31 December 2021, the Group has not seen a 
material increase in defaults but continues to monitor this 
closely.

•  Solvency and Liquidity risk

As at 31 December 2021, the Group held a surplus of 
$617.9m over its management capital requirements. All 
regulatory capital requirements have been complied with 
by the Group’s individual insurance subsidiaries throughout 
2021. Our regulatory capital requirements calculation 
as at 31 December 2021 included an allowance for the 
uncertainties associated with COVID-19 as described 
above. Brit continues to benefit from the support of the 
wider Fairfax group.

The Group has conducted stress testing of its 
underwriting subsidiaries’ liquidity resources, in order to 
assess their ability to continue making claims payments 
as they fall due. This stress testing demonstrated their 
continued ability to access sufficient liquidity, even in 
severe stress scenarios. At 31 December 2021, the Group 
held $3,803.7m of cash and short-dated government debt 
securities, and $275.0m undrawn on its RCF.

As part of the terms of the RCF, Brit is obliged to ensure 
that borrowings under the facility will not exceed 40% of 
consolidated net tangible assets (defined as the aggregate 
of the share capital of the Company, the amount standing 
to the credit of the consolidated reserves of the Group 
and any financial indebtedness of the Group which is fully 
subordinated to the facility). At 31 December 2021 Brit was 
well within this threshold, with RCF drawings equating to 
10.4% of consolidated net tangible assets (2020: 16.0%).

Strategic Report• 

Investment losses have the potential to arise from 
exposure to industries perceived to be contributing to 
climate change. This transition risk could adversely impact 
Brit very quickly as financial markets valuations fluctuate. 
Brit has a diversified investment portfolio, with limits on 
exposure to individual issuers. Brit is developing metrics 
to strengthen its understanding of the potential impacts of 
climate change on its investments. 

Brit is managing the risks associated with climate change in 
line with the RMF which is reviewed annually and regulatory 
guidance developments are monitored through the 
committees and working parties. This will continue to be an 
area of Management, Risk Committee and Board focus, with 
a multi-disciplinary Climate Change Risk Working Party to 
consider the financial risks associated with Climate Change.

Climate change scenario analysis has been conducted as 
part of the ORSA process, and Brit participated in the 
PRA’s Climate Biennial Exploratory Scenario (CBES) testing 
exercise in 2021. Brit’s Solvency II internal models include 
an allowance for the impact of climate change. The analysis 
utilises catastrophe modelling, expert judgement, scenario 
analysis and selected metrics as tools to monitor and manage 
exposure to climate-related risks. The outputs from these 
feed into business decision making. Brit is compliant with PRA 
Supervisory Statement SS3/19 which sets expectations for 
firms regarding their consideration of climate risk.

Brit actively considers the potential implications of 
climate change and sustainability on its investment and 
underwriting strategies, how it should engage more widely on 
environmental and ethical issues, and its own sustainability 
initiatives. An annual review of equity holdings is conducted 
which includes a review of the ESG strategy of underlying 
companies within Brit’s equity portfolio. Holdings of industries 
such as oil and gas, transport and utilities, which deemed to 
materially contribute to climate change are also monitored. 
These are further discussed on page 47.

Emerging risks
Brit undertakes a formal emerging risk review annually 
with the results reported to the Risk Oversight Committees 
and included in Brit’s Own Risk and Solvency Assessment 
(ORSA) and Commercial Insurer’s Solvency Self-Assessment 
(CISSA) reports of the underwriting entities. The review is 
an important part of the risk identification aspect of the RMF 
and includes horizon scanning of the internal and external risk 
environment to identify potential new or developing risks to 
Brit. These risks can then be included in the risk register and 
managed appropriately as required. 

The emerging risk review has previously identified risks 
such as the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU (Brexit) and 
cyber risk. These risks have been managed throughout their 
development and are now monitored as part of the business-
as-usual risk management process. 

Climate change related financial risks
Climate change has been recognised as an emerging risk in 
the ORSA since 2014 and has been an area of focus since 
having been identified as a high priority by Brit’s 2018 
emerging risks analysis. Its potential impact on the insurance 
industry is an area of focus for the wider insurance market 
and its regulators. 

The financial risks to insurers may include the potential 
for increased frequency and severity of weather-related 
natural catastrophes, for example, hurricanes and wildfires. 
In line with previous years, 2021 continued to see wildfires 
occurring worldwide and the Atlantic hurricane season was 
the third most active season on record after 2020 and 2015.

The three main areas of risk identified for Brit are natural 
catastrophes, liability claims and investment losses:

•  Natural catastrophe risks relating to climate change are 
the physical risks of increased frequency and severity of 
weather-related natural catastrophes. This could result 
in additional claims and could impact Brit in the short to 
medium-term. We continuously monitor scientific studies, 
regularly review the completeness of existing models and 
the application of the Brit view of risk. Brit’s exposure to 
natural catastrophe risks is monitored on an ongoing basis 
by the Risk Management Function.

•  Climate change could result in additional liability claims 
arising from increasing climate litigation against Brit’s 
clients. The claims arise from firms contributing to climate 
change, failing to transition to renewables, greenwashing 
or directors’ breach of fiduciary duties. The nature of 
these claims could impact Brit in the medium to long-
term. Brit’s exposure is limited through limits on gross 
underwriting exposure and through the purchase of 
reinsurance.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

43

Strategic Report 
 
44 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Reportour people, culture, social, community and  
environmental matters

Introduction
To generate value, we recognise that our people, culture, 
social and community strategies must be both sustainable and 
aligned to the long-term interests of all our stakeholders. We 
seek to make both a positive contribution to society and to be 
aware of the long-term consequences of our actions. We also 
seek to generate new commercial opportunities by developing 
strong stakeholder relationships and by recruiting and 
retaining a highly skilled, engaged and motivated workforce. 

Our people and culture
Our people are our greatest asset and managing our talent 
appropriately contributes significantly to our success. 

During 2021 we continued to strengthen our highly committed 
team. Through the attraction and recruitment of new talent 
and the ongoing development of existing expertise, we 
continued to embed our culture and increase performance. 
Significant hires included Gavin Wilkinson (Group Chief 
Financial Officer) and Bilge Mert (Chief Technology Officer).

Our culture is communicated and lived through an established 
framework that identifies and rewards strong performance. 
In 2021 we changed the framework to give clarity to everyone 
in the business that inclusion and diversity was at the heart 
of what we do and that everybody should be able to thrive and 
bring their whole self to work (see the inclusion and diversity 
section for further information). 

We are committed to developing the technical, behavioural, 
management and leadership skills required for our teams to 
outperform, both individually and collectively. We continue to 
invest in the future of Brit through our leadership, graduate 
and intern programmes and succession and talent mapping 
exercises, all of which aim to grow expertise from within and 
ensure robust succession plans. In 2021 we invested in an 
executive education programme, in partnership with Chicago 
Booth, which saw 36 of our top leaders attending three 
education modules.

In 2021 we redesigned our training programmes so that they 
could be delivered in a virtual format. Feedback has been 
consistently good and we will continue to deliver some of our 
programmes this way.

until new government guidelines came into effect as a result 
of the Omicron strain of COVID-19. We continued with our 
‘Keeping Brit Brit’ development programme which aims to 
keep our culture alive and help people focus on their and their 
teams’ performance and development through the pandemic 
and hybrid working. 

Health and wellbeing has continued to be a focus through 
2021. We are committed to embedding a long-term positive 
culture across the organisation, where employees recognise 
their mental and physical health are supported equally. This 
focus reduces stigma, builds confidence and encourages open 
conversations about mental health. It also raises awareness 
of mental health matters, including the ability for employees 
and managers to recognise the signs of common mental 
health issues, while empowering people with long term mental 
health issues to thrive in the workplace.

Brit Syndicates Limited has Chartered Insurer status 
through the Chartered Insurance Institute. This prestigious 
designation signifies to our customers – and the market – that 
we are committed to the pursuit of the highest standards and 
demonstrates our adherence to ethical good practice.

Brit’s cross-functional Social Committee has continued to 
organise a range of social, community and charitable events 
for employees during the year. 

The 2021 staff turnover rate excluding retirements and 
redundancies was 14.3% (2020: 10.5%).

At 31 December 2021, 33.7% (2020: 38.7%) of staff had 
completed at least five years of service and 12.3% (2020: 
14.1%) had served at least ten years.

Details of Brit’s employment policies are given in the 
‘Employment’ section of the Directors’ Report on page 63.

Inclusion and Diversity (I&D)
At Brit we talk about ‘writing the future’ and to be able to do 
this we strive to ensure equal opportunity is part of how we 
conduct ourselves as a business and as a team. We continue 
to work hard on this topic. The simple message is that 
discrimination in all its forms will not be tolerated at Brit. 

We launched the Brit Underwriting Academy which aims to 
provide our underwriting teams with the skills and knowledge 
required to be competitive in an evolving and increasingly 
digital marketplace. It provides training for each underwriting 
level and role in the business and establishes a promotion 
system which identifies and develops our underwriting talent 
in a fair, consistent and repeatable way.

For much of 2021 we were able to keep our offices open 
for those that felt working from home was damaging to 
their mental health and we opened up further in September 
encouraging everyone to work from the office 50% of the time,  

During 2021 over 80% of staff have attended unconscious 
bias training to raise awareness, recognise when their 
biases may be affecting their decision making, and give an 
opportunity for discussion across teams. We have also 
launched a reverse mentoring programme, and given all 
colleagues access to further inclusion and diversity training.

Through 2021 we have launched a number of policies to 
further demonstrate our commitment to I&D. These include 
shared parental, adoption, paternity and maternity leave, 
carers, workplace adjustments, domestic abuse, pregnancy 
loss, menopause, fertility treatment and, in jurisdictions 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

45

Strategic Report 
 
our people, culture, social, community and environmental matters

where laws and regulations allow, culture and diversity 
leave. A number of these policies were showcased in our 
annual ‘Celebrate the Difference’ week through speakers and 
discussions. We are one of the very few companies to adopt a 
culture and diversity leave policy and are proud to give people 
the option to take leave on holidays that are important to 
them – employees are no longer obliged to take the prescribed 
public holidays but instead receive an allocation of equivalent 
days for use on any public or national holiday or in relation to 
any religious belief, culture and/or diversity days.

Other highlights included initiating a partnership with Code 
First Girls to provide training and internships to women in 
technology, a story-telling event with Peter Chand for Diwali, 
sponsorship of an event on the experience of black LGBT 
inclusion (as part of the Lloyd’s Dive In Festival), a Black 
History Month quiz, an increased presence on VERCIDA (the 
accessible career site) and the hosting of a British Sign 
Language (BSL) workshop.

I&D remains a priority at Brit and we look forward to 
continuing our journey in 2022.

Staff engagement 
Our biannual Employee Engagement Survey was undertaken 
in the fourth quarter of 2020. In 2021, our CEO presented the 
results to the Board and all teams were taken through their 
results to allow them to formulate their team action plan. The 
next survey will take place in 2022. As reported last year 
overall engagement was 76% (2018 69%) and participation 
was 89% (2018 92%).

At Brit we believe that good communication enables our teams 
to perform at their best. The Board engages with employees 
via the executive Directors. To help the executive Directors 
foster a two-way conversation with colleagues there are 
several internal communication methods to help cascade 
information and to receive feedback including: 

• 

‘The Hub’: Our Intranet site appears automatically when 
a browser launches and gives colleagues the latest 
news. It is also home to the executive blog ‘Lead Lines’, 
press releases and other announcements. It also allows 
colleagues to comment on and share articles. The Hub has 
become the main portal for our I&D education, sharing 
resources from our Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) 
at key times such as Pride, Black History Month, Diwali, 
Hannukah and Mental Health Awareness Week. 

•  Email Communications: Using an email marketing platform, 
key colleague messages are shared with employees in an 
engaging and digestible format. During 2021, when there 
were several periods of remote working, a weekly ‘pulse 
survey’ was distributed to help gauge the mental wellbeing 
of all the workforce. In 2021 we sent 176 campaigns with 
an average open rate of 83%. 

•  Spotlights are shared on a regular basis. These 

are in-depth interviews with people from around the 
business. Topics covered in 2021 included overviews on 
new innovations launched within Brit to mental health 
discussions with several colleagues. 

•  Stream video channel: Our in-house video channel hosts 
‘watch again’ videos and other video content. It is used 
by teams to share video explainers of new systems and 
processes and to share meeting recordings for reference 
at a later date. 

•  Town halls: In 2021 our regular Executive Committee 

updates were delivered using Teams Live, which allows 
interaction from both those present with the speaker and 
those dialling in from remote locations. All of our meeting 
rooms in the Leadenhall building allow for interactive 
Teams meetings to be broadcast in this way. These hybrid 
meetings have improved staff engagement, with over 70% 
joining live and more watching on Stream. 

Engagement with our staff allows us to assess the extent to 
which they are motivated. Such motivation contributes to the 
success of our organisation. Engagement also identifies areas 
we need to focus on to continue to develop staff motivation. 
High engagement results have a positive impact on our team 
performance and employee retention, our service quality 
(both internally and externally), and our overall business 
performance, ultimately benefitting all stakeholders.

Social and community 
We are committed to supporting the communities in which  
we operate and charities that are meaningful to employees. 
Our objective is to select charitable giving and community 
projects based on three criteria: projects should be for a 
good cause and operate in an area relevant to us, financial 
involvement should be for the benefit of the good cause, and 
projects should offer alignment with our strategic priorities.

During 2021 we again supported ten charities chosen by 
employees. The charities selected for 2021 were Haven House, 
Coppafeel, Anthony Nolan, Cry in the Dark, Huntingdon’s Disease 
Association, Rukhsana Khan Foundation, MIND, Best Buddies 
International, the Leukaemia and Lymphoma Society and Grief 
Encounter. We donated a sum of money to each charity at the 
start of the year and continued with fundraising activities 
through the year. A further ten staff-nominated charities have 
been selected to receive our support in 2022.

We further promote staff involvement in the community by 
granting every employee two additional days of paid leave 
a year to volunteer their time to a registered local charity. 
Whilst take up was lower than usual in 2021 a number of 
people have used their days to volunteer at Covid vaccine and 
testing centres.

In 2021 we continued our support for a school that educates 
boys and girls from the age of five to 18 in Kibera, the largest 

46 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Reportslum in Africa. The school does not discriminate between 
religion or tribal allegiance but instead believes in its motto 
that ‘knowledge is power’. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 we 
were unable to send a group of volunteers to Kibera in 2021, 
but we have been kept informed about the work the school has 
been doing and the progress they have made.

We have supported Team BRIT, a team of disabled motor 
racing drivers, since 2017. In 2021, we continued our contract 
with Team BRIT, as title sponsor, to support their racing 
academy and success on the race course. They are making 
progress towards entering a team in the famous Le Mans 24 
Hours endurance race. 

We also run a payroll giving scheme and match any money 
raised by employees participating in charitable events.

During 2021, Brit donated $1.1m (2020: $1.1m) under its 
charitable initiatives. In addition to this, Brit employees 
completed 19.5 volunteering days (2020: 69 days).

Environmental responsibility 

Introduction
Climate change will have a major impact on our business and 
on all our stakeholders. Brit is committed to responsible 
business practices and recognises that we are most effective 
when acting alongside others in our industry. We are active 
members of ClimateWise and IcebreakerOne, and take part 
in ESG initiatives within the Lloyd’s market and the wider 
Fairfax group. Brit is committed to disclosure in line with the 
Taskforce of Climate Change-Related Financial Disclosures 
(TCFD) guidance, and we have further developed our 
disclosures for 2021. We have made progress in 2021 and in 
2022 will continue to implement our ESG strategy, continue to 
develop reliable and accurate ESG data to inform our decision 
making, improve our metrics and set targets.

Governance
Board oversight
Climate change has been on our Board’s agenda since it 
was identified as an emerging risk in 2014. Since then, the 
Board has focused on developing its understanding of the 
uncertainty associated with climate change and climate-
related risks and opportunities. 

In 2021 a key priority of the Board was to agree an ESG 
strategy that could be embedded across the business. During 
2021 the Board:

•  Considered the Group’s climate and wider ESG-related 
immediate, medium-term and longer-term priorities;

•  Ratified the Group’s ESG statement;

•  Reviewed the Group’s net zero work and discussed the 

roadmap to achieve full net zero by 2025; and

•  Received ongoing training on sustainability and climate 

related risks.

While retaining direct oversight of climate change and ESG 
related matters, the Board has delegated responsibility to the 
following Committees:

•  Audit Committee: The Audit Committee is responsible 

for overseeing internal controls, adherence to reporting 
requirements, and approval of climate-related disclosures. 

•  Risk Oversight Committee (ROC): The ROC has oversight 
of the identification and management of risks relating to 
climate change. The Committee also oversees climate-
related stress and scenario testing, such as the PRA 
Climate Biennial Exploratory Scenario (CBES) testing, and 
reporting of climate-related risk disclosures. 

• 

Investment Committee: Since 2020, the Investment 
Committee has considered ESG and climate related risks in 
its investment decision making process. This has included 
assessing the related ESG risk through a review of 
external investment manager ESG reports and an internal 
review of Brit’s equity positions. 

Management oversight
•  ESG Committee: Brit’s ESG Committee includes senior 

representation from Underwriting, Investments, Finance, 
Risk, Operations, Facilities and Communications. The 
Committee is chaired by Brit’s Director of Operations and 
is focused on five themes: investments, underwriting, 
financial risk, Brit as a business, and strategy and 
external engagement. The Committee reports formally 
to the Executive Committee (EC), which is responsible for 
ensuring that climate-related issues are embedded into the 
relevant operating committees. 

•  Climate Change Risk Working Party (CCRWP): The multi-
discipline CCRWP is focused on collaboratively managing 
the financial risks arising from climate change through our 
risk management framework. It reports to the ROC and is 
chaired by Brit’s Chief Risk Officer and Chief Actuary.

•  ESG External Engagement Working Group: The group was 
established in 2021 in response to a growing number 
of ESG queries from external parties. The group meets 
monthly if there are items for consideration. 

Strategy
Overview
We have an important role in fighting climate change, and 
we believe firmly that insurance is a social good. In 2021 we 
published our five-part ESG strategy:

1.  Working with our clients and business partners to 

understand and mitigate the impact of climate change 
We have a considered approach to underwriting that 
supports our clients as they move to low-carbon, 
environmentally conscious business models. 

•  We always think long-term to make sure our clients have 

stability in their businesses 

•  We offer products which empower our clients when 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

47

Strategic Report 
 
our people, culture, social, community and environmental matters

navigating the energy transition, helping them face the 
future, even in uncertainty 

•  We are committed to simplifying the claims process with 

faster payments 

diligence is undertaken during the underwriting process, to 
reduce our exposure to businesses with poor ESG practices. 
These now form part of our underwriting philosophy and will 
be used to influence our ongoing strategy. 

2.  Putting the environment at the centre of our investments 

and underwriting strategy 
Our approach to investments and underwriting is evolving. 
We have integrated ESG into our decision-making in both 
areas and are working towards a more complete use of 
ESG data where available. Our underwriting and investment 
strategy will ensure we deliver to and go beyond Lloyd’s 
stated sustainability commitments. 

3.  Transitioning to be a net-zero business 

We are on our own journey to net-zero, through a detailed 
understanding of our emissions. We are reviewing 
our operations to actively reduce our greenhouse gas 
emissions and reduce waste and water consumption. We 
currently offset Scope 1 and 2 emissions and a portion 
of Scope 3 emissions by investing in socially responsible 
offset projects. We are targeting net-zero by 2025 and are 
developing a roadmap to achieve this. 

4.  Ensuring we manage the risks to Brit 

Our cross-departmental Climate Change Risk Working 
Party is focused on collaboratively managing the financial 
risks arising from climate change through our risk 
management framework. This covers all three aspects 
of the PRA/Bank of England’s framework– physical risks, 
transition risks and liability risks. Climate Change risks are 
captured in our ORSA and are discussed at Executive and 
Board level. 

5.  Placing inclusion and diversity at the heart  

of everything we do 
Our employees and local communities are a big part 
of this effort. In line with our commitment to inclusion 
and diversity we value the unique perspective everyone 
brings to our business, no matter their age, race, religion, 
gender, identity or background. We have several active and 
committed employee resource groups who work together 
with our dedicated Head of Inclusion and Diversity to make 
sure all voices are heard.

Underwriting strategy
We continue to review and evolve our products to ensure they 
promote improvements in ESG standards across our clients. 
In 2021, for example, our Energy division launched a product 
providing coverage for both the construction and operational 
exposures of renewable energy producers. In 2021, we also 
announced that we will not actively provide insurance to any 
new coal mining operations. 

Our underwriters are actively encouraged to consider and 
assess the ESG aspects of risks within their portfolios, and 
we are developing protocols to ensure a suitable level of due 

The extent of the impact of climate change on the frequency 
and severity of natural catastrophes, and the level of claims 
arising from such events, is an area of uncertainty. Working 
in conjunction with the Underwriting teams, our Exposure 
Management department continually strives to identify and 
quantify the potential impact of increasingly frequent weather-
related catastrophe events. This is monitored by Brit’s CCRWP.

We constantly review opportunities, and continue the 
development of new products and services to support our clients 
on their ESG journey, and to address their changing needs. 

During 2021 we trialled various processes by which we 
could identify a suitable ESG score for all our insureds. The 
availability of quality data has proved challenging. However, 
we continue to identify new external data sources, and will 
continue to focus on this during 2022.

As part of our 2022 business planning process, Brit affirmed 
its commitment to Lloyd’s ESG statement and responsible 
business practices. Additionally, the business planning 
process has examined class specific ESG initiatives that have 
been implemented, and those that will be implemented during 
2022. 

Investment strategy
ESG considerations are integrated into our investment 
decisions. Our approach is to engage with our investment 
managers to ensure that appropriate consideration is given 
to ESG and climate risk in investment decisions. This allows 
us to understand both risks and opportunities, and allows 
us to invest in businesses which are actively improving from 
an ESG perspective, thereby supporting their transition. We 
also prohibit new investments in the more environmentally 
damaging sectors (such as thermal coal and oil sands) in all 
our portfolios. 

We discuss ESG matter with all our investment managers, 
both on an ongoing basis and as part of our formal annual 
due diligence reviews. For our primary investment manager, 
climate risk is a category of business risk applied to all 
investments. We continue to engage with our managers to 
enhance our ESG investment strategy as best practice in this 
area continues to evolve. 

In 2021 we performed analysis of our equity positions which 
showed the overall ESG risk rating to be low-medium. Our 
overall portfolio is relatively low risk, reflecting its large 
allocation to US government bonds and cash holdings.

In November, Ki entered into a $130m sustainability linked 
‘Funds at Lloyd’s’ letter of credit agreement with its banking 

48 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Reportpartners. The facility, which is structured to support 
Syndicate 1618 as Ki grows, is linked to the ESG rating of Ki’s 
‘Funds at Lloyd’s’ investment portfolios and Syndicate 1618’s 
assets, with its pricing depending on the compliance of Ki’s 
investment portfolios with ESG targets. This builds on the 
investment guidelines Ki has established for its third-party 
managers, which incorporate ESG principles and targets, and 
will help Ki build a sustainable footprint.

We have finalised our initial climate risk investment metrics. 
ESG data availability remains challenging, with external 
ratings often backward looking and lack consistency. These 
metrics will therefore initially focus on sector allocations, 
though we expect them to evolve over time. 

Climate scenario analysis
Climate scenario analysis is key to understanding the potential 
impact of climate-related risks on Brit. 

In 2021 Brit participated in the PRA’s Climate Change Biennial 
Exploratory Stress Test (CBES) exercise. CBES requirements 
include engaging with climate science and giving consideration 
to how we can adjust catastrophe modelling to reflect climate 
change over varying time horizons. The learnings from this 
exercise will be used to enhance the metrics used to measure 
the risks associated with climate change. We are analysing  
12 perils including wildfire, flood, hurricane, and severe 
storm, and are investigating how our modelled claims might 
change by 2030 and 2050, on both ‘no action’ and ‘action’ 
bases, with the ‘action’ basis involving large scale intervention 
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 

In addition, Brit continues to engage with our outsourced 
service providers to enhance their climate disclosures and 
research. This includes working with our natural catastrophe 
modelling software providers to ensure their models 
appropriately allow for the impact of climate change. Brit 
has also engaged with our investment managers to develop 
climate change related reporting and metrics. 

Risk management
We manage the risks associated with climate change in line 
with our Risk Management Framework (RMF). The Group’s 
approach to managing climate change related financial risks is 
set out on page 43.

Metrics and targets
A key part of risk management at Brit is the setting of risk 
tolerances and risk appetite. We are committed to developing 
a metrics and targets framework to manage climate-related 
risks and opportunities. As noted in the ‘strategy’ section 
above, we are in the process of identifying a suitable ‘ESG 
scorecard’ for our underwriting portfolio and have set climate 
risk metrics for our investment portfolio. We will continue to 
develop these metrics in 2022.

Greenhouse Gas reduction, carbon management and  
staff engagement
At Brit we take our environmental responsibilities very 
seriously and continually seek to improve the sustainability 
of our business. In 2021 we have continued to focus on 
greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction, carbon management and 
staff engagement. 

Our key activities are below:

•  Carbon management

We have continued with our initiative to offset all 
our carbon emissions through ClimateCare (www.
climatecare.org). For every tonne of carbon generated 
we fund the equivalent reduction through ClimateCare’s 
carbon reduction projects – neutralising our impact and 
helping to address climate change. For 2021, we have 
purchased further tonnage to offset additional emissions 
generated by our employees while working from home. 
At 31 December 2021 we remained fully Energy Saving 
Opportunities Scheme (ESOS) compliant.

We measure and monitor our carbon footprint. In 2021  
our carbon emissions per employee before offset were  
0.7 tonnes (2020: 2.4 tonnes), which reduced significantly 
after offset to a negative 0.7 tonnes per employee (2020: 
negative 2.1 tonnes). In 2020 and 2021, the negative figures 
reflect our purchase of further tonnage to offset additional 
emissions generated by our employees while working from 
home. The sources of these emissions were as follows:

Emission source
Gas (note 1)
Electricity (note 1)
Business travel – air (note 2)
Business travel – hotels (note 2)
Business travel – other (note 2)
Total carbon footprint before offset
Offset 
Total carbon footprint after offset

Number of employees at 31 December, 
excluding NEDs (note 3)

Carbon footprint per employee  
before offset
Carbon footprint per employee  
after offset

2021
CO2 (tonnes)
111
222
218
10
–
561
(1,122)
(561)

2020
CO2 (tonnes)
339
511
959
20
–
1,829
(3,373)
(1,544)

804

748 

0.7

2.4

(0.7)

(2.1)

Note 1: Where Brit operates from offices which form part of a larger 
commercial development, usage and emission data has been supplied by the 
building manager. Where data was unavailable, estimates have been used. 
Where Brit operates out of serviced office suites, it has no control over the 
management of utilities, with that responsibility falling to the landlord. Such 
serviced accommodation is considered out of scope for this purpose. 

Note 2: For all travel including air, hotels and rail, data has been provided 
from our travel agent partner, through whom all travel is arranged. 

Note 3: Excludes emissions and employees of Camargue, which was acquired 
on 4 October 2021.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

49

Strategic Report 
 
our people, culture, social, community and environmental matters

•  Net-zero: We are on our own journey to net-zero. We 
are reviewing our operations to actively reduce our 
emissions, waste and water consumption. We currently 
offset our emissions by investing in socially responsible 
offset projects. We are targeting full net-zero by 2025 and 
developing a roadmap to achieve this.

•  Supply chain: Work commenced in 2021 to streamline our 
supply chain, as we seek to minimise our carbon footprint, 
through analysis of our business activities, waste 
management and energy consumption.

•  Travel: Brit’s travel policy encourages the booking of lower 
carbon-intensive flights. Brit has also heavily invested 
in transforming the way it works by introducing flexible 
working and by installing digital and video conferencing 
systems throughout Brit’s offices. 

•  Recycling: We continue to strive to reduce the levels of 

recyclable and non-recyclable waste we generate. During 
2021 we recycled 5.1 tonnes of paper waste (2020:  
4.5 tonnes) and we sent 4.2 tonnes of general waste to 
energy recycling (2020: 3.6 tonnes). In 2021, we also 
recycled 0.4 tonnes of glass (2020: 0.3 tonnes), 1.7 tonnes 
of cardboard (2020: 1.6 tonnes) and 0.5 tonnes food waste 
(2020: nil). During 2021, in conjunction with our building 
managers, we continued to work hard to reduce waste sent 
to landfill. We continue to use a business dining and internal 
hospitality provider that is committed to the principles 
of sustainable food procurement. It recognises that it is 
important to the future wellbeing of the UK that farming 
communities are supported and able to contribute to their 
supply chains. We continue to encourage our employees to 
be more environmentally aware and climate conscious.

•  Staff engagement: In 2021 Brit provided ESG e-learning 
to all employees. We are also committed to reintroducing 
environmental volunteering days as COVID-19 restrictions 
eased.

In 2021 there was a significant drop in gas and electricity 
consumption and related carbon emissions due to longer 
periods of working from home as we followed government 
guidelines. We also took active measures to reduce energy 
consumption. For example, in our head office, where the 
majority of our staff are based, heating ran for only one hour 
a day during office closure periods, there was a significant 
reduction in on-site IT equipment as we successfully moved 
to a cloud environment, and we transitioned to more energy 
efficient lighting. 

The reductions in travel related emissions reflect very 
limited international travel in 2021, reflecting in-house and 
international restrictions.

Brit’s Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) 
disclosures are as follows:

2021

2020

kWh
Scope 1 (note 3)
601,996
Scope 2 (note 4)
690,711
Scope 3 (note 5)
–
Total before offset 1,292,707
Per UK employee 
before offset

2,001

GHG
(CO2 tonnes)

kWh
111 1,047,392
177 881,308
–
288 1,928,700

–

GHG
(CO2 tonnes)
271
409
–
680

0.45

3,242

1.1 

Note 1: The scope of table differs from the carbon emissions reported 
above, in that it only covers UK based operations, in accordance with SECR 
requirements for unlisted companies.

Note 2: In the UK Brit operates out of an office which forms part of a larger 
commercial development. Usage and emission data has been supplied by the 
building manager. 

Note 3: Includes gas purchased for consumption in Brit’s UK office, for which 
data has been supplied by the building manager.

Note 4: Includes electricity purchased for consumption in Brit’s UK office,  
for which data has been supplied by the building manager.

Note 5: In 2020 and 2021, Brit had de-minimis emissions from business 
travel in rental or employee-owned vehicles.

Note 6: Details of efficiency actions are given above.

50 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Reportstakeholder engagement

The Board recognises the importance of engaging with its broader stakeholder base. The Company’s key stakeholders, 
as identified by the Board, are set out below, together with why and how we engage with them and the outcomes of that 
engagement. In 2021, engagement continued to be strengthened, on both virtual and in person bases.

Clients and Intermediaries

Why we engage

Form of engagement

Impact of engagement 

We care deeply about our clients’ needs 
and work with brokers and partners to 
share expertise and deliver a seamless 
service for the end insured.

Intermediary engagement commences 
before any formal relationship is 
entered into, with a robust on-boarding 
governance process. 

As a specialty insurer, almost 100% 
of Brit’s business is distributed via 
intermediaries. In London, the majority 
of this is via Lloyd’s brokers and in 
BGSU via both wholesale and retail 
intermediaries. 

Engagement and building strong 
relationships with our intermediaries 
is crucial for us to source business 
and to deliver the best service and 
products for our insureds.

Intermediaries also provide a range 
of services to Brit, for which we 
remunerate them via brokerage and 
commissions. 

Post on-boarding, Brit underwriters 
engage with intermediaries in a number 
of ways. During 2021 this has been via 
electronic means and in person.

To maximise our intermediary 
relationships, Brit has entered into 
strategic partnership agreements with 
seven of our largest brokers, covering 
over 50% of our gross premium. 
Under these agreements Brit pays 
an annual fee, which gives access to 
a range of services including regular 
engagement and introductions, data 
provision and consultancy. All new and 
renewal agreements require full Board 
approval. 

In 2021, Ki has continued to work with 
its trading partners, a leading group of 
Lloyd’s brokers. 

When a client has a claim, their life or 
business has been disrupted, or even 
put in peril, they expect their insurance 
to deliver. It is our responsibility to 
fulfil that commitment. At Brit, we do 
not treat claims as a process; we see 
every claim as an opportunity to help 
our clients move forward.

When a client has a claim we 
adopt a proactive approach. We 
engage directly with them or their 
intermediary to ensure their needs are 
met. Following a major loss event, we 
instigate additional measures including 
establishing 24/7 contact with claims 
administrators, extending deployment 
of Brit claims adjusters from London 
and swiftly establishing dedicated  
loss funds.

Broker surveys consistently highlight 
Brit’s efficient client engagement, 
proactive communications and case-by-
case approach. In 2021, Brit’s Claims 
team was named ‘Claims Team of the 
Year’ at the 2021 National Insurance 
Awards. 

By engaging with clients and 
intermediaries we provide a risk 
service that helps clients not only 
prepare for but manage and mitigate 
the risks they face.

By building stronger and deeper 
relationships with our intermediaries,  
we believe we put ourselves in a 
stronger position to quickly take 
advantage of new opportunities and 
understand and satisfy changing 
customer needs. The data provided to 
us by brokers allows us to have more 
informed discussions and make more 
informed decisions. 

One of our key areas of focus is the 
management of acquisition costs. We 
continue to work with a number of our 
major broking partners to explore 
ways we can improve efficiency for our 
mutual business models.

Engagement with our clients, 
intermediaries and other service 
providers after an event reinforces our 
provision of a risk service that helps 
people not only move on from an event 
but helps them to move forward rapidly 
with confidence.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

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Strategic Report 
 
stakeholder engagement

Reinsurers
Why we engage

Form of engagement

Impact of engagement 

Brit purchases reinsurance to help 
manage risk, reduce volatility, enhance 
earnings, control aggregations and 
create capital efficiency. 

Brit uses its appointed brokers for 
the majority of reinsurer interactions, 
allowing us to benefit from their 
expertise.

Brit’s risk appetite is defined by its 
outwards reinsurance strategy and 
plan, which is approved as part of the 
annual business planning process.

We also engage when we make 
recoveries under the cover we have 
purchased.

Brit also engages directly with 
reinsurers, such as when there is a 
need to achieve broader strategic 
aims which would involve more than 
one broker. These tend to be with our 
largest reinsurance counterparties.

This engagement allows Brit to access 
up to date market information and to 
access a broad range of reinsurance 
counterparties and reinsurance products, 
thereby managing its risk appetite in 
the most effective way. It also aids the 
administration of reinsurance products 
and may give Brit access to a range of 
advisory functions on contract wordings, 
financial modelling and ancillary functions.

When we make recoveries, such 
engagement helps to expedite the 
recovery process.

Investment managers
Why we engage

Form of engagement

Impact of engagement 

We are responsible for managing the 
assets which support our underwriting 
and ensure that clients’ claims can be 
paid. We manage those assets with a 
long-term view and aim to maximise 
return while controlling the level of 
market risk. 

We have regular discussions with our 
managers to monitor performance 
and assess the outlook for investment 
markets. We also receive regular 
written investment reports covering 
positioning, investment performance 
and outlook. 

We implement our investment strategy 
using the expertise of investment 
managers, whose mandates are set out 
in investment management agreements 
(IMAs).

We engage with our investment 
managers to monitor their performance 
and to ensure assets are managed 
within the restrictions set out in the 
IMAs.

We also gain additional insights and 
expertise by engaging with investment 
managers.

We also engage with managers 
to assess skills in managing ESG 
considerations within portfolios. 

We have regular and ad-hoc discussions 
with managers to review new 
investment opportunities and to assess 
their suitability for our portfolio.

Investment managers regularly present 
to the Board and Investment Committee 
Board.

We also perform annual due diligence 
meetings to review the operational 
aspects of the investment managers’ 
processes.

Engaging with our investment managers 
allows us to ensure that the assets are 
managed within our risk tolerances 
and guidelines and that any changes 
are implemented in a timely fashion. We 
receive insights from our investment 
managers which enhances our investment 
strategy and performance.

Engagement allows us to discuss potential 
new opportunities with our investment 
managers, adding diversification and 
resilience to our portfolio. Discussions 
also help us to understand their approach 
to environmental, social and governance 
issues, including climate risk and stranded 
assets, validating the sustainability of the 
portfolio.

Our operational reviews confirm assets 
are managed robustly and controls 
the risk of fraud within the investment 
managers and other third parties. 

Assessing investment managers’ ESG 
related skill helps implement our ESG 
investment strategy.

52 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportCapital providers
Why we engage

Working with third-party capital 
providers on Ki, Syndicate 2988 and 
Sussex creates the opportunity to 
increase Brit’s leadership footprint and 
proposition to clients. It also leverages 
our operational infrastructure 
resulting in a more expense efficient 
model for both us and our capital 
providers. 

Engagement with third-party capital 
providers also supports our growth 
strategy for those vehicles. 

Regulators
Why we engage

Regulators are key stakeholders for 
any regulated business and Brit’s 
Board is pro-active in ensuring that 
Brit meets regulators’ expectations 
around compliance, transparency and 
aligning the business with regulators’ 
objectives.

• Brit engages with regulators to 

ensure that:

• We understand their regulatory 

objectives and how they apply to Brit;

• Regulators have a proper 

understanding of Brit’s business 
model, strategy and risk appetite;

• Regulators understand how Brit’s 
business model, risk appetite and 
operational processes and controls 
are aligned to regulatory objectives.

Form of engagement

Impact of engagement 

Brit regularly engages with the third-
party capital providers on Ki. It also 
engages with current and prospective 
third-party capital providers ahead 
of an underwriting year, to market 
the Syndicate 2988 and Sussex 
propositions and to understand 
investor appetite and capacity. 

After an underwriting year incepts, 
Brit formally meets each provider 
regularly to discuss performance, 
outlook and any other relevant 
matter. Ad-hoc queries and requests 
for information are also welcomed. 
Most interaction is via face-to-face 
discussion or by conference call. 

The successful implementation of the Ki, 
Syndicate 2988 and Sussex strategies 
is dependent on developing strong 
relationships with third-party investors 
and institutions. Such engagement 
helps facilitate this.

The insight we gain from our regular 
interactions and feedback helps Brit 
to ensure that our propositions can 
continuously evolve in line with investor 
appetite. 

Form of engagement

Impact of engagement 

Brit engages with its principal 
regulators through:

• Regular meetings between 

supervisory teams, key decision-
makers and authorised persons at 
Brit, including executive and non-
executive Directors;

• Sharing of key business updates 
and internal documents including 
board and committee papers to 
ensure regulators have a thorough 
understanding of Brit’s business and 
the opportunity to ask questions about 
it;

• Responding to thematic reviews and 
information requests as required;

• Engaging with Lloyd’s across the 

business including around business 
planning and compliance with 
Minimum Standards;

• Ensuring the Board is kept up-to-
date on regulatory matters as 
communicated by regulators.

Engagement with regulators impacts 
Brit through:

• The Periodic Summary and Close and 
Continuous supervision approach 
by the PRA enables Brit to respond 
promptly to the PRA’s regulatory 
concerns and areas of regulatory 
focus;

• Engagement with regulators on 

thematic reviews and information 
requests enables Brit to contribute to 
regulators’ understanding of how the 
market operates and best practice;

• Brit’s regular engagement with 

regulators enables it to pro-actively 
plan its response to areas of 
regulatory focus, e.g. operational 
resilience;

• Engagement with regulators assists 

Brit to meet the prudential and 
conduct standards required by 
regulators;

• Directors and employees understand 

their regulatory responsibilities. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

53

Strategic Report 
 
stakeholder engagement

Key suppliers
Why we engage

Supply chain integrity is a critical 
part of our business, as we rely on a 
number of key suppliers of goods and 
services to help us meet the needs 
of our customers and those of other 
stakeholders.

On-going engagement with such 
suppliers helps us ensure that those 
needs are met and ensures that the 
standards set by those suppliers meet 
Brit’s criteria. 

Such suppliers include providers 
of IT systems, claims management, 
professional services, facilities and 
travel providers.

Members
Why we engage

At 31 December 2021, Brit Limited 
was 86.2% owned by Fairfax Financial 
Holdings Limited (FFHL) and 13.8% by 
OMERS Administration Corporation.

Our aim is to provide long term 
sustainable value for our shareholders. 
Engagement ensures that our 
objectives are aligned and that our 
strategy, operating environment and 
performance are clearly understood.

Form of engagement

Impact of engagement 

Brit determines the risk of the 
potential engagement by investigating 
the potential spend value, criticality 
of the services to be provided and 
personal information to be shared 
between parties. 

Brit has strong partnerships with a 
number of critical suppliers. These 
partnerships are fostered by a range 
of activities including ongoing dialogue 
and meetings at both executive and 
function owner level. We also engage 
with key suppliers in areas such as 
technical and product roadmaps, 
integration planning and disaster 
recovery.

Brit also has a rigorous on-boarding 
process for new suppliers. 

Such supplier engagement enables  
us to:

• Provide a better service to and satisfy 
the needs of our customers and other 
stakeholders;

• Enhance current operational 
processes, leading to better 
efficiencies and increased competitive 
advantage in the marketplace;

• Comply with appropriate laws and 

regulations, by implementing suitable 
controls and measures; 

• Improve the Company’s technological 

resilience; and

• Ensure the robustness and integrity 

of our suppliers, such as their 
compliance with the Modern Slavery 
Act 2015. 

Form of engagement

Impact of engagement 

Both of Brit’s ultimate shareholders 
are represented on the Brit Limited 
board and there is regular contact 
between Brit executives and senior 
management and those of our majority 
shareholder.

This engagement helps ensure that Brit’s 
strategy is aligned to and supported by 
our shareholders. 

Such engagement also presents us 
with underwriting and investment 
opportunities, and can result in favourable 
collaboration with other members of the 
Fairfax group. 

54 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic ReportBrit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

55

Strategic Report 
 
56 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Strategic Reportsection 172(1) statement

Introduction
The Brit Limited Directors’ key responsibility is to promote 
the success of the Company. This principle is embodied in the 
Board’s terms of reference and is the cornerstone of their 
discussions and decision making. Each Director is cognisant that 
in discharging this key responsibility, they must have regard to: 

•  The likely consequences of any decisions in the long-term;

•  The interests of the Company’s employees;

•  The need to foster the Company’s business relationships 

with suppliers, customers and others;

•  The impact of the Company’s operations on the community 

and environment;

•  The desirability of the Company maintaining a reputation 

for high standards of business conduct; and

•  The need to act fairly as between shareholders of the 

Company.

The Directors of Brit Limited consider, both individually and 
collectively, that they have acted in the way they consider, in 
good faith, would be most likely to promote the success of the 
Company for the benefit of its members as a whole (having 
regard to the stakeholders and matters set out in s172(1)
(a-f) of the Act).

The Board’s approach to section 172(1) and decision making
The Board’s terms of reference, which are reviewed annually, 
clearly articulate the Board’s responsibilities, the role of 
the Chair and matters reserved for the Board. They also 
set out which of the Board’s powers and responsibilities 
may be delegated to other committees and the governance 
mechanisms by which the Board monitors those committees’ 
activities and performance. The Chair ensures that these 
terms of reference are adhered to and, by doing so, ensures 
that Directors have due regard for all appropriate factors 
during the decision-making process.

Our strategy
The Board is responsible for a number of key strategic 
decisions, including approving the business plans, objectives 
and strategy of the Company. It is also responsible for 
conduct risk strategy and appetite, for recommending 
dividends and for setting dividend policy.

The Company’s strategy and business plans are approved 
annually by the Board. The Board also assesses how the 
strategy underpins long-term value creation by discussing 
and approving a three-year plan. Such matters are also 
discussed at the Group’s annual strategy review and planning 
day, in which the Directors of the Company and its principal 
subsidiaries participate. On-going performance is discussed 
and monitored at Board meetings. 

The Directors’ assessment of long-term value creation also 
considers the Company’s resilience. The Directors determine 

and monitor underwriting, reserving, business, operational, 
credit, market and liquidity risk appetites and tolerances. 
They ensure the Company has an effective risk management 
framework in place, approve its conduct risk strategy and 
appetite.

Board information
The Board receives regular information on a range of relevant 
topics, and receives information on other areas as requested 
by the Directors from time to time.

During 2021, the Board has received and discussed regular 
comprehensive updates on the impact of COVID-19. These 
updates have included a general update on the pandemic,  
its impact on financial and capital markets, and the impact on 
Lloyd’s and the wider insurance market. It also included an 
overview of key developments at Brit, an update from each 
key functional area, scenario analysis and an assessment of 
key risks.

The Board receives regular formal reports on the operations 
and performance of the Company from the Group Chief 
Executive Officer and the Group Chief Financial Officer. The 
Board also receives regular reports from the chairs of 
the committees of the Board such as the Audit Committee, 
Remuneration Committee and Nomination Committee, and 
from the chairs of its principal subsidiaries’ boards including 
those of Brit Syndicates Limited and Brit Reinsurance 
(Bermuda) Limited. It also receives the minutes of meetings 
of these bodies. Each of these reports provides an update on 
areas necessary to help the Directors promote the success 
of Brit Limited.

In addition, the Board receives and considers a number of 
annual reports, such as the ‘Whistleblowing Annual Report’. 

From time to time the Board receives detailed reports on specific 
areas for it to consider. During 2021, such reports included  
a ‘Group Capital Update’ and a ‘Group Investment Update’.

Our policies and practices
All relevant factors are appropriately addressed by the Board 
when considering matters reserved for it, as set out in its 
terms of reference.

The Board also ensures that appropriate consideration is given 
to relevant factors by the committees to which it delegates 
responsibilities. The Board reviews the terms of reference 
of such committees on an annual basis, and receives regular 
updates and reports from those committees’ chairs.

The Board also reviews the Company’s key policies on an 
annual basis, ensuring that all relevant considerations to 
assist it discharge its responsibilities are embedded in the key 
operations of the business. These policies help to promote the 
long-term success of the Company by focusing on areas such 
as the key operations of the Company.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

57

Strategic Report 
 
section 172(1) statement

The Board reviews its key stakeholder map on an annual 
basis. New key stakeholder relationships are identified 
through information received and considered by the Board 
on a regular basis, or through the Board’s consideration and 
approval of substantial contracts and commitments. 

Training
To assist the Directors discharge their responsibilities, 
they are provided with on-going training and development 
opportunities. They have received a number of in-depth 
briefings on specific relevant issues.

For the wider workforce, there is a comprehensive staff 
development programme tailored to meet individual needs. 
Elements of this training are mandatory, with all staff 
required to successfully complete e-learning modules on key 
areas such as money laundering, bribery and corruption,  
data protection, fraud and cyber risk. 

Our culture
Building and maintaining the Company’s reputation and its high 
standards of business conduct are essential to the future 
success of the Company. This is embedded in our culture.

Our brand purpose informs everything we do, from how we 
communicate, to how we develop and deliver our services, 
to how we work together. Our purpose informs our core 
philosophies, which are set out on page 9.

The Company also maintains a ‘Code of Conduct’ setting out 
the standard we expect from all of our staff. This is regularly 
reviewed and updated, and compliance is attested to by each 
employee on an annual basis. 

Our people
Our people are key to our success. How we engage with them 
and how we invest in them is set out on page 45.

Our stakeholders
The Board recognises the importance of engaging with its 
broader stakeholder base. The Company’s key stakeholders, 
as identified by the Board, are set out on page 51, together 
with why and how we engage with them and the outcomes  
of that engagement. 

Community and environment
The Board recognises the importance of not only generating 
value for shareholders but also to contribute to wider society. 
We do this through a number of initiatives, as set out on  
page 46. We also monitor and manage our environmental 
impact, as set out on page 46. 

Key decisions made by the Directors during the year

Dividends and share issues 
During 2021, the Board agreed to a number of new  
share issues. FFHL Group Limited (Fairfax) subscribed  
for 8,299,909 new Brit Limited class B shares for  
a contribution of $31.1m and OMERS Administration 
Corporation (OMERS) subscribed for 92,364,532 new Brit 
Limited class A shares for a contribution of $375.0m. 

The Board also considered and approved a $375.0m 
dividend in respect of its class B shares.

In considering these decisions, the Directors assessed 
Brit’s ongoing underwriting strategy and capital 
requirements, and its obligation to act fairly between 
members. It was mindful of its agreed obligations to both 
its minority shareholder and to its majority shareholder. 
Brit also liaised closely with its principal shareholder with 
regard to this transaction, and took account of its views 
when determining the structure of the OMERS investment 
and the subsequent dividend payment.

Loss Portfolio Reinsurance 
The Board considered and approved a loss portfolio 
reinsurance with RiverStone Managing Agency Limited, 
protecting Brit against adverse development on 
predominantly legacy years of account underwritten by 
Brit Syndicate 2987.

The Board considered the implications of this contract on 
Brit’s stakeholders. It examined the terms of the contract 
and its intention to provide Brit with certainty of exit 
on discontinued lines and to reduce its exposure to US 
Casualty claims inflation. It concluded that it was in the 
interests of key stakeholders including its policyholders, 
members and employees. 

Ki Financial Limited
In 2021, the Board approved further investment in  
Ki Financial Limited.

The Board considered Brit’s immediate and longer-
term strategic priorities, as well as the interests of its 
shareholders, and other stakeholders, including Lloyd’s 
and the wider market. It concluded that opportunities 
presented by this ongoing initiative would position the 
Group and other stakeholders well for the longer term.  
Brit also liaised closely with its principal shareholder  
and with Ki management over this further investment.  
This two-way dialogue helped determine the quantum  
and form of the investment.

58 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

2020 financial statements and reserving position

The Directors approved the financial statements for 

the year ended 31 December 2020, on 16 February 

2021. As part of this process, the Directors considered 

and approved the claims reserves held by the Group’s 

underwriting entities. 

In considering these key factors and in approving the 

final reserving position, the Directors were mindful of the 

importance of maintaining the Group’s policy of reserving 

on a conservative best estimate basis. This policy provides 

robust security to our policyholders, while ensuring 

the long-term financial strength of the Group, thereby 

protecting the interests of our key stakeholders including 

our clients, members and employees. 

2022 business plan and capital requirements

The Directors reviewed and approved the 2022 business 

plan. The plan included the Group’s underwriting and 

investment strategy, together with the capital needed to 

support the plan. 

The Directors considered the Company’s immediate and 

longer-term strategic priorities, together with the risks 

facing the business. They also considered the needs and 

expectations of the Company’s shareholders, the interest 

of its clients and employees, and those of the wider 

stakeholder group. After due discussion, the Directors 

concluded that the plans and attaching capital positioned 

the Company well for 2022 and the longer term.

Revolving credit facility

During 2021, the Board considered and approved 

amendments to the Group’s revolving credit facility. The 

facility was extended by two years to 31 December 2025, 

with the letter of credit component availability extended to 

cover the 2022 and 2023 underwriting years. The wording 

of the facility was also amended to address the transition 

away from LIBOR.

The Board discussed the terms of the revised facility. 

They concluded that it the facility appropriately supported 

the Group’s future plans and was in the interests of its 

members, employees and wider stakeholder base.

Ki letter of credit facility

The Board considered and approved amendments to the Ki 

letter of credit facility, extending it by two years to cover 

the 2022 and 2023 underwriting years, with pricing linked 

to the ESG rating of the Ki’s investment portfolios. 

The Board discussed the terms of the revised facility. They 

concluded that it the facility appropriately supported the 

Ki’s future plans and was in the interests of its members, 

employees and wider stakeholder base. It also concluded 

that the structure of the facility was aligned to its ESG 

objectives, those of Ki and its capital providers, and  

Lloyd’s. Brit liaised closely with Ki management and other  

Ki investors

Transfer of the RiverStone Management Pension and Life 

Assurance Plan (the Plan)

The Board discussed and agreed a proposal for the Group 

to assume the liabilities of the Plan from Riverstone 

Holdings Limited and RiverStone Management Limited, 

through a Flexible Apportionment Agreement (FAA). 

In arriving at this decision, the Board considered the 

financial health of the Plan, and the interests and the 

potential impact on of all its key stakeholders in the shorter 

and longer terms. After due discussion, the Board concluded 

that it was in the interests of the wider Fairfax group to 

approve the transfer and that appropriate safeguards 

were in place to protect other stakeholders. Throughout the 

transfer process, Brit liaised with its principal shareholder, 

the Trustees of the Plan and the Plan’s current employers 

(Riverstone Holdings Limited and RiverStone Management 

Limited). This ensured that the Plan was adequately funded 

before the date of transfer and ensured certain protections 

were agreed and put in place for both the Plan’s members 

and for Brit. This transfer enabled our principal shareholder 

to complete a corporate transaction. 

Acquisition of Camargue Underwriting Managers 

(Proprietary) Limited (Camargue)

In October, the Board proceeded with the completion of the 

acquisition of the remaining 50% of Camargue. Brit made an 

initial 50% strategic investment in Camargue in 2016 and 

Camargue has been a key trading partner of Brit for over 

20 years. Camargue retains its independence, continuing to 

underwrite as a managing general underwriter on behalf of 

Brit and its other capacity providers. 

This acquisition continues Brit’s strategy of selective 

international expansion into niche specialty businesses 

with a strong track record in distribution and underwriting. 

It will provide added long-term value for our members, 

increasing revenue channels for the Group while cementing 

access to profitable underwriting risks. It also provides 

an integrated solution for our clients and helps foster the 

Group’s business relationships with those clients. Through 

the acquisition process, Brit liaised closely with its principal 

shareholder and the management of Camargue throughout 

the transaction process to facilitate regulatory approval 

and a smooth transition to new ownership.

Approval of policies

During 2021, the Directors reviewed and approved the 

Company’s key policies, including the Whistleblowing Policy, 

Financial Crime Policy and the Fit and Proper Policy.

In approving these policies, the Directors considered 

whether they support the strategic aims of the Company, 

and whether all relevant considerations were satisfactorily 

embedded in the key operations of the business. Such 

integration helps ensure the Group’s approved operational 

practices are clearly articulated and understood by all 

relevant employees, ensuring our reputation for high 

standards of business conduct is maintained. Such 

practices in turn will help ensure our longer-term strategic 

aims are delivered, in the interests of all our stakeholders.

Strategic ReportKey decisions made by the Directors during the year

Dividends and share issues 

During 2021, the Board agreed to a number of new  

share issues. FFHL Group Limited (Fairfax) subscribed  

for 8,299,909 new Brit Limited class B shares for  

a contribution of $31.1m and OMERS Administration 

Corporation (OMERS) subscribed for 92,364,532 new Brit 

Limited class A shares for a contribution of $375.0m. 

The Board also considered and approved a $375.0m 

dividend in respect of its class B shares.

In considering these decisions, the Directors assessed 

Brit’s ongoing underwriting strategy and capital 

requirements, and its obligation to act fairly between 

members. It was mindful of its agreed obligations to both 

its minority shareholder and to its majority shareholder. 

Brit also liaised closely with its principal shareholder with 

regard to this transaction, and took account of its views 

when determining the structure of the OMERS investment 

and the subsequent dividend payment.

Loss Portfolio Reinsurance 

The Board considered and approved a loss portfolio 

reinsurance with RiverStone Managing Agency Limited, 

protecting Brit against adverse development on 

predominantly legacy years of account underwritten by 

Brit Syndicate 2987.

The Board considered the implications of this contract on 

Brit’s stakeholders. It examined the terms of the contract 

and its intention to provide Brit with certainty of exit 

on discontinued lines and to reduce its exposure to US 

Casualty claims inflation. It concluded that it was in the 

interests of key stakeholders including its policyholders, 

members and employees. 

Ki Financial Limited

Ki Financial Limited.

In 2021, the Board approved further investment in  

The Board considered Brit’s immediate and longer-

term strategic priorities, as well as the interests of its 

shareholders, and other stakeholders, including Lloyd’s 

and the wider market. It concluded that opportunities 

presented by this ongoing initiative would position the 

Group and other stakeholders well for the longer term.  

Brit also liaised closely with its principal shareholder  

and with Ki management over this further investment.  

This two-way dialogue helped determine the quantum  

and form of the investment.

2020 financial statements and reserving position
The Directors approved the financial statements for 
the year ended 31 December 2020, on 16 February 
2021. As part of this process, the Directors considered 
and approved the claims reserves held by the Group’s 
underwriting entities. 

In considering these key factors and in approving the 
final reserving position, the Directors were mindful of the 
importance of maintaining the Group’s policy of reserving 
on a conservative best estimate basis. This policy provides 
robust security to our policyholders, while ensuring 
the long-term financial strength of the Group, thereby 
protecting the interests of our key stakeholders including 
our clients, members and employees. 

2022 business plan and capital requirements
The Directors reviewed and approved the 2022 business 
plan. The plan included the Group’s underwriting and 
investment strategy, together with the capital needed to 
support the plan. 

The Directors considered the Company’s immediate and 
longer-term strategic priorities, together with the risks 
facing the business. They also considered the needs and 
expectations of the Company’s shareholders, the interest 
of its clients and employees, and those of the wider 
stakeholder group. After due discussion, the Directors 
concluded that the plans and attaching capital positioned 
the Company well for 2022 and the longer term.

Revolving credit facility
During 2021, the Board considered and approved 
amendments to the Group’s revolving credit facility. The 
facility was extended by two years to 31 December 2025, 
with the letter of credit component availability extended to 
cover the 2022 and 2023 underwriting years. The wording 
of the facility was also amended to address the transition 
away from LIBOR.

The Board discussed the terms of the revised facility. 
They concluded that it the facility appropriately supported 
the Group’s future plans and was in the interests of its 
members, employees and wider stakeholder base.

Ki letter of credit facility
The Board considered and approved amendments to the Ki 
letter of credit facility, extending it by two years to cover 
the 2022 and 2023 underwriting years, with pricing linked 
to the ESG rating of the Ki’s investment portfolios. 

The Board discussed the terms of the revised facility. They 
concluded that it the facility appropriately supported the 
Ki’s future plans and was in the interests of its members, 
employees and wider stakeholder base. It also concluded 
that the structure of the facility was aligned to its ESG 
objectives, those of Ki and its capital providers, and  
Lloyd’s. Brit liaised closely with Ki management and other  
Ki investors

Transfer of the RiverStone Management Pension and Life 
Assurance Plan (the Plan)
The Board discussed and agreed a proposal for the Group 
to assume the liabilities of the Plan from Riverstone 
Holdings Limited and RiverStone Management Limited, 
through a Flexible Apportionment Agreement (FAA). 

In arriving at this decision, the Board considered the 
financial health of the Plan, and the interests and the 
potential impact on of all its key stakeholders in the shorter 
and longer terms. After due discussion, the Board concluded 
that it was in the interests of the wider Fairfax group to 
approve the transfer and that appropriate safeguards 
were in place to protect other stakeholders. Throughout the 
transfer process, Brit liaised with its principal shareholder, 
the Trustees of the Plan and the Plan’s current employers 
(Riverstone Holdings Limited and RiverStone Management 
Limited). This ensured that the Plan was adequately funded 
before the date of transfer and ensured certain protections 
were agreed and put in place for both the Plan’s members 
and for Brit. This transfer enabled our principal shareholder 
to complete a corporate transaction. 

Acquisition of Camargue Underwriting Managers 
(Proprietary) Limited (Camargue)
In October, the Board proceeded with the completion of the 
acquisition of the remaining 50% of Camargue. Brit made an 
initial 50% strategic investment in Camargue in 2016 and 
Camargue has been a key trading partner of Brit for over 
20 years. Camargue retains its independence, continuing to 
underwrite as a managing general underwriter on behalf of 
Brit and its other capacity providers. 

This acquisition continues Brit’s strategy of selective 
international expansion into niche specialty businesses 
with a strong track record in distribution and underwriting. 
It will provide added long-term value for our members, 
increasing revenue channels for the Group while cementing 
access to profitable underwriting risks. It also provides 
an integrated solution for our clients and helps foster the 
Group’s business relationships with those clients. Through 
the acquisition process, Brit liaised closely with its principal 
shareholder and the management of Camargue throughout 
the transaction process to facilitate regulatory approval 
and a smooth transition to new ownership.

Approval of policies
During 2021, the Directors reviewed and approved the 
Company’s key policies, including the Whistleblowing Policy, 
Financial Crime Policy and the Fit and Proper Policy.

In approving these policies, the Directors considered 
whether they support the strategic aims of the Company, 
and whether all relevant considerations were satisfactorily 
embedded in the key operations of the business. Such 
integration helps ensure the Group’s approved operational 
practices are clearly articulated and understood by all 
relevant employees, ensuring our reputation for high 
standards of business conduct is maintained. Such 
practices in turn will help ensure our longer-term strategic 
aims are delivered, in the interests of all our stakeholders.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

59

Strategic Report 
 
60 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Governancegovernance

Directors’ Report
This report sets out other information of 
interest to shareholders. It includes information 
on our significant shareholders, the Directors’ 
responsibility statement and the Directors’ 
statement on going concern.

Corporate Governance Report
This report explains our governance framework. 

Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking 
Statement 
This statement sets out the steps taken by us to 
ensure that slavery and human trafficking are not 
taking place in our supply chains or in any part of 
our business. 

Directors’ Report
Corporate Governance Report
Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement

62
65
67

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

61

Governance 
 
directors’ report

The Directors present their report together with the audited 
consolidated financial statements for the year ended  
31 December 2021.

Principal activities, review of business and other 
disclosures
Details of the Company’s principal activities and a review 
of the business, including how the business environment is 
likely to affect its future development and performance, are 
included in the Strategic Report. 

Directors
The following Directors held office at the date of this report:

Gordon Campbell

Matthew Wilson

Martin Thompson (appointed 03.11.2021)

Gavin Wilkinson (appointed 28.07.2021)

Mark Allan 

Andrew Barnard 

Andrea Welsch 

Ken Miner (appointed 27.08.2021)

Statement of Directors’ responsibilities
The Directors are responsible for preparing the Directors’ 
Report and the financial statements in accordance with 
applicable law and regulations. 

Company law requires that the Directors prepare financial 
statements for each financial year. Under company law the 
Directors must not approve the financial statements unless 
they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the 
state of affairs of the Company and of the profit and loss 
of the Company for that period. In preparing these financial 
statements, the Directors are required to:

•  Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them 

consistently;

•  Make judgements and accounting estimates that are 

reasonable and prudent; and

•  Prepare the financial statements on the going concern 
basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the 
Company will continue in business.

62 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

The Directors confirm that, to the best of their knowledge:

•  The consolidated financial statements, which have been 
prepared in accordance with UK-adopted international 
accounting standards, give a true and fair view of the 
assets, liabilities, financial position, and profit or loss  
of the Group; and 

•  The Strategic Report includes a fair review of the 

development and performance of the business and the 
position of the Group, together with a description of the 
principal risks and uncertainties that it faces. 

Dividends
On 7 September 2021, in accordance with the Brit Limited 
shareholders’ agreement, the Company paid a dividend of 
$375.0m to the holder of its class B ordinary shares. The 
Directors do not recommend a final dividend.

Share capital
The Company’s ordinary issued share capital at 31 December 
2021 comprised two classes of ordinary shares, class A 
ordinary and class B ordinary, which are fully paid.

Voting rights
The Company’s articles of association provide that a 
resolution put to the vote of a general meeting must be 
decided on a show of hands unless a poll is duly demanded  
in accordance with the articles.

Articles of Association
The Company’s articles of association may only be amended  
by the unanimous approval of the Company’s shareholders.

Shareholders
The Company’s shareholder at the time of this report is  
as follows:

Shareholder 
FFHL Group Limited

Units
577,137,562

Class
B Ordinary

% of total 
ordinary shares
86.2

OMERS Administration 
Corporation

92,364,532

A Ordinary

13.8

During 2021, FFHL Group Limited subscribed for 8,299,909 new 
Brit Limited class B ordinary shares for $31.1m, as follows:

•  On 06 July 2021, 1,627,907 Class B Ordinary Shares for 

$7.0m; and

•  On 17 December 2021, 6,672,002 Class B Ordinary Shares  

for $24.1m. 

On 27 August 2021, OMERS Administration Corporation 
subscribed for 92,364,532 new Brit Limited class A ordinary 
shares for $375.0m.

GovernanceSignificant agreements
The following agreement, which was in force at 31 December 
2021, takes effect, alters or terminates on a change of 
control of the Company.

Disclosure of information to the Company’s auditor
In accordance with the provisions of section 418 of the 
Companies Act 2006, each of the persons who are Directors of 
the Company at the date of approval of this report confirms that:

Revolving Credit Facility
The Group has a syndicated revolving credit facility (RCF) 
which provides for $450.0m of committed multi-currency 
financing. Amounts under the RCF can be drawn until 30 
November 2025, and the RCF terminates on 31 December 
2025, on which date all outstanding facilities must be repaid.

The RCF also contains a change of control provision under 
which, upon the occurrence of a change of control, the 
lenders may refuse to fund utilisation requests under the RCF, 
cancel their commitments and demand immediate repayment 
of all outstanding amounts.

Employment
Brit is an equal opportunities employer. This means we will 
not unlawfully discriminate against any person on grounds of 
colour, religion or belief, race or ethnic origin, nationality or 
national origin, sex or sexual orientation, marital status, disability, 
age, pregnancy or maternity, or gender reassignment. We have 
established policies to ensure that there is no discrimination 
against applicants for a job or whilst in employment. 

The Company is committed to ensuring equal opportunities 
in relation to job advertisements, recruitment and selection, 
assessment of work performance or conduct, disciplinary and 
grievance procedures, conditions of service, promotion and 
training, pay and benefits and termination of employment.

In the event of employees becoming disabled, every effort is 
made to ensure their employment with the Group continues 
and appropriate training arranged. So far as possible, the 
Company ensures that the training, career development and 
promotion of any disabled person are identical to that of a 
colleague who does not suffer from such a disability.

The Company maintains procedures by which all employees 
are systematically encouraged to express matters that may 
affect them and are provided with information on matters of 
concern. 

The employee share scheme, as well as other means provide 
an opportunity for staff involvement in the Company’s 
performance. 

Energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions
Brit’s energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, and 
its related strategy, are discussed on page 49.

Political donations
Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries made any 
political donations during the year.

•  So far as the Director is aware, there is no relevant audit 
information (as defined in the Companies Act 2006) of 
which the Company’s auditor is unaware; and

•  The Director has taken all the steps that he/she ought to 

have taken as a Director to make himself/herself aware of 
any relevant audit information (as defined) and to establish 
that the Company’s auditor is aware of that information.

Auditor
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP remain in office as the 
Company’s auditor.

Events occurring after the reporting date
On 1 January 2022, the Group acquired 100% of the issued 
shares in RiverStone Corporate Capital 4 Limited (‘RCC4’). 
RCC4 is a Lloyd’s corporate member, with a principal activity 
of providing capital to Ki Syndicate 1618. As set out in Note 37, 
the Brit Group is the principal beneficiary of the economics 
of Ki Syndicate 1618 and RCC4 and, as such, RCC4 was 
consolidated by the Brit Group in 2021, prior to the formal 
acquisition of its issued shares.  The purchase consideration 
was £1.

Going concern 
As part of its going concern assessment, the Board has 
considered the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on specific 
risks, and considered how successfully Brit has managed 
those risks:

•  Operational risk: Including Brit’s ability to work remotely 

and continue to provide a high level of service its 
customers. 

• 

Insurance risk: Including Brit’s reserving methodology 
and how it actively manages its portfolio to ensure it is 
appropriately positioned for both the pandemic and the 
recessionary economic conditions. 

• 

Investment and market risk: Including the positioning  
of Brit’s investment portfolio and expected returns.

•  Credit risk: Including any evidence as to the financial 

impact of COVID-19 on our customers.

•  Solvency: Including Brit’s capital strength at 31 December 
2021 and its track record of accessing additional capital 
from its ultimate parent.

•  Liquidity risk: Including stress testing of liquid resources, 

access to sources of liquidity including undrawn RCF 
amounts, and RCF covenant headroom.

These risks are discussed in more detail on page 42.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

63

Governance 
 
Information included in the Strategic Report
The information below is not shown in the Directors' report 
because it is shown in the Strategic Report instead under 
s414C(11).

•  Employee engagement

Disclosures regarding employee engagement can be found 
on pages 45 to 46.

•  Stakeholder engagement

Disclosures regarding stakeholder engagement can be 
found on pages 51 to 54.

•  Charitable donations

Disclosures regarding charitable donations can be found 
on pages 46 to 47.

•  Financial instruments

Details of the Group’s risk management framework 
supporting our investment in financial instruments is set 
out on pages 38 to 43.

•  Environmental related disclosures

Disclosures environmental matters can be found on  
pages 47 to 50.

By order of the Board

Tim Harmer  
Company Secretary
22 February 2022

Brit Limited – 08821629

directors’ report

The Board also considered other factors including:

•  Brit’s baseline 2022 financial plan: For Brit’s main 

underwriting platform, Syndicate 2987, 2022 GWP is 
forecast to grow by 11.8%. The Board noted that as in 
previous years, Brit continues to actively manage the 
portfolios by segmenting Classes into ‘High Performing’, 
‘Core Growth’, ‘Core New Initiatives’, ‘Core Opportunistic’ 
and ‘Portfolio Management’. Growth (excluding RARC) 
is driven primarily by the ‘High Performing’ and ‘Core 
Growth’ segments, while the largest increases in RARC 
are targeted on the weakest performing segments of the 
portfolio. In assessing the plan, the Board considered, 
amongst other factors:

•  Brit’s recent underwriting performance: During 2021, 
Brit has demonstrated the strength of its underlying 
business with an attritional ratio of 47.7%. This strong 
ratio is partly driven by market conditions which 
continue to improve. 

• 

Improving market conditions: In 2021, Brit achieved an 
overall risk adjusted rate increase of 12.9%, giving total 
rate increases since 1 January 2018 of 33.1%. Further 
increases have been achieved to date in 2021.

•  Brit’s reserving policy and track record: Brit has a 
policy of reserving on a ‘conservative best estimate’ 
basis and carrying an explicit risk margin above that 
‘conservative best estimate’. This policy has led to  
a track record of modest annual reserve releases.  
In 2021, this trend, first reported in 2004, continued 
with net releases of $100.1m (2020: $63.4m).

• 

Investment market conditions: The Directors 
considered if the current low interest rate environment 
was appropriately reflected in the plan. 

•  2022 outlook: The Directors also considered the Group’s 

outlook for 2022.

A review of the financial performance of the Group is set out 
on pages 22 to 32. The financial position of the Group, its cash 
flows and borrowing facilities are set out on pages 35 to 37. 

After assessing the evidence from the reviews performed, 
the Directors concluded they have a reasonable expectation 
that the Group has adequate resources to continue in 
operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this 
reason, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in 
preparing the financial statements.

64 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Governancecorporate governance report

Introduction
The Company has in place a memorandum of Corporate 
Governance that sets out the Corporate Governance principles 
of the Group based on the UK Corporate Governance Code (Code). 

Board of Directors
The Board currently has eight Directors and the full board 
meets on a regular basis. 

Independence of Directors 
The Board considers Gordon Campbell to be an independent 
non–executive Director of the Company, within the meaning of 
the Code. Gordon Campbell was appointed Chair of the Board on 
1 January 2019, chair of the Company’s Audit Committee with 
effect from 1 January 2019, chair of the Company’s Nomination 
Committee with effect from 1 January 2019 and chair of the 
Company’s Remuneration Committee with effect from  
1 January 2019.

Chair
The Chair is responsible for leadership of the Board ensuring 
its effectiveness on all aspects of its role and setting its 
agenda. The Chair is responsible for setting the agenda for 
Board deliberations, with the help of the executive Directors 
and the Company Secretary, to be primarily focused on 
strategy, performance, value creation and accountability, and 
ensure that issues relevant to these areas are reserved for 
Board decision. The Chair, in conjunction with the Company 
Secretary, ensures that the Board members receive accurate 
and timely information. 

Group Chief Executive Officer
The Group Chief Executive Officer is responsible for implementing 
and executing the strategy of the Group and for generally running 
the Group’s business. In September 2021, Matthew Wilson,  
the current Group Chief Executive Officer, took an indefinite 
leave of absence for health reasons. Martin Thompson has 
been appointed as interim Group Chief Executive Officer.

Conflicts of Interest
Under the Companies Act 2006, all Directors must seek 
authorisation before taking up any position with another 
company that conflicts or may possibly conflict with the 
Company’s interests. The Directors are required to notify  
the Company of any conflicts so that they can be considered 
and if appropriate authorised by the Board. The Board  
carries out an annual review of conflicts of interest and  
each authorisation is set out in the conflicts register. 

Committees of the Board
The Board has delegated specific responsibilities to Board 
committees, notably the Brit Limited Audit, Nomination and 
Remuneration Committees. 

Brit Governance Structure as at 31 December 2021
The Governance structure, shown below, is deeply embedded 
within the business. The Company’s main operating subsidiaries 
have in place governance principles in accordance with the 
Group’s Memorandum on Corporate Governance.

Governance structure

Ki

Ki Financial
Limited

Board

Audit  
Committee

Remuneration 
Committee

Sussex

Sussex Capital 
Management Limited

Board

Brit Limited 

Board

Remuneration
Committee

Audit Committee

Nomination 
Committee

Brit Insurance 
Holdings Limited

Board

Brit Reinsurance 
(Bermuda) Limited

Board

Executive 
Committee

Underwriting
Committee

Brit Syndicates 
Limited 

Board

Management  
Committee

Investment 
Committee

Valuation 
Committee

Risk 
Oversight  
Committee

Audit 
Committee

Management 
Committee

Audit  
Committee

UK 
Investment 
Committee

Risk 
Oversight 
Committee

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

65

Governance 
 
corporate governance report

Audit Committee
The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing the 
Group’s financial reporting processes, internal control and 
risk management framework and the work undertaken by the 
external auditor. Regular updates are provided to the Board 
by the committee chair. 

Remuneration Committee
The Remuneration Committee is responsible for setting the 
Group’s remuneration policy. The Company aims to reward 
employees fairly. The Committee is also responsible for 
setting the remuneration of all executive Directors. The 
Committee currently comprises one executive Director, one 
non-executive shareholder representative Director and one 
independent non-executive Director who is also the Chair of 
the Board, whereas the Code indicates that the Chair of the 
Board should not chair the Committee, and that membership 
of the Committee should be comprised of three independent 
non-executive directors.

Nomination Committee
The composition of the Board is reviewed regularly by 
the Nomination Committee. In considering the Board’s 
composition, the Committee is mindful of the need to 
maintain a well–balanced Board in terms of skills, knowledge, 
experience and background. The appointment of all new 
Directors is led by the Nomination Committee.

By order of the Board

Tim Harmer  
Company Secretary
22 February 2022

66 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Governancemodern slavery and human trafficking statement 

This statement sets out the steps taken by Brit Limited to 
ensure that slavery and human trafficking are not taking place 
in our supply chains or in any part of our business. Slavery 
and human trafficking can occur in many forms, such as 
forced labour, child labour, domestic servitude, sex trafficking 
and workplace abuse. Given the nature of the work that we 
do, we believe that there is a low risk of slavery or human 
trafficking having any connection with our business. We must, 
however, not be complacent, and all staff have a responsibility 
to be aware of any risks in our business and in our wider 
supply chains and report any concerns to senior management.

Our business
At Brit, we provide highly specialised insurance products to 
support our clients across a broad range of complex risks. 
We have a major presence in Lloyd’s of London (Lloyd’s), the 
world’s specialist insurance market provider, and a significant 
US and international reach. We have local offices in the US, 
Bermuda, South Africa and Japan.

We operate globally via our own international distribution 
network and broker partners. Insurance represents 77.2%  
of our gross written premium, with the remainder coming 
from treaty reinsurance.

The average number of employees working at Brit during 
2021, including non-executive Directors, was 819 and the 
result after tax in 2021 was a profit of $236.9m.

Our supply chains
We source our business through trading relationships 
with Lloyd’s brokers, wholesale brokers, retail agents and 
reinsurance intermediaries. Most of our reinsurance business 
is sourced through global reinsurance brokers. 

We require that all contractual agreements with third-party 
suppliers contain obligations to ensure compliance with the 
Modern Slavery Act 2015. 

As part of any due diligence exercise during supplier on-
boarding or at regular intervals, potential slavery concerns 
must be assessed and addressed.

Our Procurement and Material Outsourcing Policy ensures 
that information around our requirements is detailed and 
available to our wider business. 

Our policies on slavery and human trafficking
We are committed to ensuring that there is no modern slavery 
or human trafficking in our supply chains or in any part of 
our business. We believe in paying people fairly and properly 
for their work. This policy reflects our commitment to acting 
ethically and with integrity in all our business relationships 
and to implementing and enforcing effective systems and 
controls to ensure slavery and human trafficking is not taking 
place anywhere in our supply chains. 

Due diligence processes for slavery and human 
trafficking
As part of our initiative to identify and mitigate risk we have in 
place systems to:

• 

Identify and assess potential risk areas in our supply chains. 
We give all suppliers a copy of this statement and request  
a copy of their statement (if they are required to have one). 

•  Mitigate the risk of slavery and human trafficking occurring 
in our supply chains. We set clear expectations for our 
suppliers by informing them of our Code of Conduct, which 
states ‘Brit does not tolerate modern slavery or any form 
of human trafficking within its business or supply chains. 
Brit does not allow harsh or inhumane treatment and we 
expect our suppliers to share our values’.

•  Monitor potential risk areas in our supply chains. Staff are 
encouraged to report any concerns to senior management 
and there is a risk register operated by the Operational 
Risk Manager to record any such concerns.

•  Ensure appropriate recruitment practices are carried 
out, using reputable employment agencies. We verify 
the practices of any new recruitment agency as part of 
our terms of business with them and before accepting 
any workers from that agency. We also request a 
copy of the agency’s modern slavery statement (if it is 
required to have one). We ask any agency supplying us 
with staff to conduct verification checks on those staff 
(including verification of identity, references, evidence of 
qualifications and criminal and financial checks). We also 
carry out the same checks on direct hires.

•  Protect whistleblowers. At Brit, workers, customers 
and suppliers are encouraged to report any concerns 
related to our activities or supply chains. This includes 
circumstances which may give rise to increased risk of 
slavery or human trafficking. Our whistleblowing procedure 
is designed to make it easy for people to make disclosures 
without fear of retaliation. 

Training
To ensure a high level of understanding of the risks of modern 
slavery and human trafficking in our supply chains and our 
business, we provide training to appropriate members of staff. 

Our commitment
This statement is made pursuant to section 54(1) of the 
Modern Slavery Act 2015 and constitutes our Group's slavery 
and human trafficking statement for the financial year ending 
31 December 2021. 

This Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Statement is 
reviewed by Brit’s Board of Directors at least annually and 
may be amended from time to time.

By order of the Board

Tim Harmer  
Company Secretary

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

67

Governance 
 
68 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Financial Statements22 February 2022

financial statements

Independent Auditors’ Report to the  
Members of Brit Limited 
Consolidated Financial Statements 
Parent Company Financial Statements 

70
80
172

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

69

Financial Statements 
 
 
Independent Auditors’ Report to the members of Brit Limited

Report on the audit of the  
financial statements
Opinion
In our opinion:
•  Brit Limited’s Group financial statements and Company 
financial statements (the “financial statements”) give a 
true and fair view of the state of the Group’s and of the 
Company’s affairs as at 31 December 2021 and of the 
Group’s profit and the Group’s cash flows for the year then 
ended;

•  The Group financial statements have been properly 

prepared in accordance with UK-adopted international 
accounting standards;

•  The Company financial statements have been properly 
prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally 
Accepted Accounting Practice (United Kingdom Accounting 
Standards, comprising FRS 102 “The Financial Reporting 
Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland”, and 
applicable law); and

•  The financial statements have been prepared in accordance 

with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

We have audited the financial statements, included within the 
Annual Report, which comprise: the Consolidated and Parent 
Company Statement of Financial Position as at 31 December 
2021; the Consolidated Income Statement, the Consolidated 
Statement of Comprehensive Income, the Consolidated 
Statement of Cash Flows, and the Consolidated and Parent 
Company Statement of Changes in Equity for the year then 
ended; and the notes to the financial statements, which 
include a description of the significant accounting policies.

Our opinion is consistent with our reporting to the Audit 
Committee.

Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International 
Standards on Auditing (UK) (“ISAs (UK)”) and applicable law. 
Our responsibilities under ISAs (UK) are further described 
in the Auditors’ responsibilities for the audit of the financial 
statements section of our report. We believe that the audit 
evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to 
provide a basis for our opinion.

Independence
We remained independent of the Group in accordance with 
the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of 
the financial statements in the UK, which includes the FRC’s 
Ethical Standard, as applicable to listed public interest 
entities, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities 
in accordance with these requirements.

To the best of our knowledge and belief, we declare that non-
audit services prohibited by the FRC’s Ethical Standard were 
not provided.

70 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Other than those disclosed in Note 14, we have provided 
no non-audit services to the Company or its controlled 
undertakings in the period under audit.

Our audit approach
Overview
Audit scope
•  We performed full scope audit procedures over six of the 
Group’s components, namely, Brit Syndicates Limited – 
Syndicate No. 2987, Brit Syndicates Limited – Syndicate 
No. 2988, Brit Syndicates Limited – Syndicate 1618, 
Brit Limited, Brit Insurance Holdings Limited and Brit 
Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited;

•  For certain other components, we performed audit 

procedures over specified financial statement line item 
balances; and

•  For the remaining components that were not inconsequential,  

analytical procedures were performed by the Group 
engagement team.

Key audit matters
•  Valuation of the gross claims incurred but not reported 
(IBNR) component of insurance contracts, and the 
associated reinsurers’ share; (Group)

• 

Inappropriate revenue recognition (including fraud risk); 
(Group)

•  Valuation of investments with valuations modelled using 

unobservable inputs; (Group)

•  Valuation of the pension scheme transferred into the 

Group from the Riverstone Group during the year; (Group) 
and 

•  Valuation of the deferred tax asset. (Group)

Materiality
•  Overall Group materiality: $18.06m (2020: $14.79m) based 
on 1% of the combined operating ratio. This represents the 
total by which net operating expenses and/or net claims 
incurred would have to fluctuate to move the combined 
operating ratio (‘COR’) by 1%.

•  Overall Company materiality: $11.15m (2020: $14.79m) 

based on 1% of total assets (net of intercompany assets 
and liabilities), capped at the Group materiality level.

•  Performance materiality: $13.55m (2020: $11.09m) 
(Group) and $8.36m (2020: $11.09m) (Company).

The scope of our audit
As part of designing our audit, we determined materiality and 
assessed the risks of material misstatement in the financial 
statements. 

Key audit matters
Key audit matters are those matters that, in the auditors’ 
professional judgement, were of most significance in the audit 
of the financial statements of the current period and include 

Financial Statementsthe most significant assessed risks of material misstatement 
(whether or not due to fraud) identified by the auditors, including 
those which had the greatest effect on: the overall audit 
strategy; the allocation of resources in the audit; and directing 
the efforts of the engagement team. These matters, and any 
comments we make on the results of our procedures thereon, 
were addressed in the context of our audit of the financial 
statements as a whole, and in forming our opinion thereon, and 
we do not provide a separate opinion on these matters.

This is not a complete list of all risks identified by our audit.

The valuation of the pension scheme transferred into the Group 
from the Riverstone Group during the year and the valuation of 
the deferred tax asset are new key audit matters this year. The 
impact of Covid-19, which was a key audit matter last year, is no 
longer included because the impact of the pandemic on the Group 
and its performance has reduced significantly in the year relative 
to the prior year. In addition, reference to non-standard earnings 
patterns is not included in the key audit matter relating to 
inappropriate revenue recognition as earning patterns remained 
consistent with the prior year. Otherwise, the key audit matters 
below are consistent with last year.

Key audit matter

Valuation of the gross claims incurred but not reported 
(IBNR) component of insurance contracts, and the associated 
reinsurers’ share; (Group)

See notes 2.5.1, 3.2, 4.1.3 and 22 of the Group financial 
statements for disclosures of related accounting policies, 
judgements and estimates.

The gross IBNR component of insurance contracts, and the 
associated reinsurers’ share, are material balances within 
the financial statements which are judgemental and complex 
to calculate. These are a best estimate of all claims incurred 
but not reported at a given date, regardless of whether 
these have been reported to the Group. There are varying 
methods which can be adopted in the estimation of gross IBNR 
and the associated reinsurers’ share, and these methods 
are underpinned by a series of assumptions selected by 
the Group. These can rely on a large degree of judgement 
and relatively small changes in these assumptions can lead 
to significant movements in gross IBNR and the associated 
reinsurers’ share. 

How our audit addressed the key audit matter 
With the assistance of actuarial specialists, we performed  
the following: 

•  Understood, assessed and tested the design and 

operational effectiveness of key controls over the Group’s 
estimation of gross IBNR and the associated reinsurers’ 
share. This included controls over the extraction of source 
data supporting management’s calculations from the 
underlying systems, and the review and approval of the 
gross IBNR and the associated reinsurers’ share;

•  Tested, on a sample basis, the underlying source data 

being claims incurred and claims payments to supporting 
documentation; 

•  Developed a point estimate of gross IBNR (and the 

associated reinsurers’ share) related to non-catastrophe 
claims. We compared our estimates to those booked by 
management, and in all those cases where significant 
differences were identified, we obtained explanations. We 
considered the results of this exercise in concluding on the 
reasonableness of management’s estimates; and

• 

In relation to catastrophe events, we understood the 
approach used to establish the gross IBNR and the 
associated reinsurers’ share and the consistency of its 
application across the Group. For a sample of business 
divisions we tested the process by which management 
identified exposed insurance contracts, and assessed key 
assumptions used by management in arriving at the gross 
IBNR and the associated reinsurers’ share. In concluding 
on the reasonableness of management’s estimates, we also 
considered PwC’s market view for major events.

Based on the work performed, the valuation of the gross IBNR 
and the associated reinsurers’ share was consistent with the 
evidence obtained. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

71

Financial Statements 
 
Independent Auditors’ Report to the members of Brit Limited

Key audit matter
Inappropriate revenue recognition (including fraud risk) 
(Group)

How our audit addressed the key audit matter 
We tested the pipeline premium estimates by undertaking the 
following work: 

See notes 2.5.1, 3.3, and 5 of the Group financial statements 
for disclosures of related accounting policies, judgements and 
estimates.

Auditing standards assume a rebuttable presumption that 
there is a significant risk of fraud in revenue recognition in  
all businesses. We have not rebutted the risk of fraud in 
revenue recognition and we have determined the key risk  
of fraud in this area to be the estimation of pipeline premium 
(as it involves judgement) and unusual journals to revenue. 

The Group recognises a material amount of pipeline premium 
estimates in its financial statements using an actuarial 
technique applied to historic premium data in order to derive 
premium development factors. These are compared to 
underwriter estimates to arrive at the final booked written 
premium.

Journal entries could be used to inappropriately  
recognise revenue.

Valuation of investments with valuations modelled using 
unobservable inputs; (Group)

See notes 2.5.5, 3.6, 4.2, and 24 of the Group financial 
statements for disclosures of related accounting policies, 
judgements and estimates.

The Group investment portfolio contains $269.9m of Level 3 
investments measured at fair value and whose fair value is 
determined using unobservable inputs. Fair values for these 
investments can only be calculated using estimates or risk 
adjusted value ranges and accordingly these investments 
require additional audit focus as they require a greater 
degree of judgement to value. 

•  Understood, assessed and tested the design and operating 
effectiveness of the governance and controls over the 
monitoring of pipeline premium estimates; 

•  Together with our actuarial specialists, we reprojected 

premiums by class of business and by underwriting year. 
Where there were significant differences to management’s 
booked premium estimates on 2020 and prior underwriting 
years, we understood and assessed the reasons for 
these differences. For premium estimates on the 2021 
underwriting year, we understood how management 
derived them and challenged them accordingly based on 
our understanding of the business; and 

•  Tested the current calendar year data used in the actuarial 
projections to source systems, and tested that historical 
data was consistent year-on-year.

Based on the above procedures the pipeline premium estimates 
were found to be consistent with the evidence obtained. We also 
tested unusual journals to revenue in the year. There were no 
unsupported journals identified in our testing. 

We coordinated with our internal valuation specialists based 
in Toronto who centrally tested the valuation of Level 3 
investments. We performed the following:

•  Assessed and tested management’s controls over the 

valuation of Level 3 investments, including management 
review of models and key inputs; and

•  For a sample of investments, we developed an estimate 
of valuation, using our own models and assumptions 
and market data. We then developed a range around the 
estimate based on the features of the investment, and 
compared this to management’s valuation.

Based on the above procedures, the valuation of the level 3 
investments were consistent with the evidence obtained.

Valuation of the pension scheme transferred into the Group 
from the Riverstone Group during the year; (Group)

With the assistance of actuarial pension experts we 
performed the following:

See notes 2.5.12, 3.7, and 23 of the Group financial 
statements for disclosures of related accounting policies, 
judgements and estimates.

During the year, the Group took on the responsibility for a 
defined benefit obligation, following the transfer of a pension 
scheme from the Riverstone Group. 

The fair value of the defined benefit liabilities are estimated 
using an actuarial valuation which employs a number of 
subjective assumptions such as inflation, discount rate and 
mortality. Changes in these assumptions can have a material 
impact on the associated liabilities. 

The fair value of the associated defined benefit pension assets 
is less subjective.

72 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

•  Examined contractual documentation evidencing the transfer 
of the scheme and the related pension obligation into the 
Group, and assessed whether accounting for the scheme was 
consistent with the substance of the transaction; 

•  Assessed the appropriateness of the significant actuarial 
assumptions used in determining the valuation of the 
defined benefit liabilities at the point of transfer; and 

• 

Independently confirmed and revalued the associated 
defined benefit assets at the point of transfer.  

Based on the work performed, the valuation of the recorded 
defined benefit obligation transferred in to the Group was 
consistent with the evidence obtained. 

We rolled forward the above work in our assessment of the 
valuation of the recorded defined benefit obligation as at the year 
end noting it to be consistent with the evidence obtained.

Financial StatementsKey audit matter
Valuation of the deferred tax asset (Group)

See notes 2.5.11, 3.9, and 21 of the Group financial 
statements for disclosures of related accounting policies, 
judgements and estimates.

At 31 December 2021, the Group has recognised a DTA of 
$47.9m, with an unrecognised DTA of $71.3m, in relation to 
historical losses incurred by the Group. A DTA is recognised 
to the extent that future profits are considered likely to be 
available to utilise the asset. The extent of future profits is 
subject to a number of significant assumptions relating to the 
future performance of the Group.

How our audit addressed the key audit matter 

We performed the following procedures, together with our tax 
specialists in order to assess the valuation of the DTA:

•  Assessed management’s calculation of the DTA to test 

whether it was calculated in accordance with current tax 
legislation and reflected enacted corporation tax rates;

•  Reviewed management’s assessment of historic forecasts 
to determine the robustness of management’s forecasting 
process, and therefore the reliability of forecasts used in 
the DTA recoverability assessment; 

•  Assessed the reasonableness of assumptions relating to 

future forecasts; and

•  Agreed inputs to management’s calculation to audited 

financial information and approved business forecasts as 
appropriate.

Based on these procedures, the valuation of the DTA was 
consistent with the evidence obtained.

How we tailored the audit scope
We tailored the scope of our audit to ensure that we performed 
enough work to be able to give an opinion on the financial 
statements as a whole, taking into account the structure of 
the Group and the Company, the accounting processes and 
controls, and the industry in which they operate.

Brit is a global specialty insurer and reinsurer, present in 
Lloyd’s of London and has operations in the United States 
of America, Singapore and Bermuda, and writes insurance 
business internationally. The Group is structured into eight 
segments (see Note 5 to the Group financial statements) and is 
a consolidation of over 28 separate legal entities. A full scope 
audit was performed for six significant components located 
in the United Kingdom and Bermuda. The six full scope audit 
components are: (i) Brit Syndicates Limited - Syndicate No. 
2987, (ii) Brit Syndicates Limited – Syndicate No. 2988, (iii) 
Brit Syndicates Limited – Syndicate No. 1618, (iv) Brit Limited, 
(v) Brit Insurance Holdings Limited, and (vi) Brit Reinsurance 
(Bermuda) Limited. For certain other components, we identified 
account balances which were considered to be significant in 
size or audit risk at the financial statement line item level in 
relation to the Group financial statements, and performed 
financial statement line item audit procedures over these 
specified balances. Analytical procedures over the remaining 
components that were not inconsequential were performed 

by the Group engagement team. In establishing the overall 
approach to the Group audit, we determined the type of work 
that needed to be performed at the reporting units by us, as 
the Group engagement team, or by the component audit teams, 
being PwC Canada and PwC Bermuda, who operated under 
our instruction. Where the work was performed by component 
audit teams, we determined the level of involvement we needed 
to have in the audit work at those reporting units to be able 
to conclude whether sufficient appropriate audit evidence 
had been obtained. The Group engagement team had regular 
interaction with the component teams during the audit process. 
The engagement leader and senior members of the Group 
engagement team reviewed in detail all reports with regards 
to the audit approach and findings submitted by the component 
auditors.

Materiality
The scope of our audit was influenced by our application 
of materiality. We set certain quantitative thresholds for 
materiality. These, together with qualitative considerations, 
helped us to determine the scope of our audit and the 
nature, timing and extent of our audit procedures on the 
individual financial statement line items and disclosures and in 
evaluating the effect of misstatements, both individually and in 
aggregate on the financial statements as a whole.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

73

Financial Statements 
 
Independent Auditors’ Report to the members of Brit Limited

Based on our professional judgement, we determined 
materiality for the financial statements as a whole as follows:

Financial statements 
– Group
$18.06m (2020: 
$14.79m).

Financial statements  
– Company
$11.15m (2020: 
$14.79m).

Conclusions relating to going concern
Our evaluation of the directors’ assessment of the Group’s 
and the Company’s ability to continue to adopt the going 
concern basis of accounting included:

• 

Inquiries of Directors and relevant members  
of management in relation to going concern;

1% of total assets 
(net of intercompany 
assets and liabilities), 
capped at the Group 
materiality level.

•  Assessing the Group and Company’s financial, capital & 

solvency and liquidity positions as of 31 December 2021, 
including considering the impact of Covid-19 on the Group 
and Company; and

•  Tracing capital contributions into the Group to supporting 

documentation.

Overall 
materiality

How we 
determined 
it

Rationale 
for 
benchmark 
applied

1% of the combined 
operating ratio (’COR’). 
This represents the 
total by which net 
operating expenses 
and/or net claims 
incurred would 
have to fluctuate to 
move the combined 
operating ratio by 1%.

A primary 
performance 
measure for the 
Group is the COR 
and therefore this is 
an appropriate and 
generally accepted 
auditing benchmark 
for insurance 
Group’s.

Due to the nature 
of operations of the 
parent Company,  
i.e. a holding company, 
total assets is an 
appropriate and 
generally accepted 
auditing benchmark.

For each component in the scope of our Group audit, we 
allocated a materiality that is less than our overall Group 
materiality. The range of materiality allocated across 
components was between $0.21m and $18.06m. Certain 
components were audited to a local statutory audit materiality 
that was also less than our overall Group materiality.

We use performance materiality to reduce to an appropriately 
low level the probability that the aggregate of uncorrected 
and undetected misstatements exceeds overall materiality. 
Specifically, we use performance materiality in determining 
the scope of our audit and the nature and extent of our 
testing of account balances, classes of transactions and 
disclosures, for example in determining sample sizes. Our 
performance materiality was 75% (2020: 75%) of overall 
materiality, amounting to $13.55m (2020: $11.09m) for the 
Group financial statements and $8.36m (2020: $11.09m) for 
the Company financial statements.

In determining the performance materiality, we considered 
a number of factors - the history of misstatements, risk 
assessment and aggregation risk and the effectiveness of 
controls - and concluded that an amount in the middle of our 
normal range was appropriate.

We agreed with the Audit Committee that we would report to 
them misstatements identified during our audit above $0.9m 
(Group audit) (2020: $0.74m) and $0.56m (Company audit) 
(2020: $0.74m) as well as misstatements below those amounts 
that, in our view, warranted reporting for qualitative reasons.

74 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified 
any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions 
that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on 
the Group’s and the Company’s ability to continue as a going 
concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the 
financial statements are authorised for issue.

In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that 
the directors’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in 
the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.

However, because not all future events or conditions can be 
predicted, this conclusion is not a guarantee as to the Group’s 
and the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the directors 
with respect to going concern are described in the relevant 
sections of this report.

Reporting on other information
The other information comprises all of the information in the 
Annual Report other than the financial statements and our 
auditors’ report thereon. The directors are responsible for 
the other information. Our opinion on the financial statements 
does not cover the other information and, accordingly,  
we do not express an audit opinion or, except to the extent 
otherwise explicitly stated in this report, any form of 
assurance thereon.

In connection with our audit of the financial statements, 
our responsibility is to read the other information and, 
in doing so, consider whether the other information is 
materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our 
knowledge obtained in the audit, or otherwise appears to 
be materially misstated. If we identify an apparent material 
inconsistency or material misstatement, we are required to 
perform procedures to conclude whether there is a material 
misstatement of the financial statements or a material 
misstatement of the other information. If, based on the work 
we have performed, we conclude that there is a material 
misstatement of this other information, we are required to 
report that fact. We have nothing to report based on these 
responsibilities.

Financial StatementsWith respect to the Strategic Report and Directors’ Report, 
we also considered whether the disclosures required by the 
UK Companies Act 2006 have been included.

Based on our work undertaken in the course of the audit, 
the Companies Act 2006 requires us also to report certain 
opinions and matters as described below.

Strategic Report and Directors’ Report
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course 
of the audit, the information given in the Strategic Report 
and Directors’ Report for the year ended 31 December 2021 
is consistent with the financial statements and has been 
prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.

In light of the knowledge and understanding of the Group and 
Company and their environment obtained in the course of the 
audit, we did not identify any material misstatements in the 
Strategic Report and Directors’ Report.

Responsibilities for the financial statements 
and the audit
Responsibilities of the directors for the financial 
statements
As explained more fully in the Statement of Directors’ 
responsibilities, the directors are responsible for the 
preparation of the financial statements in accordance with 
the applicable framework and for being satisfied that they 
give a true and fair view. The directors are also responsible 
for such internal control as they determine is necessary to 
enable the preparation of financial statements that are free 
from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-
compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures 
in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect 
material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including 
fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of 
detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.

Based on our understanding of the Group and industry,  
we identified that the principal risks of non-compliance with 
laws and regulations related to breaches of UK regulatory 
principles, such as those governed by the Prudential 
Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority, 
those regulations set by the Council of Lloyd’s and UK tax 
legislation, and we considered the extent to which non-
compliance might have a material effect on the financial 
statements. We also considered those laws and regulations 
that have a direct impact on the financial statements such 
as the Companies Act 2006. We evaluated management’s 
incentives and opportunities for fraudulent manipulation 
of the financial statements (including the risk of override 
of controls), and determined that the principal risks were 
related to posting of inappropriate journals and management 
bias in accounting estimates. The Group engagement team 
shared this risk assessment with the component auditors 
so that they could include appropriate audit procedures 
in response to such risks in their work. Audit procedures 
performed by the Group engagement team and/or component 
auditors included:

•  Discussions with the Board, management, internal audit 
and the compliance function, including consideration of 
known or suspected instances of non-compliance with laws 
and regulation and fraud;

In preparing the financial statements, the directors are 
responsible for assessing the Group’s and the Company’s 
ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as 
applicable, matters related to going concern and using the 
going concern basis of accounting unless the directors either 
intend to liquidate the Group or the Company or to cease 
operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

•  Assessment of matters reported on the whistleblowing 

helpline and management’s investigation of such matters;

•  Reviewing relevant meeting minutes including those of the 
Board, the Audit Committee, the Reserving Committee and 
correspondence with regulatory authorities, including the 
Council of Lloyd’s, the Financial Conduct Authority and the 
Prudential Regulatory Authority;

Auditors’ responsibilities for the audit of the financial 
statements
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about 
whether the financial statements as a whole are free from 
material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, 
and to issue an auditors’ report that includes our opinion. 
Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is 
not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with 
ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when 
it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and 
are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, 
they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic 
decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial 
statements.

•  Testing and challenging, where appropriate, the 

assumptions and judgements made by management in  
their significant accounting estimates, for example, in 
relation to the valuation of the gross claims incurred but 
not reported component of insurance contracts and the 
associated reinsurers’ share, and the valuation of the 
deferred tax asset;

• 

Identifying and testing journal entries identified as potential 
indicators of fraud, in particular, consolidation journals, 
those with unexpected account combinations, those posted 
by senior management or unexpected users, those with 
unusual words, post close entries or unusually backdated 
journals; and

•  Designing audit procedures to incorporate unpredictability 

around the nature, timing or extent of our testing.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

75

Financial Statements 
 
Independent Auditors’ Report to the members of Brit Limited

There are inherent limitations in the audit procedures 
described above. We are less likely to become aware of 
instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations that 
are not closely related to events and transactions reflected 
in the financial statements. Also, the risk of not detecting a 
material misstatement due to fraud is higher than the risk of 
not detecting one resulting from error, as fraud may involve 
deliberate concealment by, for example, forgery or intentional 
misrepresentations, or through collusion.

Our audit testing might include testing complete populations 
of certain transactions and balances, possibly using data 
auditing techniques. However, it typically involves selecting 
a limited number of items for testing, rather than testing 
complete populations. We will often seek to target particular 
items for testing based on their size or risk characteristics. 
In other cases, we will use audit sampling to enable us to draw 
a conclusion about the population from which the sample is 
selected.

A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of 
the financial statements is located on the FRC’s website at: 
www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description 
forms part of our auditors’ report.

Use of this report
This report, including the opinions, has been prepared for and 
only for the Company’s members as a body in accordance with 
Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 and for no 
other purpose. We do not, in giving these opinions, accept or 
assume responsibility for any other purpose or to any other 
person to whom this report is shown or into whose hands it 
may come save where expressly agreed by our prior consent 
in writing.

Other required reporting
Companies Act 2006 exception reporting
Under the Companies Act 2006 we are required to report to 
you if, in our opinion:

•  we have not obtained all the information and explanations 

we require for our audit; or

•  adequate accounting records have not been kept by the 

Company, or returns adequate for our audit have not been 
received from branches not visited by us; or

•  certain disclosures of directors’ remuneration specified by 

law are not made; or

•  the Company financial statements are not in agreement 

with the accounting records and returns.

We have no exceptions to report arising from this 
responsibility.

Appointment
Following the recommendation of the Audit Committee, we 
were appointed by the members on 14 June 2016 to audit 
the financial statements for the year ended 31 December 
2016 and subsequent financial periods. The period of total 
uninterrupted engagement is 6 years, covering the years 
ended 31 December 2016 to 31 December 2021.

Other matter
In due course, as required by the Financial Conduct Authority 
Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rule 4.1.14R, these 
financial statements will form part of the ESEF-prepared 
annual financial report filed on the National Storage 
Mechanism of the Financial Conduct Authority in accordance 
with the ESEF Regulatory Technical Standard (‘ESEF RTS’). 
This auditors’ report provides no assurance over whether 
the annual financial report will be prepared using the single 
electronic format specified in the ESEF RTS.

Paul Pannell  
Senior Statutory Auditor
for and on behalf of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP 
Chartered Accountants and Statutory Auditors 
London

22 February 2022

76 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Financial StatementsBrit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

77

Financial Statements 
 
Financial Statements

Introduction to the Primary Statements

Consolidated Income Statement
The income statement shows income earned and expenses 
incurred by all the companies of Brit. Other items are shown 
in the statement of comprehensive income. The numbers 
in brackets are costs or losses incurred.

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income
As well as the profit or loss reported in the income 
statement, there are a number of other items not reported 
in the income statement which are instead shown here. 
These are gains and losses in the Group’s pension scheme, 
any tax associated with these gains or losses and foreign 
exchange gains and losses on the translation of foreign 
operations into US dollars. The statement starts from profit 
or loss reported in the income statement and adjusts for any 
gains and losses arising as a result of the pension scheme 
and foreign operations to show the overall result.

Consolidated Statement of Financial Position
The statement of financial position is a summary of assets 
and how the assets have been funded through liabilities and 
equity investment by shareholders.

Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows
The cash flow statement shows how we generate cash 
through our operating activities, how we have spent cash 
(investing activities) and how we have borrowed or spent 
cash to fund our business for all the companies in the Group.

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity
The statement of changes in equity shows how the various 
lines in the equity section of the Group’s statement 
of financial position have moved during the year.

78 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

contentsFinancial Statements

Index to the Consolidated Financial Statements

Consolidated Income Statement 

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income 

Consolidated Statement of Financial Position 

Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows 

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity 

Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements: 

Note 1 

Note 2 

Note 3 

Note 4 
Note 5 

Note 6 

Note 7 

Note 8 

Note 9 

General information 

Accounting policies and basis of preparation 

Critical accounting estimates and judgements 
in applying accounting policies 

Risk management policies 
Segmental information 

Investment return 

Return on derivative contracts 

Deconsolidation of subsidiaries 

Other income 

Note 10 

Net foreign exchange (losses)/gains 

80

81

82

83

84

86

86

86

98

102
123

127

127

128

128

128

Note 19 

Property, plant and equipment 

Note 20 

Deferred acquisition costs 

Note 21 

Deferred taxation 

Note 22 

Insurance and reinsurance contracts 

Note 23 

Employee benefits 

Note 24 

Financial investments 

Note 25 

Derivative contracts 

Note 26 

Insurance and other receivables 

Note 27 

Leases where the Group acts as a lessor 

Note 28 

Cash and cash equivalents 

Note 29 

Assets and liabilities of disposal groups 
classified as held for sale 

Note 30 

Borrowings 

Note 31 

Other financial liabilities 

Note 32 

Insurance and other payables 

Note 33 

Called up share capital 

Note 34 

Dividends 

Note 11 

Acquisition costs and other operating expenses  129

Note 35 

Cash flows provided by operating activities 

Note 12 

Staff costs 

Note 13 

Finance costs 

Note 14 

Auditors’ remuneration 

Note 15 

Investments in associated undertakings 

Note 16 

Non-controlling interests 

Note 17 

Tax expense 

Note 18 

Intangible assets 

130

130

131

131

132

133

134

Note 36 

Share-based payments 

Note 37 

Consolidated entities 

Note 38 

Related party transactions and Ultimate 
Parent Company 

Note 39 

Guarantees and contingent liabilities 

Note 40 

Events occurring after the reporting date 

137

138

138

140

145

150

153

155

156

156

157

158

159

159

160

161

161

162

164

166

170

170

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

79

contents 
 
Financial Statements

consolidated income statement

For the year ended 31 December 2021

Revenue
Gross premiums written
Less premiums ceded to reinsurers

Premiums written, net of reinsurance
Gross amount of change in provision for unearned premiums
Reinsurers' share of change in provision for unearned premiums

Net change in provision for unearned premiums

Earned premiums, net of reinsurance
Investment return
Return on derivative contracts
Gain on deconsolidation of subsidiaries
Gain on business combination
Other income
Gains / (losses) on other financial liabilities

Total revenue

Expenses
Claims incurred:
Claims paid:
Gross amount
Reinsurers' share

Claims paid, net of reinsurance

Change in the provision for claims:
Gross amount
Reinsurers' share

Net change in the provision for claims

Claims incurred, net of reinsurance
Acquisition costs
Other operating expenses
Net foreign exchange losses

Total expenses excluding finance costs

Operating profit/(loss)
Finance costs
Share of net profit of associates

Profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before tax
Tax credit / (charge)

Profit/(loss) for the year

Profit/(loss) attributable to:

Owners of the parent

Non-controlling interests

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

3,238.3
(1,240.0)

1,998.3
(370.4)
126.4

(244.0)

1,754.3
167.2
(15.7)
19.8
6.1
78.3
2.5

2,012.5

(1,321.5)
437.6

(883.9)

(402.7)
405.0

2.3

(881.6)
(708.3)
(177.6)
(1.1)

(1,768.6)

243.9
(18.3)
1.7

227.3
9.6

236.9

248.5

(11.6)

2,424.4
(648.8)

1,775.6
(52.2)
(12.7)

(64.9)

1,710.7
56.5
(1.1)
–
–
14.1
(6.0)

1,774.2

(1,326.8)
391.4

(935.4)

(417.6)
113.9

(303.7)

(1,239.1)
(598.7)
(137.5)
(7.8)

(1,983.1)

(208.9)
(23.6)
2.0

(230.5)
(1.5)

(232.0)

(229.3)

(2.7)

Note

5
5

6
7
8
38
9
9

5
11
11
10

13
15, 38(c)

17(a)

16

All profits/(losses) arise from continuing operations.

The accompanying Notes on pages 86 to 170 are an integral part of the consolidated financial statements.

80 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

consolidated statement of comprehensive income

For the year ended 31 December 2021

Financial Statements

Profit/(loss) for the year
Other comprehensive income

Items not to be reclassified to profit or loss in subsequent periods:
Remeasurements of post-employment benefit obligations
Deferred tax (loss) / gain relating to remeasurements of post-employment benefit 

obligations

Items that may be reclassified to profit or loss in subsequent periods:
Change in unrealised foreign currency translation (losses) / gains on foreign operations

Total other comprehensive income

Note

23

17(b)

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

236.9

(232.0)

18.7

(6.5)

(1.1)

11.1

(5.5)

1.8

2.3

(1.4)

Total comprehensive income recognised for the year

248.0

(233.4)

Total comprehensive income for the year attributable to:
Owners of the parent
Non-controlling interests

Total comprehensive income for the year

16

259.6
(11.6)

248.0

(230.7)
(2.7)

(233.4)

The accompanying Notes are an integral part of the consolidated financial statements.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

81

 
 
Financial Statements

consolidated statement of financial position

At 31 December 2021

Assets
Intangible assets
Property, plant and equipment
Deferred acquisition costs
Investments in associated undertakings
Reinsurance contracts
Employee benefits
Deferred taxation
Current taxation
Financial investments
Derivative contracts
Insurance and other receivables
Cash and cash equivalents
Assets classified as held for sale

Total assets

Liabilities and Equity
Liabilities
Insurance contracts
Borrowings
Other financial liabilities
Provisions
Deferred taxation
Current taxation
Derivative contracts
Insurance and other payables
Liabilities directly associated with assets classified as held for sale

Total liabilities

Equity
Called up share capital
Share premium
Capital redemption reserve
Capital contribution reserve
Foreign currency translation reserve
Retained earnings

Total equity attributable to owners of the parent
Non-controlling interests

Total liabilities and equity

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

Note

18
19
20
15
22
23
21

24
25
26
28
29

22
30
31

21

25
32
29

33
33

16

205.3
57.6
321.8
15.0
2,291.2
113.8
47.9
10.6
4,015.0
15.1
1,615.3
1,510.3
–

10,218.9

6,532.9
227.9
95.8
2.4
12.9
3.8
12.5
1,184.1
–

8,072.3

10.0
1,432.6
1.0
28.5
(85.2)
525.5

1,912.4
234.2

10,218.9

181.2
60.5
247.3
20.5
1,764.1
48.8
49.8
8.5
4,056.6
14.9
1,302.0
775.7
17.8

8,547.7

5,813.0
314.5
62.0
2.3
9.9
–
9.2
620.7
1.8

6,833.4

8.6
1,027.9
1.0
–
(84.1)
639.2

1,592.6
121.7

8,547.7

The accompanying Notes on pages 86 to 170 are an integral part of the consolidated financial statements.

These consolidated financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 22 February 2022 and were signed 
on its behalf by:

Martin Thompson 
Interim Group Chief Executive Officer 

 Gavin Wilkinson
Group Chief Financial Officer

82 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

 
consolidated statement of cash flows

For the year ended 31 December 2021

Cash flows from operating activities
Cash used in operations
Tax received
Interest received
Dividends received
Purchase of shares for share-based payment schemes

Net cash outflows from operating activities

Cash flows from investing activities
Purchase of intangible assets
Purchase of property, plant and equipment
Disposal of subsidiary undertakings, net of cash disposed
Acquisition of subsidiary undertaking, net of cash disposed
Dividends from associated undertakings

Net cash outflows from investing activities

Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from issue of shares
Drawdown/(repayment) on revolving credit facility
Interest paid
Transactions with non-controlling interests
Dividends paid to ultimate parent company

Net cash inflows from financing activities

Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year
Effect of exchange rate fluctuations on cash and cash equivalents

Note

35

18
19
8
38

33

16
34

Financial Statements

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

622.5
(8.1)
57.9
10.1
(16.9)

665.5

(12.8)
(1.7)
31.8
(6.4)
0.7

11.6

406.1
(85.0)
(9.7)
124.0
(375.0)

60.4

737.5
775.7
(2.9)

(414.3)
2.7
63.3
6.3
(3.0)

(345.0)

(6.5)
(1.2)
–
–
1.0

(6.7)

524.0
(10.0)
(14.0)
124.0
(20.6)

603.4

251.7
520.1
3.9

775.7

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year

28

1,510.3

The accompanying Notes on pages 86 to 170 are an integral part of the consolidated financial statements.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

83

 
 
Financial Statements

consolidated statement of changes in equity

For the year ended 31 December 2021

Called up
share
capital
$m

Share
premium
$m

Capital
redemption
reserve
$m

Capital
contribution
reserve
$m

Note

At 1 January 2021

Total comprehensive 
income recognised

Reallocation of forfeited 
rollover shares to LTIP 
schemes

Issuance of share 

capital
Dividend
Contribution from 

parent in relation to 
the acquisition of the 
Riverstone pension 
plan

Transactions with non-
controlling interests

At 31 December 2021

36

33
34

23

16

8.6

1,027.9

1.0

–

–

–

–

1.4
–

404.7
–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–
–

–

–

–

–

–

–
–

28.5

–

–

–
–

–

–

Foreign
currency
translation
reserve
$m

Total
attributable
to owners
of the parent
$m

Retained
earnings
$m

Non-
controlling
interests
$m

Total
equity
$m

(84.1)

639.2

1,592.6

121.7

1,714.3

(1.1)

260.7

259.6

(11.6)

248.0

0.6

0.6

–
(375.0)

406.1
(375.0)

–

–
–

–

0.6

406.1
(375.0)

28.5

28.5

–

–

–

124.1

124.1

10.0

1,432.6

1.0

28.5

(85.2)

525.5

1,912.4

234.2

2,146.6

The accompanying Notes on pages 86 to 170 are an integral part of the consolidated financial statements.

84 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

consolidated statement of changes in equity

For the year ended 31 December 2020

Financial Statements

At 1 January 2020

Total comprehensive 
income recognised

Issuance of share 

capital
Dividend
Transactions with non-
controlling interests

At 31 December 2020

Note

33
34

16

Called up
share
capital
$m

7.0

–

1.6
–

–

8.6

Share
premium
$m

505.5

–

522.4
–

–

Capital
redemption
reserve
$m

Foreign
currency
translation
reserve
$m

1.0

(86.4)

Total
attributable
to owners
of the parent
$m

1,319.9

Retained
earnings
$m

892.8

Non-controlling
interests
$m

Total
equity
$m

–

1,319.9

2.3

(233.0)

(230.7)

(2.7)

(233.4)

–
(20.6)

524.0
(20.6)

–
–

524.0
(20.6)

–

–
–

–

–
–

–

1,027.9

1.0

(84.1)

639.2

1,592.6

–

–

124.4

121.7

124.4

1,714.3

Nature and Purpose of Group Reserves
Share premium: The balance represents the difference between the price at which shares are issued and their nominal value, less 
any distributions made from this account.

Capital redemption reserve: The balance represents the amount by which share capital is diminished in the event of a share 
cancellation and is required to be recognised in a legal reserve to maintain the Group’s capital.

Capital contribution reserve: The balance represents the amount by which the Group has benefited from asset transfers 
or contributions from the owners of the parent company, for which no shares have been issued in exchange.

Foreign currency translation reserve: The balance on this reserve represents the foreign exchange differences arising from 
the translation of financial statement information of entities within the Group from functional currencies to the presentational 
currency of the Group.

Retained earnings: Retained earnings represents the cumulative comprehensive income retained by the Group after taxation and 
after any distributions made from this account.

The accompanying Notes on pages 86 to 170 are an integral part of the consolidated financial statements.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

85

 
 
Financial Statements

The first three Notes provide details of the basis of preparation and accounting policies applied in producing these financial 
statements and the critical accounting estimates and judgements therein.

1 

 General information

The consolidated financial statements of Brit Limited and its subsidiaries (collectively, the Group) for the year ended 
31 December 2021 were authorised for issue in accordance with a resolution of the Directors on 22 February 2022. The Group’s 
principal activity is the underwriting of general insurance and reinsurance business.

Brit Limited (the Company) is a private company limited by shares, incorporated and domiciled in England and Wales. The address 
of the registered office is The Leadenhall Building, 122 Leadenhall Street, London, EC3V 4AB.

2 

 Accounting policies and basis of preparation

 Basis of preparation

2.1 
The consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2021 have been prepared in accordance with UK-adopted 
international accounting standards. The accounting policies of the Group have been applied consistently to all the years presented, 
unless otherwise stated.

The consolidated financial statements have been compiled on a going concern basis and prepared on a historical cost basis, except 
for financial investments, derivative contracts and certain other financial liabilities which have been measured at fair value. The 
consolidated financial statements are presented in US dollars and all values are rounded to the nearest $0.1m except where 
otherwise indicated.

Certain amounts recorded in the financial information include estimates and assumptions made by management, particularly about 
insurance liability reserves, investment valuations, interest rates and other factors. Actual results may differ from the estimates 
made. Further details on estimates, judgements and assumptions are included within Note 3 to the consolidated financial statements.

The Directors have considered the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the principal risks and uncertainties faced by the Group 
as summarised in Note 4.7.

The Directors have considered various factors in order to be satisfied that a going concern basis of preparation is appropriate. 
Such factors include, but are not limited to, the reserving policy and track record of the Group, including recent underwriting 
performance, improving market conditions, and the financial plans of the Group. Additionally, the capital position of the Group has 
been bolstered by capital injections of $31.1m from the ultimate parent company, Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited and $375.0m 
from OMERS Administration Corporation, the defined benefit pension plan for municipal sector employees in the Province of Ontario, 
Canada. More detail on these considerations can be found on page 6 of the Strategic Report.

After assessing evidence in respect of these considerations, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Group has 
adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Therefore, they consider it appropriate 
to continue to adopt the going concern basis for the preparation of its consolidated financial statements.

The consolidated financial statements include the results of the Company and all its subsidiary undertakings (collectively, the Group) 
made up to the same accounting date.

(a)  New and amended standards adopted by the Group
The Group has applied the following standards and amendments for the first time for the annual reporting period commencing 
1 January 2021:

•  COVID-19-Related Rent Concessions beyond 30 June 2021 (Amendments to IFRS 16)

• 

Interest Rate Benchmark Reform – IBOR ‘Phase 2’ (Amendments to IFRS 9, IAS 39, IFRS 7, IFRS 4 and IFRS 16)

The amendments listed above did not have any impact on the amounts recognised in prior periods and are not expected 
to significantly affect the current or future periods.

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notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

(b)  New standards and interpretations not yet adopted
At the date of authorisation of these financial statements, the following amendments to standards were in issue but not yet effective:

Amendment

Effective

Onerous Contracts – Cost of Fulfilling a Contract 
(Amendments to IAS 37)
Property, Plant and Equipment: Proceeds before Intended Use 
(Amendments to IAS 16)
Annual Improvements to IFRS Standards 2018-2020 
(Amendments to IFRS 1, IFRS 9, IFRS 16 and IAS 41)
References to Conceptual Framework (Amendments to IFRS 3)
Disclosure of Accounting Policies (Amendments to IAS 1 and 
IFRS Practice Statement 2)
Definition of Accounting Estimates (Amendments to IAS 8)
Deferred Tax Related to Assets and Liabilities arising from 
a Single Transaction (Amendments to IAS 12)

Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2022

Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2022

Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2022

Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2022
Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2023

Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2023
Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2023

These amendments, which have not been early adopted, are not expected to have a material impact on the Group in future 
reporting periods.

At the date of authorisation of these financial statements, the following standards which have not been applied in these financial 
statements were in issue but not yet effective:

Standard

IFRS 9 Financial Instruments (2014)
IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts (2017)

Effective

Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2018
Periods commencing on or after 1 January 2023

IFRS 9 ‘Financial Instruments’
In July 2014, the IASB issued the final version of IFRS 9 that replaces IAS 39 ‘Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement’ 
and all previous versions of IFRS 9. IFRS 9 (2014) addresses all three aspects of the IASB’s accounting for financial instruments 
project, including classification and measurement, impairment and hedge accounting. IFRS 9 is effective for annual periods beginning 
on or after 1 January 2018, with early application permitted. Currently, the Group’s investment and derivatives portfolios are 
recorded at fair value through profit or loss under IAS 39. Brit expects to continue to record these items at fair value through profit 
or loss under IFRS 9.

In September 2016 the IASB issued amendments to IFRS 4 that provided two approaches for insurers applying the requirements 
of IFRS 9, including an optional temporary exemption from applying IFRS 9 until 2021 for those companies whose activities are 
predominantly connected with insurance. In line with the deferral of the effective date of IFRS 17 to 1 January 2023 the IASB has 
agreed to extend the IFRS 9 exemption for insurers to the same date. Brit has taken advantage of this temporary exemption 
on the basis that, at the time of its initial assessment, the percentage of the total carrying amount of its liabilities connected with 
insurance relative to the total carrying amount of all its liabilities was greater than 80% and it does not engage in significant activity 
unconnected with insurance. The Group will apply IFRS 9 for the period beginning 1 January 2023.

IFRS 17 ‘Insurance Contracts’
In May 2017, the IASB issued IFRS 17, a comprehensive standard for the recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure 
of insurance contracts, which will have the effect of introducing fundamental changes to the statutory reporting of insurance 
entities. IFRS 17 requires entities to measure insurance contracts using current estimates of discounted fulfilment cash flows, 
including the discounting of loss reserves using one of three measurement models.

IFRS 17 replaces the existing insurance contracts accounting standard, IFRS 4, and is effective for annual periods beginning 
on or after 1 January 2023, with early application permitted. The standard must be applied retrospectively with restatement 
of comparatives unless impracticable. This standard is yet to be endorsed by UK.

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Financial Statements

2 

 Accounting policies and basis of preparation (continued)

Brit has initiated an implementation project which is currently assessing the impact of adopting IFRS 17 on its financial statements 
and which will determine both the operational and reporting effects upon the business. The project includes a focus on implementing 
information technology systems to conduct a parallel run in 2022 and on evaluating the impact that IFRS 17 will have on the 
consolidated financial statements, and will ensure that Brit Limited can meet all of its reporting requirements in 2023.

 Basis of consolidation

2.2 
The consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of the Company, its subsidiaries and associates and the 
Group’s participation in Lloyd’s syndicates’ assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. Subsidiaries are those entities (including 
structured entities) that an investor controls, when it is exposed, or has rights, to variable returns from its involvement with the 
investee and has the ability to affect those returns through its power over the investee.

Non-controlling interests in the results are shown separately in the consolidated income statement, statement of comprehensive 
income, consolidated statement of changes in equity and statement of financial position respectively.

The financial statements of the subsidiaries are prepared up to 31 December each year. Consolidation adjustments are made 
to convert subsidiary financial statements from local GAAP into IFRS to remove any dissimilar accounting policies that may exist. 
Subsidiaries are consolidated from the date control is transferred to the Group and cease to be consolidated from the date 
control is transferred from the Group. All inter-company balances, profits and transactions are eliminated. The acquisition method 
of accounting is used to account for business combinations by the Group.

Included within the financial statements of the Group are structured entities where under the requirements of IFRS 10 Consolidated 
Financial Statements it has been determined that control exists. The third-party investment in these entities is recognised 
as a financial liability in accordance with IAS 32.

Underwriting members at Lloyd’s have several but not joint liability for the transactions of the syndicates in which they participate. 
Therefore, for each managed syndicate on which the Group participates, only the relevant proportion of the transactions, assets and 
liabilities of those syndicates are reflected in the consolidated financial statements. Syndicate assets are held subject to trust deeds 
for the benefit of the syndicate’s insurance creditors. As at 31 December 2021:

•  Brit UW Limited, a subsidiary of the Group, provided 100% of the capital for Syndicate 2987 and therefore all transactions, assets 

and liabilities of Syndicate 2987 have been included in the Group’s financial statements.

•  Subsidiaries of the Group participated as members of Syndicate 2988, providing 60.70% and 57.67% of the capital for the 

2020 and 2021 years of account respectively. Consequently, the proportionate shares of the transactions, assets and liabilities 
of Syndicate 2988 have been included in the Group’s financial statements.

•  Riverstone Corporate Capital 4 Limited, a subsidiary of the Group, provided 100% of the capital for Syndicate 1618 and therefore 

all transactions, assets and liabilities of Syndicate 1618 have been included in the Group’s financial statements.

If control of a subsidiary (including a structured entity) is lost during the reporting period, the assets and liabilities of that entity will 
be derecognised from the consolidated statement of financial position. The revenues and expenses of the entity will no longer be 
consolidated following the date that control is lost. The difference between the fair value of the consideration received, if any, from 
the transaction resulting in a loss of control and the fair value of the subsidiary’s net assets will be recognised as a gain or loss in the 
income statement.

Associates are those entities over which the Group has the power to exercise significant influence but not control. The 
Group’s investments in associated undertakings are accounted for under the equity method of accounting whereby associated 
undertakings are carried in the statement of financial position at cost plus post-acquisition changes in the Group’s share of net 
assets of the associate, less any impairment in value. The income statement reflects the Group‘s share of the post-acquisition 
results of operations of the associated undertaking and the statement of comprehensive income reflects the Group’s share of the 
comprehensive income of the associated undertaking. The financial statements of associated undertakings are prepared up 
to 31 December each year.

88 

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notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

 Product classification

2.3 
Insurance contracts are those contracts that transfer significant insurance risk. The significance of insurance risk is dependent 
on both the probability of an insured event and the magnitude of its potential effect to the policyholder. Once a contract has been 
classified as an insurance contract, it remains an insurance contract for the remainder of its lifetime, even if the insurance risk 
reduces significantly during this period. 

 Business combinations

2.4 
The acquisition method of accounting is used for business combinations. The cost of an acquisition is measured as the aggregate 
of the consideration transferred, measured at acquisition date fair value and the amount of any non-controlling interest (NCI) in the 
acquiree, where relevant. Acquisition-related costs are expensed as incurred. Where goodwill or a bargain purchase arises, this 
is accounted for in accordance with the policy set out in Note 2.5.7(a).

When the Group acquires a business, it assesses the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed, measured initially 
at their fair values at the acquisition date, for appropriate classification and designation in accordance with the contractual terms, 
economic circumstances and pertinent conditions at the acquisition date. This includes the separation of embedded derivatives 
in host contracts by the acquiree. No reclassification of insurance contracts is required as part of the accounting for the business 
combination. Thus, insurance contracts are classified on the basis of the contractual terms and other factors at the inception of the 
contract or modification date.

The Group recognises any non-controlling interest in the acquired entity on an acquisition-by-acquisition basis either at fair value 
or at the non-controlling interest’s proportionate share of the acquired entity’s net identifiable assets.

If the business combination is achieved in stages, any previously held equity interest is remeasured at its acquisition date fair value 
and any resulting gain or loss is recognised in profit or loss.

Any contingent consideration will be recognised at fair value at the acquisition date and, where relevant, remeasured at subsequent 
reporting dates. Contingent consideration that is classified as equity is not remeasured and its subsequent settlement is accounted 
for within equity. Contingent consideration that is classified as an asset or liability within or outside the scope of IAS 39 is measured 
at fair value through profit or loss (FVTPL).

 Other accounting policies
 Insurance contracts

2.5 
2.5.1 
(a)  Premiums
Premiums written relate to business incepted during the year, together with any differences between booked premiums for prior 
years and those previously accrued, and include estimates of premiums due but not yet receivable or notified, less an allowance 
for cancellations. Premiums are accreted to the income statement on a pro rata basis over the term of the related policy, except 
for those contracts where the period of risk differs significantly over the contract period. In these circumstances, premiums are 
recognised over the period of risk in proportion to the amount of insurance protection provided. Reinstatement premiums are 
accreted to the income statement on a pro rata basis over the term of the original policy to which it relates. Premiums are shown 
net of premium taxes and other levies on premiums. Pipeline premium estimates are derived from ultimate premium estimates 
which are typically based on standard actuarial projection techniques (e.g. Basic Chain Ladder) on the key assumption that historical 
development of premiums is representative of future development.

(b)  Profit commissions
Profit commission income arising from whole account quota share contracts is recognised when the economic benefits are highly 
probable. They are netted off against commission costs which are included within the ‘acquisition costs’ line in the income statement.

(c)  Deferred acquisition costs
Commission and other acquisition costs incurred during the financial period that are related to securing new insurance contracts 
and/or renewing existing insurance contracts, but which relate to subsequent financial periods, are deferred to the extent that they 
are recoverable out of future revenue margins. Deferred acquisition costs are capitalised and amortised over the life of the policy 
to which they relate on a basis consistent with the earnings pattern of that policy.

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Financial Statements

2 

 Accounting policies and basis of preparation (continued)

(d)  Claims incurred
Claims incurred comprise claims and claims handling costs paid in the year and changes in the outstanding claims provisions, 
including provisions for claims incurred but not reported and related expenses, together with any adjustments to claims from prior 
years. Claims handling costs are mainly external costs related to the negotiation and settlement of claims.

(e)  Outstanding claims provisions
Outstanding claims represent the estimated ultimate cost of settling all claims (including direct and indirect claims settlement costs) 
arising from events which have occurred up to the date of the statement of financial position, including provision for claims incurred 
but not reported, less any amounts paid in respect of those claims. The Group does not discount its liabilities for unpaid claims, the 
ultimate cost of which cannot be known with certainty at the date of the statement of financial position.

(f)  Provision for unearned premiums
The proportion of written premiums that relate to unexpired terms of policies in force at the date of the statement of financial 
position is deferred as a provision for unearned premiums, generally calculated on a time apportioned basis. The movement in the 
provision is taken to the income statement in order that revenue is recognised over the period of the risk.

(g)  Liability adequacy tests
At the date of each statement of financial position, liability adequacy tests are performed, to ensure the adequacy of unearned 
premiums net of related deferred acquisition costs, employing the current estimates of future cash flows under its insurance 
contracts. If as a result of these tests, the carrying amount of the Group’s insurance liabilities is found to be inadequate 
in comparison to the value of these future cash flows, the deficiency is charged to the income statement for the period 
by establishing an unexpired risk provision. The tests are performed at a Group level and at reportable segment level at the 
statement of financial position date to ensure the estimated costs of future claims and related deferred acquisition costs do not 
exceed the unearned premium provision.

(h)  Reinsurance
The Group assumes and cedes reinsurance in the normal course of business. Premiums and claims on reinsurance assumed 
are recognised in the income statement along the same basis as direct business, taking into account the product classification. 
Reinsurance premiums ceded and reinsurance recoveries on claims incurred are included in the respective expense and income 
accounts. Reinsurance outwards premiums are earned according to the nature of the cover. Losses occurring during policies 
are earned evenly over the policy period. ‘Risks attaching’ policies are expensed on the same basis as the inwards business being 
protected. Reinstatement premiums on both inwards and outwards business are accreted to the income statement on a pro rata 
basis over the term of the original policy to which they relate.

Reinsurance assets include amounts recoverable from reinsurance companies for paid and unpaid losses and loss adjustment 
expenses, and ceded unearned premiums. Amounts recoverable from reinsurers are calculated with reference to the claims liability 
associated with the reinsured risks. Revenues and expenses arising from reinsurance agreements are therefore recognised 
in accordance with the underlying risk of the business reinsured.

Gains or losses on buying reinsurance are recognised immediately in the income statement.

If a reinsurance asset is impaired, the Group reduces its carrying amount accordingly and will immediately recognise the impairment 
loss in the income statement. A reinsurance asset will be deemed to be impaired if there is objective evidence, as a result of an event 
that occurred after initial recognition of the asset, that the Group may not receive all amounts due to it under the terms of the 
contract and that the event has a reliably measurable impact on the amounts that the Group will receive from the reinsurer.

Gains or losses on buying retroactive reinsurance are recognised immediately in the income statement and are not deferred and 
amortised. Premiums ceded and claims reimbursed are presented on a gross basis in the consolidated income statement and 
statement of financial position as appropriate.

90 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

 Revenue recognition

2.5.2 
Revenue is measured by the Group based on the consideration to which it expects to be entitled through contracts with customers 
(net of refunds). Amounts collected on behalf of third parties are excluded from revenue. When control of a service is transferred 
to a customer, the related revenue is then recognised.

(a)  Management fee income
The Group receives administration and broking fees from non-aligned syndicates, in accordance with management agreements 
that are agreed on an annual basis and specify the services to be provided. These services are in relation to ‘effectively managing 
and operating’ the syndicate and are therefore provided continuously throughout the year. As a result, these services are treated 
as a single performance obligation. The price is fixed with no variable element and is matched against the single performance 
obligation. Consequently, the passage of time is used to measure the amount of fees and commission to be recognised.

(b)  Underwriting agency fee income
The Group also receives commissions for the placement or underwriting of policies on behalf of other insurers. Such commissions, 
which are measured as a portion of the policy premium, are recognised at the later of the policy inception date or when the policy 
placement has been completed.

Brit also receives fees in respect of the costs and expenses of establishing and administering Lloyd’s consortia and conducting the 
underwriting on their behalf. The services provided are classed as ‘establishing and administering’ the consortium and are provided 
continuously throughout the year. As a result, this is treated as a single performance obligation and measured in accordance with 
the measurement bases set out in the relevant consortium agreement.

 Investment return

2.5.3 
Investment income comprises all interest and dividend income and realised and unrealised gains and losses less investment 
management fees. Interest income is recognised using the effective interest method. Dividend income is recognised when the 
shareholders’ right to receive the payment is established.

Realised gains and losses on investments are calculated as the difference between net sales proceeds and cost and are recognised 
when the sale transaction occurs.

Unrealised gains and losses on investments are calculated as the difference between the valuation at the date of the statement 
of financial position and the valuation at the last statement of financial position or purchase price, if acquired during the year. 
Unrealised investment gains and losses include adjustments in respect of unrealised gains and losses recorded in prior years which 
have been realised during the year and are reported as realised gains and losses in the current year’s income statement.

 Recognition and derecognition of financial assets and financial liabilities

2.5.4 
Financial assets and financial liabilities are recognised when the Group becomes a party to the contractual provisions of the 
contract. A financial asset is derecognised when either the contractual rights to the asset’s cash flows expire, or the asset 
is transferred, and the transfer qualifies for derecognition under a combination of risks and rewards and control tests. A financial 
liability is derecognised when it is extinguished which is when the obligation in the contract is discharged, cancelled or expired.

All ‘regular way purchases and sales’ of financial assets are recognised on the trade date, i.e. the date that the Group commits 
to purchase or sell the asset. Regular way purchases and sales are purchases and sales of financial assets that require delivery 
of assets within the time frame generally established by regulation or convention in the marketplace.

 Investments

2.5.5 
The Group has designated on initial recognition its financial assets held for investment purposes (investments) at fair value through 
profit or loss (FVTPL). This is in accordance with the Group’s documented investment strategy and consistent with investment risk 
being assessed on a portfolio basis. Information relating to investments is provided internally to the Group’s Directors and key 
managers on a fair value basis.

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Financial Statements

2 

 Accounting policies and basis of preparation (continued)

Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market 
participants at the measurement date. The fair value of financial assets and liabilities traded in active markets (which are the 
principal markets or the most advantageous markets that maximise the amount that would be received to sell the asset or minimise 
the amount that would be paid to transfer the liability) are based on quoted market bid and ask price for both financial assets and 
financial liabilities respectively.

The fair value of financial assets and liabilities that are not traded in an active market, including over-the-counter derivatives, 
is determined using valuation techniques. The Group uses a variety of methods and makes assumptions that are based on market 
conditions existing at each reporting date. Valuation techniques include the use of comparable recent arm’s-length transactions, 
reference to other instruments that are substantially the same, discounted cash flow analysis, option pricing models and others 
commonly used by market participants and which make the maximum use of observable inputs.

Gains and losses on investments designated as FVTPL are recognised through the income statement. Interest income from 
investments in bonds and short-term investments is recognised at the effective interest rate. Interest receivable is shown 
separately in the statement of financial position based on the instruments’ stated rates of interest.

 Derivatives

2.5.6 
Derivative financial instruments include foreign exchange contracts, forward rate agreements, interest rate futures, currency and 
interest rate swaps and other financial instruments that derive their value mainly from underlying interest rates, foreign exchange 
rates, credit indices, commodity values or equity instruments. All derivatives are initially recognised in the statement of financial 
position at their fair value, which represents their cost. They are subsequently remeasured at their fair value, with movements 
in this value recognised in the income statement. Fair values are obtained from quoted market prices or, if these are not available, 
by using valuation techniques such as discounted cash flow models or option pricing models.

All derivatives are carried as assets when the fair values are positive and as liabilities when the fair values are negative. Derivative 
contracts may be traded on an exchange or over-the-counter (OTC). Exchange-traded derivatives are standardised and include 
certain futures and option contracts. OTC derivative contracts are individually negotiated between contracting parties and include 
forwards and swaps.

Derivatives are subject to various risks including market, liquidity and credit risk, similar to those related to the underlying financial 
instruments. Many OTC transactions are contracted and documented under International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) 
master agreements or their equivalent, which are designed to provide legally enforceable set-off in the event of default, reducing 
the Group’s exposure to credit risk. The notional or contractual amounts associated with derivative financial instruments are not 
recorded as assets or liabilities on the statement of financial position as they do not represent the fair value of these transactions.

 Intangible assets

2.5.7 
(a)  Goodwill
Goodwill is initially measured at cost, being the excess of the fair value of the consideration transferred and the amount recognised 
for non-controlling interests and any previous interest held, over the net identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed. If those 
amounts are less than the fair value of the net identifiable assets of the business acquired, the difference is recognised directly 
in profit or loss as a bargain purchase.

After initial recognition, goodwill is not amortised but is measured at cost less any accumulated impairment losses. Goodwill 
is tested for impairment annually or more frequently if events or circumstances indicate that it might be impaired. For the purposes 
of impairment testing, goodwill acquired in a business combination is allocated to an appropriate cash generating unit (CGU) 
that is expected to benefit from the combination, irrespective of whether other assets or liabilities of the acquiree are assigned 
to those units.

Where goodwill has been allocated to a CGU and part of the operation within that unit is disposed of, the goodwill associated with 
the disposed operation is included in the carrying amount of the operation when determining the gain or loss on disposal of the 
operation. Goodwill disposed of in this circumstance is measured based on the relative values of the operation disposed of and the 
portion of the cash-generating unit retained.

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notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

(b)  Syndicate participation rights
Lloyd’s syndicate participation rights that have been acquired on acquisition of a subsidiary are initially recognised at fair value. 
They are considered to have an indefinite useful life as they will provide benefits over an indefinite future period and are therefore 
not subject to an annual amortisation charge. The continuing value of the underwriting capacity is reviewed for impairment annually 
by reference to the expected future profit streams to be earned from the respective syndicate, with any impairment in value being 
charged to the income statement.

(c)  Trade names
Trade names that have been acquired on acquisition of a subsidiary are initially recognised at fair value. They are considered to have 
an indefinite useful life as they will provide benefits over an indefinite future period and are therefore not subject to an annual 
amortisation charge. The carrying value of the trade names is reviewed for impairment annually by reference to the expected future 
profit streams to be earned from the CGUs to which the trade names relate, with any impairment in value being charged to the 
income statement.

(d)  Computer software
Acquired computer software licences are capitalised based on the costs incurred to acquire and bring into use the specific software. 
Internal development costs that are directly associated with the production of identifiable and unique software products controlled 
by the Group are also capitalised where the cost can be measured reliably, the Group intends to and has adequate resources 
to complete development and the computer software will generate future economic benefits. All computer software costs are finite 
life assets and amortised on a straight-line basis over their expected useful lives, not exceeding a period of five years.

(e)  Distribution channels
Distribution channels that have been acquired on acquisition of a subsidiary are initially recognised at fair value. They are 
deemed to be finite life assets and amortised on a straight-line basis over their expected useful economic lives, not exceeding 
a period of 15 years.

(f)  Employee-related intangibles
A non-compete agreement in favour of the Group, signed upon acquisition of a subsidiary, and non-compete clauses in certain 
employee contracts acquired in business combinations have been recognised at fair value. These are considered to be finite life 
assets and, as such, are amortised on a straight-line basis over their expected useful economic lives, not exceeding a period 
of three years.

(g)  Regulatory licences
Regulatory licences that have been acquired on acquisition of a subsidiary are initially recognised at fair value. They are considered 
to have an indefinite useful life as they do not expire and will provide benefits over an indefinite future period and are therefore 
not subject to an annual amortisation charge. The carrying value of the licences is reviewed for impairment annually by reference 
to the expected future profit streams to be earned from the respective licences, with any impairment in value being charged to the 
income statement.

 Property, plant and equipment

2.5.8 
Property, plant and equipment are carried at cost, less accumulated depreciation and any impairment in value. Depreciation 
is calculated so as to write-off the cost over their estimated useful economic lives on a straight-line basis having regard to the 
residual value of each asset, as follows:

Land
Buildings
Office refurbishment costs, office machinery, furniture and equipment
Computers, servers, data storage devices, networks and other IT infrastructure

Indefinite
30 years
5-15 years
3-5 years

The assets’ residual values and useful lives are reviewed at the date of each statement of financial position and adjusted 
if appropriate.

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Financial Statements

2 

 Accounting policies and basis of preparation (continued)

An item of property, plant and equipment is derecognised upon disposal or when no future economic benefits are expected to arise 
from the continued use of the asset. Gains and losses on the disposal of property, plant and equipment are determined by comparing 
proceeds with the carrying amount of the asset and are included in the income statement. Costs for repairs and maintenance are 
expensed as incurred.

 Impairment

2.5.9 
Goodwill, syndicate participation rights, trade names and regulatory licenses are not subjected to amortisation but are tested 
annually for impairment as they are assets with an indefinite useful life. Other assets, except for assets arising from insurance 
contracts, are tested for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not 
be recoverable.

If the carrying value of an asset is impaired, it is reduced to the recoverable amount by an immediate charge to the income 
statement. The recoverable amount is the higher of an asset’s fair value less costs to sell and value in use.

Value in use is based on discounting cash flows at the Group’s weighted average cost of capital which is loaded where significant 
uncertainties exist. Assets are grouped at the lowest levels for which there are separately identifiable cash flows (cash-generating 
units). Cash flow forecasts have been performed to account for the impact of climate change.

Impairment reviews are made by comparing carrying value to recoverable amount.

 Cash and cash equivalents

2.5.10 
Cash and cash equivalents in the statement of financial position include cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks and other short-
term, highly liquid investments with a maturity of three months or less at the date of acquisition.

 Income taxes

2.5.11 
Income tax comprises current and deferred tax. Income tax is recognised in the income statement except where it relates to an item 
which is recognised in equity.

(a)  Current income tax
Current income tax is the expected tax payable on the taxable profit for the period using tax rates (and laws) enacted 
or substantively enacted at the date of the statement of financial position and any adjustment to the tax payable in respect 
of previous periods. The Group calculates current income tax using current income tax rates.

(b)  Deferred income tax
Where relevant deferred income tax is provided in full, using the liability method, on temporary differences arising between the tax 
bases of assets and liabilities and their carrying amounts in the consolidated financial statements. If the deferred income tax arises 
from initial recognition of an asset or liability in a transaction other than a business combination that at the time of the transaction 
affects neither accounting nor taxable profit or loss, it is not recognised.

Deferred income tax is determined using tax rates (and laws) that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the date of the 
statement of financial position and are expected to apply when the related deferred income tax asset is realised or the deferred 
income tax liability is settled.

Deferred income tax assets are recognised to the extent that it is probable that future taxable profit will be available against which 
the temporary differences can be utilised.

Deferred income tax relating to items recognised in other comprehensive income is also recognised in other comprehensive income.

Deferred income tax is provided on temporary differences arising on investments in subsidiaries and associates, except where 
the Group controls the timing of the reversal of the temporary difference and it is probable that the temporary difference will not 
reverse in the foreseeable future.

Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are offset when there is a legally enforceable right to offset current tax assets against 
current tax liabilities and when the deferred income taxes relate to the same fiscal authority.

Deferred tax assets and liabilities are not discounted.

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 Employee benefits

2.5.12 
The Group operates a number of defined contribution schemes. It also makes payments into a number of personal money purchase 
pension plans. Contributions in respect of these schemes are charged to the income statement in the period to which they relate.

The Group also operates two defined benefit pension schemes. The asset recognised in the statement of financial position in respect 
of a defined benefit scheme is the fair value of the scheme assets less the present value of the defined benefit obligation which 
is determined by discounting the estimated future cash outflows. The discount rate is based on market yields at the reporting date 
of high-quality corporate bonds that have terms to maturity which approximate to those of the related pension liability. An asset 
is recognised only to the extent that it is considered available in the form of future refunds from the plan, in particular taking into 
consideration any minimum funding requirements that apply to the plan.

Actuarial gains and losses are recognised immediately through other comprehensive income.

The Group determines the net interest expense/income on the net defined benefit liability/asset for the period by applying the 
discount rate used to measure the defined benefit obligation at the beginning of the annual period to the net defined benefit 
liability/asset.

Past service costs arising in the period are recognised as an expense at the earlier of the date when the plan amendment 
or curtailment occurs and the date when the Group recognises related restructuring costs or termination benefits.

On 18 August 2021, the Group assumed responsibility for the liabilities of the RiverStone Management Pension and Life Assurance 
Plan (the Plan) from Riverstone Holdings Limited and RiverStone Management Limited, through a Flexible Apportionment Agreement 
(FAA). No consideration was paid by the Group, with the transfer taking place as part of wider Fairfax group transactions. The Group 
has recorded a pension surplus in respect of the Plan, which is recognised as an asset in the statement of financial position, with 
a corresponding capital contribution recorded in equity.

The Group recognises an accrual in respect of profit-sharing, bonus plans and long service cash awards where a contractual 
obligation to employees exists or where there is a past practice that has created a constructive obligation.

 Share-based payments

2.5.13 
The fair value of equity instruments granted under share-based payment plans are recognised as an expense and spread over the 
vesting period of the instrument. The total amount to be expensed is determined by reference to the fair value of the awards made 
at the grant date.

At the date of each statement of financial position, the Group revises its estimate of the number of equity instruments that are 
expected to become exercisable and it recognises the impact of the revision of original estimates, if any, in the income statement. 
Where the awards have been granted by a parent company and are therefore treated as equity-settled, a corresponding adjustment 
is made to equity over the remaining vesting period.

Where the awards have been granted by the Company and are therefore treated as cash-settled, a liability is provided for settlement 
of the awards. The corresponding adjustment arising on a revision of the original estimate is made to that liability. In addition, the fair 
value of the award and ultimate expense are adjusted upon a change in the market share price of the underlying shares or at the 
valuation date. The liability is remeasured at each reporting date, and on settlement, at which point it is derecognised from the 
statement of financial position.

 Provisions and contingencies

2.5.14 
Provisions are liabilities with uncertainties in the amount or timing of payments. Provisions are recognised if there is a present 
obligation as a result of past events, it is probable that an outflow of resources embodying economic benefits will be required 
to settle the obligation, and a reliable estimate of the amount of the obligation can be made at the date of the statement 
of financial position.

A contingent liability is a possible obligation that arises from past events or a present obligation that is not recognised as it is not 
probable that an outflow of resources will be required to settle the obligation or the amount of obligation cannot be measured with 
sufficient reliability. A contingent liability is disclosed but not recognised.

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2 

 Accounting policies and basis of preparation (continued)

 Leases

2.5.15 
The Group leases various offices under rental contracts that are typically from 1 to 15 years but may have extension options. Lease 
terms are negotiated on an individual basis and contain a wide range of terms and conditions. Leased assets are recognised as right-
of-use assets and corresponding liabilities are recorded at the date at which the leased assets are available for use by the Group.

Assets and liabilities arising from a lease are initially measured on a present value basis.

Lease liabilities include the net present value of the following lease payments:

•  fixed payments (including in-substance fixed payments), less any lease incentives receivable;

•  variable lease payments that are based on an index or a rate, initially measured using the index or rate as at the 

commencement date; and

•  payments of penalties for terminating the lease, if the lease term reflects the Group exercising that option.

Lease payments to be made under reasonably certain extension options are also included in the measurement of the liability.

The lease payments are discounted using the interest rate implicit in the lease. If that rate cannot be readily determined, which 
is generally the case for leases in the Group, the lessee’s incremental borrowing rate is used, being the rate that the individual lessee 
would have to pay to borrow the funds necessary to obtain an asset of similar value to the right-of-use asset in a similar economic 
environment with similar terms, security and conditions. To determine this, the Group uses recent third-party financing received 
by the individual lessee (where available) and, if necessary, makes adjustments to reflect subsequent changes in financing conditions 
and other adjustments specific to the lease (for example, to reflect lease term, country of leased asset, contract currency 
and security).

The Group is exposed to potential future increases in variable lease payments based on an index or rate, which are not included 
in the lease liability until they take effect. When adjustments to lease payments based on an index or rate take effect, the lease liability 
is reassessed and adjusted against the right-of-use asset.

Lease payments are allocated between principal and finance cost. The finance cost is charged to profit or loss over the lease period 
so as to produce a constant periodic rate of interest on the remaining balance of the liability for each period.

Right-of-use assets are measured at cost comprising the following:

•  the amount of the initial measurement of lease liability;

•  any lease payments made at or before the commencement date less any lease incentives received;

•  any initial direct costs, and

•  restoration costs.

Right-of-use assets are generally depreciated over the shorter of the asset’s useful life and the lease term on a straight-line basis.

Payments associated with short-term leases and leases of low-value assets are recognised on a straight-line basis as an expense 
in profit or loss. Short-term leases are leases with a term of 12 months or less.

Extension and termination options are included in a number of leases across the Group. These are used to maximise operational 
flexibility in terms of managing the assets used in the Group’s operations. Most of the extension and termination options held are 
exercisable only by the Group and not by the respective lessor.

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When the Group is an intermediate lessor, it accounts for its interests in the head lease and the sublease separately. It assesses 
the lease classification of a sublease with reference to the right-of-use asset arising from the head lease, not with reference 
to the underlying asset. If a head lease is a short-term lease to which the Group applies the exemption, then it classifies the 
sublease as an operating lease. The Group recognises assets held under a finance lease in its statement of financial position and 
presents them as a receivable at an amount equal to the net investment in the lease. The lessor will derecognise the carrying 
amount of the underlying asset (i.e. right-of-use-asset) that relates to the sublease and the difference between this and the net 
investment in lease is recognised in the income statement. Subsequently, finance income will be recognised over the lease term with 
a corresponding increase in the net investment in the lease. Any cash received by the Group is recorded as a reduction in the net 
investment in the lease.

 Foreign currency translation

2.5.16 
Items included in the financial statements of the parent and subsidiaries are measured using the functional currency which is the 
primary economic environment in which the entity operates. The Group presents its consolidated financial statements in US dollars 
which is the functional currency of the parent.

Foreign currency transactions are recorded in the functional currency for each entity using the exchange rates prevailing 
at the dates of the transactions or at the average rate for the period when this is a reasonable approximation. Substantially all 
of the Group’s operations have US dollars as their functional currency. Monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign 
currencies are translated at period end exchange rates. The resulting exchange differences on translation are recorded in the 
income statement. Non-monetary assets and liabilities that are measured at historical cost denominated in a foreign currency are 
not retranslated.

The functional currencies of some of the Company’s subsidiaries differ from the consolidated Group US dollar presentation 
currency. As a result, the assets and liabilities of these subsidiaries, including any goodwill arising on consolidation, are translated 
on consolidation at the rates of exchange prevailing at the balance sheet date. Revenue and expenses are translated at the average 
rate of exchange for the period. The unrealised gain or loss resulting from this translation is recognised in other comprehensive 
income and transferred to a foreign currency translation reserve.

 Borrowings

2.5.17 
Borrowings are initially recognised at fair value, net of transaction costs incurred and subsequently stated at amortised cost. Fair 
value is normally determined by reference to the fair value of the proceeds received. Any difference between the initial carrying 
amount and the redemption value is recognised in the income statement over the period of the borrowings using the effective 
interest rate method.

 Other financial liabilities

2.5.18 
The Group has designated its financial liabilities in respect of third-party investments in consolidated structured entities and 
investment funds at fair value through profit or loss (FVTPL). The fair value of the investments by independent third parties 
is determined by reference to the net assets of those entities, which may also require reference to the underlying net assets 
of other vehicles or investment funds in which those entities have invested. Gains or losses in respect to change in fair value 
is recognised through the income statement.

 Segmental reporting

2.5.19 
An operating segment is a component of an entity that engages in business activities from which it may earn revenues and incur 
expenses, whose operating results are regularly reviewed by the entity’s chief operating decision maker and for which discrete 
financial information is available.

2.5.20   Other receivables
Other receivables are financial assets with fixed or determinable payments. Other receivables are measured at amortised cost, 
using the effective interest rate method, less provision for impairment. Individual receivables known to be uncollectible are written 
off by reducing the carrying amount directly. Other receivables are assessed collectively to determine whether there is objective 
evidence that an impairment has occurred but not yet been identified and, where necessary, the estimated impairment losses are 
recognised in a separate provision for impairment.

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2 

 Accounting policies and basis of preparation (continued)

 Offsetting of financial instruments

2.5.21 
Financial assets and liabilities are offset and the net amount reported in the statement of financial position only when there 
is a legally enforceable right to offset the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis, or to realise the 
assets and settle the liability simultaneously.

2.5.22   Dividend and capital distributions
Dividend and capital distributions to the Company’s shareholders are recognised in the Group’s financial statements in the period 
in which they are declared and appropriately approved.

2.5.23   Collateral
The Group receives collateral from certain reinsurers and pledges collateral where required for regulatory purposes and other 
funding arrangements. Collateral received in the form of cash is recognised as an asset on the statement of financial position with 
a corresponding liability for the repayment. Non-cash collateral received is not recognised on the statement of financial position. 
Except where it is used for the purposes of the agreement to which it relates, collateral pledged is not derecognised from the 
statement of financial position unless the Group defaults on its obligations under the relevant agreement.

2.5.24   Non-current assets (or disposal groups) held for sale
Non-current assets (or disposal groups) are classified as held for sale if their carrying amount will be recovered principally through 
a sale transaction rather than through continuing use and a sale is considered highly probable. They are measured at the lower 
of their carrying amount and fair value less costs to sell, except for assets such as deferred tax assets, assets arising from 
employee benefits, financial assets and investment property that are carried at fair value and contractual rights under insurance 
contracts, which are specifically exempt from this requirement.

An impairment loss is recognised for any initial or subsequent write-down of the asset (or disposal group) to fair value less costs 
to sell. A gain is recognised for any subsequent increases in fair value less costs to sell of an asset (or disposal group), but not 
in excess of any cumulative impairment loss previously recognised. A gain or loss not previously recognised by the date of the sale 
of the non-current asset (or disposal group) is recognised at the date of derecognition.

Non-current assets (including those that are part of a disposal group) are not depreciated or amortised while they are classified 
as held for sale. Interest and other expenses attributable to the liabilities of a disposal group classified as held for sale continue 
to be recognised.

Non-current assets classified as held for sale and the assets of a disposal group classified as held for sale are presented separately 
from the other assets in the balance sheet. The liabilities of a disposal group classified as held for sale are presented separately 
from other liabilities in the balance sheet.

3 

 Critical accounting estimates and judgements in applying accounting policies

 Introduction

3.1 
The Group makes various assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities. Estimates and judgements are 
regularly re-evaluated and are based on a combination of historical experience and other factors, including exposure analysis, 
expectations of future experience and expert judgement.

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3.2 

 Estimation and judgement in relation to determining the ultimate liability arising from claims made under 
insurance contracts

The estimation of the ultimate liability arising from claims made under insurance contracts is the Group’s most critical accounting 
estimate. There are several sources of uncertainty that need to be considered in the estimate of the amounts that the Group will 
ultimately pay to settle such claims. Significant areas requiring estimation and judgement include:

•  Estimates of the amount of any liability in respect of claims notified but not settled and incurred but not reported claims (IBNR) 

to be included within provisions for inwards insurance and reinsurance contracts;

•  The corresponding estimate of the amount of outwards reinsurance recoveries which will become due as a result of the 

estimated claims on inwards business;

•  The recoverability of amounts due from reinsurers; and

•  Estimates of the proportion of exposure which has expired in the period as represented by the earned proportion 

of premiums written.

The assumptions used and the manner in which these estimates and judgements are made are set out below, including the reserving 
process for the estimation of gross, and net of reinsurance, ultimate premiums and claims:

•  Quarterly statistical data is produced in respect of gross and net premiums and claims (paid and incurred);

•  Projections of ultimate premiums, reinstatement premiums and claims are produced by the internal actuarial department using 
standard actuarial projection techniques (e.g. Basic Chain Ladder, Bornhuetter-Ferguson, Initial Expected Loss Ratio). The Basic 
Chain Ladder and Bornhuetter-Ferguson projection methods are based on the key assumption that historical development 
of premiums and claims is representative of future development. Claims inflation is taken into account in the Initial Expected Loss 
Ratio selections but is otherwise assumed to be in line with historical inflation trends, unless explicit adjustments for other drivers 
of inflation such as legislative developments are deemed appropriate;

•  Some classes of business have characteristics which do not necessarily lend themselves easily to statistical estimation 
techniques, e.g. due to low data volumes. In such cases, for example, a policy-by-policy review may also be carried out 
to supplement statistical estimates;

• 

In the event of catastrophe losses, prior to detailed claims information becoming available, claims provision estimates are 
compiled using a combination of output from specific recognised modelling software and detailed reviews of contracts exposed 
to the event in question;

•  The initial ultimate selections derived by the actuarial department, along with the underlying key assumptions and methodology, 
are discussed with class underwriters, divisional underwriting directors and the claims team at ‘pre-committee’ meetings. The 
actuarial department may make adjustments to the initial ultimates following these meetings;

•  Following the completion of the ‘pre-committee’ meetings and peer review process within the actuarial department, the ultimate 
selections (actuarial estimate), assumptions, methodology and uncertainties are presented to the Reserving Committee for 
discussion and debate; and

•  Following review of the actuarial estimate, the Reserving Committee recommends the committee estimates to be adopted in the 

financial statements.

The results of the external audit work conducted in relation to reserves are presented to both the BSL Reserving Committee and 
the Audit Committee with key assumptions, methodologies and uncertainties also highlighted. This provides both committees with 
an independent view of reserves compared to the recommendations of the internal actuarial department.

The estimates and judgements are applied in line with the overall reserving philosophy and seek to state the claims provisions 
on a best estimate, undiscounted basis. A management risk margin is also applied over and above the actuarial best estimate to allow 
for the inherent uncertainty within the best estimate reserve position.

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3 

 Critical accounting estimates and judgements in applying accounting policies (continued)

Brit has adopted a comprehensive approach to reserving for COVID-19 related losses, in line with its policy of reserving 
on a ‘conservative best estimate’ basis and carrying an explicit risk margin above that ‘conservative best estimate’. Our detailed 
analysis of the principal exposed classes for the year-ended 31 December 2021 resulted in net COVID-19 related losses of $292.9m 
(2020: $271.4m). Our main exposures to COVID-19 relate to our Contingency and Casualty Treaty accounts, with lower levels 
of exposure in Property, Property Treaty and Personal Accident. There remains uncertainty around losses from the COVID-19. We 
would expect the level of uncertainty around Contingency to reduce over time, however, within areas of the account such as Casualty 
Treaty, Property Treaty and Open Market Property the ultimate loss outcome is still to emerge and will be influenced by factors such 
as coverage issues and the interpretation of contract wording.

In addition to claims provisions, the reserve for future loss adjustment expenses is also subject to estimation with consideration 
being given to the level of internal and third-party loss adjustment expenses incurred annually. The estimated loss adjustment 
expenses are expressed as a percentage of gross claims reserves and the reasonableness of the estimate is assessed through 
benchmarking. Further judgements are made as to the recoverability of amounts due from reinsurers. Provisions for bad debts are 
made specifically, based on the solvency of reinsurers, internal and external ratings, payment experience with them and any disputes 
of which the Group is aware.

The carrying value at the date of the statement of financial position of gross claims reported and loss adjustment expenses and 
claims incurred but not reported were $5,140.9m (2020: $4,792.7m) as set out in Note 22 to the financial statements. The amount 
of reinsurance recoveries estimated at that date is $1,894.4m (2020: $1,493.0m).

 Estimation of pipeline premiums

3.3 
Written premiums include pipeline premiums of $874.1m (2020: $725.3m) which represent future premiums receivable on in-
force insurance contracts. Pipeline premium estimates are derived from ultimate premium estimates which are typically based 
on standard actuarial projection techniques (e.g. Basic Chain Ladder) on the key assumption that historical development of premiums 
is representative of future development.

 Estimation involved in impairment testing of intangible assets

3.4 
Intangible assets with indefinite useful lives are tested for impairment on an annual basis in accordance with IAS 36 ‘Impairment 
of Assets’. Determining the assumptions used in the test requires estimation. The calculations use projected profit streams based 
on cash flow forecasts and are approved by management. The indefinite useful life intangible assets of the Group consist of goodwill, 
syndicate participation rights, trade names and US state authorisation regulatory licenses. The carrying amount at the date of the 
statement of financial position was as follows: goodwill: $61.3m (2020: $45.9m); trade names: $1.3m (2020: $0.5m); and syndicate 
participation rights: $70.8m (2020: $70.8m). Additionally, as at 31 December 2020, $7.5m of regulatory licenses were recorded 
in the statement of financial position within the line ‘Assets classified as held for sale’. In 2021, these were disposed as part of the 
disposal of Commonwealth Insurance Company of America.

For further information on intangible assets, refer to Note 18.

 Judgements made in respect of lease accounting

3.5 
The accounting for leases under IFRS 16 requires an incremental borrowing rate to use as the discount rate for the leases. Brit took 
advantage of the practical expedient in IFRS 16 to apply a single discount rate to its entire portfolio of leases, with the rate calculated 
as the weighted average of discount rates applied in each jurisdiction in which the Group has leases. The property leases do not 
explicitly or implicitly state interest rates, therefore unsecured borrowing rates for individual leases have been estimated by using 
the borrowing rate for the Group in the jurisdictions that the leases are held.

Extension and termination options are included in a number of leases across the Group. These are used to maximise operational 
flexibility in terms of managing the assets used in the Group’s operations. Most of the extension and termination options held are 
exercisable only by the Group and not by the respective lessor. Management have exercised judgement in determining whether there 
is a significant expectation that these options would be exercised.

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 Estimation and judgements in respect of fair values of financial investments

3.6 
Financial investments are carried in the statement of financial position at fair value. The carrying amount of financial investments 
at the date of the statement of financial position was $4,015.0m (2020: $4,056.6m). Determining the fair value of certain investments 
requires estimation.

The Group value investments using designated methodologies, estimations and assumptions. These securities, which are reported 
at fair value on the consolidated statement of financial position, represent the majority of the invested assets. The measurement 
basis for assets carried at fair value is categorised into a ‘fair value hierarchy’ in accordance with the valuation inputs and 
consistent with IFRS 13 ‘Fair Value Measurement’. The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices in active 
markets for identical assets or liabilities (level one); the middle priority to fair values other than quoted prices based on observable 
market information (level two); and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs that reflect the assumptions that we consider market 
participants would normally use (level three). To the extent that valuation is based on models or inputs that are unobservable 
in the market, the determination of fair value requires more judgement and, accordingly, those instruments included in level 
three will require a greater degree of judgement to be exercised during valuation than for those included in level two or level one. 
At 31 December 2021, financial investments amounting to $269.9m (2020: $182.6m) were classified as level three.

The classification within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of significant input to its valuation. Any change 
to investment valuations may affect our results of operations and reported financial condition. For further information, 
refer to Note 24.

 Estimation of defined benefit plan assets or obligations

3.7 
The amounts recognised in the consolidated financial statements in respect of the Group’s defined benefit pension plans are 
determined using actuarial valuations, which involves making assumptions that may differ from actual developments in the future. 
These include the determination of the discount rate, inflation, mortality rates and future pension increases. Due to the complexities 
involved in the valuation and its long-term nature, a defined benefit obligation is highly sensitive to changes in these assumptions. All 
assumptions are reviewed at each reporting date.

The carrying amount of the pension asset at the date of the statement of financial position was $113.8m (2020: $48.8m). For further 
information, refer to Note 23.

 Judgements in respect of the consolidation of structured entities

3.8 
During the year, the Group held investments in two Bermuda-domiciled special purpose vehicles, Versutus Limited and Sussex 
Capital Limited (which is the sole investor in the majority of segregated accounts and protected cells of two other special purpose 
vehicles, Sussex Re Limited and Sussex Capital UK PCC Limited). The Group is therefore required to determine whether these entities 
(or segregated accounts or protected cells thereof) meet the criteria for consolidation as defined in IFRS 10, for which the exercise 
of judgement is required. In particular, the Group considered the following factors to determine whether it is acting as an agent 
or a principal for these entities: (i) the power the Group has over them and the ability to direct relevant activities; (ii) the rights of the 
Group to variable returns from the Group’s involvement with the entities; and (iii) the ability to use that power to affect the amount 
of the Group’s returns.

The Group is, or has been, exposed to variability of returns from the activities of these entities both through its direct investments 
in the vehicles and through the receipt of fee income from services provided to those entities.

As at 31 December 2021, in respect of the Sussex special purpose vehicles, that exposure was of a significance that it indicates that 
the Group is acting as a principal when considered alongside additional factors including the design of the structures in which those 
entities have been established, their business models, and a range of other qualitative factors in determining whether the criteria 
for consolidation are met. Consequently, the Group has continued to consolidate these entities (or relevant segregated accounts 
or protected cells thereof) during the financial year.

The Group’s investment in Versutus Limited was divested during the year and, as such, ceased to be consolidated from the date 
of that divestment.

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3 

 Critical accounting estimates and judgements in applying accounting policies (continued)

 Estimation of deferred tax asset in respect of carried forward losses

3.9 
The deferred tax asset includes an amount of $18.1m (2020: $52.5m) which relates to carried forward tax losses in respect 
of Lloyd’s undeclared year of account losses for 2019, 2020 and 2021 which will be taxed under the Lloyd’s declaration basis in the 
years 2022, 2023 and 2024 respectively.

The Group has concluded that the deferred tax asset is recoverable based on the Lloyd’s approved plan for the year of account 2022 
and forecast profits for the Brit Group UK entities which are available for group relief. These plans have been adjusted to reflect 
the actual performance or prior years against their initial approved plans. The losses can be carried forward indefinitely and 
have no expiry date, however a further deferred tax asset of $71.3m (2020: $43.9m) has not been recognised as an asset on the 
basis that it is not yet possible to measure it reliably due to further work required to forecast results beyond 2028 and the year 
of account 2025.

4 

 Risk management policies

This Note provides details of key risks that the Group is exposed to and explains the Group’s strategies and the role of management 
in mitigating these risks.

 Insurance risk

4.1 
Insurance risk arises from the possibility of an adverse financial result due to actual experience being different from that expected 
when an insurance product was designed and priced. The actual performance of insurance contracts is subject to the inherent 
uncertainty in the occurrence, timing and amount of the final insurance liabilities. This is the principal risk the Group is exposed 
to as the Group’s primary function is to underwrite insurance contracts. The risk arises due to the possibility of insurance contracts 
being under-priced, under-reserved or subject to unforeseen catastrophe claims.

The areas of insurance risk discussed below include underwriting (including aggregate exposure management), reinsurance 
and reserving.

 Underwriting risk

4.1.1 
(a)  Introduction
Underwriting risk is the risk that insurance premiums will not be sufficient to cover the future losses and associated expenses. 
It arises from the fluctuations in the frequency and severity of financial losses incurred through the underwriting process by the 
Group as a result of unpredictable events.

The Group is also exposed to the risks resulting from its underwriters accepting risks for premiums which are insufficient to cover 
the ultimate claims which result from such policies. The underwriting environment and the associated impact on premium rates, 
including trends due to the underwriting cycle, are factored into the Group’s pricing models and risk management tools, and 
is continually monitored to assess whether any corrective action is required. Additional controls over the underwriting strategy are 
described in the section below.

The Group primarily writes its business through Lloyd’s and therefore can take advantage of Lloyd’s centralised infrastructure 
and service support. Lloyd’s also has an established global distribution framework, with extensive licensing agreements providing 
the Group access to over 200 territories. Primarily using the Lloyd’s platform to underwrite, subjects the Group to a number 
of underwriting risks. The Group relies on the efficient functioning of the Lloyd’s market. If for any reason Brit Syndicates Limited 
(BSL) was restricted or otherwise unable to write insurance through the Lloyd’s market, there would be a potentially material 
adverse effect on the Group’s business. In particular, any damage to the brand or reputation of Lloyd’s, increase in tax levies imposed 
on Lloyd’s participants or deterioration in Lloyd’s asset base when compared with its liabilities may have a material adverse effect 
on the Group’s ability to write new business.

BSL also benefits from the ability to write business based on the Lloyd’s financial rating, which allows the Group to write more 
business as part of the Lloyd’s platform. A downgrade in Lloyd’s financial strength ratings may have an adverse effect on the Group.

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The Group also writes business through the Sussex Capital collateralised reinsurance platform. Through Sussex Re Limited the 
platform writes direct collateralised property catastrophe reinsurance in addition to providing collateralised reinsurance to Brit’s 
Property Treaty portfolio. Please refer to section 4.10 for details on the governance structure relevant to the Sussex platform.

(b)  Controls over underwriting strategy
The Board sets the Group’s underwriting strategy for accepting and managing underwriting risk. The BSL Underwriting Committees 
(including the Ki Portfolio and Underwriting Committee) and Brit Re Management Committee meet regularly to drive the underwriting 
strategy and to monitor performance against the plans. The assessment of underwriting performance is all-encompassing applying 
underwriting key performance indicators (KPIs), technical pricing management information (MI), premium monitoring, delegated 
underwriting operations and claims. The risks are managed by the committee in line with the underwriting risk policy and within 
the risk tolerance set by the underwriting entity Boards. The underwriting risk policy also sets out a number of controls, which are 
summarised below.

The Group carries out a detailed annual business planning process for each of its underwriting units. The resulting plans set out 
premium, territorial and aggregate limits and reinsurance protection thresholds for all classes of business and represent a key tool 
in managing concentration risk. Performance against the plans is monitored on a regular basis by the Underwriting Committees 
as well as by the Boards of the regulated entities. A dedicated Risk Aggregation Team also performs catastrophe modelling and 
Realistic Disaster Scenario (RDS) analysis on a regular basis to ensure that the Group’s net losses remain within its risk appetite.

The Group has developed underwriting guidelines, limits of authority and business plans which are binding upon all staff authorised 
to underwrite. These are detailed and specific to underwriters and classes of business. Gross and net line size limits are in place for 
each class of business with additional restrictions in place on catastrophe exposed business.

A proportion of the Group’s insurance risks are written by third parties under delegated underwriting authorities, with the 
remaining being written through individual risk acceptances or through reinsurance treaties. The third parties are closely vetted 
in advance and are subject to tight reporting requirements. In addition, the performance of these contracts is closely monitored 
by underwriters and/or portfolio managers, and regular audits are carried out.

The technical pricing framework ensures that the pricing process in the Group is appropriate. It ensures pricing methodologies are 
demonstrable and transparent and that technical (or benchmark) prices are assessed for each risk. The underwriting and actuarial 
functions work together to maintain the pricing models and assess the difference between technical price and actual price. The 
framework also ensures that sufficient data is recorded and checked by underwriters to enable the Group to maintain an effective 
rate monitoring process.

Compliance is checked through both a peer review process and, periodically, by the Group’s internal audit department which 
is entirely independent of the underwriting units.

In order to limit risk, the number of reinstatements per policy is limited, deductibles are imposed, policy exclusions are applied and 
whenever allowed by statute, maximum indemnity limits are put in place per insured event.

(c)  Underwriting risk profile
The core insurance portfolio of property, marine, energy and casualty covers a variety of largely uncorrelated events and also 
provides some protection against the underwriting cycle as different classes are at different points in the underwriting cycle. The 
underwriting portfolio is managed to target top quartile underwriting performance and the mix of business is continually adjusted 
based on the current environment (including the current pricing strength of each class). This assessment is conducted as part 
of the business planning and strategy process which operates annually and uses inputs from the technical pricing framework.  
The business plan is approved by the Boards and is monitored monthly.

The Group underwrites a well-diversified portfolio across multiple regions and classes. While underlying risk and the policyholder 
may be situated anywhere in the world, 84% of the GWP for the Group in 2021 was sourced in London. Other business written 
includes that sourced through a wholly owned service company in the United States, the business of which accounted for 13% of the 
Group’s annual GWP in 2021. The Group also writes business from its office in Bermuda, with Brit Global Specialty Bermuda (BGSB) 
accounting for 3% of the Group’s annual GWP in 2021. In 2021, 38% of the Group’s GWP was reinsured to third parties.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

103

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

(d)  Geographical concentration of premium
The Group enters into policies with policyholders from all over the world, with the underlying risk relating to premiums spread 
worldwide. This allows the Group to benefit from a wide geographic diversification of risk. The four principal locations of the Group’s 
policyholders are the United States, UK, Europe and Canada. The concentration of insurance premium before and after reinsurance 
by the location of the underlying risk is summarised below:

2021
United States
United Kingdom
Canada
Europe (excluding UK)
Other (including worldwide)

2020
United States
United Kingdom
Canada
Europe (excluding UK)
Other (including worldwide)

Gross
premiums
written
$m

1,732.6
186.6
129.5
84.3
1,105.3

3,238.3

1,335.2
160.4
100.7
54.9
773.2

2,424.4

Net
premiums
written
$m

870.3
132.1
92.0
58.2
845.7

1,998.3

962.2
108.7
69.2
35.6
599.9

1,775.6

The nature of the London Market business is such that the insureds and reinsureds are often operating on a multi-territory 
or worldwide basis and hence coverage is often provided on a worldwide basis. Premiums written on a multi-territory or worldwide 
basis are included in ‘Other’ in the table above.

(e)  Portfolio mix
The Group underwrites business in a wide variety of classes. The breakdown of premium before reinsurance by principal lines 
of business is summarised below:

2021
Gross premiums written

2020
Gross premiums written

$m

1,663.9
639.6
407.9
15.9
115.4
395.6

3,238.3

%

51.3
19.8
12.6
0.5
3.6
12.2

100.0

$m

1,344.7
533.4
327.6
127.8
90.9
–

2,424.4

%

55.5
22.0
13.5
5.3
3.7
–

100

London – Direct
London – RI
Overseas distribution
Discontinued
Other
Ki

104 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

2021
Gross premiums written

2020
Gross premiums written

Gross

1,663.9
412.0
471.4
363.0
85.2
332.3
639.6
255.0
384.6
407.9
237.9
97.7
72.3
15.9
16.4
(0.5)
115.4
395.6

3,238.3

%

51.3
12.7
14.5
11.2
2.6
10.3
19.8
7.9
11.9
12.6
7.4
3.0
2.2
0.5
0.5
–
3.6
12.2

100

$m

1,344.7
260.1
461.9
287.7
27.8
307.2
533.4
242.6
290.8
327.6
193.7
69.1
64.8
127.8
72.5
55.3
90.9
–

2,424.4

%

55.5
10.7
19.1
11.9
1.1
12.7
22.0
10.0
12.0
13.5
8.0
2.9
2.7
5.3
3.0
2.3
3.7
–

100

London – Direct
FINPRO
Progs & Facilities
Property
Ambridge Transactional
Specialty
London – RI
Casualty Treaty
Property Treaty
Overseas distribution
Ambridge Casualty
Ambridge Re
Scion
Discontinued
London Discontinued
BGSU Discontinued
Other
Ki

The Group underwrites a mix of both insurance and reinsurance, long and short-tail business across a number of geographic areas 
which results in diversification within the Group’s portfolio. The business mix is monitored on an ongoing basis.

Underwriting risk is mainly driven by the Group’s US catastrophe exposure. Casualty Treaty is also a driver due to its long-tail 
exposure. The risk profile of Brit’s underwriting portfolio is set out in more detail in the sections below.

(i)  London – Direct

(1)  Financial & Professional (FinPro)

Directors & Officers (D&O)

Coverage provided to both directors and officers and companies for personal liability 
or securities-related lawsuits.

Financial Institutions (FI)

Coverage of financial institutions for risks including internal and external fraud, and liability 
to customers, shareholders and regulators.

Global Cyber Privacy and Technology

Coverage of first- and third-party risks relating to network security, privacy and data 
protection risks.

Healthcare

Coverage of hospitals, allied health and long-term care liability, predominantly in the US.

US Professional Indemnity

Coverage for professional negligence, errors and omissions, provided on both an open 
market and a binding authority basis.

Financial and professional lines are typically long-tailed, meaning that on average the claims are not settled for several years 
after the expiry of the policy, which increases exposure to claims inflation. Other key risks relate to increasing claim frequency 
due to global recessions or systemic malpractice, as well as an increasing prevalence of cyber security risk. This portfolio is also 
exposed to the risk of latent claims arising from risks that were not envisaged at the time of writing the policy.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

105

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

(2)  Facilities

Property Facilities

Coverage of commercial and residential properties, including high value homes, and for 
financial institutions, loan servicers and property investors, including lender-placed hazard 
and flood protection.

Accident and Health

Coverage for personal accident and medical expenses, kidnap and ransom, and contingency.

Transport

Long Tail Facilities

Coverage of commercial automobile physical damage and motor truck cargo across the 
US and Canada.

Coverage of legal expenses for individuals, companies and affinity groups worldwide, and 
of professional negligence, errors and omissions for small and medium-sized enterprises 
in the US and Canada.

The Facilities portfolio consists of business written on a delegated authority basis. Property Facilities is exposed to catastrophe 
claims, particularly US windstorms, earthquakes, floods and terrorist events, and to an increased frequency of fire and weather-
related events.

Accident and Health offers diversification due to low correlation with other business lines. Personal accident has the potential 
to suffer from large losses due to a high concentration of multiple deaths from a catastrophe or large claims from high valued 
insured individuals. Medical expense claims are subject to high inflationary costs and may experience a high claim frequency. 
Contingency classes have exposure to multiple claims from a single event.

The key risks relating to Long Tail Facilities lie with increasing claim frequency due to global recessionary events 
or systemic malpractice.

(3)  Property

Political Risk and Trade Credit

Covers non-payment/performance of counterparties and confiscation, expropriation, 
nationalisation, deprivation, sequestration or forced abandonment of overseas assets.

Political Violence

Covers physical damage and business interruption losses due to perils including terrorism, 
riots, war, chemical, biological and/or radiological attacks.

Open Market and Worldwide Property Coverage of commercial property in the US and internationally.

UK Property

UK property package covers for individuals and small or medium-sized enterprises.

Specie and Private Client

Coverage of fine art, specie and private client risks.

Brit provides property cover on a worldwide basis, with the largest exposures in the US. The open market, UK and worldwide 
property lines are exposed to catastrophe claims, particularly windstorms, earthquakes, floods and terrorist events, and 
to an increased frequency of fire and weather-related events. The Political Risk and Political Violence classes are exposed 
to individual large losses arising from terrorist attacks or state action.

(4) Ambridge Transactional
Ambridge is a specialised managing general underwriter of complex risks, whose core products are Transactional Insurance, 
Complex Management Liability Insurance and Intellectual Property Insurance.

106 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

(5)  Specialty

Marine

Energy

EL & PL

Space

Coverage for cargo, hull, marine war and marine liability.

Coverage for Upstream and Midstream operations, including renewables.

Cover for UK and international liability business including Employers, Public, Products and 
Environmental Liability across a range of territories.

Coverage for satellites at both launch and in orbit.

The Specialty portfolio includes a diverse range of business lines. However, the portfolio is exposed to large losses on individual risks, 
for example due to the loss of marine vessels or offshore oil platforms. The EL and PL portfolio is exposed to large losses resulting 
from bodily injury claims, and the risk of latent claims arising from risks that were not envisaged at the time of writing the policy. 
Outwards reinsurance is purchased to mitigate this large loss risk.

(ii)  London Reinsurance

Property Treaty

Casualty Treaty

Catastrophe excess of loss, risk excess of loss reinsurance and retrocession.

Casualty and accident treaty reinsurance. Worldwide portfolio, writing predominantly non-
proportional reinsurance (including retrocession) covering all the principal casualty classes 
as well as Personal Accident and other accident classes. These include Property Terror, 
Products Recall, Credit/Bond/Surety, Political Risks and Contingency.

The key exposures for Property Treaty are US windstorms and Californian earthquakes. Property Treaty also has exposures 
to Japanese earthquakes and European windstorms.

The Casualty Treaty business is exposed to man-made catastrophe claims such as terrorism, increased claim activity in the event 
of an economic downturn and the potential for latent claims which were not foreseen at the time the policies were underwritten. This 
division contains the longest tailed liabilities the Group holds, i.e. there can be a significant delay between the notification and final 
settlement of a claim. This delay can result in the final settlement being subject to significant claims inflation.

(iii) Overseas Distribution

Ambridge Casualty

Ambridge Re

Scion

Casualty treaty reinsurance. North American portfolio, covering a range of classes 
including general liability, umbrella, professional liability, personal accident, auto liability, 
environmental liability, medical malpractice and workers compensation. Target client focus 
is broad and includes but is not limited to captives, RRGs, regional, super-regional and 
nationwide carriers.

Property and casualty treaty reinsurance and retrocession business.

Underwrites commercial property, E&S co-tenancy risk, and E&S specialist casualty 
insurance, focusing on excess liability (including Transportation) and primary 
general liability.

The Ambridge portfolio is well-diversified but is exposed to the risk of catastrophe claims and individual large losses. A downturn 
in the US economy could also lead to increased claims activity.

Scion ceased to be a part of the Brit Group on 28 June 2021 following its sale to a third-party. However, the Group continues 
to underwrite business through Scion.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

107

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

(iv) Aggregate exposure management
The Group closely monitors aggregation of exposure to natural catastrophe events against agreed risk appetites using stochastic 
catastrophe modelling tools, along with knowledge of the business, historical loss information, and geographical accumulations. 
Analysis and monitoring also measures the effectiveness of the Group’s reinsurance programmes.

The Group’s catastrophe risk tolerance is reviewed and set by the Boards on an annual basis. The last review of catastrophe risk 
tolerances was in March 2021.

Overall, the Group, for major catastrophe events (as measured by Worldwide All Perils net, 1-in-5, 1-in-30 and 1-in-250 Aggregate 
Exceedance Probability (AEP)) has tolerances for each return period expressed as a percentage of the Brit Limited Group net 
tangible assets.

Stress and scenario tests are also run, such as Lloyd’s and internally developed Realistic Disaster Scenarios (RDSs). Below are the 
key RDS losses to the Group for all classes combined (unaudited):

Gulf of Mexico windstorm
Florida Miami windstorm
US North East windstorm
San Francisco earthquake
Japan earthquake
Japan windstorm
European windstorm

Modelled Group loss at
1 October 2021

Modelled Group loss at
1 October 2020

Estimated
Industry loss
$m

111,000
131,000
81,000
80,000
69,244
14,714
27,227

Gross
$m

1,072
1,190
1,103
1,581
326
58
98

(Note 1)
Net
$m

216
170
142
415
190
35
63

Gross
$m

1,001
1,081
1,016
1,496
382
80
99

(Note 1)
Net
$m

148
95
183
442
201
50
66

Note 1: At 31 December 2021 foreign exchange rates.

Actual results may differ materially from the losses above given the significant uncertainties within model assumptions, techniques 
and simulations applied to calculate these event loss estimates. There could also be non-modelled losses which result in actual losses 
exceeding these figures. Moreover, the portfolio of insured risks changes dynamically over time.

(v)  Sensitivity to changes in net claims ratio
The Group profit/loss on ordinary activities before taxation is sensitive to an independent 1% change in the net claims ratio 
(excluding the effect of foreign exchange on non-monetary items) for each class of business as follows:

London – Direct
London – RI
Overseas Distribution

Discontinued
Other
Ki

Total

FinPro, Progs & Facilities, Property, 
Ambridge Transactional, Specialty
Property and Casualty Treaty
Ambridge Casualty, Ambridge Re, Scion
London Discontinued, BGSU 
Discontinued
Other Underwriting and Corporate
Syndicate 1618

Impact on profit of 1% change in claims ratio

$m

11.1
3.9
0.6

(0.7)
1.0
1.7

17.6

year ended
2021
%

63.1
22.3
3.4

(4.2)
6.6
8.8

100

$m

9.7
3.4
3.1

0.2
0.7
–

17.1

year ended
2020
%

57.1
19.7
18.0

1.3
3.8
–

100

Subject to taxation, the impact on shareholders’ equity would be the same as that on profit following a change in the net claims ratio.

108 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

 Reinsurance

4.1.2 
The Group purchases reinsurance to manage its exposure to individual risks and aggregation of risks arising from individual large 
claims and catastrophe events. This allows the Group to mitigate exposure to insurance losses, reduce volatility of reported results 
and protect capital.

Proportional quota share reinsurance is purchased to provide protection against claims arising either from individual large claims 
or aggregation of losses. Quota share reinsurance is also used to manage the Group’s net exposure to classes of business where 
the Group’s risk appetite is lower than the efficient operating scale of the class of business on a gross of reinsurance basis. These 
placements are reviewed on the basis of market conditions.

The Group also has in place a comprehensive programme of excess of loss reinsurances to protect itself from severe size 
or frequency of losses:

•  Facultative reinsurance is used to reduce risk relating to individual contracts. The amount of cover bought varies by class 
of business. Facultative reinsurance is also used as a tool to manage the net line size on individual risks to within tolerance.

•  Risk excess of loss reinsurance is used to protect a range of individual inwards contracts which could give rise to individual 

large claims. The optimal net retention per risk is assessed for each class of business given the Group’s risk appetite during the 
business planning exercise.

•  Aggregate catastrophe excess of loss covers are in place to protect against combined property claims from multiple policies 
resulting from catastrophe events. This is supplemented by specific covers for peril regions, catastrophe swaps, catastrophe 
bonds and industry loss warranties where they are a cost-efficient means to ensure that the Group remains within its 
catastrophe risk appetite.

• 

In December 2020 Brit issued a catastrophe bond which provides $300m of reinsurance protection to Syndicate 2987. The bond 
has a four-year term and covers losses from US named windstorms and US earthquakes. The bond was issued in the UK via 
Sussex Capital.

•  Given the fundamental importance of reinsurance protection to the Group’s risk management, the Group has in place internal 

controls and processes to ensure that the reinsurance arrangements provide appropriate protection of capital and maintain our 
ability to meet policyholder obligations. The Outwards Reinsurance Committee oversees the purchase of reinsurance.

The Group remains exposed to a number of risks relating to its reinsurance programme:

• 

It is possible for extremely severe losses to exhaust the reinsurance purchased. Any losses exceeding the reinsurance protection 
would be borne by the Group.

•  Some parts of the programme have limited reinstatements which limit the amount that may be recovered from second 

or subsequent claims. If the entirety of the cover is exhausted, it may not be possible to purchase additional reinsurance 
at a reasonable price.

•  A dispute may arise with a reinsurer which may mean the recoveries received are lower than anticipated.

•  Basis risk on reinsurance which responds to something other than Brit’s Ultimate Net Loss.

These risks are managed through a combination of techniques and controls including risk aggregation management, capital modelling 
and internal actuarial review of outward reinsurance costs. The counterparty risk in relation to reinsurance purchased is managed 
by the Credit Committee. This is further discussed in the Credit risk section below.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

109

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

 Reserving risk

4.1.3 
Reserving risk arises as the actual cost of losses for policyholder obligations incurred before 31 December 2021 from the 
established reserves due to inaccurate assumptions or unforeseen circumstances. This is a key risk for the Group as the reserves 
for unpaid losses represent the largest component of the Group’s liabilities and are inherently uncertain. The BSL Reserving 
Committee is responsible for the management of Syndicate 2987 and 2988’s reserving risk, and the Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) 
Limited Management Committee performs a similar function for Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited. The Ki Reserving Committee 
is responsible for managing Syndicate 1618’s reserving risk.

The Group has a rigorous process for establishing reserves for insurance claim liabilities and a number of controls are used 
to mitigate reserving risk. The reserving process starts with controls over claims data which ensure complete and accurate 
recording of all paid and notified claims. Claims adjusters validate policy terms and conditions, adjust claims and investigate 
suspicious or disputed claims in accordance with the Group’s claims policy. Case reserves are set for notified claims using the 
experience of specialist claims adjusters, underwriters and external experts where necessary.

Whilst the case reserve is expected to be sufficient to meet the claims amount when it is settled, incurred but not reported (IBNR) 
claims require additional reserves. This is particularly the case for the longest tailed classes of business where the final settlement 
can occur several years after the claim occurred. Actuarial triangulation techniques are employed by the Group’s experienced 
actuaries to establish the IBNR reserve. These techniques project IBNR reserves based on historical development of paid and 
incurred claims by underwriting year. For the most uncertain claims, the triangulation techniques are supplemented by additional 
methods to ensure the established reserve is appropriate. The actuarial team work closely with other business functions such 
as underwriting, claims and risk aggregation management to ensure that they have a full understanding of the emerging claims 
experience across the Group. Further details on the actuarial methods used can be found in Note 22.

The Group’s reserving policy sets out the approach to estimating claims provisions and is designed to produce accurate and reliable 
estimates that are consistent over time and across classes of business. The actuarial best estimate set out in the policy is subject 
to Reserving Committees and Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited Management Committee sign-off as part of the formal governance 
arrangements for the Group. The estimate agreed by the committees is used as a basis for the consolidated financial statements. 
A management risk margin is also applied over and above the actuarial best estimate to allow for the inherent uncertainty within the 
best estimate reserve position and wider inherent uncertainty across the economic and insurance environment. Finally, the reserves 
in the financial statements are presented to the Audit Committee for recommendation to the BSL Board who are responsible for the 
final sign-off. As part of the external statutory audit engagement, reserves are subject to external actuarial work.

The reserves can be more or less than is required to meet the claims arising from earned business. The level of uncertainty varies 
significantly between the classes written by the Group but typically is highest for those classes where there are significant delays 
in the settlement of the final claim amount. More specifically, the key areas of uncertainty within the Group’s reserves are considered 
to be claims from the long-tailed direct and long-tailed reinsurance classes. The issues contributing to this heightened uncertainty 
are common to all entities which write such business. Further details on the reserve profile and claims development tables can be 
found in Note 22.

 Investment risk management
 Introduction

4.2 
4.2.1 
This section describes the Group’s approach to managing its investment risk, from both a quantitative and a qualitative perspective. 
Investment risk includes market risk (which is covered in section 4.3), investment credit risk (which is covered in section 4.4) and 
liquidity risk (which is covered in section 4.5).

 Investment governance framework

4.2.2 
Investment risk is managed in line with the elements of the Risk Management Framework (RMF) – identification, measurement and 
management. The Board has overall responsibility for determining the investment strategy, including defining the risk tolerance. This 
is achieved through investment policies and guidelines, which reflect the risk appetite and the business strategy of the Group and 
individual entities within the Group.

110 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

The BSL Investment Committee and the Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited Management Committee have been mandated 
to review, advise and make recommendations to the respective Boards on investment strategy with a view to optimising investment 
performance. The investment strategy is executed through outsourced investment management agreements, which is in line with 
prevailing regulations, with Hamblin Watsa Investment Counsel Limited (HWIC) and a range of other third-party investment managers.

The Risk Oversight Committee ensures that the investment risk is managed within the framework and also reports to the Board. 
An Investment Operations Committee oversees the operational risk that is relevant to the investment management function.

Information is provided at least quarterly covering portfolio composition, performance, forecasting and the results of stress and 
scenario tests. Any operational issues and breaches to the risk appetite framework are reported to the Risk Oversight Committee 
and the Board.

 Risk tolerance

4.2.3 
Investment risk tolerances are set by the Board, defining the appetite to investments, solvency risk, concentration risk, credit 
quality, currency risk and liquidity risk. The appetite to these elements of investment risk is derived from the overall risk appetite 
and business strategy and reflects a number of factors, including the current and expected economic climate, capital management 
strategy, liquidity needs and asset liability matching (ALM) policy. The investment risk tolerance helps determine the strategic 
asset allocation.

Risk metrics are monitored and reported on regularly, to ensure that performance is within the Board-approved levels and limits 
continue to remain appropriate, within the governance framework highlighted above.

 Solvency matching

4.2.4 
Assets are considered by both currency and duration profile in relation to the liabilities thereby managing the impact of foreign 
exchange and interest rate risk on the solvency position.

Under this strategy, the total assets of each underwriting entity within the Group are sought to be held in proportion to the 
currencies of that entity’s technical provisions. For each Group underwriting entity, a solvency matched benchmark is calculated. 
This benchmark is the cash flow profile for investments which would minimise the sensitivity of the Group’s solvency position 
to changes in interest and exchange rates. The Group seeks to implement this through the use of cash, investments and foreign 
exchange forward contracts in the respective currencies. The investment guidelines for each entity stipulate duration limits and the 
positioning and sensitivity for both the asset and solvency position is reported quarterly.

 Investment management

4.2.5 
The investment management strategy is delivered, at the entity level, through outsourced Investment Management Agreements 
(IMAs) with HWIC and a range of other third-party investment managers. The IMAs prescribe the investment parameters within which 
HWIC are permitted to make asset allocation decisions on behalf of the respective entities.

Each of the Group’s investing entities is governed by separate investment policies; these detail the parameters, roles and 
responsibilities relating to the management of each entity’s investment portfolio.

 Market risk
 Introduction

4.3 
4.3.1 
Market risk is the risk that the fair value or future cash flows of a financial instrument will fluctuate because of changes in market 
prices. Market risk comprises three types of risk: interest rate risk, currency risk and other price risk. Credit risk on financial 
investments and cash is covered in the credit risk section.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

111

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

 Interest rate risk

4.3.2 
Introduction
Interest rate risk is the risk that the fair value and/or future cash flows of a financial instrument will fluctuate because of changes 
in interest rates. The Group is exposed to interest rate risk through its investment portfolio, borrowings and cash and cash 
equivalents. The sensitivity of the price of these financial exposures is indicated by their respective durations. This is defined as the 
modified duration which is the change in the price of the security subject to a 100 basis points parallel shift in interest rates. The 
greater the duration of a security, the greater the possible price volatility.

The banded durations of the Group’s financial investments and cash and cash equivalents sensitive to interest rate risk are shown 
in the table below:

Duration

At 31 December 2021
Cash and cash equivalents
Financial investments

At 31 December 2020
Cash and cash equivalents
Financial investments

1 year or less
$m

1 to 3 years
$m

3 to 5 years
$m

Over 5 years
$m

1,510.3
1,669.2

3,179.5

775.7
2,228.8

3,004.5

–
606.3

606.3

–
553.0

553.0

–
994.1

994.1

–
564.1

564.1

–
265.4

265.4

–
334.0

334.0

Equities
$m

–
480.0

480.0

–
376.6

376.6

Total
$m

1,510.3
4,015.0

5,525.3

775.7
4,056.5

4,832.2

The duration of the investment portfolio is set within an allowable range relative to the targeted duration and monitored on  
a quarterly basis.

As the claims liabilities are measured on an undiscounted basis, the reported liabilities are not sensitive to changes in interest rates. 
Therefore, there is a balance to be struck between targeting a longer duration to protect the solvency position against movements 
in interest rates, and targeting a shorter duration that will reduce the possible volatility around the income statement.

Sensitivity to changes in investment yields
The sensitivity of the profit to the changes in investment yields is set out in the table below. The analysis is based on the information 
at 31 December 2021.

Impact on profit before tax

Increase
25 basis points
50 basis points
100 basis points
Decrease
25 basis points
50 basis points
100 basis points

Subject to taxation, the effect on shareholders’ equity would be the same as the effect on profit.

2021
$m

(21.3)
(42.5)
(85.1)

21.3
42.5
85.1

2020
$m

(17.7)
(35.3)
(70.6)

17.6
35.1
70.2

112 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

 Currency risk

4.3.3 
Introduction
Currency risk is the risk that movements in exchange rates impact the financial performance or solvency position of the Group.

The Group matches assets to liabilities for each of the main currencies. Group capital is held in proportion to the liabilities, 
to minimise the impact on solvency and distributable earnings from movements in exchange rates. The split of assets and liabilities 
for each of the Group’s main currencies, converted to US dollars, is set out in the tables below:

At 31 December 2021
Total assets
Total liabilities

USD
$m

GBP £
Conv.
$m

7,607.6
6,045.5

1,287.0
1,198.7

CAD $
Conv.
$m

855.7
372.2

Net assets/(liabilities) excluding the effect 

of currency derivatives

1,562.1

88.3

483.5

Adjustment for foreign exchange 

derivatives

Adjusted net assets

At 31 December 2020
Total assets
Total liabilities

Net assets/(liabilities) excluding the effect 

of currency derivatives

Adjusted for foreign exchange derivatives

Adjusted net assets

225.9

1,788.0

6,294.9
4,866.7

1,428.2

127.9

1,556.1

84.0

172.3

1,079.8
1,201.3

(121.5)

88.8

(32.7)

(382.7)

100.8

769.8
346.2

423.6

(314.9)

108.7

EUR €
Conv.
$m

392.4
345.2

47.2

13.6

60.8

323.3
331.6

(8.3)

78.1

69.8

AUD $
Conv.
$m

Total
Conv.
$m

76.2
110.7

10,218.9
8,072.3

(34.5)

2,146.6

59.2

24.7

79.9
87.6

(7.7)

20.1

12.4

–

2,146.6

8,547.7
6,833.4

1,714.3

–

1,714.3

The non-US dollar denominated net assets of the Group may lead to profits or losses (depending on the mix relative to the liabilities), 
should the US dollar vary relative to these currencies.

Foreign currency forward contracts may be used to achieve the desired exposure to each currency. From time to time the Group 
may also choose to utilise foreign currency derivatives to manage the risk of reported losses due to changes in foreign exchange 
rates. The details of all foreign currency derivative contracts entered into are given in Note 24.

As a result of the accounting treatment for non-monetary items, the Group may also experience volatility in its income statement 
due to fluctuations in exchange rates. The degree to which derivatives are used is dependent on the prevailing costs versus the 
perceived benefit to shareholder value from reducing the chance of a reported loss due to changes in foreign exchange rates.

In accordance with IFRS, non-monetary items are recorded at original transaction rates and are not revalued at the reporting date. 
These items include unearned premiums, deferred acquisition costs and reinsurers’ share of unearned premiums. This means these 
amounts in the statement of financial position are carried at a different exchange rate to the remaining assets and liabilities, with the 
resulting exchange differences that are created being recognised in the income statement. The Group considers this to be a timing 
issue which can cause volatility in the income statement.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

113

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

Sensitivity to changes in foreign exchange rates
The table below gives an indication of the impact on profit of a percentage movement in the relative strength of the US dollar 
against the value of Sterling, Canadian dollar, Australian dollar and Euro simultaneously, after taking into consideration the effect 
of hedged positions and items recorded as non-monetary assets and liabilities under IFRS. The analysis is based on the information 
at 31 December 2021.

Impact on profit before tax

US dollar weakens
10% against other currencies
20% against other currencies

US dollar strengthens
10% against other currencies
20% against other currencies

2021
$m

50.3
100.6

2020
$m

23.0
46.1

(50.3)
(100.6)

(23.0)
(46.1)

Subject to taxation, the effect on shareholders’ equity would be the same as the effect on profit.

 Other price risk

4.3.4 
Introduction
This is the risk that the fair value or future cash flows of a financial instrument will fluctuate because of changes in market prices 
(other than those arising from interest rate risk or currency risk), whether those changes are caused by factors specific to the 
individual financial instrument or its issuer, or factors affecting all similar financial instruments traded in the market.

Financial assets and derivatives that are recognised at their fair value are susceptible to losses due to adverse changes in their 
prices. This is known as price risk.

Listed investments are recognised in the financial statements at quoted bid price. If the market for the investment is not considered 
to be active, then the Group establishes fair valuation techniques. This includes using recent arm’s-length transactions, reference 
to current fair value of other similar investments, discounted cash flow models and other valuation techniques that are commonly 
used by market participants.

The prices of fixed and floating rate income securities are predominantly impacted by currency, interest rate and credit risks. Credit 
risk on investments is discussed in the following section of this Note.

Sensitivity to changes in other price risk
The sensitivity of the profit to the changes in the prices of equity is set out in the table below. The analysis is based on the information 
as at 31 December 2021.

Impact on profit before tax

Increase in fair value
10%
20%
30%

Decrease in fair value
10%
20%
30%

Subject to taxation, the effect on shareholders’ equity would be the same as the effect on profit.

114 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

2021
$m

83.7
167.4
251.0

(83.7)
(167.4)
(251.0)

2020
$m

64.1
128.2
192.3

(64.1)
(128.2)
(192.3)

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

 Credit risk

4.4 
This is the risk that one party to a financial instrument will cause a financial loss for the other party by failing to discharge 
an obligation in a timely manner. The main sources of credit risk relate to:

•  Reinsurers: through the failure to pay valid claims against a reinsurance contract held by the Group;

•  Brokers and coverholders: where counterparties fail to pass on premiums or claims collected or paid on behalf of the Group;

• 

Investments: through the issuer default of all or part of the value of a financial instrument or the market value of that 
instrument; and

•  Cash and cash equivalents: through the default of the banks holding the cash and cash equivalents.

The insurance and non-insurance related counterparty credit risks are managed separately by the Group.

 Investment credit risk

4.4.1 
Investment credit risk management process
The Group Board has overall responsibility for investment credit risk. The investment guidelines and investment policy set out clear 
limits and controls around the level of investment credit risk. The Group has established concentration guidelines that restrict the 
exposure to any individual counterparty. The investment guidelines further limit the type, credit quality and maturity profile of both 
the Group’s cash and investments. In addition, the investment risk framework further limits potential exposure to credit risk through 
aggregate investment risk limits. The Brit Syndicates Limited Investment Committee chaired by Simon Lee, a non-executive Director 
of Brit Syndicates Limited, is responsible for the immediate oversight of the Group’s UK investments and the Brit Reinsurance 
(Bermuda) Limited Board is responsible for the immediate oversight of the Group’s Bermuda investments. Ultimately, both are 
responsible to the Brit Limited Board.

Investment credit risk profile
The summary of the investment credit risk exposures for the Group is set out in the tables below:

At 31 December 2021
Financial investments
Derivative contracts
Cash and cash equivalents

At 31 December 2020
Financial investments
Derivative contracts
Cash and cash equivalents

AAA
$m

AA
$m

A
$m

P-1
$m

P-2
$m

BBB and below
$m

Equities
$m

Not rated
$m

Total
$m

2,163.3
–
703.9

2,867.2

1,663.9
–
174.6

1,838.5

183.2
–
382.4

565.6

337.9
–
103.6

441.5

379.7
–
236.1

615.8

813.2
–
385.5

1,198.7

–
–
130.0

130.0

–
–
19.7

19.7

–
–
–

–

–
–
38.4

38.4

372.1
–
57.9

430.0

471.3
–
53.9

525.2

480.0
–
–

480.0

376.6
–
–

376.6

436.7
15.1
–

4,015.0
15.1
1,510.3

451.8

5,540.4

393.6
14.9
–

408.5

4,056.5
14.9
775.7

4,847.1

The table above gives an indication of the level of credit worthiness of assets that are most exposed to credit risk. The ratings are 
mainly sourced from Standard & Poor’s and where these are not available an equivalent rating agency.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

115

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

 Insurance credit risk

4.4.2 
Insurance credit risk management process
The Credit Committee chaired by the Group Chief Financial Officer is responsible for the management of credit risk arising from 
insurance activities.

Reinsurer credit risk is managed by transacting only with reinsurance counterparties that satisfy a minimum level of financial 
strength or provide appropriate levels of collateral and have been approved for use by the Credit Committee. The reinsurer security 
list, which sets out the list of approved reinsurance counterparties, is reviewed at least annually and following any significant change 
in risk profile, which includes any changes to reinsurers’ financial ratings. Credit risk appetite limits are set for reinsurance entities 
and groups to limit accumulations of risk. These positions are monitored quarterly against current balance sheet exposures and 
in relation to a number of extreme loss scenarios.

Reinsurance aged debt is monitored and managed against the management risk appetite limits set by the Credit Committee. A bad 
debt provision is held against all non-rated reinsurers or any reinsurer where there is deemed to be a specific risk of non-payment.

Any breaches of credit risk tolerance and/or appetite are reported to the Risk Oversight Committee and the Board at least quarterly.

Insurance credit risk profile
The summary of the insurance credit risk exposures for the Group is set out in the tables below:

At 31 December 2021
Reinsurance assets
Insurance receivables

At 31 December 2020
Reinsurance assets
Insurance receivables

AAA
$m

8.9
–

8.9

5.7
–

5.7

AA
$m

895.3
–

895.3

860.8
–

860.8

A
$m

Collateral $m

781.7
–

781.7

461.1
–

461.1

189.4
–

189.4

144.2
–

144.2

Not
rated
$m

19.1
1,347.4

1,366.5

21.2
1,152.8

1,174.0

Total
$m

1,894.4
1,347.4

3,241.8

1,493.0
1,152.8

2,645.8

Insurance credit risk arises primarily from reinsurers (whereby reinsurers fail to pay recoveries due to the Group in a timely 
manner) and brokers and coverholders (whereby intermediaries fail to pass on premiums due to the Group in a timely manner).

As at 31 December 2021, collateral of $189.4m (2020: $144.2m) had been drawn against reinsurance assets.

116 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Impairment
provision against
reinsurance
assets
$m

Impairment
provision against
insurance
receivables
$m

0.5
–
(0.1)

0.4

–
0.5
–

0.5

1.1
0.3
(0.4)

1.0

11.0
(9.1)
(0.8)

1.1

2020
$m

36.6
6.5
(0.3)
0.6
5.3

48.7

The following table shows movements in impairment provisions during the year:

2021
Opening provision at 1 January
Strengthening for the year
Net foreign exchange differences

Closing provision at 31 December

2020
Opening provision at 1 January
Strengthening/(release) for the year
Net foreign exchange differences

Closing provision at 31 December

The following table shows the amount of insurance receivables past due but not impaired at the end of the year:

0-3 months past due*
4-6 months past due
7-9 months past due
10-12 months past due
More than 12 months past due

2021
$m

(324.9)
12.5
49.4
1.0
5.1

(256.9)

*As at 31/12/2021, this includes $344.1m (2020: nil) of payable balances in respect of loss portfolio reinsurance.

 Liquidity risk

4.5 
Liquidity risk is the risk that the Group may encounter difficulty in meeting obligations associated with financial liabilities that are 
settled by delivering cash or another financial asset. The predominant liquidity risk the Group faces is the daily calls on its available 
cash resources in respect of claims arising from insurance contracts.

The Group monitors the levels of cash and cash equivalents on a daily basis, ensuring adequate liquidity to meet the expected cash 
flow requirements due over the short-term.

The Group also limits the amount of investment in illiquid securities in line with the liquidity policy set by the Boards. This involves 
ensuring sufficient liquidity to withstand claim scenarios at the extreme end of business plan projections, by reference to modelled 
Realistic Disaster Scenarios. Contingent liquidity also exists in the form of a Group revolving credit facility.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

117

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

The tables below present the fair value of monetary assets and the undiscounted value of monetary liabilities of the Group into 
their relevant maturing groups based on the remaining period at the end of the year to their contractual maturities or expected 
repayment dates. Borrowings are stated at their nominal value at maturity.

31 December 2021

Assets
Reinsurance assets
Financial investments
Derivative contracts
Insurance receivables
Cash and cash equivalents

31 December 2021

Liabilities
Insurance contract liabilities
Derivative contracts
Borrowings
Other financial liabilities
Insurance and other 

payables

31 December 2020

Assets
Reinsurance assets
Financial investments
Derivative contracts
Insurance receivables
Cash and cash equivalents

31 December 2020

Liabilities
Insurance contract liabilities
Derivative contracts
Borrowings
Other financial liabilities
Insurance and other 

payables

Statement
of financial
position
$m

2,291.2
4,015.0
15.1
1,347.4
1,510.3

9,179.0

Statement
of financial
position
$m

6,532.9
12.5
227.9
95.8

1,184.1

8,053.2

Statement of
financial
position
$m

1,764.1
4,056.6
14.9
1,152.8
775.7

7,764.1

Statement of
financial
position
$m

5,813.0
9.2
314.5
62.0

620.7

6,819.4

<1 year
$m

1 to 3 years
$m

3 to 5 years
$m

>5 years
$m

Fair values

939.0
1,669.2
13.9
1,347.4
1,510.3

5,479.8

624.1
606.3
–
–
–

339.4
994.1
1.2
–
–

1,230.4

1,334.7

388.7
265.4
–
–
–

654.1

Equities
$m

–
480.0
–
–
–

480.0

Total
$m

2,291.2
4,015.0
15.1
1,347.4
1,510.3

9,179.0

<1 year
$m

1 to 3 years
$m

3 to 5 years
$m

>5 years
$m

Equities
$m

Total
$m

Undiscounted values

2,808.6
12.5
–
–

1,139.1

3,960.2

1,685.3
–
–
–

16.2

1,701.5

841.4
–
45.0
–

13.6

900.0

1,197.6
–
182.9
–

21.4

1,401.9

Fair values

<1 year
$m

1 to 3 years
$m

3 to 5 years
$m

>5 years
$m

718.2
2,228.9
14.3
1,152.8
775.7

4,889.9

494.2
553.0
–
–
–

1,047.2

255.3
564.1
0.4
–
–

819.8

296.4
334.0
0.2
–
–

630.6

–
–
–
95.8

–

95.8

Equities
$m

–
376.6
–
–
–

376.6

6,532.9
12.5
227.9
95.8

1,190.3

8,059.4

Total
$m

1,764.1
4,056.6
14.9
1,152.8
775.7

7,764.1

<1 year
$m

1 to 3 years
$m

3 to 5 years
$m

>5 years
$m

Equities
$m

Total
$m

Undiscounted values

2,342.6
9.2
130.0
–

 573.6

 3,055.4

1,497.9
–
–
–

 14.0

1,511.9

816.9
–
–
–

 13.1

 830.0

1,155.6
–
184.5
–

 27.6

 1,367.7

–
–
–
62.0

 –

 62.0

5,813.0
9.2
314.5
62.0

 628.3

 6,827.0

118 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

 Operational risk

4.6 
Operational risk is the potential for loss arising from the failure of people, process or technology or the impact of external events. 
The nature of operational risk means that it is dispersed across all functional areas of Brit. Operational risk exposures are managed 
through a consistent set of management processes that drive risk identification, assessment, control and monitoring.

The BSL Operations Committee, chaired by the Group Chief Operating Officer, is a key governance committee reporting to the 
Executive Committee. The BSL Operations Committee is responsible for managing operational risk in line with the operational 
risk policy and the risk tolerance and management appetite limits set by the BSL Board and management respectively. Each 
individual risk committee is provided with relevant operational risk updates and these committees include operational risk owners 
within executive management who actively manage operational risk within their respective areas (such as Underwriting, Claims, 
Investments and Finance).

An operational risk management framework is in place to ensure an appropriate standard approach is taken to managing operational 
risk across the Group. The key elements of this framework are:

•  Allocation of responsibility for the identification and assessment of operational risk. Standard tools are used to facilitate 

these assessments;

•  Definition of standard elements of sound operating controls that are expected to be in place to address all identified 

operational risks;

•  A process that integrates with Brit’s internal model to support the setting and monitoring of operational risk appetite 

and tolerances;

•  Governance, reporting and escalation for operational risk;

• 

Infrastructure supporting the operational risk management framework; and

•  Operational risk management training and awareness.

A conduct risk framework is in place across the Group to ensure Brit’s products and services continue to meet the needs 
of our customers.

 COVID-19 risk management

4.7 
COVID-19 originated in Hubei Province in China and has since spread across the globe. Governments have taken various actions 
to contain the pandemic, including social distancing measures, travel restrictions and lockdowns, resulting in the closure of certain 
businesses. Whilst 2021 has seen the relaxation of some measures, there continues to be heightened uncertainty compared to prior 
to the pandemic. Whilst pandemic exclusions offer some protection against new insurance claims from various lines of business, 
there is still a potential impact from policies written prior to the pandemic. COVID-19 has also caused significant volatility in the 
financial markets. Interest rates remain at depressed levels and inflation has increased.

The Group has managed the risks associated with COVID-19 in line with the requirements of its risk management policies. Further 
details are provided below.

•  Operational risk

COVID-19 caused a temporary shift from an office-based working environment to a remote working environment for all staff. 
Brit continues to monitor the situation and adapt its approach to reflect current circumstances. Brit and its outsourced service 
providers have adapted well to the changing situation and operational performance has generally been strong.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

119

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

Support mechanisms remain in place for our employees, and we continue to communicate regularly to ensure that people feel 
engaged and supported. We regularly monitor and report on the performance of controls and operational effectiveness. The ongoing 
monitoring of operational risk has not identified any material concerns or failings.

• 

Insurance risk

The Group has a rigorous process for establishing reserves for insurance claim liabilities, including those associated with COVID-19. 
However, uncertainties remain around loss estimates given that the pandemic is ongoing. We also continue to monitor the potential 
for claims arising indirectly from the pandemic. For example, due to the global recession in 2020 which may lead to an increased risk 
of moral hazard, fraud, and a more litigious environment generally. Rising price inflation in the US and UK may also lead to an increase 
in the cost of settling claims.

The underwriting portfolio is actively managed to reflect market developments, and action has been taken to ensure Brit 
is appropriately positioned for both the pandemic and the impact on economic conditions. The Group is now applying communicable 
disease exclusions across the vast majority of its business.

• 

Investment and Market risk

COVID-19 caused significant volatility in financial markets. Whilst equity markets have largely recovered to pre-pandemic levels, 
interest rates remain depressed, and inflation has increased. The investment portfolio continues to be actively managed to reflect 
market developments.

•  Credit risk

COVID-19 has caused economic disruption around the world with many businesses and individuals forced to cease business activity 
in light of government lockdowns. As at 31 December 2021, the Group has not seen a material increase in defaults but continues 
to monitor this closely.

•  Solvency and Liquidity risk

As at 31 December 2021, the Group held a surplus of $617.9m (2020: $341.0m) over its management capital requirements. All 
regulatory capital requirements have been complied with by the Group’s individual insurance subsidiaries throughout 2021. Our 
regulatory capital requirements calculation as at 31 December 2021 included an allowance for the uncertainties associated with 
COVID-19 as described above. Brit continues to benefit from the support of the wider Fairfax group.

The Group has conducted stress testing of its underwriting subsidiaries’ liquidity resources, in order to assess their ability 
to continue making claims payments as they fall due. This stress testing demonstrated their continued ability to access sufficient 
liquidity, even in severe stress scenarios. At 31 December 2021, the Group held $3,803.7m (2020: $2,623.5m) of cash and short-
dated government debt securities, and $275.0m (2020: $190.0m) undrawn on its RCF.

As part of the terms of the RCF, Brit is obliged to ensure that borrowings under the facility will not exceed 40% of consolidated net 
tangible assets (defined as the aggregate of the share capital of the Company, the amount standing to the credit of the consolidated 
reserves of the Group and any financial indebtedness of the Group which is fully subordinated to the facility). At 31 December 2021 
Brit was well within this threshold, with RCF drawings equating to 10.4% of consolidated net tangible assets (2020: 16.0%).

 Emerging risks

4.8 
Brit undertakes a formal emerging risk review annually with the results reported to the Risk Oversight Committee and included in the 
Own Risk & Solvency Assessment (ORSA) report. The review is an important part of the risk identification aspect of the RMF and 
includes horizon scanning of the internal and external risk environment to identify potential new or developing risks to Brit. These 
risks can then be included in the risk register and managed appropriately as required.

The emerging risk review has previously identified risks such as the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU (Brexit) and cyber risk. 
These risks have been managed throughout their development and are now monitored as part of the business-as-usual risk 
management process.

120 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

 Climate Change

4.8.1 
Climate change has been recognised as an emerging risk in the ORSA since 2014 and has been an area of focus since having been 
identified as a high priority by Brit’s 2018 emerging risks analysis. Its potential impact on the insurance industry is an area of focus 
for the wider insurance market and its regulators.

The financial risks to insurers may include the potential for increased frequency and severity of weather-related natural 
catastrophes, for example, hurricanes and wildfires. In line with previous years, 2021 continued to see wildfires occurring worldwide 
and the Atlantic hurricane season was the third most active season on record after 2020 and 2015.

The three main areas of risk identified for Brit are natural catastrophes, liability claims and investment losses:

•  Natural catastrophe risks relating to climate change are the physical risks of increased frequency and severity of weather-
related natural catastrophes. This could result in additional claims and could impact Brit in the short to medium-term. We 
continuously monitor scientific studies, regularly review the completeness of existing models and the application of the Brit view 
of risk. Brit’s exposure to natural catastrophe risks is monitored on an ongoing basis by the Risk Management Function.

•  Climate change could result in additional liability claims arising from increasing climate litigation against Brit’s clients. The claims 

arise from firms contributing to climate change, failing to transition to renewables, greenwashing or directors’ breach of fiduciary 
duties. The nature of these claims could impact Brit in the medium to long-term. Brit’s exposure is limited through limits on gross 
underwriting exposure and through the purchase of reinsurance.

• 

Investment losses have the potential to arise from exposure to industries perceived to be contributing to climate change. This 
transition risk could adversely impact Brit very quickly as financial markets valuations fluctuate. Brit has a diversified investment 
portfolio, with limits on exposure to individual issuers. Brit is developing metrics to strengthen its understanding of the potential 
impacts of climate change on its investments.

Brit is managing the risks associated with climate change in line with the RMF which is reviewed annually, and regulatory guidance 
developments are monitored through the committees and working parties. This will continue to be an area of management, Risk 
Committee and Board focus, with a multi-disciplinary Climate Change Risk Working Party to consider the financial risks associated 
with climate change.

Climate change scenario analysis has been conducted as part of the ORSA process, and Brit participated in the PRA’s Climate Biennial 
Exploratory Scenario (CBES) testing exercise in 2021. Brit’s Solvency II internal models include an allowance for the impact of climate 
change. The analysis utilises catastrophe modelling, expert judgement, scenario analysis and selected metrics as tools to monitor 
and manage exposure to climate-related risks. The outputs from these feed into business decision making. Brit is compliant with PRA 
Supervisory Statement SS3/19 which sets expectations for firms regarding their consideration of climate risk.

Brit actively considers the potential implications of climate change and sustainability on its investment and underwriting strategies, 
how it should engage more widely on environmental and ethical issues, and its own sustainability initiatives. An annual review of equity 
holdings is conducted which includes a review of the ESG strategy of underlying companies within Brit’s equity portfolio. Holdings 
of industries such as oil and gas, transport and utilities deemed to materially contribute to climate change are also monitored. These 
are further discussed on page 48.

 Capital management

4.9 
Brit defines management entity capital as the amount of capital that the Board of each underwriting entity determines that it should 
hold, taking into account the requirements of shareholders, regulators, policyholders, and the Boards’ solvency risk appetite. The 
capital policy is set by the entity and Group Boards. Management entity capital requirements are in excess of capital requirements 
under the Solvency II capital regime, which became effective on 1 January 2016.

The capital requirements are based on the output of the internal model which reflects the risk profile of the business.

The capital policy requires capital to be held well in excess of regulatory minimum requirements, underpinning Brit’s financial 
strength. The policy ensures the capital adequacy of the Group as a whole, and each entity, through an efficient capital structure. 
Brit proactively responds to developments in the financial environment to ensure its capital strength is maintained while optimising 
risk adjusted returns.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

121

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

 Risk management policies (continued)

The Group’s total capital consists of net tangible assets (after the exclusion of the deferred tax liability on intangible assets 
and non-controlling interest), subordinated debt, letters of credit, and contingent funding. This amounted to $2,199.5m 
as at 31 December 2021 (2020: $1,881.3m). This represented a surplus of $617.9m (2020: $341.0m) over the management capital 
requirements (unaudited).

All regulatory capital requirements have been complied with during the year by the Group’s individual insurance subsidiaries.

The Lloyd’s market is subject to the solvency and capital adequacy requirements of the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). 
Any regulatory intervention by the PRA in respect of Lloyd’s may adversely affect the Group. The PRA may impose more stringent 
requirements on Lloyd’s which may result in higher capital requirements or a restriction on trading activities for entities within 
the Group. If Lloyd’s fails to satisfy its solvency test in any year, the PRA may require Lloyd’s to cease trading and/or its members 
to cease or reduce their underwriting exposure, which may result in a material adverse effect to the Group’s reputation, financial 
condition and results of operations.

During 2021, Brit primarily underwrote through the Group’s wholly aligned Lloyd’s Syndicate 2987 which benefits from the Lloyd’s 
credit ratings of A (Excellent) from A.M. Best, AA – (Very Strong) from Fitch and A+ (Strong) from Standard & Poor’s. Any downgrade 
in Lloyd’s financial strength ratings may have an adverse effect on the Group.

The Group’s business plan and underwriting capacity for the Syndicate may be affected by a decrease in the value of the Group’s 
Funds at Lloyd’s or by recommendations from the Lloyd’s Franchise Board. The Group is also reliant upon the compliance of Lloyd’s 
with US regulations, including the maintenance by Lloyd’s of its trading licences and approvals in the US.

 Sussex: Governance Structure

4.10 
Sussex Capital is Brit’s collateralised reinsurance platform based in Bermuda which was launched on 1 January 2018. Sussex Capital 
Limited has two segregated accounts operating as funds available for capital investment, referred to as The Diversified Fund and 
Specialty Insurance Fund (the Funds). Through Sussex Re, it writes direct collateralised property catastrophe reinsurance and also 
provides collateralised reinsurance to Brit’s Property Treaty portfolio.

Sussex Capital has an independent governance structure to manage its operations. This consists of a Board and three sub-
committees. The Board has overall responsibility for oversight of the business. The Valuation Committee is responsible for fund 
valuation, settling claims and setting reserves, the Investment Committee ensures investments are made in line with the Funds 
objectives, and the Management Committee oversees the day-to-day operations of the Funds.

The risks to Brit from Sussex Capital arise from two main sources: first, a direct investment risk due to the Group’s investment 
in the Funds; secondly, operational, reputational, and strategic risks relating to managing the Funds on behalf of external investors. 
The direct investment risk is managed in the same way as the Group’s other investment risks, through oversight by the relevant 
committees. The operational, reputational, and strategic risks are managed through the governance structure in place at Sussex 
as described above. In particular, the Sussex Board has independent non-executive Directors with significant industry experience. 
The Brit Group provides support (for example, catastrophe modelling) to assist Sussex’s operations and risk management.

 Ki: Governance and Risk Management Framework

4.11 
Ki is the first fully digital and algorithmically driven Lloyd’s syndicate offering instant capacity, accessible anywhere, at any time. 
It started writing business from 1 January 2021, writing a mix of lines that are either already underwritten by Brit Syndicates 2987 
and 2988, or other approved nominated leads.

Ki is managed by BSL, with its capital backing coming from a mix of Fairfax and Blackstone. In line with Brit’s Risk Management 
Framework, risks to Ki and Syndicate 1618 are managed in the same way as Brit’s other syndicates, other than where 
specifically noted above.

122 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

5 

 Segmental information

This Note breaks down the operating results summarised in the income statement into the main business areas of the Group. It also 
shows how our revenue is split globally. This analysis is designed to help you understand how each segment of our business has 
performed and how we have allocated our shareholders’ capital.

For the year ended 31 December 2021, we have re-presented our reporting segments. The reportable segments identified were as follows:

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

‘London Direct’, which underwrites the Group’s international and US business, other than treaty reinsurance. London Direct 
predominantly deals with wholesale buyers of insurance, rather than individuals. Risks are large and usually syndicated by several 
underwriters by means of the subscription market. It includes the Transactional business generated by Ambridge.

‘London Reinsurance’, which underwrites reinsurance business (essentially the insurance of insurance and reinsurance 
companies) and includes writing non-proportional cover for major events such as earthquakes or hurricanes. These insurance 
and reinsurance companies calculate how much risk they want to retain and then pass on their remaining exposure to reinsurers 
in return for a premium. It includes business generated by BGSB (Bermuda).
‘Overseas Distribution’ represents the Specialty Casualty and Reinsurance business generated by Ambridge (US), formerly 
generated by BGSU, and business generated by Scion.

‘Discontinued’ represents lines on business which have been placed into run-off.

‘Other Underwriting’, includes the Group’s special purpose vehicles and Brit’s share of Syndicate 2988. The share of the Group’s 
special purpose vehicles attributable to third-party underwriting capital providers is included within ‘gains on other financial liabilities’.

‘Investments’ represents the Group’s investment activity, excluding that associated with the ‘Ki’ reporting segment.

‘Corporate’, which is made up of residual income and expenditure and foreign exchange movements not allocated to other segments.

‘Ki’ represents the activities of the Ki Financial Holdings Limited sub-group, which underwrites business through Syndicate 1618.  
Ki commenced underwriting in 2021.

The segments for the year ended 31 December 2020 have been re-presented on this basis.

The ratios set out in the segmental analysis are calculated as follows:

•  The claims ratio is calculated as claims incurred, net of reinsurance divided by earned premiums, net of reinsurance.

•  The expense ratio is calculated as acquisition costs, other insurance related expenses, gains/losses on other financial liabilities 

and other income divided by earned premiums, net of reinsurance.

•  The combined ratio is the sum of the claims ratio and the expense ratio.

These ratios are now presented after FX movements on non-monetary items, after the impact of gains/losses on other financial 
liabilities and before any adjustment for non-controlling interests. The ratios for the year ended 31 December 2020 are re-presented 
on this basis.

The 2021 ratio calculations contain an adjustment whereby the premium paid for the loss portfolio reinsurance (LPR) is added back 
to premium earned net of reinsurance, with an equal and opposite adjustment to net claims incurred:

$m

Earned premiums, net of reinsurance
LPR adjustment

Adjusted earned premiums, net of reinsurance

London 
Direct

London 
Reinsurance

Overseas 
Distribution

Discontinued
Underwriting

Other 
Underwriting

Total Brit 
Underwriting 
(excluding Ki)

Ki

Total

1,111.2
–

1,111.2

392.4
–

392.4

60.0
221.5

281.5

(73.4)
123.7

98.5 1,588.7
(1.1)
344.1

165.6 1,754.3
344.1

–

50.3

97.4 1,932.8

165.6 2,098.4

Claims incurred, net of reinsurance
LPR adjustment

(579.6)
–

(272.9)
–

62.8
(221.5)

103.9
(123.7)

(80.6)
1.1

(766.4)
(344.1)

(115.2)
–

(881.6)
(344.1)

Adjusted claims incurred, net of reinsurance

(579.6)

(272.9)

(158.7)

(19.8)

(79.5) (1,110.5)

(115.2) (1,225.7)

The benefit of a $35.0m reserve release resulting from the additional protection afforded by the contract is included in the calculation. 
The Directors believe that the ratios when calculated after these adjustments present a more consistent and understandable view of 
the Group’s performance.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

123

 
 
Financial Statements

5 

 Segmental information (continued)

Information regarding the Group’s reportable segments is presented below.

(a)  Income statement by segment
Year ended 31 December 2021

$m

Gross premiums 

written

Less premiums ceded 

to reinsurers

Premiums written, 
net of reinsurance

Gross earned 
premiums

Reinsurers’ share
Earned premiums, 
net of reinsurance

Investment return
Return on derivative 

contracts

Gains on 

deconsolidation 
of subsidiaries
Gain on business 
combination
Other income
Gains on other 

financial liabilities

Total revenue

Gross claims incurred
Reinsurers' share
Claims incurred, net 

of reinsurance
Acquisition costs – 

commission

Acquisition costs – 

other

Other insurance 

related expenses

Other expenses
Net foreign exchange 

losses

Total expenses 

excluding finance 
costs

Operating profit
Finance costs
Share of net profit 

of associates

Profit on ordinary 

activities before tax

Tax credit
Profit for the year
Claims ratio
Expense ratio
Combined ratio
124 

London
Direct

London
Reinsurance

Overseas
Distribution

Discontinued 
Underwriting

Other
Underwriting

Total Brit
Underwriting
(excluding Ki)

Investments

Corporate

Total Brit
(excluding Ki)

Ki

Total
Group

1,663.9

639.6

407.9

15.9

115.4 2,842.7

(456.6)

(273.0)

(336.6)

(134.6)

10.8 (1,190.0)

1,207.3

366.6

71.3

(118.7)

126.2 1,652.7

1,498.9
(387.7)

613.5
(221.1)

385.4
(325.4)

72.8
(146.2)

98.1 2,668.7
0.4 (1,080.0)

–

–

–

–
–

– 2,842.7

395.6 3,238.3

– (1,190.0)

(50.0) (1,240.0)

– 1,652.7

345.6 1,998.3

– 2,668.7
– (1,080.0)

199.2 2,867.9
(33.6) (1,113.6)

1,111.2
–

392.4
–

60.0
–

(73.4)
–

98.5 1,588.7
–

–

–
165.8

– 1,588.7
–
165.8

165.6 1,754.3
167.2

1.4

–

–

–

–

–
33.1

–
1,144.3

–
12.7

–
405.1

–

–

–
8.1

–
68.1

(811.2)
231.6

(406.6)
133.7

(268.5)
331.3

–

–

–
0.3

–
(73.1)

(43.1)
147.0

–

–

–
2.4

–

–

–
56.6

3.0

(18.7)

(15.7)

–

–
–

19.8

6.1
21.7

19.8

6.1
78.3

–

–

–
–

(15.7)

19.8

6.1
78.3

2.5

2.5
103.4 1,647.8

–
168.8

–

2.5
28.9 1,845.5

–

2.5
167.0 2,012.5

(70.1) (1,599.5)
(10.5)
833.1

(579.6)

(272.9)

62.8

103.9

(80.6)

(766.4)

(329.3)

(81.6)

(54.0)

(16.8)

(3.9)

(485.6)

(73.1)

(21.6)

(33.3)

(5.3)

(17.5)

(150.8)

(80.0)
–

(33.2)
–

(17.9)
–

–

–

–

(0.8)
–

–

–
–

–

(131.9)
–

–

(1,062.0)

(409.3)

(42.4)

81.0

(102.0) (1,534.7)

–
–

–

–

–

–
–

–

–

– (1,599.5)
–
833.1

(124.7) (1,724.2)
842.6

9.5

–

–

–

(766.4)

(115.2)

(881.6)

(485.6)

(42.8)

(528.4)

(150.8)

(29.1)

(179.9)

–
(44.7)

(131.9)
(44.7)

(0.8)

(0.8)

(1.0)
–

(0.3)

(132.9)
(44.7)

(1.1)

(45.5) (1,580.2)

(188.4) (1,768.6)

82.3

(4.2)

25.7

7.9

1.4

113.1
–

168.8
–

(16.6)
(14.7)

265.3
(14.7)

(21.4)
(3.6)

243.9
(18.3)

–

1.7

–

1.7

–

1.7

113.1

170.5

(31.3)

52.2% 69.5% 56.4% 39.4% 81.6% 57.5%
40.4% 31.6% 34.5% 44.9% 17.0% 36.6%
92.6% 101.1% 90.9% 84.3% 98.6% 94.1%

252.3

(25.0)

227.3
9.6
236.9
57.4% 69.6% 58.4%
36.7% 44.0% 37.3%
94.1% 113.6% 95.7%

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Year ended 31 December 2020 (re-presented)

London
Direct

London
Reinsurance

Overseas
Distribution

Discontinued
Underwriting

Other
Underwriting

Total
Underwriting

Investments

Corporate

Total
Group

$m

Gross premiums 

written

Less premiums ceded 

to reinsurers

Premiums written, 
net of reinsurance

Gross earned 
premiums

Reinsurers’ share

Earned premiums, 
net of reinsurance

Investment return
Return on derivative 

contracts
Other income
Losses on other 

financial liabilities

Total revenue

Gross claims incurred
Reinsurers' share

Claims incurred, net 

of reinsurance
Acquisition costs – 

commission

Acquisition costs – 

other

Other insurance 

related expenses

Other expenses
Net foreign exchange 

losses

Total expenses 

excluding finance 
costs

Finance costs
Share of net profit 

of associates

Loss on ordinary 

activities before tax

Tax charge

Loss for the year

Claims ratio
Expense ratio
Combined ratio

1,344.7

533.4

327.6

127.8

90.9

2,424.4

(337.9)

(169.5)

(90.1)

(38.3)

(13.0)

(648.8)

1,006.8

363.9

237.5

89.5

77.9

1,775.6

1,307.2
(379.7)

522.7
(162.0)

927.5
–

360.7
–

–
6.9

–

–
1.3

–

318.8
(79.0)

239.8
–

–
1.8

–

175.8
(55.7)

120.1
–

–
–

–

934.4

(995.0)
346.3

362.0

(299.3)
35.7

241.6

(250.7)
59.6

120.1

(162.7)
52.3

47.7
14.9

62.6
–

–
19.7

2,372.2
(661.5)

1,710.7
–

–
29.7

(6.0)

(6.0)

76.3

1,734.4

(36.7)
11.4

(1,744.4)
505.3

(648.7)

(263.6)

(191.1)

(110.4)

(25.3)

(1,239.1)

(290.4)

(69.8)

(37.9)

(47.4)

(7.8)

(453.3)

(54.9)

(17.5)

(28.2)

(15.4)

(29.4)

(145.4)

(66.6)
–

(28.6)
–

(15.3)
–

–

–

–

(5.2)
–

–

1.8
–

–

(113.9)
–

–

(1,060.6)

(379.5)

(272.5)

(178.4)

(60.7)

(1,951.7)

–

–

–

–
–

–
56.5

(13.9)
–

–

42.6

–
–

–

–

–

–
–

–

–

–

–

–

–
–

–
–

12.8
(15.6)

–

2,424.4

(648.8)

1,775.6

2,372.2
(661.5)

1,710.7
56.5

(1.1)
14.1

(6.0)

(2.8)

1,774.2

–
–

–

–

–

–
(23.6)

(1,744.4)
505.3

(1,239.1)

(453.3)

(145.4)

(113.9)
(23.6)

(7.8)

(7.8)

(31.4)

(1,983.1)

(34.2)

(23.6)

(208.9)

(23.6)

–

2.0

Operating loss

(126.2)

(17.5)

(30.9)

(58.3)

15.6

(217.3)

42.6

–

–

–

2.0

(217.3)

44.6

(57.8)

(230.5)

69.9%
43.7%
113.6%

73.1%
31.8%
104.9%

79.7%
33.2%
112.9%

91.9%
56.6%
148.5%

40.4%
34.7%
75.1%

72.4%
40.3%
112.7%

(1.5)

(232.0)

72.4%
40.3%
112.7%

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

125

 
 
 
 
 
Financial Statements

5 

 Segmental information (continued)

(b) Depreciation, amortisation and capital expenditure by segment

London
Direct
$m

London
Reinsurance
$m

Overseas
Distribution
$m

Discontinued
$m

Other
Underwriting
$m

Year ended 31 December 2021
Depreciation and 

impairment of property, 
plant and equipment

Amortisation of intangibles
Capital expenditure

Year ended 31 December 2020
Depreciation and 

impairment of property, 
plant and equipment

Amortisation of intangibles
Capital expenditure

4.3
4.9
9.5

3.6
4.0
3.0

1.6
1.7
3.3

1.3
1.5
1.2

1.7
0.8
1.0

2.8
1.5
1.9

–
–
–

0.4
0.5
0.4

1.9
3.3
5.7

0.8
3.2
–

Ki
$m

0.6
1.0
1.9

–
–
1.2

Total
$m

10.1
11.7
21.4

8.9
10.7
7.7

Capital expenditure consists of additions of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets but excludes assets recognised 
on business combinations.

(c) Geographical information
The Group’s strategic business units operate mainly in five geographical areas, though the business is managed on a worldwide 
basis. The segmental split shown below is based on the location of the underlying risk.

Gross premiums written
United States
United Kingdom
Canada
Europe (excluding UK)
Other (including worldwide)

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

1,732.6
186.6
129.5
84.3
1,105.3

3,238.3

1,335.2
160.4
100.7
54.9
773.2

2,424.4

The nature of the London Market business is such that the insureds and reinsureds are often operating on a multi-territory 
or worldwide basis and hence coverage is often provided on a worldwide basis. Premiums written on a multi-territory or worldwide 
basis are included in ‘Other’ in the table above.

126 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

6 

 Investment return

This Note shows the income generated through investing funds. It also shows the gains and losses generated on various types 
of investment assets as a result of the movement in their market values.

Year ended 31 December 2021
Equity securities
Debt securities
Mortgages and loans
Specialised investment funds
Cash and cash equivalents

Total investment return before expenses
Investment management expenses

Total investment return

Year ended 31 December 2020
Equity securities
Debt securities
Mortgages and loans
Specialised investment funds
Cash and cash equivalents

Total investment return before expenses
Investment management expenses

Total investment return

7 

 Return on derivative contracts

Investment
income
$m

Net realised
gains/(losses)
$m

Net unrealised
gains/(losses)
$m

Total investment
return
$m

10.1
45.9
1.0
0.9
0.5

58.4
(14.2)

44.2

22.6
32.4
–
4.4
–

59.4
–

59.4

93.2
(84.1)
–
54.5
–

63.6
–

63.6

125.9
(5.8)
1.0
59.8
0.5

181.4
(14.2)

167.2

Investment
income
$m

Net realised
gains/(losses)
$m

Net unrealised
gains/(losses)
$m

Total investment
return
$m

6.3
63.8
0.2
–
2.9

73.2
(12.6)

60.6

(7.1)
13.0
–
1.6
–

7.5
–

7.5

(41.7)
64.5
–
(34.4)
–

(11.6)
–

(11.6)

(42.5)
141.3
0.2
(32.8)
2.9

69.1
(12.6)

56.5

This Note shows the effect on the income statement of derivative contracts held during the year, and which help manage exposure 
to fluctuations in interest rates and foreign exchange rates. Derivatives are shown analysed between investment and currency 
related derivatives, reflecting the way the business is managed.

Investment-related non-currency options
Currency forwards

Return on derivative contracts

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

3.0
(18.7)

(15.7)

(13.9)
12.8

(1.1)

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

127

 
 
Financial Statements

8 

 Deconsolidation of subsidiaries

This Note provides information in respect of disposal of subsidiary undertakings during the reporting period.

On 5 February 2021, the Group sold its entire investment in Commonwealth Insurance Company of America and a profit of $3.7m was 
recognised in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income. At this point, there was a loss of control and, as such, only the 
subsidiary’s results up to the date of disposal are included in the current year Group result.

On 25 March 2021, the Brit Group received a return of its investment in North America Property Insurance Series 2017 Account A-3 
(‘Account A3’) (a segregated account within Versutus Limited that was previously consolidated into the Group). As Brit no longer has 
an economic interest in Account A3 it has been deconsolidated, resulting in a loss on disposal of $2.2m.

On 28 June 2021, the Group sold its entire investment in Scion Underwriting Services Inc. and a profit of $18.3m was recognised 
in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income. At this point, there was a loss of control and, as such, only the subsidiary’s 
results up to the date of disposal are included in the current year Group result.

9 

 Other income (including gains/(losses) on other financial liabilities)

This Note shows the analysis of other income generated in the year, including gains/(losses) on other financial liabilities.

Fees and commission from non-aligned syndicate
Change in value of ultimate parent company shares held by Brit
Net commission fee income from intermediary activities
Consortium income
Other

Other income
Change in value of other financial liabilities*

Total

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

7.5
21.7
42.3
4.6
2.2

78.3
2.5

80.8

6.9
(15.6)
18.5
2.9
1.4

14.1
(6.0)

8.1

*Other financial liabilities are investments by third parties in structured insurance and investment entities consolidated by the Group.

10 

 Net foreign exchange losses

The Group operates in multiple countries and currencies and is exposed to gains and losses arising as a result of movement 
in various foreign currency exchange rates. This Note explains the foreign exchange gains or losses as a result of converting the 
income, expenses, assets and liabilities from foreign currencies to US dollars.

The Group recognised foreign exchange losses of $1.1m (2020: losses of $7.8m) in the income statement in the year. Foreign exchange 
gains and losses result from the translation of the statement of financial position items using closing exchange rates, and translation 
of income statement items using the exchange rates prevailing at the dates of the relevant transactions, or at the average rate for the 
period when this is a reasonable approximation. However, as an exception to this, IAS 21 ‘The Effects of Changes in Foreign Exchange 
Rates’ requires that net unearned premiums and deferred acquisition costs (UPR/DAC), being non-monetary items, remain at historic 
exchange rates. This creates a foreign exchange mismatch, the financial effects of which are shown in the table below.

Gains/(losses) on foreign exchange arising from:
Translation of the statement of financial position and income statement
Maintaining UPR/DAC items in the income statement at historic rates

Net foreign exchange losses

128 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

2.5
(3.6)

(1.1)

(12.4)
4.6

(7.8)

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Principal exchange rates applied are set out in the table below.

Sterling
Canadian dollar
Euro
Australian dollar
South African rand

Year ended 31 December 2021
Closing

Average

0.727
1.253
0.845
1.331
14.765

0.738
1.263
0.879
1.375
15.960

Year ended 31 December 2020

Average

0.779
1.340
0.876
1.447
16.378

Closing

0.732
1.274
0.817
1.296
14.689

In accordance with IAS 1 ‘Presentation of Financial Statements’, exchange gains and losses are presented on a net basis. They are 
reported within income where they result in a net gain and within expenses where they result in a net loss.

11 

 Acquisition costs and other operating expenses

This Note shows the analysis of costs incurred in acquiring and underwriting insurance contracts and the running costs of our 
business during the year. We have separated out the more material costs in order to provide a more detailed insight into 
our cost base.

Year ended 31 December 2021

Year ended 31 December 2020

Salary, pension and social security costs 

(Note 12)

Other staff related costs
Accommodation costs
Legal and professional charges
IT costs
Travel and entertaining
Marketing and communications
Amortisation and impairment of intangible 

assets

Depreciation, impairment and losses on 

disposal of property, plant and equipment

Regulatory levies and charges
Other

Expenses before commissions

Commission costs

Total acquisition costs and other 

operating expenses

Acquisition
costs
$m

Other
operating
expenses
$m

90.9
4.6
4.2
9.8
2.6
0.9
0.2

0.5

3.9
58.2
4.1

87.8
23.6
2.7
12.3
26.1
0.6
1.5

11.2

6.7
–
5.1

179.9

528.4

177.6

–

Total
$m

178.7
28.2
6.9
22.1
28.7
1.5
1.7

11.7

10.6
58.2
9.2

357.5

528.4

Acquisition
costs
$m

Other
operating
expenses
$m

63.1
3.3
6.2
11.5
2.5
1.1
0.2

0.5

2.8
47.6
6.6

145.4

453.3

60.0
9.9
3.2
13.9
24.8
0.7
1.5

10.2

6.1
0.4
6.8

137.5

–

Total
$m

123.1
13.2
9.4
25.4
27.3
1.8
1.7

10.7

8.9
48.0
13.4

282.9

453.3

708.3

177.6

885.9

598.7

137.5

736.2

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

129

 
 
Financial Statements

12 

 Staff costs

This Note gives a breakdown of the total cost of employing staff (including executive and non-executive Directors) and gives the 
average number of people employed by the Group during the year.

Wages and salaries
Social security costs
Pension costs

Total staff costs

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

154.0
17.1
7.6

178.7

105.6
11.4
6.1

123.1

The average number of employees during the year, including executive and non-executive Directors, was as follows:

Front office staff
Underwriters
Claims staff
Other underwriting and direct support staff

Total front office staff

Back office staff
Management
Administration

Total back office staff

Total employees

Year ended
31 December
2021
Number

Year ended
31 December
2020
Number

212
75
185

472

137
210

347

819

213
65
163

441

118
195

313

754

‘Management’ includes non-executive Directors and employees who have other members of staff reporting to them.

Director emoluments are included on page 178.

13 

Finance costs

Finance costs arise from interest due on moneys borrowed by the Group and any other amounts payable in respect of those 
borrowings or borrowing facilities. Finance costs also includes interest payable on lease liabilities. The Group’s borrowings consist 
of a revolving credit facility and listed unsecured subordinated debt, details of which are set out in Note 30.

Revolving credit facility and other bank borrowings
Interest payable on lease liabilities
Subordinated debt

Total finance costs

130 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

9.8
1.7
6.8

18.3

7.9
1.6
14.1

23.6

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

14 

Auditors’ remuneration

The Group engages PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP to perform the audit of the Group and all subsidiaries except for the Ambridge and 
Camargue companies.

The remuneration of the auditors or their associates is analysed as follows:

Audit of the Group and Company financial statements*
Audit of subsidiaries
Audit related assurance services

Total audit and audit related assurance services

Total non-audit services

Total audit and non-audit services

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

1.0
1.3
0.5

2.8

0.3

3.1

0.5
1.3
0.1

1.9

–

1.9

* In 2021, $0.4m (2020: nil) has been included within this figure in respect of early IFRS 17 related audit work.

15 

Investments in associated undertakings

This Note describes the investments made in associated undertakings and provides summarised income statements and statements 
of financial position of those associates.

Sutton Special Risk Inc. (‘Sutton’)
On 2 January 2019 Brit Insurance Holdings Limited, acquired 49% of the issued shares of Sutton for a total purchase consideration 
of CAD$17.2m, and entered into a forward contract to purchase the remaining 51% in 2024. Sutton is a Canadian managing general 
underwriter of a range of specialised insurance products, including Accident and Health. The summarised statement of financial 
position of Sutton and reconciliation to the carrying amount is as follows:

Statement of financial position

Current assets
Non-current assets

Total assets
Current liabilities

Total liabilities

Net assets

51% not owned by Brit
Acquisition fair value, result since acquisition and other adjustments

Carrying value

Income statement

Commission revenue
Operating expenses

Net profit

51% not owned by Brit

Share of net profit of associate

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

26.0
3.5

29.5
(23.4)

(23.4)

6.1

(3.1)
12.0

15.0

16.2
3.8

20.0
(15.4)

(15.4)

4.6

(2.3)
11.9

14.2

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

8.6
(6.2)

2.4

(1.2)

1.2

7.8
(5.8)

2.0

(1.0)

1.0

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

131

 
 
Financial Statements

16 

 Non-controlling interests

This Note provides summarised financial information for each subsidiary that has non-controlling interests (‘NCI’) that are material 
to the Group. The amounts disclosed are before inter-company eliminations.

During 2020, Ki Financial Limited was incorporated and received initial funding from investors, including Brit Limited, to support 
the initial underwriting activities of Ki Syndicate 1618. On 1 January 2021 Ki Syndicate 1618 commenced underwriting. During 
2021 additional funding from investors, including Brit Limited, was received to support the continued underwriting. The Group’s 
shareholding remained consistent throughout the year, as at 31 December 2021, the Group continues to hold 20% of the share 
capital but a majority of the voting rights in the Company.

From 1 January 2021 RiverStone Corporate Capital 4 Limited (‘RCC4’) provided capital to Syndicate 1618. RCC4 was legally owned 
by RiverStone Holdings Limited (‘RHL’) throughout the reporting period. However, the Group is exposed to the majority of RCC4’s 
business as a result of the Ki structure and, as a result, the Group is considered to control RCC4. A non-controlling interest has  
been recorded in respect of RHL’s entitlement to residual retained profits arising from activities unrelated to Ki. The accumulated  
NCI attributable to RHL is $0.7m, the profit allocated to RHL NCI is $0.5m.

No dividends were paid to non-controlling interests in 2021 (2020: nil).

The summarised financial information of Ki Financial Limited, before inter-company eliminations, is as follows:

Statement of financial position

Current assets
Non-current assets

Total assets

Current liabilities

Total liabilities

Net assets

Accumulated NCI*

Comprehensive income statement

Loss for the period
Other comprehensive income

Total comprehensive income

Loss allocated to NCI *

Statement of cash flows

Cash flows from operating activities
Cash flows from investing activities
Cash flows from financing activities

Net increase in cash and cash equivalents

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

42.3
263.5

305.8

(0.6)

(0.6)

305.2

233.5

25.6
130.6

156.2

(6.0)

(6.0)

150.2

121.7

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

(25.1)
–

(25.1)

(12.1)

(5.2)
–

(5.2)

(2.7)

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

(10.6)
(132.6)
155.0

11.8

(2.0)
(129.0)
155.4

24.4

*Total accumulated NCI reported in the statement of financial position is $234.2m, comprising $233.5m attributable to Blackstone and $0.7m attributable to RHL. Total loss allocated to NCI 
reported in the comprehensive income statement is $11.6m, comprising $12.1m loss attributable to Blackstone and $0.5m profit attributable to RHL. Therefore, the total transactions with 
non-controlling interests recorded in the statement of changes in equity is $124.1m, comprising $123.9m attributable to Blackstone and $0.2m attributable to RHL.

132 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

17 

 Tax expense

Income tax is tax charged on trading activities during the year. This Note shows the breakdown of tax payable in the current period 
(current tax) and also tax that may become payable sometime in the future (deferred tax).

(a)  Tax charged to the income statement

Current tax:
Current taxes on income for the year
Overseas tax on income for the year

Double tax relief
Adjustments in respect of prior years

Total current tax

Deferred tax:
Relating to the origination and reversal of temporary differences
Adjustments in respect of prior years

Total deferred tax

Total tax charged to the income statement

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

0.5
(12.4)

(11.9)
1.2
0.7

(10.0)

21.9
(2.3)

19.6

9.6

–
(0.1)

(0.1)
1.1
0.3

1.3

(2.6)
(0.2)

(2.8)

(1.5)

Overseas taxes arise in respect of the Group’s subsidiaries in the US, Germany, and South Africa and as a result of the Group’s 
operations at Lloyd’s. Double tax relief principally arises from taxes suffered as a result of the Group’s operations at Lloyd’s. Double 
tax relief is effectively limited to an amount equal to the tax due at the UK tax rate on the same source of income.

(b)  Tax credited to other comprehensive income

Deferred tax (charge)/credit on actuarial gains/(losses) on defined benefit pension scheme

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

(6.5)

1.8

(c)  Tax reconciliation
The tax on the Group’s profit/(loss) before tax differs from the theoretical amount that would arise based on the weighted average 
rate of tax as follows:

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

Profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before tax
Tax calculated at weighted average rate of tax on income
Non-deductible and non-taxable items
Taxes on income at rates in excess of the domestic rate and where credit is unavailable
Effect of temporary differences not recognised
Effect of revaluation of deferred tax following change in rate of tax
Other items
Adjustments to tax charge in respect of prior years

Total tax credited/(charged) to income statement

227.3
(19.0)
2.4
0.5
7.3
20.0
0.1
(1.7)

9.6

(230.5)
32.6
(0.7)
1.2
(42.0)
7.2
0.1
0.1

(1.5)

The weighted average rate of tax is based on the geographic split of profit across Group entities in jurisdictions with differing tax 
rates. As the mix of taxable profits changes, so will the weighted average rate of tax.

(d)  Effect of post balance sheet rate changes
The main rate of UK corporation tax will increase to 25% from 1 April 2023 under Finance Act 2021 which was substantively enacted 
on 24 May 2021. The rate of 25% has been used in the calculation of the UK’s deferred tax assets and liabilities as at 31 December 2021.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

133

 
 
Financial Statements

18 

 Intangible assets

An intangible asset is an asset without any physical substance but which has long-term value to the business. With the exception 
of goodwill, syndicate participation rights at Lloyd’s, trade names and the regulatory licences, which are classified as indefinite 
life assets, the values of these assets are reduced according to their useful life by way of amortisation. Amortisation is included 
as an expense in the income statement.

Trade
names
$m

Distribution
channels
$m

Syndicate
Participations
$m

Regulatory
licenses
$m

Employee
related
$m

Software
$m

Total
$m

Cost:
At 1 January 2020
Additions
Assets reclassified as held-for-sale
Disposals
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2020

At 1 January 2021
Additions
Additions through acquisitions
Disposals
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2021

Amortisation:
At 1 January 2020
Charge for the year
Disposals
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2020

At 1 January 2021
Charge for the year
Disposals
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2021

Carrying amount:
At 31 December 2020
At 31 December 2021

Goodwill
$m

45.9
–
–
–
–

45.9

45.9
–
16.4
–
(1.0)

61.3

–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–

–

0.5
–
–
–
–

0.5

0.5
–
0.9
–
(0.1)

1.3

–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–

–

45.9
61.3

0.5
1.3

52.4
–
–
–
–

52.4

52.4
–
7.3
–
(0.5)

59.2

7.8
3.5
–
–

11.3

11.3
3.6
–
–

14.9

41.1
44.3

70.8
–
–
–
–

70.8

70.8
–
–
–
–

70.8

–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–

–

70.8
70.8

7.5
–
(7.5)
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–

–

–
–

1.2
–
–
–
–

1.2

1.2
–
–
–
–

1.2

0.3
0.4
–
–

0.7

0.7
0.4
–
–

1.1

0.5
0.1

44.2
6.5
–
(7.8)
1.4

44.3

44.3
12.8
–
(11.1)
(0.4)

45.6

21.8
6.8
(7.8)
1.1

21.9

21.9
7.7
(11.1)
(0.4)

18.1

222.5
6.5
(7.5)
(7.8)
1.4

215.1

215.1
12.8
24.6
(11.1)
(2.0)

239.4

29.9
10.7
(7.8)
1.1

33.9

33.9
11.7
(11.1)
(0.4)

34.1

22.4
27.5

181.2
205.3

Additional information
The gross cost of software fully amortised but still in use is $18.8m (2020: $13.6m). All software additions in 2021 and 2020 were 
internally developed. The software amortisation charge for the year of $7.7m (2020: $6.8m) is included in the ‘other operating 
expenses’ line in the income statement. There were no impairments to software in 2021 (2020: nil). Assets not yet in use with a total 
cost of $10.2m (2020: $1.1m) are included in software. Further information is given in Note 5(b).

134 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Impairment testing

Goodwill
Goodwill is reviewed annually for impairment and has been allocated to the Ambridge and Camargue cash-generating units (CGUs):

Ambridge
Camargue

Total

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

45.9
15.4

61.3

45.9
–

45.9

The goodwill of the Group relates to the acquisitions of Ambridge and Camargue in 2019 and 2021, respectively and the recoverable 
amounts have been determined using a value in use calculation.

In respect of Ambridge, the value in use calculation uses cash flow projections based on business plans approved by senior 
management covering a three-year period and subsequent cash flows which assume a nil growth rate. These cash flows have been 
discounted using a risk adjusted discount rate of 10.35% (2020: 9.9%). In the goodwill impairment review, the recoverable amount 
significantly exceeds the carrying value of the CGU including its associated goodwill and it is considered that a reasonably possible 
change in key assumptions will not cause the carrying value of the CGU to exceed its recoverable amount.

The key assumptions used for the impairment calculations were that cash flows and profit levels will mainly depend on the level 
of commissions earned by Ambridge. The business plans reflect senior management’s best estimates based on historical experience, 
growth rates for the respective insurance industry sector, the insurance pricing cycle and expected results from ongoing and future 
strategic business unit product and distribution strategies.

Camargue was acquired on 4 October 2021 and has been subject to a purchase price allocation exercise in Q4 to determine the 
value of the goodwill at acquisition. The economic situation of the company and general economic environment at the year-end is not 
materially different from that at the point of recognition, or the period during which the purchase price allocation exercise was 
performed. In the absence of indicators of impairment, therefore, Brit has not performed a further quantitative exercise to consider 
the value-in-use of the goodwill at year-end.

Syndicate participations
Syndicate participations are indefinite life intangible assets and are therefore reviewed annually for impairment. They have been 
allocated to cash-generating units (CGUs) as follows:

Global Specialty Direct
Global Specialty Reinsurance

Total

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

52.7
18.1

70.8

52.7
18.1

70.8

These CGUs are based upon operating segments which earn revenues and incur expenses and whose results are regularly reviewed 
by management.

The recoverable amounts of the CGUs have been determined using a value-in-use calculation.

Each value-in-use calculation uses pre-tax cash flow projections based on business plans approved by senior management covering 
a three-year period and subsequent cash flows which assume a nil growth rate. These cash flows have been discounted using 
a risk adjusted pre-tax discount rate of 10.35% (2020: 9.9%). In each syndicate participation impairment review, the recoverable 
amount significantly exceeds the carrying value of the CGU, including its associated syndicate participations and it is considered that 
a reasonably possible change in key assumptions will not cause the carrying value of the CGU to exceed its recoverable amount.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

135

 
 
Financial Statements

18 

 Intangible assets (continued)

The key assumptions used for the impairment calculations were that cash flows and profit levels will mainly depend on the level 
of premiums written by each strategic business unit, the rates at which these premiums are written and the claims activity on both 
prior and future underwriting years. The business plans reflect senior management’s best estimates based on historical experience, 
growth rates for the respective insurance industry sector, the insurance pricing cycle, and expected results from ongoing and 
future strategic business unit product and distribution strategies.

Commissions and other insurance related expenses are assumed to remain materially in line with current amounts relative 
to premium levels.

Trade names
Trade names are indefinite life intangible assets and are therefore reviewed annually for impairment. They have been allocated 
to cash-generating units (CGUs) as follows:

Ambridge

Camargue

Total

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

0.5

0.8

1.3

0.5

–

0.5

Trade names were acquired in 2019 as part of the Ambridge acquisition, and subsequently, in 2021, as part of the Camargue acquisition.

Regarding the Ambridge trade name, the recoverable amounts have been determined based on the net present value of future cash 
flows generated by Ambridge.

The projections used are based on business plans approved by senior management. The projections are covering a three-year 
period and subsequent cash flows which assume a nil growth rate. The key assumptions used for the impairment calculations are the 
level of projected commissions and the risk adjusted pre-tax discount rate of 10.35%.

Camargue was acquired on 4 October 2021 and has been subject to a purchase price allocation exercise in Q4 to determine the 
value of the trade name at acquisition. The economic situation of the company and general economic environment at the year-end 
is not materially different from that at the point of recognition or the period during which the purchase price allocation exercise was 
performed. In the absence of indicators of impairment, therefore, Brit has not performed a further quantitative exercise to consider 
the value-in-use of the trade name at year-end.

Regulatory licenses
On 30 April 2018, as part of Brit’s acquisition of Commonwealth Insurance Company of America from TIG Insurance Company, 
an intangible asset was recognised in respect of the $7.5m paid for its operating licences in 48 US states.

As at 31 December 2020, the carrying amount of the Commonwealth business was expected to be recovered principally through 
a sale transaction so the assets, including the regulatory licenses, and liabilities of this disposal group were presented separately 
within the ‘assets classified as held for sale’ and ‘liabilities directly associated with assets classified held for sale’ categories on the 
consolidated statement of financial position.

The sale transaction completed on 5 February 2021, upon which all assets, including the regulatory licenses, and liabilities relating 
to the Commonwealth business were derecognised.

136 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

19 

 Property, plant and equipment

This Note gives a breakdown of the type of assets in use such as computer equipment, office fixtures and fittings and furniture. 
The value of these assets are reduced according to their useful life by way of depreciation. Depreciation is included as an expense 
in the income statement. An annual assessment of the carrying value of these assets is carried out and, if necessary, an impairment 
charge to the income statement is made.

Cost:
At 1 January 2020
Additions
Disposals
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2020

At 1 January 2021
Additions
Additions through acquisitions
Divestiture
Disposals
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2021

Depreciation:
At 1 January 2020
Charge for the year
Disposals
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2020

At 1 January 2021
Charge for the year
Impairments
Divestiture
Disposals
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2021

Carrying amount:
At 31 December 2020
At 31 December 2021

Computers
and office
machinery,
furniture and
equipment
$m

Office
refurbishment
$m

Land
$m

Buildings
$m

Right of
use assets
$m

24.5
0.3
–
0.7

25.5

25.5
1.2
–
(1.1)
(1.2)
(0.1)

24.3

8.0
2.3
–
0.1

10.4

10.4
2.1
–
(0.1)
(1.2)
(0.3)

10.9

15.1
13.4

13.3
0.9
(1.1)
0.3

13.4

13.4
0.5
0.1
(0.1)
(8.4)
(0.1)

5.4

10.7
0.9
(1.1)
0.4

10.9

10.9
1.0
–
–
(8.4)
(0.1)

3.4

2.5
2.0

–
–
–
–

–

–
–
0.4
–
–
(0.1)

0.3

–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–

–

–
–
0.7
–
–
(0.1)

0.6

–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
–

–

–
0.3

–
0.6

54.7
–
(1.5)
1.5

54.7

54.7
6.9
–
(0.7)
(2.3)
(0.6)

58.0

5.9
5.7
(0.3)
0.5

11.8

11.8
6.8
0.2
(0.6)
(1.2)
(0.3)

16.7

42.9
41.3

Total
$m

92.5
1.2
(2.6)
2.5

93.6

93.6
8.6
1.2
(1.9)
(11.9)
(1.0)

88.6

24.6
8.9
(1.4)
1.0

33.1

33.1
9.9
0.2
(0.7)
(10.8)
(0.7)

31.0

60.5
57.6

The gross cost of property, plant and equipment fully depreciated but still in use is $9.5m (2020: $9.4m). The depreciation charge for 
the year of $9.9m (2020: $8.9m) is included in the ‘acquisition costs’ and ‘other operating expenses’ lines in the income statement. 
An impairment charge of $0.2m was recognised in 2021 (2020: nil). A dilapidations provision of $2.5m (2020: $2.5m) has been set up 
in respect of the refurbishment of rented property.

Further information on depreciation and capital expenditure by segment is given in Note 5(b).

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

137

 
 
Financial Statements

20 

 Deferred acquisition costs

Acquisition costs are costs incurred in underwriting insurance risks and include commissions paid to third parties and some 
internally generated costs such as underwriter salaries. These costs are deferred and are charged to the income statement over 
the duration of the contract. The movement in these deferred costs and releases to the income statement is shown in this Note.

At 1 January
Costs deferred during the year
Amortisation charge for the year

At 31 December

21 

 Deferred taxation

2021
$m

247.3
782.8
(708.3)

321.8

2020
$m

243.6
602.9
(599.2)

247.3

This Note describes the tax that may have to be paid in the future. Deferred tax arises from differences in the way that tax 
is calculated for accounting purposes and tax purposes.

The deferred tax asset is attributable to temporary differences arising on the following:

At 1 January 2020
Movements in the year:
(Charged)/credited to income statement
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2020

Set-off of deferred tax liabilities pursuant to set-off provisions

Net deferred tax asset at 31 December 2020

At 1 January 2021
Movements in the year:
Acquisitions
(Charged)/credited to income statement
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2021

Set-off of deferred tax liabilities pursuant to set-off provisions

Net deferred tax asset at 31 December 2021

Intangible
assets
$m

0.9

(0.3)
–

0.6

0.6

–
(0.3)
–

0.3

Underwriting
$m

93.0

(32.7)
–

60.3

60.3

–
(38.5)
–

21.8

Other
$m

4.8

28.8
0.4

34.0

34.0

0.5
58.6
(0.1)

93.0

Total
$m

98.7

(4.2)
0.4

94.9

(45.1)

49.8

94.9

0.5
19.8
(0.1)

115.1

(67.2)

47.9

Deferred tax assets, all of which arise in the United Kingdom, are considered recoverable where it is expected that there will 
be future taxable income based on the approved business plans and budgets of the Group. The losses can be carried forward 
indefinitely and have no expiry date. See Note 3.9 for further detail on the estimation of deferred tax assets.

138 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Deferred tax assets have not been recognised in respect of certain losses carried forward of $nil (2020: $16.8m) and in respect 
of undeclared year of account losses of $285.2m (2020: $231.1m) as it is not considered probable that they can be utilised in the 
foreseeable future.

Deferred tax has not been provided in respect of the profits of subsidiaries in the Group as tax exemptions, for example the 
participation exemption, are expected to apply.

As at 31 December 2020, deferred tax assets arising on decelerated capital allowances of $0.3m had been provided for due 
to uncertainty over the timing of their utilisation. No such amount was recorded at 31 December 2021.

The deferred tax liability is attributable to temporary differences arising on the following:

At 1 January 2020
Movements in the year:
(Charged)/credited to income statement
Tax relating to components of other comprehensive 

income (Note 17(b))
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2020

Set-off of deferred tax assets pursuant to set-off 

provisions

Net deferred tax liability at 31 December 2020

At 1 January 2021
Movements in the year:
Acquisitions
(Charged)/credited to income statement
Tax relating to components of other comprehensive 

income (Note 17(b))
Foreign exchange effect

At 31 December 2021

Set-off of deferred tax assets pursuant to set-off 

provisions

Net deferred tax liability at 31 December 2021

Pensions
$m

(18.2)

(0.4)

1.8
(0.3)

(17.1)

(17.1)

(16.5)
(0.3)

(6.5)
0.6

(39.8)

Intangible
assets
$m

(24.0)

(2.0)

–
–

Underwriting
$m

(12.9)

3.5

–
0.5

(26.0)

(8.9)

(26.0)

(2.3)
(5.7)

–
0.2

(33.8)

(8.9)

–
4.6

–
(0.4)

(4.7)

Other
$m

(2.5)

0.3

–
(0.8)

(3.0)

(3.0)

–
1.2

–
0.1

(1.7)

Total
$m

(57.6)

1.4

1.8
(0.6)

(55.0)

45.1

(9.9)

(55.0)

(18.8)
(0.2)

(6.5)
0.5

(80.0)

67.1

(12.9)

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

139

 
 
Financial Statements

22 

 Insurance and reinsurance contracts

This Note deals with balances carried in respect of insurance contracts (liabilities) and reinsurance contracts (assets). It examines 
the statement of financial position, splitting both insurance and reinsurance balances into their component parts, and explains the 
assumptions applied in arriving at these figures. The Note also shows how claims have developed over a period (before and after 
the effects of reinsurance) of time by setting out the cumulative development at the end of each calendar year in respect of claims 
arising from business written in a particular underwriting year. It ends by analysing the movements in insurance and reinsurance 
contracts during the year.

(a)  Balances on insurance and reinsurance contracts

Gross
Claims reported and loss adjustment expenses
Unexpired risk reserve
Claims incurred but not reported

Unearned premiums

Total gross liabilities

Recoverable from reinsurers
Claims reported and loss adjustment expenses
Claims incurred but not reported

Unearned premiums

Total reinsurers’ share of liabilities

Net
Claims reported and loss adjustment expenses
Unexpired risk reserve
Claims incurred but not reported

Unearned premiums

Total net insurance liabilities

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

1,815.9
–
3,325.0

5,140.9
1,392.0

6,532.9

685.7
1,208.7

1,894.4
396.8

2,291.2

1,130.2
–
2,116.3

3,246.5
995.2

4,241.7

1,783.3
12.4
2,997.0

4,792.7
1,020.3

5,813.0

578.2
914.8

1,493.0
271.1

1,764.1

1,205.1
12.4
2,082.2

3,299.7
749.2

4,048.9

Insurance contracts – assumptions and changes in assumptions
Process used to decide on assumptions required
The risks associated with these insurance liabilities and in particular with casualty insurance liabilities are complex and subject 
to a number of variables that complicate quantitative analysis.

The Group uses several statistical methods to incorporate the various assumptions made in order to estimate the ultimate costs 
of claims. It is typical to consider the attritional claims separately from the large claims, separately from the catastrophe losses. 
The two methods more commonly used are the chain-ladder and the Bornhuetter-Ferguson methods.

Chain-ladder methods may be applied to premiums, paid claims or incurred claims (i.e. paid claims plus case reserve estimates). 
The basic technique involves the analysis of historical claims development factors and the selection of estimated development 
factors based on these historical patterns. The selected development factors are then applied to cumulative claims data for each 
underwriting year, that is not yet fully developed, to produce an estimated ultimate claims cost for each underwriting year.

140 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Chain-ladder techniques are most appropriate for mature classes of business that have a relatively stable development pattern. 
Chain-ladder techniques are less suitable in cases in which the insurer does not have a developed claims history for a particular 
class of business or for underwriting years at early stages of development where the outcome is still highly uncertain.

The Bornhuetter-Ferguson method uses a combination of a benchmark or market-based estimate and an estimate based on claims 
experience. The former is based on a measure of exposure such as premiums; the latter is based on the paid or incurred claims 
to date. The two estimates are combined using a formula that gives more weight to the experience-based estimate as time passes. 
This technique is used in situations in which developed claims experience is not available for the projection (recent underwriting 
years or new classes of business).

The choice of selected results for each year of each class of business depends on an assessment of the technique that has been 
most appropriate to observed historical developments. In certain instances, this has meant that different techniques or  
combination of techniques have been selected for the individual underwriting year, or groups of underwriting years within the same 
class of business.

In addition to the above statistical techniques, alternative approaches are often considered for a number of classes of business 
(e.g. casualty treaty) and particular events (e.g. natural catastrophes), therefore alternative methodologies may be employed to add 
additional rigour to the process. For example, losses from a catastrophe are typically formed from reviewing potential exposure 
on a policy by policy basis and taking account of market intelligence to determine Brit’s share of the loss. The estimate of large claims 
ultimate will typically be formed from estimating the number of unreported large claims, using the standard statistical techniques 
described above, and multiplying this with the expected severity of such losses.

In addition to the estimation of claims reserves certain estimates are produced for unearned premiums. For open market business, 
earned premium is calculated at policy level. However, premium derived from delegated underwriting authorities is calculated 
by applying the 144ths method to estimated premiums applied to the master policy. This assumes that attachments to master policies 
arise evenly throughout the period of that master policy.

Reinsurance outwards premiums are earned according to the nature of the cover. ‘Losses occurring during’ policies are earned 
evenly over the policy period. ‘Risks attaching’ policies are earned on the same basis as the inwards business being protected. Where 
outward reinsurance is impacted by seasonal claims variability, e.g. catastrophe covers, the earning of the premium is adjusted 
to reflect the seasonality of the claims.

Changes in assumptions
The Group did not change its estimation techniques from the insurance contract assumptions disclosed in this Note during the year.

Claims development tables
The tables below show the development of claims over a period of time on a gross and net of reinsurance basis.

The claims development tables have been presented on an underwriting year basis.

The tables show the cumulative incurred claims, including both notified and IBNR claims, for each successive underwriting year at the 
end of each year, together with cumulative paid claims at the end of the current year.

The claims have been adjusted to make them comparable on a year by year basis.

They have been grossed up to include 100% of the managed syndicate claims rather than the claims that reflect the Group 
percentage ownership of each syndicate’s underwriting capacity during the respective underwriting years. In addition, claims 
in currencies other than US dollars have been retranslated at 31 December 2021 exchange rates.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

141

 
 
Financial Statements

22 

 Insurance and reinsurance contracts (continued)

Ultimate gross claims

2012 and
prior years

Underwriting year

Claims ratio:
At end of underwriting 

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

Intra Group
and other
underwriting
adjustments

Total

year

One year later
Two years later
Three years later
Four years later
Five years later
Six years later
Seven years later
Eight years later
Nine years later

Total ultimate 

gross claims at 
31 December 2021

Less accumulated 
gross paid claims
Unearned premium 
portion of gross 
ultimate claims
Claims handling 
provision and 
other corporate 
adjustments
Total outstanding 
gross claims at 
31 December 2021

76.1% 69.9% 70.2% 70.6% 76.6% 101.3% 89.3% 75.7% 79.9% 74.3%
71.6% 70.0% 73.6% 71.5% 85.5% 109.0% 96.4% 84.6% 80.7%
72.3% 70.1% 73.3% 73.5% 89.4% 109.0% 101.5% 86.5%
70.5% 69.8% 74.6% 72.5% 88.1% 110.9% 100.0%
73.2% 71.2% 74.2% 70.4% 89.5% 110.1%
74.1% 70.6% 73.1% 70.5% 91.5%
73.4% 69.7% 72.7% 71.2%
72.4% 68.2% 71.5%
71.5% 67.2%
71.7%

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

11,083.2

950.1 1,102.4 1,043.4 1,398.2 1,735.9 1,638.2 1,471.9 1,463.8 1,560.3

444.5 23,891.9

(10,704.7)

(845.8)

(959.1)

(817.8) (1,057.7) (1,287.5) (1,020.3)

(618.5)

(429.1)

(83.7)

(87.9) (17,912.1)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

(27.8)

(720.2)

(125.5)

(873.5)

5.3

1.6

2.1

3.4

4.8

5.9

8.5

10.8

12.5

8.8

(29.1)

34.6

383.8

105.9

145.4

229.0

345.3

454.3

626.4

864.2 1,019.4

765.2

202.0

5,140.9

142 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Ultimate net claims

2012 and
prior years

Underwriting year

Claims ratio:
At end of underwriting 

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

Intra Group
and other
underwriting
adjustments

Total

year

One year later
Two years later
Three years later
Four years later
Five years later
Six years later
Seven years later
Eight years later
Nine years later

82.4% 75.4% 76.1% 77.7% 83.1% 100.1% 95.7% 82.2% 89.6% 81.0%
78.1% 76.8% 79.3% 80.5% 90.3% 100.9% 102.4% 94.5% 77.3%
77.8% 76.4% 78.4% 81.2% 91.7% 100.9% 106.8% 97.7%
75.6% 76.4% 79.1% 78.9% 91.4% 103.8% 107.3%
76.6% 77.1% 77.7% 76.3% 92.1% 106.0%
76.7% 75.0% 77.3% 76.4% 94.1%
75.5% 73.7% 77.2% 77.8%
74.4% 71.9% 76.0%
73.2% 71.1%
72.9%

Total ultimate 
net claims at 
31 December 2021
Less accumulated net 

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

$m

8,211.6

715.7

832.2

796.2

899.9 1,006.7 1,036.5 1,009.4

995.5 1,122.2

218.7 16,844.6

paid claims

(8,019.4)

(664.5)

(739.4)

(640.2)

(748.8)

(798.4)

(705.3)

(436.2)

(323.5)

(79.9)

(63.8) (13,219.4)

Unearned premium 
portion of net 
ultimate claims
Claims handling 
provision, bad 
debt provision and 
other corporate 
adjustments
Total outstanding 
net claims at 
31 December 2021

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

(20.9)

(523.6)

65.0

(479.5)

4.9

1.7

2.2

3.4

4.8

6.0

8.6

11.1

15.9

8.8

33.4

100.8

197.1

52.9

95.0

159.4

155.9

214.3

339.8

584.3

667.0

527.5

253.3

3,246.5

The percentages in the gross and net triangles are shown on an ultimate loss basis inclusive of catastrophe losses 
by year of account.

The 2010, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 years of account include the impact of natural catastrophes which occurred in the 
future calendar years and which attached back to policies incepting in those respective years of account. The 2020 and prior years 
of account will also be impacted by the loss portfolio reinsurance contracts entered into in 2018 and 2021 with RiverStone Managing 
Agency Limited (for and on behalf of Lloyd’s Syndicate 3500).

During 2021, the net aggregate reserve releases from prior years amounted to $100.1m, which included a $50.7m release from 
2020 and a $51.2m release from 2019 and prior years from Syndicate 2987 and a strengthening of $1.8m from the other group 
entities. By comparison in 2020, the net aggregate reserve releases from prior years amounted to $63.4m, which included $16.5m 
release from 2019 and $36.3m from 2018 and prior from Syndicate 2987 and $10.6m from other Group entities.

Reserves in London Direct experienced releases of $62.9m (2020: $66.3m), London RI experienced releases of $18.8m 
(2020: $24.3m), Overseas Distribution experienced releases of $15.7m (2020: strengthening of $36.0m), Discontinued experienced 
releases of $4.6m (2020: strengthening of $1.1m) and Other experienced strengthening of $1.8m (2020: release of $9.9m).

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

143

 
 
Financial Statements

22 

 Insurance and reinsurance contracts (continued)

(b)  Movements in insurance and reinsurance contracts
(i)  Claims and loss adjustment expenses

As at 1 January
Cash paid for claims settled in the year
Increase in liabilities
Net foreign exchange differences

As at 31 December

(ii)  Unearned premiums

As at 1 January
Premiums written in the year
Premiums earned during the year
Net foreign exchange differences

As at 31 December

31 December 2021
Reinsurance
$m

Gross
$m

4,792.7
(1,321.5)
1,724.1
(54.4)

5,140.9

(1,493.0)
437.6
(842.6)
3.6

(1,894.4)

31 December 2021
Reinsurance
$m

Gross
$m

1,020.3
3,238.3
(2,867.9)
1.3

1,392.0

(271.1)
(1,240.0)
1,113.7
0.6

(396.8)

Net
$m

3,299.7
(883.9)
881.5
(50.8)

3,246.5

Net
$m

749.2
1,998.3
(1,754.2)
1.9

995.2

31 December 2020
Reinsurance
$m

Gross
$m

4,296.7
(1,326.8)
1,744.4
78.4

4,792.7

(1,345.3)
391.4
(505.3)
(33.8)

(1,493.0)

31 December 2020
Reinsurance
$m

Gross
$m

969.4
2,424.4
(2,372.2)
(1.3)

1,020.3

(282.8)
(648.8)
661.5
(1.0)

(271.1)

Net
$m

2,951.4
(935.4)
1,239.1
44.6

3,299.7

Net
$m

686.6
1,775.6
(1,710.7)
(2.3)

749.2

(c)  Lloyd’s Part VII transfer
On 25 November 2020 the High Court sanctioned the transfer to Lloyd’s Insurance Company S.A. (LIC) of syndicates’ European 
liabilities in accordance with Part VII of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. The scheme took effect on 30 December 2020, 
whereupon all relevant policies (and related liabilities) underwritten by the Group’s syndicates for years of account between 1993 
and April 2019 (or October 2020 in the case of German reinsurance) were transferred to LIC. On the same date, a 100% Quota 
Share Reinsurance Agreement was entered into whereby LIC reinsured all risks on the same policies back to the relevant open 
years of account of the syndicates that wrote the transferring policies and/or inherited liabilities on transferring policies through 
Reinsurance to Close of earlier years of account.

The combined effect of the two transactions had no economic impact for the Group, and accordingly there was no impact on the 
consolidated income statement for the period ending 31 December 2020 or the consolidated statement of financial position 
as at 31 December 2020. Underwriting results for the transferred policies were reported in the same classes of business as in prior 
years, as the effective date of the transfer was 30 December 2020, and in line with Society of Lloyd’s guidance no movements were 
processed on these policies on 31 December 2020. For 2021 and future years, results relating to these risks are reported under the 
Reinsurance Accepted class of business, reflecting the new contractual arrangement with LIC. 

Subsequent to the 2020 year-end, on 4 January 2021, under the 100% Quota Share Reinsurance Agreement between the Syndicate 
and LIC, the Group was required to set up advanced funds in segregated Part VII settlement accounts managed by the Managing 
Agent on behalf of LIC, from which claims with respect to transferred liabilities will be settled. As this transaction took place after the 
end of the 2020 reporting period, there was no impact on the Group’s consolidated statement of financial position, or consolidated 
income statement as at 31 December 2020.

144 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

23 

 Employee benefits

This Note explains the pension schemes operated by the Group for its employees. For the Group’s defined benefit scheme (in which 
no further benefits are being accrued), it sets out the amount carried on the Group statement of financial position, gains and losses 
incurred during the year, amounts paid into the scheme, together with further information about the scheme. For the Group’s defined 
contribution schemes, it sets out the costs incurred during the year.

(a)  Defined benefit pension schemes
The Group has two funded defined benefit pension schemes providing pensions benefits to its members: the Brit Group Services 
Limited Retirement Benefits Scheme (the “Scheme”) and the RiverStone Holdings Management Pension and Life Assurance 
Plan (the “Plan”).

With effect from 18 August 2021, Brit Insurance Holdings Limited and the trustees of the Plan (plus other parties) entered into 
an agreement where Brit Insurance Holdings Limited became the Principal Company and assumed the full liabilities and assets of the 
Plan. On initial recognition, the Plan’s surplus was $44.9m on an IAS 19 basis and was recognised as an asset in the statement 
of financial position, along with a corresponding deferred tax liability of $16.5m and a capital contribution of $28.4m.

The Scheme closed to new entrants on 4 October 2001 and closed to future accrual of benefits on 31 December 2011. The Plan only 
has deferred members and is closed to new entrants. Following closure to future accrual, benefits now increase broadly in line 
with inflation. The weighted average duration to payment of the Scheme’s expected cash flows is 16 years (2020: 17 years) and 
18 years for the Plan.

Both schemes are approved by HMRC for tax purposes. The schemes are operated from separate trusts, which have assets that 
are held separately from the Group. The trusts are managed by Trustees, who are responsible for payment of the benefits and 
management of the schemes’ assets.

The schemes are subject to UK regulations overseen by the Pensions Regulator, which require the Group and Trustees to agree 
a funding strategy and contribution schedule for the schemes every three years. The most recent triennial review of the Scheme 
was undertaken as at 31 July 2018 and identified a funding surplus of £9.5m. The most recent triennial review of the Plan was 
undertaken as at 31 July 2020 and identified a funding deficit of £35.3m. Both the Scheme and the Plan are currently undergoing 
new valuations.

Following the 2018 valuation of the Scheme, the Group agreed to continue to pay contributions of £2m pa until 31 July 2024, 
however these are now paid into a holding account. These contributions are payable by Brit Group Services Limited and backed-
up by cross-company guarantees from Brit Insurance Holdings Limited. Following the completion of the 2020 valuation of the Plan, 
the Group is paying deficit reduction contributions of £352,500 per month until 31 March 2026, plus £15,500 per month in respect 
of administrative expenses. As part of the transfer of the Plan to the Group, the Plan received a special payment from Fairfax 
of £8.43 million.

If there is a shortfall against the funding target, then the Company and Trustees will agree on deficit contributions to meet this 
deficit over a period. There is a risk to the Company that adverse experience could lead to a requirement for the Company to make 
additional contributions in excess of those above to recover any deficit that arises.

Net amount recognised in the statement of financial position:

Present value of defined benefit obligation
Fair value of scheme assets

Net pension asset

31 December
2021
$m
Scheme

31 December
2021
$m
Plan

31 December
2020
$m
Scheme

(202.5)
268.0

65.5

(182.3)
230.6

48.3

(222.2)
271.0

48.8

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

145

 
 
Financial Statements

23 

 Employee benefits (continued)

Changes in the net pension asset recognised in the statement of financial position:

Opening statement of financial position
Acquisition of pension asset
Credit to income statement
Foreign exchange effect
Amount recognised outside income statement
Contributions paid

Closing statement of financial position

31 December
2021
$m
Scheme

31 December
2021
$m
Plan

31 December
2020
$m
Scheme

48.8
–
0.7
(0.7)
16.7
–

65.5

–
44.9
–
(0.6)
2.0
2.0

48.3

51.9
–
1.0
1.4
(5.5)
–

48.8

A net pension asset is recognised on the statement of financial position as there is an unconditional right of the Group to be refunded 
the surplus in the schemes.

Net credit recognised in the income statement comprised:

Net interest on net defined benefit asset

Past service cost
Running costs

Net credit

31 December
2021
$m
Scheme

31 December
2021
$m
Plan

31 December
2020
$m
Scheme

0.7

–
–

0.7

0.3

–
(0.3)

–

1.0

–
–

1.0

This net credit has been recognised in the ‘other operating expenses’ line in the income statement. Contributions to the 
Group’s defined contribution pension arrangements are in addition to those set out in this note and are charged directly to the 
income statement.

The allocation of the Scheme’s and Plan’s assets were as follows:

Equities
Liability Driven Investment funds (LDI)
Other debt securities
Cash and net current assets
Gold and gold mining equities
Other scheme assets

Fair value of scheme assets

31 December
2021
$m
Scheme

31 December
2021
$m
Plan

31 December
2020
$m
Scheme

11.9
176.3
73.1
5.2
–
1.5

268.0

130.5
66.9
–
33.2
–
–

230.6

11.2
175.6
72.0
7.7
2.1
2.4

271.0

All schemes’ assets have quoted prices in active markets and the schemes do not invest directly in property occupied by the Group 
or in financial securities issued by the Group.

146 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Investment strategy
The Trustee of each scheme determine the scheme’s investment strategy after taking appropriate advice from their investment 
consultants. The management of the assets is delegated to the investment managers. The Trustee’s investment objectives are 
to ensure that the scheme has adequate resources to meet the members’ entitlements under the Trust Deed and Rules as they 
fall due, and thereafter to minimise long-term costs of the Scheme by maximising the return on the assets. Investment risk for the 
Scheme is managed by investing in low risk assets which are expected to move in a similar way to the benefits. The assets include LDI 
which aims to match a significant part of the scheme’s inflation-linked benefits and therefore help to reduce the Group’s exposure 
to interest and inflation risks.

Movements in the present value of the defined benefit obligation were as follows:

Opening defined benefit obligation
Acquisition of pension asset
Interest on defined benefit obligation
Remeasurements due to:
Changes in financial assumptions
Changes in demographic assumptions
Experience on benefit obligations
Foreign exchange effect
Benefits paid

Closing defined benefit obligation

Movements in the fair value of the schemes assets were as follows:

Opening fair value of scheme assets
Acquisition of pension asset
Interest income
Actual return excluding interest income
Running costs
Foreign exchange effect
Contributions by the employer
Benefits paid

Closing fair value of scheme assets

31 December
2021
$m
Scheme

31 December
2021
$m
Plan

31 December
2020
$m
Scheme

222.2
–
2.8

(14.9)
1.5
–
(1.7)
(7.4)

202.5

–
188.3
1.1

(5.5)
2.7
1.3
(3.1)
(2.5)

193.3
–
3.9

27.7
–
(2.2)
7.6
(8.1)

182.3

222.2

31 December
2021
$m
Scheme

31 December
2021
$m
Plan

31 December
2020
$m
Scheme

271.0
–
3.5
3.3
–
(2.4)
–
(7.4)

268.0

–
233.2
1.4
0.5
(0.3)
(3.7)
2.0
(2.5)

230.6

245.2
–
4.9
20.1
–
8.9
–
(8.1)

271.0

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

147

 
 
Financial Statements

23 

 Employee benefits (continued)

The principal actuarial assumptions at the year-end were:

Discount rate
Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation
Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation
Pension increases in payment
Mortality assumptions:
Life expectancy of male aged 60 at statement of financial position date
Life expectancy of female aged 60 at statement of financial position date
Life expectancy of male aged 60 retiring in 20 years' time
Life expectancy of female aged 60 retiring in 20 years' time

31 December
2021
$m
Scheme

1.92% pa
3.41% pa
2.57% pa
3.29% pa

31 December
2021
$m
Plan

1.95% pa
3.39% pa
2.78% pa
3.27% pa

31 December
2020
$m
Scheme

1.29% pa
3.05% pa
2.20% pa
2.98% pa

27.9 years
30.6 years
29.4 years
32.0 years

27.9 years
30.2 years
29.4 years
31.6 years

27.8 years
30.0 years
29.4 years
31.5 years

The assumptions used to determine end-of-year benefit obligations are also used to calculate the following year’s cost.

Sensitivity analysis:

Assumption

Discount rate
Future RPI inflation increases
Future CPI inflation increases
Assumed life expectancy at age 60

Change in assumption

Decrease by 0.5% pa
Increase by 0.5% pa
Increase by 0.5% pa
Increase by 1 year

Change in defined benefit obligation at 
end of the year
Scheme

Change in defined benefit obligation at 
end of the year
Plan

Increase by $16.9m
Increase by $10.4m
Increase by $2.0m
Increase by $9.0m

Increase by $16.9m
Increase by $9.1m
Increase by $1.8m
Increase by $6.0m

The calculations in this section have been carried out using the same method and data as the Group’s pensions and accounting 
figures with each assumption adjusted as shown above. Each assumption has been varied individually and a combination of changes 
in assumptions could produce a different result.

Risks:
The Group is exposed to a number of risks in relation to its defined benefit schemes, the most significant of which are detailed below:

Risk

Investment strategy

Investment return

Changes in asset values are not matched by changes in the scheme’s defined benefit 
obligation. For example, if gilt yields rise with no changes in corporate bond yields, the net 
pension asset would reduce.

Future investment returns are lower than anticipated and so additional contributions are 
required from the Group to pay all the benefits promised.

Improvements in life expectancy

Scheme members live longer and so benefits are payable for longer than anticipated.

Inflation

Regulatory

Actual inflation is higher and so benefit payments are higher than anticipated.

In future the scheme may have backdated claims or liabilities arising from future 
legislation, emerging practice or court judgments.

(b)  Brit Group Services Limited – Defined Contribution Personal Pension Plan
Brit Group Services Limited operates a defined contribution group personal pension plan. The assets of the scheme are held 
separately from those of the Group in an independently administered fund.

The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by Brit Group Services Limited to the fund and amounted to $7.4m 
(2020: $6.1m).

At 31 December 2021 no contributions were payable to the fund (2020: nil).

148 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

(c)  Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. – 401(k) Safe Harbor Plan
Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. operates a ‘401(k) Safe Harbor Plan’. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those 
of the Group in an independently administered fund.

Due to the movement of staff from Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. to Ambridge USA Service Company Inc., from 1 April 2021 
onwards, any further contributions have been payable by Ambridge USA Service Company Inc.

The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. and Ambridge USA Service Company 
Inc. to the fund and amounted to $0.7m (2020: $0.9m).

$0.2m of contributions were paid by Brit Insurance Services USA Inc and $0.5m of contributions were paid by Ambridge USA 
Service Company Inc.

At 31 December 2021 no contributions were payable to the fund (2020: nil).

(d)  Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. – Nonqualified deferred compensation plan
Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. operates a ‘409(a) Nonqualified deferred compensation plan’. The assets of the scheme are not held 
separately from those of the Group.

Due to the movement of staff from Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. to Ambridge USA Service Company Inc., from 1 April 2021 
onwards, any further pension payments have been payable by Ambridge USA Service Company Inc.

No pension payments were made by Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. or Ambridge USA Service Company Inc. to the fund in 2021 (2020: nil).

(e)  BGS Services (Bermuda) Limited – Registered plan
BGS Services (Bermuda) Limited operates a registered plan for Bermudan employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately 
from those of the Group in an independently administered fund.

The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by BGS Services (Bermuda) Limited to the fund and amounted 
to $73k (2020: $51k).

At 31 December 2021 no contributions were payable to the fund (2020: nil).

(f)  BGS Services (Bermuda) Limited – Unregistered plan
BGS Services (Bermuda) Limited operates an unregistered plan for non-Bermudan employees. The assets of the scheme are held 
separately from those of the Group in an independently administered fund.

The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by BGS Services (Bermuda) Limited to the fund and amounted 
to $3.5k (2020: $37k).

At 31 December 2021 no contributions were payable to the fund (2020: nil).

(g)  Sussex Capital Management Limited – Unregistered plan
Sussex Capital Management Limited operates an unregistered plan for non-Bermudan employees. The assets of the scheme are held 
separately from those of the Group in an independently administered fund.

The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by Sussex Capital Management Limited to the fund and amounted 
to $17.5k (2020: $33k).

At 31 December 2021 no contributions were payable to the fund (2020: nil).

(h)  Ambridge Partners LLC – 401(k) Safe Harbor Plan, Profit sharing plan and trust
Ambridge Partners LLC operates a ‘401(k) Safe Harbor Plan’. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the Group 
in an independently administered fund. Employees may elect to contribute a percentage of their compensation. Ambridge Partners 
LLC does not match employee contributions.

(i)  Ambridge Europe Limited – Defined Contribution Personal Pension Plan
Ambridge Europe Limited operates a defined contribution group personal pension plan. The assets of the scheme are held separately 
from those of the Group in an independently administered fund.

The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by Ambridge Europe Limited to the fund and amounted to $101k (2020: $80k).

At 31 December 2021, contributions payable to the fund amounted to $23k (2020: $17k).

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

149

 
 
Financial Statements

23 

 Employee benefits (continued)

(j)  Ambridge long term incentive award 
During the year ended 31 December 2021, the Group operated a variable award scheme in respect of Ambridge. The total cost 
recorded in the income statement for the year was $3.5m (2020: nil) and the carrying amount of the liability under the scheme 
at 31 December 2021 was $3.7m (2020: $0.2m). The scheme rewards senior employees for performance below a target loss 
ratio for relevant classes of business over a four-year period. The cost of the award is estimated using the financial performance 
of Ambridge over the performance period, as adjusted to reflect the timing of award payments subsequent to the performance period.

(k)  Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited – Registered plan
Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited operates a registered plan for Bermudan employees. The assets of the scheme are held 
separately from those of the Group in an independently administered fund.

The pension cost charge represents contributions payable by Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited to the fund and amounted 
to $21k (2020: $18k).

At 31 December 2021 no contributions were payable to the fund (2020: nil).

(l)  Camargue Underwriting Managers Proprietary Limited – Defined Contribution Personal Pension Plan
Camargue Underwriting Managers Proprietary Limited operates a defined contribution plan for employees. The assets of the scheme 
are held separately from those of the Group in an independently administered fund.

The pension cost charge represents contributions paid by Camargue Underwriting Managers Proprietary Limited, following its 
acquisition by the Group on 4 October 2021, to the fund and amounted to $14k (2020: nil).

At 31 December 2021 no contributions were payable to the fund (2020: nil).

24 

 Financial investments

This Note summarises the total value of the financial assets of the Group and shows how much has been invested in each class 
of asset. It also explains how each asset is categorised under three different levels of hierarchy, the methods used to value assets 
within each level and assets transferred between levels.

Equity securities
Debt securities
Mortgages and loans
Specialised investment funds

Total

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

480.1
3,139.8
38.3
356.8

4,015.0

376.7
3,392.5
23.0
264.4

4,056.6

All financial investments have been designated as held at fair value through profit or loss.

Basis for determining the fair value hierarchy of financial instruments
The Group has classified the fair value measurements using a fair value hierarchy that reflects the significance of the inputs used 
in making those measurements. The fair value hierarchy comprises the following levels:

(a) Level one – quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets;

(b) Level two – inputs other than quoted prices included within level one that are observable for the asset, either directly  
(i.e. as prices) or indirectly (i.e. derived from prices); and

(c) Level three – inputs for the assets that are not based on observable market data (unobservable inputs).

150 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Assets are categorised as level one where fair values determined in whole directly by reference to an active market relate to prices 
which are readily and regularly available from an exchange, dealer, broker, industry group, pricing service or regulatory agency and 
those prices represent actual and regularly occurring market transactions on an arm’s-length basis, i.e. the market is still active.

For assets and liabilities that are recognised at fair value on a recurring basis, the Group determines whether transfers have 
occurred between levels in the hierarchy by reassessing categorisation (based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the 
fair value measurement as a whole) at the end of each reporting period. Fair values for level two and level three assets include:

•  Values provided at the request of the Group by pricing services and which are not publicly available or values provided by external 

parties which are readily available but relate to assets for which the market is not always active; and

•  Assets measured on the basis of valuation techniques including a varying degree of assumptions supported by market 

transactions and observable data.

For all assets not quoted in an active market or for which there is no active market, the availability of financial data can vary and 
is affected by a wide variety of factors, including the type of financial instrument, whether it is new and not yet established in the 
marketplace, and other characteristics specific to each transaction. To the extent that valuation is based on the models or inputs 
that are unobservable in the market, the determination of fair value requires more judgement. Accordingly, the degree of judgement 
exercised is higher for instruments classified in level three and the classification between level two and level three depends highly 
on the proportion of assumptions used, supported by market transactions and observable data.

Valuation techniques

Level one
Inputs represent unadjusted quoted prices for identical instruments exchanged in active markets (where transactions occur with 
sufficient frequency and volume). The fair values of securities sold short and the majority of the company’s equities are based 
on published quotes in active markets. These also include government bonds and treasury bills issued in the US and in the UK.

Level two
Inputs include directly or indirectly observable inputs (other than level one inputs) such as quoted prices for similar financial 
instruments exchanged in active markets, quoted prices for identical or similar financial instruments exchanged in inactive markets 
and other market observable inputs.

Level two securities contain certain investments in US and non-US government agency securities, US and non-US corporate debt 
securities and specialised investment funds. US government agency securities are priced using valuations from independent pricing 
vendors who use discounted cash flow models supplemented with market and credit research to gather specific information. Market 
observable inputs for these investments may include broker-dealer quotes, reported trades, issuer spreads and available bids. 
Non-US government agency securities are priced with OTC quotes or broker-dealer quotes. Other market observable inputs include 
benchmark yields and reported trades. Issuer spreads are also available for these types of investments.

Level two common stocks are priced using a combination of independent pricing service providers and internal valuation models that 
rely on directly or indirectly observable inputs.

Level three
Level three equities include investments in limited partnerships where the fund’s underlying investments are not traded/quoted 
in an active market. In some instances, limited partnerships are classified as level three because they may require at least three 
months’ notice to liquidate.

Level three debt instruments include corporate loans with unobservable inputs used in the measurement of financial instruments. 
Management is required to use its own assumptions regarding unobservable inputs as there is little, if any, market activity in these 
instruments or related observable inputs that can be corroborated at the measurement date.

Level three specialised investment funds include securities that are valued using techniques appropriate to each specific investment. 
The valuation techniques include fair value by reference to net asset values (NAVs) adjusted and issued by fund managers based 
on their knowledge of underlying investments and credit spreads of counterparties. In some instances, certain investment funds are 
classified as level three because they may require at least three months’ notice to liquidate.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

151

 
 
Financial Statements

24 

 Financial investments (continued)

Disclosures of fair values in accordance with the fair value hierarchy

31 December 2021
Equity securities
Debt securities
Mortgages and loans
Specialised investment funds

31 December 2020
Equity securities
Debt securities
Mortgages and loans
Specialised investment funds

Level one
$m

Level two
$m

Level three
$m

Total
$m

345.5
2,026.0
–
–

2,371.5

247.7
1,739.3
–
–

1,987.0

–
1,077.3
–
296.3

1,373.6

–
1,637.8
–
249.2

1,887.0

134.6
36.5
38.3
60.5

269.9

129.0
15.4
23.0
15.2

182.6

480.1
3,139.8
38.3
356.8

4,015.0

376.7
3,392.5
23.0
264.4

4,056.6

All unrealised gains of $63.6m (2020: losses of $11.6m) and realised gains of $59.4m (2020: gains of $7.5m) on financial investments 
held during the year, are presented in investment return in the consolidated income statement.

Transfers between fair value levels
Fair values are classified as level one when the financial instrument or derivative is actively traded and a quoted price is available. 
In accordance with the Group’s policy if an instrument classified as level one subsequently ceases to be actively traded, 
it is immediately transferred out of level one. In such cases, instruments are classified into level two, unless the measurement of its 
fair value requires the use of significant unobservable inputs, in which case it is classified as level three. All fair value measurements 
above are recurring as they are required to be measured and recognised at the end of each reporting period.

Transfers from level two to level three
The only transfers between levels in the period were $50.0m (2020: $nil) of Specialised investment funds investments from level two 
to level three due to their inputs becoming unobservable during the year.

Reconciliation of movements in level three financial investments measured at fair value

Equity
securities
$m

Debt
securities
$m

Mortgages
and loans
$m

Specialised
investment
funds
$m

183.2
(9.0)
2.3
(48.4)
0.9

129.0

–
29.9
9.7
(33.8)
(0.2)

134.6

15.2
(0.1)
–
–
0.3

15.4

–
(1.7)
22.7
–
0.1

36.5

–
–
21.9
–
1.1

23.0

–
–
26.1
(9.6)
(1.2)

38.3

16.8
(1.6)
–
–
–

15.2

50.0
(3.7)
–
–
(1.0)

60.5

Total
$m

215.2
(10.7)
24.2
(48.4)
2.3

182.6

50.0
24.5
58.5
(43.4)
(2.3)

269.9

At 1 January 2020
Total losses recognised in the income statement
Purchases
Sales
Foreign exchange gains

At 31 December 2020

Transfers from level two to level three
Total gains recognised in the income statement
Purchases
Sales
Foreign exchange (losses)/gains

At 31 December 2021

152 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Total net gains recognised in the income statement under ‘investment return’ in respect of level three financial investments for the 
period amounted to $24.5m (2020: losses of $10.7m). Included in this balance are $19.7m of unrealised gains (2020: losses of $6.3m) 
attributable to assets still held at the end of the year.

Sensitivity of level three financial investments measured at fair value to changes in key assumptions
The following table shows the sensitivity of the fair value of level three financial investments to changes in key assumptions.

Equity securities
Debt securities
Mortgages and loans
Specialised investment funds

31 December 2021

31 December 2020

Effect of
possible
alternative
assumptions
(+/-)
$m

2.8
(0.6)
(0.3)
1.1

Carrying
amount
$m

134.6
36.5
38.3
60.5

269.9

Effect of
possible
alternative
assumptions
(+/-)
$m

2.4
1.0
1.2
0.4

Carrying
amount
$m

129.0
15.4
23.0
15.2

182.6

In order to determine reasonably possible alternative assumptions, the Group has monitored the price movements of the securities 
invested on a month by month basis during 2021, or since acquisition if acquired during the year. This has resulted in an average 
expected percentage change in the securities pricing, which forms the basis of this analysis.

25 

 Derivative contracts

This Note summarises the total value of the derivative contracts of the Group. It also explains how each derivative contract 
is categorised under three different levels of hierarchy, the valuation methods used to value derivative contracts and amounts 
transferred between levels. At 31 December 2021 and 31 December 2020, the options formed part of the investment management 
strategy, while the currency forwards formed part of the foreign exchange management strategy.

The disclosure provided in the tables below include derivatives recorded in the Group’s statement of financial position.

Derivative contract assets

31 December 2021
Currency forwards
Options
Industry loss warranty contracts
Sutton forward contract
Equity warrants

Total

31 December 2020
Currency forwards
Options
Industry loss warranty contracts
Sutton forward contract
Total return swap

Total

Gross amounts
of receivables
on derivative
contract assets
$m

Gross amounts
of payables
on derivative
contract assets
$m

Derivative
contract assets
presented in the
statement of
financial position
$m

457.0
0.5
0.1
0.7
4.9

463.2

519.5
1.5
0.2
1.6
1.9

524.7

(448.1)
–
–
–
–

(448.1)

(508.9)
(0.9)
–
–
–

(509.8)

8.9
0.5
0.1
0.7
4.9

15.1

10.6
0.6
0.2
1.6
1.9

14.9

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

153

 
 
Financial Statements

25 

 Derivative contracts (continued)

Derivative contract liabilities

31 December 2021
Currency forwards
Total return swap

Total

31 December 2020
Currency forwards

Total

Disclosures of fair values in accordance with the fair value hierarchy

31 December 2021
Derivative contract assets
Derivative contract liabilities

31 December 2020
Derivative contract assets
Derivative contract liabilities

Valuation techniques

Gross amounts
of payables
on derivative
contract liabilities
$m

Gross amounts
of receivables
on derivative
contract liabilities
$m

Derivative
contract liabilities
presented in the
statement of
financial position
$m

(680.7)
(0.3)

(681.0)

(634.3)

(634.3)

668.5
–

668.5

625.1

625.1

Level two
$m

Level three
$m

8.9
(12.5)

12.7
(9.2)

6.2
–

2.2
–

(12.2)
(0.3)

(12.5)

(9.2)

(9.2)

Total
$m

15.1
(12.5)

14.9
(9.2)

Level two
The fair value of the vast majority of the Group’s derivative contracts are based primarily on non-binding third-party broker-dealer 
quotes that are prepared using level two inputs. Where third-party broker-dealer quotes are used, typically one quote is obtained 
from a broker-dealer with particular expertise in the instrument being priced.

The valuation technique used to determine the fair value of currency forwards is derived from observable inputs such as active 
foreign-exchange and interest-rate markets that may require adjustments for certain unobservable inputs.

Level three
CPI-linked derivatives are classified as level three and valued using broker-dealer quotes which management has determined 
utilise market observable inputs except for the inflation volatility input which is not market observable. The reasonableness of the 
fair values of CPI-linked derivative contracts are assessed by comparing the fair values received from third-party broker-dealers 
to recent market transactions where available and values determined using third-party pricing software based on the Black-Scholes 
option pricing model for European-style options that incorporates market observable and unobservable inputs such as the current 
value of the relevant CPI underlying the derivative, the inflation swap rate, nominal swap rate and inflation volatility. The fair values 
of CPI-linked derivative contracts are sensitive to assumptions such as market expectations of future rates of inflation and related 
inflation volatilities.

The put and call options and forward contracts that the Group has in respect of its associated undertakings have been classified 
as level three as the valuation of these derivatives is derived from unobservable inputs which is linked to EBITDA calculations.

154 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsReconciliation of movements in level three derivative contracts measured at fair value

At 1 January 2020
Purchases
Total losses recognised in the income statement
Foreign exchange gains

At 31 December 2020

Purchases
Total gains recognised in the income statement
Foreign exchange losses

At 31 December 2021

Financial Statements

Level three
derivatives
$m

2.1
7.0
(9.0)
2.2

2.3

1.3
4.4
(1.8)

6.2

Sensitivity of level three derivatives measured at fair value to changes in key assumptions
The following table shows the sensitivity of the fair value of level three derivatives to changes in key assumptions.

Options
Industry loss warranty contracts
Sutton forward contract
Equity warrants 

31 December 2021

31 December 2020

Effect
of possible
alternative
assumptions
(+/-)
$m

0.1
–
0.1
0.5

Carrying
amount
$m

0.5
0.1
0.7
4.9

Effect
of possible
alternative
assumptions
(+/-)
$m

0.1
0.1
0.4
–

Carrying
amount
$m

0.6
0.2
1.6
–

In order to determine reasonably possible alternative assumptions, the Group adjusted key unobservable model inputs, including 
inflation volatility inputs and credit risk inputs.

26 

 Insurance and other receivables

This Note sets out the various categories of amounts which are owed to the Group.

Arising out of direct insurance operations
Arising out of reinsurance operations
Receivables from contracts with customers
Prepayments
Accrued income
Outstanding settlements on investments
Other assets
Other debtors
Finance lease receivable

Total

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

735.8
596.1
15.5
11.9
11.6
10.0
81.2
152.7
0.5

611.4
484.9
56.5
8.8
13.9
24.3
43.6
58.6
–

1,615.3

1,302.0

Other assets relate to shares purchased to settle share-based payment awards. For further information, refer to Note 36.

The finance lease receivable relates to the sublease agreement entered into by Brit Insurance Services USA Inc. For further 
information, refer to Note 27.

With the exception of the finance lease receivable, the carrying amounts disclosed above reasonably approximate fair values as all 
amounts are receivable within one year of the date of the statement of financial position. Of the total finance lease receivable 
recognised above, $0.2m is receivable within one year (2020: nil).

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

155

 
 
Financial Statements

27 

 Leases where the Group acts as a lessor

This Note analyses the amounts recorded in respect of leases where the Group acts as a lessor. Additional commentary provides 
qualitative and quantitative information on such activities. Further analysis reconciles undiscounted annual lease payments to the 
finance lease receivable balance at year-end.

During 2021, the Group entered into a sublease in respect of an office building that it leased in 2017. The sublease is for the whole 
of the remaining term of the head lease and, consequently, it has been classified as a finance lease by the Group.

The carrying amount of net investment in the lease has increased by $0.5m as a result of the initial recognition, and subsequent 
recognition of finance income, as well as cash received.

The following amounts have been recognised in the consolidated income statement from lease contracts in which the Group 
acts as a lessor:

Finance lease
Finance income on the net investment in the lease
Loss on initial recognition

31 December
2021
$m

–
(0.1)

The following table sets out a maturity analysis of lease receivables, showing the undiscounted lease payments to be received after 
the reporting date:

Less than one year
One to two years
Two to three years

Total undiscounted lease payments receivable

Unearned finance income

Net investment in the lease

28 

 Cash and cash equivalents

31 December
2021
$m

0.2
0.2
0.1

0.5

–

0.5

This Note analyses the amounts of cash and cash equivalents. Cash equivalents are investment instruments with less than 90 days 
left to maturity when purchased by the Group. Additional analysis which explains where cash and cash equivalents are held and why 
they are being held is also provided.

Cash at bank and on deposit
Cash equivalents

Total

The carrying amounts disclosed above, reasonably approximate fair values.

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

491.3
1,019.0

1,510.3

423.0
352.7

775.7

156 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

28 

 Cash and cash equivalents (continued)

The source of these amounts can be further analysed as follows:

Classification

Definition

Cash within segregated fund mandates

Short-term investment funds, money market funds, 
treasury bills or cash held within segregated mandates.

Lloyd's trust funds

Self-managed cash

Total

Cash within the Lloyd's Overseas Deposits trust funds held 
to meet regulatory requirements.

Highly liquid instruments held to meet ongoing working 
capital requirements.

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

808.4

172.4

72.3

59.4

629.6

1,510.3

543.9

775.7

29 

 Assets and liabilities of disposal group classified as held for sale

In December 2020, management committed to a plan to sell Commonwealth Insurance Company of America, a subsidiary of the 
Group. Accordingly, that business was presented as a disposal group held for sale. The sale was completed on 5 February 2021, and 
a profit of $3.7m was recognised in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income.

As at 31 December 2021, the disposal group was no longer held on the statement of financial position. As at 31 December 2020 the 
disposal group comprised of the following:

Assets classified as held for sale:
Regulatory licenses
Reinsurance contracts
Financial investments
Cash equivalents

Total assets of disposal group held for sale

Liabilities directly associated with assets classified as held for sale:
Insurance contracts
Insurance and other payables

Total liability of disposal group held for sale

31 December
2020
$m

7.5
1.4
7.6
1.3

17.8

1.6
0.2

1.8

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

157

 
 
Financial Statements

30 

 Borrowings

This Note describes the main sources of borrowing available to the Group and the amounts currently borrowed from each 
of those sources.

Maturity

Call

Non-current
Subordinated debt

2030

Revolving credit facility

2025

–

–

Effective
interest rate

3.7%
Daily non-
cumulative
RFR rate
+1.45%

31 December 2021

31 December 2020

Amortised
cost
$m

Fair value
$m

Amortised
cost
$m

Fair value
$m

182.9

174.5

184.5

170.4

45.0

227.9

45.0

219.5

130.0

314.5

130.0

300.4

As at 31 December 2021 and 31 December 2020, the fair value of the subordinated debt was determined by reference to trading 
market values on recognised exchanges and was therefore categorised as a level one measurement in the fair value hierarchy. For 
further information relating to the fair value hierarchy, refer to Note 24.

Subordinated debt
The Group did not take up the option to call the subordinated debt on 9 December 2020. Following this date, the interest rate reset 
to 3.6757%, being the higher of:

i)  3.4% above the gross redemption yield of the 4.75% Treasury Gilt due 2030 quoted on the reset date; and

ii)  3.4% above the gross redemption yield of the 8% Treasury Stock due 2021 quoted on the reset date.

The effective interest rate method of accounting has been applied over the term up to the call date.

Revolving credit facility
The Group has a $450.0m (2020: $450.0m) revolving credit facility which expires on 31 December 2025.

At 31 December 2021, a $130.0m (2020: $130.0m) uncollateralised letter of credit had been utilised. In addition, there was a cash 
drawing of $45.0m (2020: $130.0m).

Syndicate 2987 entered into an agreement for a $150.0m uncollateralised letter of credit facility on 22 November 2021. 
As at 31 December 2021, this $150m facility was fully utilised.

As at 31 December 2021, there was a uncollateralised $130.0m letter of credit facility to support the business written 
in Syndicate 1618.

158 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

31 

 Other financial liabilities

This Note sets out the amount of financial liabilities owing to external investors in respect of structured entities 
consolidated by the Group.

The statement of financial position of the Group includes financial liabilities arising from third-party investments in structured 
entities that are consolidated by the Group.

These financial liabilities have been designated as held at fair value through profit or loss. As at 31 December 2021, the fair value 
of the investments by independent third parties was $95.8m (2020: $62.0m), of which $95.8m (2020: $62.0m) related to other 
financial liabilities owing to investors in collateralised reinsurance arrangements.

The fair value of these liabilities was determined by reference to the underlying net assets of the vehicles and was therefore 
categorised as level three in the fair value hierarchy. Further information relating to the Group’s approach to fair value measurement 
is available in Note 24.

32 

 Insurance and other payables

This Note sets out the various categories of amounts which are owed by the Group.

Arising out of direct insurance operations
Arising out of reinsurance operations
Other taxes and social security costs
Accruals and deferred income
Lease liabilities
Other creditors

Total

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

51.5
876.8
3.4
88.5
53.2
110.7

1,184.1

68.4
404.6
3.0
58.1
54.6
32.0

620.7

With the exception of lease liabilities, the carrying amounts disclosed above reasonably approximate fair values as all amounts are 
payable within one year of the date of the statement of financial position.

Of the total lease liabilities recognised above, $6.8m is payable within one year (2020: $6.0m). A maturity analysis of the contractual 
undiscounted cash flows is shown below:

Maturity analysis for lease liabilities – contractual undiscounted cash flows
Less than one year
One to five years
More than five years

Total undiscounted lease liabilities

Total lease liabilities included in the statement of financial position

Current
Non-current

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

8.2
29.8
21.4

59.4

53.2

6.8
46.4

7.5
27.1
27.6

62.2

54.6

6.0
48.6

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

159

 
 
Financial Statements

33 

 Called up share capital

This Note sets out the number of shares the Company has in issue and their nominal value.

Ordinary shares:
Allotted, issued and fully paid

At 1 January 2020
Issue of class B shares

At 31 December 2020

At 1 January 2021
Issue of class A shares
Issue of class B shares

At 31 December 2021

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

31 December
2021
1p each
Number

31 December
2020
1p each
Number

10.0

8.6 669,502,094 568,837,653

Share premium
$m

Share capital
$m

Share capital
Number

505.5
522.4

1,027.9

1,027.9
373.7
31.0

1,432.6

7.0 446,977,185
1.6 121,860,468

8.6 568,837,653

8.6 568,837,653
92,364,532
1.3
8,299,909
0.1

10.0 669,502,094

92,364,532 shares are class A shares and the remainder are class B shares. The class A and B shares rank pari passu except that 
on a distribution of profits by the Company, the class A shareholders are entitled to a cumulative annual dividend which must be 
settled ahead of any equivalent distribution to class B shareholders.

The number of shares reported is for Brit Limited, the immediate parent of the Brit Group.

On 06 July 2021, 1,627,907 Class B Ordinary Shares were issued by Brit Limited, each with a nominal value of 1p, for $7.0m. Following 
this share issuance, $7.0m was recorded in the share premium accounts.

On 27 August 2021, 92,364,532 Class A Ordinary Shares were issued by Brit Limited, each with a nominal value of 1p, for $375.0m. 
Following this share issuance, $373.7m was recorded in the share premium accounts.

On 17 December 2021, 6,672,002 Class B Ordinary Shares were issued by Brit Limited, each with a nominal value of 1p, for $24.1m. 
Following this share issuance, $24.0m was recorded in the share premium accounts.

Following the issuances during the year, Fairfax owns 86.20% of Brit Limited while the remaining 13.80% is owned by OMERS.

During the prior year, the following issuances of Class B Ordinary Shares (each with a nominal value of 1p) by Brit Limited took place:

•  On 07 April 2020, 46,511,628 shares were issued for $200.0m, resulting in $199.4m being recorded in the share premium accounts.

•  On 24 August 2020, 19,767,442 shares were issued for $85.0m, resulting in $84.7m being recorded in the share premium accounts.

•  On 21 September 2020, 3,488,373 shares were issued for $15.0m, resulting in $15.0m being recorded in the share premium accounts.

•  On 20 November 2020, 31,395,349 shares were issued for $135.0m, resulting in $134.6m being recorded in the share 

premium accounts.

•  On 23 November 2020, 3,720,931 shares were issued for $16.0m, resulting in $16.0m being recorded in the share premium accounts.

•  On 23 December 2020, 16,976,745 share were issued for $73.0m, resulting in $72.8m being recorded in the share premium accounts.

Additionally, on 28 August 2020, Fairfax purchased all 48,000,000 Class A shares from OMERS and increased its percentage 
shareholding to 100.00%. Simultaneously, these shares were converted to Class B shares.

160 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

34 

 Dividends

This Note gives details of the amounts paid to shareholders during 2021 and 2020 by way of dividends.

Dividend paid in respect of prior year
Dividend paid

2021
$

–
0.66

2020
$

0.43
–

2021
$m

–
375.0

375.0

2020
$m

20.6
–

20.6

A $375.0m dividend was paid to the class B shareholders on 7 September 2021 in accordance with the Brit Limited shareholders’ 
agreement an amount equal to $0.66 per share. No dividend was paid to the class B shareholders in respect of the year-ended 
31 December 2020 (2020: $20.6m/$0.43 per share).

35 

 Cash flows provided by operating activities

The tables below show how the profit for the year translates into cash flows generated from operating activities and provide 
a reconciliation of the liabilities arising from financing activities.

Profit/(loss) on ordinary activities before tax
Adjustments for non-cash movements:
Realised and unrealised (gains)/losses on investments
Realised and unrealised losses on derivatives
Amortisation of intangible assets
Depreciation and impairment of property, plant and equipment
Foreign exchange (losses)/gains on cash and cash equivalents
Share of gains after tax of associated undertakings
Profit on disposal of subsidiaries
Profit on disposal of associated undertaking
Unrealised (gains)/losses on shares held for share-based payments
Charges in respect of share-based payment schemes
Interest income
Dividend income
Finance costs on borrowing

Changes in working capital:
Deferred acquisition costs
Insurance and other receivables excluding accrued income
Insurance and reinsurance contracts
Financial investments
Derivative contracts
Other financial liabilities
Insurance and other payables
Employee benefits
Provisions

Cash flows provided by/(used in) operating activities

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

227.3

(230.5)

(123.0)
15.7
11.7
10.1
1.1
(1.7)
(19.8)
(6.1)
(21.7)
17.3
(47.4)
(11.0)
18.3

(74.5)
(279.7)
192.8
157.3
(12.6)
33.8
599.5
(65.0)
0.1

622.5

4.1
1.1
10.7
8.9
(3.3)
(2.0)
–
–
15.6
3.0
(66.9)
(6.3)
23.6

(3.7)
(77.5)
410.9
(423.2)
(5.3)
(13.5)
(55.7)
(3.1)
(1.2)

(414.3)

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

161

 
 
Financial Statements

35 

 Cash flows provided by operating activities (continued)

Reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities

31 December 2021

Long-term borrowings
Subordinated debt
Short-term borrowings
Revolving credit facility

Total liabilities from financing activities

31 December 2021

Long-term borrowings
Subordinated debt
Short-term borrowings
Revolving credit facility

Total liabilities from financing activities

36 

 Share-based payments

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

184.6

130.0

314.6

Year ended
31 December
2019
$m

176.2

140.0

316.2

Cash flows
$m

(6.8)

(87.8)

(94.6)

Cash flows
$m

(11.5)

(12.5)

(24.0)

Foreign
exchange
movement
$m

Non-cash changes

Other changes
$m

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

(1.7)

–

(1.7)

6.8

2.8

9.6

182.9

45.0

227.9

Foreign
exchange
movement
$m

Non-cash changes

Other changes
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

5.8

–

5.8

14.1

2.5

16.6

184.6

130.0

314.6

The Group rewards its employees through various share-based incentive schemes. This Note explains the different schemes 
used to facilitate those share-based payments and the charge recognised in the consolidated income statement in respect 
of these schemes.

The compensation cost recognised in the income statement under IFRS 2 ‘Share-based Payments’ for the Group’s share-based 
payments arrangements are shown below:

Equity-settled plans
Employee Share Ownership Plan
Cash-settled plans
Long Term Incentive Plan

Total

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

1.0

16.3

17.3

1.3

1.7

3.0

The total liability in respect of cash-settled plans at 31 December 2021 was $23.3m (2020: $10.3m). In regard to the Long Term 
Incentive Plan, no gain or loss (2020: nil) is included in the consolidated statement of changes in equity in respect of equity settled 
plans. $3.1m (2020: $1.6m) is included within other creditors in respect of national insurance contributions on the share schemes. 
A further $1.0m (2020: $1.3m) of charges relating to the Employee Share Ownership Plan are equity-settled in nature but physically-
settled in cash and so were not recorded in the consolidated statement of changes in equity.

(a)  Long Term Incentive Plan (Performance Share Plan replacement)
On the Fairfax acquisition of Brit Limited, the 65% of PSP awards that did not immediately vest were converted by Fairfax into 
awards under this scheme. The cost of the awards was recorded over the vesting period. The options vested in November 2018 and 
there are a further seven years to exercise the options.

162 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Year ended
31 December
2021
Number of awards

Year ended
31 December
2020
Number of awards

741
(73)

668

865
(124)

741

Reconciliation of movement in the number of awards

Outstanding at 1 January
Exercised

Outstanding at 31 December

In order to settle share-based payment awards, in 2015 the Group purchased $10.7m of preference shares in FFHL Share Option 1 
Corp and that company has purchased shares in Fairfax. Of the purchase, $3.9m related to this scheme and was recorded within 
equity so as to offset the share-based payment charges recorded in equity on exercise of the awards. $0.6m worth of options were 
forfeited prior to the vesting of the scheme and the shares associated with those forfeited awards were awarded as part of the 
cash-settled long term incentive plan. As such, this amount has been reclassified from equity to other assets, resulting in a $0.6m 
increase in the statement of changes in equity in 2021. There were no additional shares purchased for this scheme in 2020 and 2021. 
The remaining 668 shares were exercisable at the year end.

(b)  Long Term Incentive Plan
The Company awards selected employees options to acquire shares in Fairfax at a nil exercise price. Subject to continued service, 
the options vest between two and ten years after the grant date and there are a further five years to exercise the options.

The fair value of the awards are determined by the market price of the underlying shares at the valuation date. The calculation of the 
compensation cost recognised in the income statement in respect of these awards assumes forfeitures due to employee turnover 
of 10% per annum (2020: 10%) prior to vesting, with subsequent adjustments to reflect actual experience.

Reconciliation of movement in the number of awards

Outstanding at 1 January
Granted
Exercised
Forfeited

Outstanding at 31 December

Year ended
31 December
2021
Number of awards

Year ended
1 December
2020
Number of awards

118,626
44,967
(3,825)
(6,531)

153,237

114,451
19,986
(6,977)
(8,834)

118,626

The total intrinsic value at the end of the period of liabilities for awards that have been vested, but not exercised, amounted to $3.8m 
(2020: $1.8m). The weighted average share price at the date of exercise for share options exercised during the period was $430.61 
(2020: $333.70). The weighted average fair value at date of grant for awards granted during 2021 was $496.50 (2020: $340.54).

In order to settle share-based payment awards, in 2021 the Group purchased $16.9m (2020: $3.0m) of preference shares in FFHL 
Share Option 1 Corp and that company has purchased shares in Fairfax. This has been recorded within Other Assets so as to offset 
the share-based payment recorded as a liability within Other Creditors that accrues over the vesting period of the awards.

c)  Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP)
Under the terms of the ESOP which was established in 2015, eligible employees are given the election to purchase common 
shares in Fairfax in an amount up to 10% of their annual base salary. The Company purchases, on the employee’s behalf, a number 
of Fairfax’s common shares equal in value to 30% of the employee’s contribution. In the event that the Company achieves certain 
performance targets, additional shares are purchased by the Company for the employee’s benefit, to an amount equal in value 
to 20% of the employee’s contribution during that year. In respect of both shares purchased by employees and matched by the 
Company, during the year ended 31 December 2021, the Company purchased a total of 7,997 common shares in Fairfax (2020: 11,749) 
at an average price of $440.14 (2020: $329.63) in respect of this plan.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

163

 
 
Financial Statements

37 

 Consolidated entities

This Note sets out all the entities which are members of the Brit Limited Group and whose results and financial positions are 
consolidated to produce the Group result and financial position.

All subsidiaries of the Company are 100% owned apart from the Group’s special purpose vehicles and Riverstone Corporate Capital 
4 Limited (RCC4). For these vehicles, funding is provided through preference share capital or other unitised issuances. The Group 
also holds 42% and 100% investments in The Diversified Fund and the Specialty Insurance Fund respectively, which are segregated 
accounts within Sussex Capital Limited. The Group has consolidated all segregated accounts of Sussex Re Limited and protected 
cells Sussex Capital UK PCC Limited apart from those where the investment therein has been made directly by investors that are 
external to the Brit Group.

RCC4 is a Lloyd’s corporate member owned by the RiverStone Group during the reporting period and acquired by Brit Limited Group 
on 1 January 2022. Its main activity from 1 January 2021 is to act as the sole corporate member of Ki Syndicate 1618, the results 
of which will generate the majority of the economic returns of RCC4 in 2021 and thereafter. These returns have been fully reinsured 
into segregated accounts of Sussex Re Limited, in which Ki Financial Limited (KFL), a member of the Brit Group, is the sole investor. 
Consequently, KFL is the principal beneficiary of the economics of Ki Syndicate 1618, RCC4 and the Sussex segregated accounts 
through into which the results of the syndicate are passed to KFL. Accordingly, from 1 January 2021 under the provisions of IFRS10, 
Brit is deemed to control RCC4 and has therefore consolidated it from that date. Any residual result in RCC4 is attributable to non-
controlling interests.

As mentioned in Note 2.2, 60.70% of the 2020 year of account result and assets of Syndicate 2988 is included in these consolidated 
financial statements. 57.67% of the 2021 year of account result and assets of Syndicate 2988 is included in these consolidated 
financial statements.

On 23 September 2020 and 24 November 2020, Brit Limited invested $15m and $16m respectively into Ki Financial Limited. 
On 7 July 2021 and 7 December 2021, Brit Limited invested $7m and $24m respectively into Ki Financial Limited.

As at 31 December 2021, the Group holds 20.0% of the share capital of Ki Financial Limited and 51.0% of the voting rights. The entity 
is consolidated in full by the Group.

On 25 March 2021, the Brit Group received a return of its investment in North America Property Insurance Series 2017 Account 
A-3 (‘Account A3’) (a segregated account within Versutus limited that was previously consolidated into Group). As Brit no longer has 
an economic interest in Account A3 it has been deconsolidated.

On 5 February 2021, the Group sold its entire investment in Commonwealth Insurance Company of America. At this point, there was 
a loss of control and, as such, it has been deconsolidated.

On 28 June 2021, the Group sold its entire investment in Scion Underwriting Services Inc. At this point, there was a loss of control 
and, as such, it has been deconsolidated.

The subsidiaries of the Company at 31 December 2021, together with their main function, are listed below by country 
of incorporation. The registered address and principal place of business of each entity is The Leadenhall Building, 122 Leadenhall 
Street, London, EC3V 4AB unless otherwise stated.

Subsidiary

Principal activity

Registered address and principal place of business

United Kingdom
Brit Insurance Holdings Limited
Brit Syndicates Limited
Brit UW Limited
Brit Insurance Services Limited
Brit Investment Holdings Limited
Brit Group Services Limited
Brit Group Finance Limited
BGS Services (Bermuda) Limited
Brit Pension Trustee Limited
Brit Corporate Services Limited

164 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

Intermediate holding company The Leadenhall Building
The Leadenhall Building
Lloyd’s managing agent
The Leadenhall Building
Lloyd’s corporate member
The Leadenhall Building
Service company
The Leadenhall Building
Service company
The Leadenhall Building
Group services company
The Leadenhall Building
Group services company
The Leadenhall Building
Service company
The Leadenhall Building
Service company (Dormant)
The Leadenhall Building
Service company (Dormant)

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Subsidiary

Principal activity

Registered address and principal place of business

Brit Corporate Secretaries Limited
Sussex Capital UK PCC Limited
Nameco (No. 1341) Limited
Ambridge Europe Limited

Service company (Dormant)
Special purpose vehicle
Lloyd’s corporate member
Insurance intermediary

Ambridge European Holdings Limited

Service company

Riverstone Corporate Capital 4 Limited

Lloyd’s corporate member

The Leadenhall Building
The Leadenhall Building
5th Floor, 40 Gracechurch Street, London, EC3V 0BT
c/o PKF Littlejohn 15 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, 
London, E14 4HD
c/o PKF Littlejohn 15 Westferry Circus, Canary Wharf, 
London, E14 4HD
161-163 Preston Road, Brighton, East Sussex, United 
Kingdom, BN1 6AU

Ki Financial Limited
Ki Capital Solutions Limited
Ki Technology Limited
Ki Member Limited
Ki Group Services Limited
Otto Technology Limited
Brit Syndicates Trustee Limited

United States of America
Brit Insurance Services USA Inc.
Brit Insurance USA Holdings Inc.
Ambridge Partners LLC
Ambridge Due Diligence Services LLC
Ambridge USA Service Company Inc.

Intermediate holding company The Leadenhall Building
The Leadenhall Building
Service company (Dormant)
The Leadenhall Building
Service company (Dormant)
The Leadenhall Building
Service company (Dormant)
The Leadenhall Building
Service company (Dormant)
The Leadenhall Building
Service company (Dormant)
The Leadenhall Building
Lloyd’s trustee (Dormant)

Service company
Intermediate holding company
Insurance intermediary
Service company (Dormant)
Service company

161 N. Clark Street, Suite 3200, Chicago, IL, 60601
161 N. Clark Street, Suite 3200, Chicago, IL, 60601
251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808
251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808
161 N. Clark Street, Suite 3200, Chicago, IL, 60601

Bermuda
Sussex Capital Management Limited

Service company

Sussex Capital Limited
Sussex Re Limited
Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited

Special purpose vehicle
Special purpose vehicle
Insurance company

Ground Floor Chesney House, The Waterfront, 96 Pitts 
Bay Road, Pembroke, HM 08
Wessex House, 3rd Floor, 45 Reid Street, Hamilton HM 12
Wessex House, 3rd Floor, 45 Reid Street, Hamilton HM 12
Ground Floor Chesney House, The Waterfront, 96 Pitts 
Bay Road, Pembroke, HM 08

Singapore
Brit Global Specialty Singapore Pte. Ltd.

The Netherlands
Brit Insurance Holdings B.V.

Service company

138 Market St., #04-03 CapitaGreen, 048946

Former holding company

The Leadenhall Building

Germany
Ambridge Europe GmbH & Co. KG

Insurance intermediary

Ambridge German Holdings GmbH

Service company

South Africa
Camargue Underwriting Managers 
(Proprietary) Limited
Synergy XOL (Pty) Ltd.

Insurance intermediary

Service company

Phoenix Underwriting Managers (Pty) Ltd. Service company (Dormant)

Grüneburgweg 58 – 62, 60322 Frankfurt 
am Main, Germany
Grüneburgweg 58 – 62, 60322 Frankfurt 
am Main, Germany

Camargue House, 33 Glenhove Road, 
Melrose Estate, 2196
Camargue House, 33 Glenhove Road, 
Melrose Estate, 2196
Camargue House, 33 Glenhove Road, 
Melrose Estate, 2196

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

165

 
 
Financial Statements

38 

 Related party transactions and Ultimate Parent Company

The Group has a number of related parties which includes its principal investors and its Directors. Sometimes it transacts business 
with these related parties. This Note sets out those transactions.

The Group carries out a number of transactions with related parties which include, paying management fees, carrying out insurance 
and reinsurance activities with affiliates of the ultimate parent company, Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited, and trading with its 
associates. All the transactions with related parties are undertaken on an arm’s-length basis.

(a)  Ultimate Parent Company
The ultimate parent company and controlling entity, and the largest group of which the Group is a member, is Fairfax Financial 
Holdings Limited (Fairfax) which is registered in Canada and listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The consolidated financial 
statements for Fairfax are publicly available and can be obtained from the Corporate Secretary, 95 Wellington Street West, Suite 
800, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5J 2N7 or from the website at www.fairfax.ca.

(b)  Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited
In June 2015, Hamblin Watsa Investment Counsel Limited (HWIC), an affiliate of Fairfax, was appointed as an investment manager 
to a number of Group companies. During the year ended 31 December 2021, the Group incurred and paid investment management 
fees to HWIC of $11.9m (2020: $11.0m).

The Group has historically entered into various reinsurance arrangements with affiliates of Fairfax.

In respect of insurance and ceded outwards reinsurance activity, the amounts included in the income statement relating to trading 
with affiliates of Fairfax were as follows:

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

16.4
(15.9)

0.5

(1.8)
1.2
(0.6)

(0.1)

(13.5)
6.6

(6.9)

8.1
3.5

11.6

0.8
(0.9)

16.8
(17.8)

(1.0)

3.9
(2.4)
1.5

0.5

(7.0)
19.7

12.7

(5.7)
(4.8)

(10.5)

0.8
(3.3)

Gross premiums written
Less premiums ceded to reinsurers

Premiums written, net of reinsurance

Gross amount of change in provision for unearned premiums
Reinsurers' share of change in provision for unearned premiums
Net change in provision for unearned premiums

Earned premiums, net of reinsurance

Gross claims paid
Reinsurers' share of claims paid

Claims paid, net of reinsurance

Gross change in the provision for claims
Reinsurers' share of change in the provision for claims

Net change in the provision for claims

Commission income
Commission expense

166 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

The amounts included in the statement of financial position outstanding with Fairfax and its affiliates as at 31 December 2021 
were as follows:

Debtors arising out of direct insurance and reinsurance operations:
Insurance premium receivable
Recoverable from reinsurers

Creditors arising out of direct insurance and reinsurance operations:
Payable to reinsurers
Unpaid claims liabilities

Deferred acquisition costs
Gross unearned premiums
Unearned premium recoverable from reinsurers

(c)  Business combination

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

6.3
20.7

(5.3)
(41.1)

0.8
(7.6)
5.0

7.9
17.2

(4.8)
(49.3)

1.1
(5.7)
3.8

Camargue Underwriting Managers Proprietary Limited
On 4 October 2021, the Brit Group exercised a call option to acquire the remaining 50% of the issued shares of Camargue 
Underwriting Managers Proprietary Limited (Camargue), following the initial acquisition of 50% in August 2016. The acquisition 
was completed on 4 October 2021 for a total purchase consideration of $12.6m – the consideration only consisted of cash. 
Following the transaction, the Brit Group has 100% of the voting equity instruments of Camargue, a leading managing general 
underwriter of a range of specialised insurance products and specialist liability solutions in South Africa and is an important trading 
partner for Brit.

The principal reason for this acquisition was to build on Brit’s strategy of selective international expansion into niche specialty 
businesses that offer well-established distribution networks underpinned by underwriting expertise.

Prior to 4 October, Brit’s investment in Camargue was recorded as an investment in associated undertaking and valued under equity 
method accounting requirements. As a result, the Brit Group’s share of pre-acquisition year-to-date profits of $0.5m have been 
reported within the ‘Share of net profit of associates’ line of the Consolidated Income Statement.

For the period of the year where Camargue was an associate of the Group, the amounts in the income statement relating 
to trading with Camargue for the year ended 31 December 2021 included commission for introducing insurance business of $2.1m 
(2020: $2.9m).

In addition, at the acquisition date the investment in associate was derecognised from the balance sheet of the Group and 
remeasured at fair value for the purposes of acquisition accounting under IFRS 3 and subsequent consolidation of Camargue. The 
acquisition-date fair value of the equity interest in Camargue immediately before the acquisition date amounted to $12.6m. This 
process resulted in the recognition of a gain of $6.1m being recorded in the Income Statement (‘Gain on business combination’) for 
the year ending 31 December 2021. Accordingly, Brit’s investment in associated undertakings decreased.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

167

 
 
Financial Statements

38 

 Related party transactions and Ultimate Parent Company (continued)

The fair value of assets and liabilities recognised as a result of the acquisition are as follows:

Assets
Acquired intangible assets
Property, plant and equipment
Deferred tax asset
Financial investments
Cash and cash equivalents
Trade receivables
Other receivables

Liabilities
Deferred tax liability
Trade payables
Other payables

Net identifiable assets acquired
Add: goodwill

Net assets acquired

As at
4 October 2021
$m

8.2
1.1
0.5
0.1
6.2
1.0
0.1

17.2

2.3
3.2
2.9

8.4

8.8
16.4

25.2

Acquired intangible assets and goodwill
On acquisition, the Group recognised $0.9m of trade names and $7.3m of distribution channels. The Group also recognised $16.4m 
of goodwill. The quantum of goodwill can be explained by the anticipated forecast revenue growth from the business securing new 
customers as well as new written premium, and unrecognised intangible assets – namely, the industry experience and know-how 
of the assembled workforce.

The goodwill recognised will not be deductible for tax purposes.

Trade receivables
The fair value is determined through the contractual amount receivable less any amounts uncollectible. On acquisition, Camargue 
held trade receivables with a book and fair value of $1.1m, representing contractual receivables of $1.1m. The Brit Group will make 
every effort to collect all contractual receivables, and it consider it unlikely that any of these amounts will be uncollectible.

Trade payables
The fair value is based on the contractual amount required to be settled with insurers in respect of business underwritten on their 
behalf, less any commissions due thereon that are deductible at source.

Revenue and profit contribution
The acquired business contributed $1.8m to revenue and $1.3m to profit for the period from 4 October 2021 to 31 December 2021. 
If the acquisition had occurred on 1 January 2021, the Brit Group revenue would have been $2,015.2m and consolidated profit for the 
period would have been $237.5m.

Acquisition costs
Acquisition costs of $31.5k arose as a result of the transaction. These have been recognised as part of ‘Other operating expenses’ 
in the Income Statement.

168 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

(d)  Associated undertakings

Sutton Special Risk Inc
On 2 January 2019, Brit Insurance Holding Limited, acquired 49% of the issued shares of Sutton for a total purchase consideration 
of CAD$17.2m and entered into a forward contract to purchase the remaining 51% in 2024. Sutton is a Canadian MGU, specialising 
in Accident and Health business.

Trading with Sutton is undertaken on an arm’s-length basis and is settled in cash. The amounts in the income statement relating 
to trading with Sutton for the year ended 31 December 2021 included commission for introducing insurance business of $4.2m 
(2020: $2.6m).

Amounts recorded in the statement of financial position in respect of premium net of commissions due from, and fees payable to, 
Sutton as at 31 December 2021 and 31 December 2020 were not material.

(e)  Crum and Forster commission agreement
On 1 May 2018, Brit Insurance Services USA, Inc. (BISI) entered into a binding authority agreement with Crum and Forster Specialty 
(C&F), another subsidiary of the Fairfax group. C&F has authorized BISI to bind certain commercial insurance contracts on their 
behalf. BISI earns a commission of up to 24% for this business including external broker commission. The agreement will continue 
in perpetuity until BISI or C&F provide written notice of cancellation. During 2021, C&F paid BISI $5.4k (2020: $5.8k) in respect 
of commission. $45.2k was outstanding at the year-end (2020: $140.8k).

(f)  Bryte Insurance Limited agreement
Prior to the acquisition of Camargue Underwriting Managers Proprietary Limited (Camargue) on 4 October 2021, the entity had 
already entered into a agreement with Bryte Insurance Limited (Bryte), another subsidiary of the Fairfax group. Camargue acts 
as an underwriting managing agent for Bryte, administering insurance policies on their behalf and providing risk management 
services over the lifetime of those policies.

Following the acquisition of Camargue on 4 October 2021, the amounts in the income statement related to trading with Bryte were 
$0.2m in respect of administration fees and risk management fees. $0.4m was outstanding at the year-end (2020: $nil).

(g)  Key management compensation
The amount of the emoluments granted in respect of the financial year to the members of the administrative, managerial and 
supervisory bodies by reason of their responsibilities, and any commitments arising or entered into in respect of retirement pension 
for former members of those bodies, are broken down as follows:

Salaries and other short-term employee benefits
Post-employment benefits
Share-based payments
Termination benefits

Total compensation

Year ended
31 December
2021
$m

Year ended
31 December
2020
$m

7.9
0.9
11.0
–

19.8

8.6
0.8
1.6
0.1

11.1

For the purposes of IAS 24, ‘Related Party Disclosures’, key managers are defined as the Board of Directors and members of the 
Executive Committee which is the primary vehicle for implementing Board decisions in respect of UK-managed operations.

As at 31 December 2021, $0.4m (2020: $0.4m) was recorded in the statement of financial position in respect of unsecured loans 
to key management personnel. These loans were recognised during 2020, are expected to be settled in cash, carry an annual 
interest charge of 2.25%, and have no fixed maturity date.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

169

 
 
Financial Statements

39 

 Guarantees and contingent liabilities

This Note explains guarantees issued by Group companies and any contingent liabilities they may be exposed to.

(a)  Lloyd’s
Assets have been pledged, as Funds at Lloyd’s, by way of deposits and fixed and floating charges for companies within the Group that 
participate on Lloyd’s syndicates, including Brit UW Limited, the principal corporate member of the Group. As at 31 December 2021 
the Funds at Lloyd’s requirement amounted to $1,074.4m (2020: $1,598.8m) in respect of Brit UW Limited, and $411.9m 
(2020: $152.3m) in respect of other companies within the Group.

(b)  Credit facilities
The Group has a $450.0m (2020: $450.0m) revolving credit facility which expires on 31 December 2025. At 31 December 2021, 
a $130.0m (2020: $130.0m) uncollateralised letter of credit had been utilised in respect of this facility. In addition, there was a cash 
drawing of $45.0m (2020: $130.0m).

Syndicate 2987 entered into an agreement for a $150.0m letter of credit facility on 22 November 2021. This expires 
on 31 December 2022. As at 31 December 2021, this $150m facility was fully utilised.

As at 31 December 2021, there was a uncollateralised $130.0m (2020: $50.0m) letter of credit facility, which expires 
on 31 December 2026, to support the business written in Syndicate 1618.

(c)  Taxation
The Group operates in a wide variety of jurisdictions around the world through its Lloyd’s syndicate and uncertainties therefore exist 
with respect to the interpretation of complex tax laws and practices of those territories. The Group establishes provisions for taxes 
other than current and deferred income tax if there is a present obligation as a result of past events, it is probable that an outflow 
of resources embodying economic benefits will be required to settle the obligation and a reliable estimate of the amount of the 
obligation can be made. This assessment is made based upon various factors which are continually evaluated.

Income taxes are provided for as set out in accounting policy [Note 2.5.11].

40 

 Events occurring after the reporting date

This Note sets out how events occurring after the reporting date relate to the financial position and performance of the Group in the 
reporting period.

On 1 January 2022, the Group acquired 100% of the issued shares in RiverStone Corporate Capital 4 Limited (‘RCC4’). RCC4 
is a Lloyd’s corporate member, with a principal activity of providing capital to Ki Syndicate 1618. As set out in Note 37, the Brit Group 
is the principal beneficiary of the economics of Ki Syndicate 1618 and RCC4 and, as such, RCC4 was consolidated by the Brit Group 
in 2021, prior to the formal acquisition of its issued shares. The purchase consideration was £1.

170 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the consolidated financial statementsFinancial Statements

Introduction to the Parent Company Financial 
Statements

Index to the Parent Company Financial 
Statements

Statement of Financial Position
The statement of financial position is a summary of assets 
and how the assets have been funded through liabilities and 
equity investment by shareholders.

Statement of Changes in Equity
The statement of changes in equity shows how the various 
lines in the equity section of the Company’s statement 
of financial position have moved during the year.

Statement of Financial Position 

Statement of Changes in Equity 

Notes to the Financial Statements 

Note 1 

Note 2 

Note 3 

Note 4 

Note 5 

Note 6 

Note 7 

Note 8 

Note 9 

Accounting policies and basis of preparation 

Auditor’s remuneration 

Shares in Group undertakings 

Loans to Group undertakings 

Debtors: Amounts falling due within one year 

Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year 

Creditors: Amounts falling due after more than 
one year 

Called up share capital 

Directors’ emoluments 

Note 10 

Guarantees and contingent liabilities 

Note 11 

Dividends 

Note 12 

Share-based payments 

Note 13 

Disclosure exemptions 

Note 14 

Ultimate parent company and other  
related undertakings 

172

173

174

174

175

175

176

176

176

176

177

178

178

179

179

179

179

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

171

contents 
 
Financial Statements

statement of financial position

At 31 December 2021

Fixed assets
Investments:
Shares in Group undertakings
Loans to Group undertakings

Current assets
Debtors: Amounts falling due within one year
Cash at bank and in hand

Current liabilities
Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year

Net current assets

Total assets less current liabilities

Creditors: Amounts falling due after more than one year

Net assets

Capital and reserves
Called up share capital
Share premium
Capital redemption reserve
Capital contribution reserve
Retained earnings

Total equity

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

Note

3
4

5

6

7

8

1,114.5
139.6

1,254.1

580.6
0.2

580.8

1,081.5
140.9

1,222.4

555.6
0.1

555.7

(0.7)

(0.9)

580.1

554.8

1,834.2

1,777.2

(182.9)

1,651.3

(184.5)

1,592.7

10.0
1,432.6
1.0
28.5
179.2

8.6
1,027.9
1.0
–
555.2

1,651.3

1,592.7

No individual income statement is presented for the Company, as permitted by Section 408 of the Act. The comprehensive income 
dealt with in the financial statements of the parent company was a $1.0m loss (2020: $3.3m gain).

The accompanying Notes on pages 174 to 179 are an integral part of these financial statements.

These financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 22 February 2022 and were signed on its behalf by:

Martin Thompson 
Interim Group Chief Executive Officer 

 Gavin Wilkinson
Group Chief Financial Officer

172 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

statement of changes in equity

Financial Statements

For the year ended 31 December 2021

Note

8
11

1 January 2021
Total comprehensive income 

for the year

Issuance of share capital
Dividend
Contribution from parent in 
relation to the acquisition 
of the Riverstone pension 
plan

At 31 December 2021

For the year ended 31 December 2020

1 January 2020
Total comprehensive income for the year
Issuance of share capital
Dividend

At 31 December 2020

Called up
Share
capital
$m

8.6

–
1.4
–

Share
premium
$m

1,027.9

–
404.7
–

–

10.0

–

1,432.6

Note

8
11

Called up
Share
capital
$m

7.0
–
1.6
–

8.6

Capital
redemption
reserve
$m

1.0

–
–
–

–

1.0

Share
premium
$m

505.5
–
522.4
–

1,027.9

Capital
contribution
reserve
$m

–

–
–
–

Retained
earnings
$m

555.2

(1.0)
–
(375.0)

Total
equity
$m

1,592.7

(1.0)
406.1
(375.0)

28.5

28.5

–

28.5

179.2

1,651.3

Capital
redemption
reserve
$m

1.0
–
–
–

1.0

Retained
earnings
$m

572.5
3.3
–
(20.6)

555.2

Total
equity
$m

1,086.0
3.3
524.0
(20.6)

1,592.7

The accompanying Notes on pages 174 to 179 are an integral part of these financial statements.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

173

 
 
Financial Statements

1 

 Accounting policies and basis of preparation

This Note provides details of the basis of preparation and accounting policies applied in producing these parent company 
financial statements.

 Basis of preparation

1.1 
The Company financial statements present the information about the Company as a separate entity. The Company is incorporated 
and registered in England and Wales with registration number 08821629. The registered office of the company at the date of this 
report is The Leadenhall Building, 122 Leadenhall Street, London EC3V 4AB.

The Company has prepared its financial statements in accordance with Financial Reporting Standard ‘FRS 102’, the Financial 
Reporting Standard applicable in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland and provisions of Section 396 of the Companies 
Act 2006. The Company has applied accounting policies consistently to all the years presented, other than where new policies 
have been adopted.

The financial statements have been compiled on a going concern basis and prepared on a historical cost basis, except for financial 
investments and financial liabilities which have been measured initially at fair value. The Company financial statements are presented 
in US dollars, which is also the functional currency of the Company, and all values are rounded to the nearest $0.1m except where 
otherwise indicated.

 Accounting policies

1.2 
(a)  Investments
Investments in subsidiary undertakings are stated at cost less provisions for any impairment.

(b)  Income from fixed asset investments
Dividend income is recognised when the shareholders’ right to receive the payment is established.

(c)  Long-term debt
Long-term debt is recognised initially at transaction price which is the fair value. It is subsequently measured at amortised cost using 
the effective interest rate method, in accordance with section 11 of FRS 102 (Basic Financial Instruments).

Interest payable is recognised using the effective interest rate method.

(d)  Loans to Group undertakings
Loans to Group undertakings are recognised initially at transaction price which is the fair value, (including transaction costs 
incurred except in the initial measurement of financial liabilities that are measured at fair value through profit or loss) and 
subsequently measured at amortised cost using effective interest rate method, in accordance with section 11 of FRS 102 (Basic 
Financial Instruments).

Interest receivable is recognised using the effective interest rate method.

(e)  Expenses
All expenses are accounted for on an accruals basis.

(f)  Foreign currencies
Items included in the financial statements of the Company are measured using the functional currency which is the primary economic 
environment in which the entity operates. The functional currency of the Company is US dollars.

Transactions in foreign currencies other than US dollars are converted at the rate of exchange ruling at the date the transaction 
is processed. Unless otherwise stated, transactions are converted at the average rates of the exchange for the period. Assets 
and liabilities in currencies other than Sterling are converted at the rate of exchange ruling at 31 December of each year. Exchange 
differences arising on conversion are dealt with in the income statement.

174 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the financial statementsFinancial Statements

(g)  Deferred taxation
Deferred tax is recognised in respect of all timing differences which are differences between taxable profits and total 
comprehensive income that arise from the inclusion of income and expenses in tax assessments in periods different from those 
in which they are recognised in the financial statements, except that:

•  provision is made for deferred tax that would arise on remittance of the retained earnings of overseas subsidiaries, associates 
and joint ventures only to the extent that, at the statement of financial position date, dividends have been accrued as receivable;

•  where there are differences between amounts that can be deducted for tax for assets (other than goodwill) and liabilities 
compared with the amounts that are recognised for those assets and liabilities in a business combination a deferred tax 
asset/liability shall be recognised. The amount attributed to goodwill is adjusted by the amount of the deferred tax recognised; and

•  unrelieved tax losses and other deferred tax assets are recognised only to the extent that the Directors consider that 
it is probable that they will be recovered against the reversal of deferred tax liabilities or other future taxable profits.

Deferred tax is measured on an undiscounted basis at the tax rates that are expected to apply in the periods in which timing 
differences reverse, based on tax rates and laws enacted or substantively enacted at the statement of financial position date.

2 

Auditor’s remuneration

This Note sets out the fees paid in respect of the annual audit performed on the Company.

Audit fees borne by the Company amounted to $15,525 (2020: $15,525).

3 

Shares in Group undertakings

This Note explains the direct shareholdings of the Company in other Group entities.

Investment in Brit Insurance Holdings Limited
Investment in Ki Financial Limited

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

1,052.5
62.0

1,114.5

1,050.5
31.0

1,081.5

During 2021, Brit Limited invested a total of $2m into Brit Insurance Holdings Limited (13 September 2021: $0.5m, 
18 October 2021: $0.5m, 16 November 2021: $0.5m, and 15 December 2021: $0.5m).

On 7 July 2021 and 7 December 2021, Brit Limited invested $7m and $24m respectively into Ki Financial Limited.

On 23 September 2020 and 24 November 2020, the Company made investments of $15.0m and $16.0m respectively in Ki 
Financial Limited.

The subsidiaries of the Company as at 31 December 2021, and their principal activities, are disclosed in the Brit Limited consolidated 
financial statements.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

175

 
 
Financial Statements

4 

Loans to Group undertakings

This Note sets out moneys lent by the Company to other Group companies.

Loans to Group undertakings

31 December
2021
$m

139.6

31 December
2020
$m

140.9

On 8 September 2014, a long-term loan to another Group company was novated to Brit Limited at fair value. The agreement carries 
interest at an annual interest rate of 7.05%.

5 

Debtors: Amounts falling due within one year

This Note sets out moneys owed to the Company that are due before 31 December 2021.

Interest receivable on loans to Group undertakings
Amounts owed by Group undertakings
Prepayments

Total

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

32.1
547.7
0.8

580.6

22.5
532.4
0.7

555.6

‘Amounts owed by Group undertakings’ are unsecured, interest free, have no fixed date of repayment and are repayable on demand.

6 

Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year

This Note sets out moneys owed by the Company that are due before 31 December 2021.

Accruals and deferred income

Total

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

0.7

0.7

0.9

0.9

7 

Creditors: Amounts falling due after more than one year

This Note sets out moneys owed by the Company that are due after 31 December 2021.

Subordinated debt

Maturity

2030

Call

–

Effective
interest rate

3.7%

31 December 2021

31 December 2020

Amortised
cost
$m

182.9

Fair value
$m

174.5

Amortised
cost
$m

184.5

Fair value
$m

170.4

The fair value of the subordinated debt has been determined by reference to trading market values on recognised exchanges and 
is categorised as level one in the fair value hierarchy.

176 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the financial statementsFinancial Statements

The subordinated debt was novated to the Company from another Group company on 8 September 2014 at fair value. The 
subordinated debt is listed and callable in whole by the Company on 9 December 2020. Following this date, the interest rate reset 
to 3.6757%, being the higher of:

i)  3.4% above the gross redemption yield of the 4.75% Treasury Gilt due 2030 quoted on the reset date; and

ii)  3.4% above the gross redemption yield of the 8% Treasury Stock due 2021 quoted on the reset date.

The effective interest rate method of accounting has been applied over the term up to the call date.

8 

Called up share capital

This Note sets out the number of shares in issue and their nominal value.

Ordinary shares:
Allotted, issued and fully paid

At 1 January 2020
Issue of class B shares

At 31 December 2020

At 1 January 2021
Issue of class A shares
Issue of class B shares

At 31 December 2021

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

31 December
2021
1p each Number

31 December
2020
1p each Number

10.0

8.6 669,502,094 568,837,653

Share premium
$m

Share capital
$m

Share capital
Number

505.5
522.4

1,027.9

1,027.9
373.7
31.0

1,432.6

7.0 446,977,185
1.6 121,860,468

8.6 568,837,653

8.6 568,837,653
92,364,532
1.3
8,299,909
0.1

10.0 669,502,094

92,364,532 shares are class A shares and the remainder are class B shares. The class A and B shares rank pari passu except that 
on a distribution of profits by the Company, the class A shareholders are entitled to a cumulative annual dividend which must be 
settled ahead of any equivalent distribution to class B shareholders.

The number of shares reported is for Brit Limited, the Company.

On 06 July 2021, 1,627,907 Class B Ordinary Shares were issued by Brit Limited, each with a nominal value of 1p, for $7.0m. Following 
this share issuance, $7.0m was recorded in the share premium accounts.

On 27 August 2021, 92,364,532 Class A Ordinary Shares were issued by Brit Limited, each with a nominal value of 1p, for $375.0m. 
Following this share issuance, $373.7m was recorded in the share premium accounts.

On 17 December 2021, 6,672,002 Class B Ordinary Shares were issued by Brit Limited, each with a nominal value of 1p, for $24.0m. 
Following this share issuance, $23.9m was recorded in the share premium accounts.

Following the issuances during the year, Fairfax owns 86.20% of Brit Limited while the remaining 13.80% is owned by OMERS.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

177

 
 
Financial Statements

8 

Called up share capital (continued)

During the prior year, the following issuances of Class B Ordinary Shares (each with a nominal value of 1p) by Brit Limited took place:

•  On 07 April 2020, 46,511,628 shares were issued for $200.0m, resulting in $199.4m being recorded in the share premium accounts.

•  On 24 August 2020, 19,767,442 shares were issued for $85.0m, resulting in $84.7m being recorded in the share premium accounts.

•  On 21 September 2020, 3,488,373 shares were issued for $15.0m, resulting in $15.0m being recorded in the share 

premium accounts.

•  On 20 November 2020, 31,395,349 shares were issued for $135.0m, resulting in $134.6m being recorded in the share 

premium accounts.

•  On 23 November 2020, 3,720,931 shares were issued for $16.0m, resulting in $16.0m being recorded in the share 

premium accounts.

•  On 23 December 2020, 16,976,745 share were issued for $73.0m, resulting in $72.8m being recorded in the share 

premium accounts.

Additionally, on 28 August 2020, Fairfax purchased all 48,000,000 Class A shares from OMERS and increased its percentage 
shareholding to 100.00%. Simultaneously, these shares were converted to Class B shares

9 

 Directors’ emoluments

This Note gives a breakdown of emoluments paid to Directors both in total and in respect of the highest paid Director.

Aggregate remuneration
Aggregate contributions to money purchase pension schemes

Total

The Directors’ remuneration disclosed above includes the following amounts paid to the highest paid Director:
Aggregate remuneration

Number of Directors with benefits accruing under money purchase pension schemes
Number of Directors in respect of whose qualifying services, shares were received or receivable 

under long-term incentive schemes

31 December
2021
$m

31 December
2020
$m

10.5
0.1

10.6

6.2

4.8
0.1

4.9

2.8

Number

Number

1

2

1

2

Shares were received or receivable by the highest paid Director in respect of qualifying services under a long-term incentive scheme 
during 2021 and 2020.

10 

 Guarantees and contingent liabilities

This Note explains guarantees issued by the Company. The Company has no contingent liabilities.

The Company has access to a $450.0m (2020: $450.0m) revolving credit facility which expires on 31 December 2025. Guarantees 
have been made by Brit Limited and a subsidiary company to the syndicated banks providing the facility.

At 31 December 2021, a $130.0m (2020: $130.0m) uncollateralised letter of credit had been utilised by the Company in respect of this 
facility. In addition, there was a cash drawing of $45.0m (2020: $130.0m).

178 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

notes to the financial statementsFinancial Statements

11 

 Dividends

This Note gives details of the amounts paid to shareholders during 2021 and 2020 by way of dividends.

Dividend paid in respect of prior year

Dividend paid

2021 $

–

0.66

2020 $

0.43

–

2021 $m

–

375.0

375.0

2020 $m

20.6

–

20.6

A $375.0m dividend was paid to the class B shareholders on 7 September 2021 in accordance with the Brit Limited shareholders’ 
agreement an amount equal to $0.66 per share.

No dividend was paid to the class B shareholders in respect of the year-ended 31 December 2020 (2020: $20.6m/$0.43 per share).

12 

 Share-based payments

The Company rewards its employees through various share-based incentive schemes. This Note explains the different schemes used 
to facilitate those share-based payments.

Further detail in respect of the Group’s share-based incentive schemes can be found in Note 36 of the notes accompanying the 
Brit Limited Group consolidated Financial Statements.

13 

 Disclosure exemptions

This Note explains the Company’s approach to qualifying exemptions available in FRS 102.

The Company has taken advantage of the disclosure exemptions provided by paragraph 1.12 of FRS 102. Accordingly, these financial 
statements do not include the following:

•  Statement of cash flows;

•  A reconciliation of shares outstanding at the beginning and end of the period;

•  Specific information relating to financial instruments that is included within equivalent disclosures for the Group;

•  Specific information relating to share-based payments that is included within equivalent disclosures for the Group; and

•  Disclosure of key management personnel compensation (included in Note 38 of the Group financial statements).

The Brit Limited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes provide further detail in respect of these areas.

14 

 Ultimate parent company and other related undertakings

The ultimate parent company and controlling entity, and the largest group of which the Group is a member, is Fairfax Financial 
Holdings Limited (Fairfax) which is registered in Canada and listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. The consolidated financial 
statements for Fairfax are publicly available and can be obtained from the Corporate Secretary, 95 Wellington Street West,  
Suite 800, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5J 2N7 or from the website at www.fairfax.ca.

A subsidiary of the Company holds a significant investment in Sutton Special Risk Inc (‘Sutton’), which is reported in the consolidated 
financial statements of the Group as an associated undertaking. Sutton is registered in Canada with offices at 3 Yonge Street,  
Suite 400, P.O. Box 311, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5E 1G4.

Further information on other related undertakings of the Company can be found in Note 37 Consolidated Entities of the notes to the 
consolidated financial statements.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

179

 
 
Additional Information

Return on net tangible assets (RoNTA)
Return on net tangible assets (RoNTA) shows the return being generated by our operations compared to the adjusted net tangible 
assets deployed in our business.

Profit/(loss) for the year after tax attributable to the 

owners of the parent

Add back: Tax adjusted amortisation
Add back: Tax adjusted pension credit in income 

Comment/financial statements reference

2021
$m

2020
$m

Consolidated income statement
Amortisation of intangibles, adjusted by the tax rate

248.5
9.5

(229.3)
8.7

statement

Add back: Tax adjusted FX

Defined benefits schemes’ impact on income statement
FX effect for the year, adjusted by the tax rate

(0.6)
17.5

(0.8)
(5.6)

Return, as adjusted for RoNTA calculation

Adjusted NTA at start of year
Less: Pension asset net of deferred tax at start 

of year

External distributions and share issuances

NTA, as adjusted for RoNTA calculation

See ‘adjusted net tangible assets’ section below.

1,436.8

1,150.4

274.9

(227.0)

Weighted adjustment to reflect distributions and 
shares issued during the year.

(31.7)

(33.7)

9.6

10.2

1,414.7

1,126.9

RoNTA

 Return, as adjusted for RoNTA calculation, divided by 
NTA, as adjusted for RoNTA calculation.

19.4% (20.1)%

Adjusted net tangible assets at the end of each year are calculated as follows: 

Comment/financial statements reference

Total equity attributable to owners of the parent
Less: Intangible assets

Consolidated statement of financial position
Consolidated statement of financial position

Net tangible assets
Add back deferred tax liability on intangible assets

Note 21: Deferred taxation

Adjusted net tangible assets

2021
$m

1,912.4
(205.3)

1,707.1
33.5

1,740.6

2020
$m

1,592.6
(181.2)

1,411.4
25.4

1,436.8

180 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

reconciliation of key performance indicators  to the financial statements 
 
Additional Information

Combined ratio, claims ratios and expense ratios
The combined ratio is our key underwriting metric and measures the profitability of our underwriting. It shows how much of every  
$1 of premium is spent in the total costs of sourcing and underwriting the business and settling claims. A combined ratio under 100% 
indicates underwriting profitability.

The component parts of the combined ratio are the claims ratio (consisting of the attritional claims ratio, the major loss ratio and 
the reserve release ratio) and the expense ratio (consisting of the commission expense ratio and the operating expense ratio). The 
calculations of each of the ratios are set out below:

Earned premium, net of reinsurance
Adjustment for loss portfolio reinsurance

Note 5: Segmental information
Note 5: Segmental information; note (i) below

Comment/financial statements reference

Adjusted earned premium, net of reinsurance

Attritional claims
Major claims
Reserve releases:
– Resulting from the additional protection afforded     
   by the loss portfolio reinsurance
– Other

Claims incurred, net of reinsurance
Adjustment for loss portfolio reinsurance

Note 5: Segmental information
Note 5: Segmental information; note (i) below 

Acquisition costs – commissions
Acquisition costs – other and Other insurance 

related expenses

Other income
Gains/(losses) on other financial liabilities

Note 5: Segmental information

Note 5: Segmental information
Note 5: Segmental information
Note 5: Segmental information

Underwriting expenses

Underwriting profit/(loss)

Attritional claims ratio

Major claims ratio

Reserve release ratio

Claims ratio

Commission expense ratio

Operating expense ratio

Expense ratio

Combined ratio

‘Attritional claims’ divided by ‘adjusted earned premium, 
net of reinsurance’
‘Major claims’ divided by ‘adjusted earned premium,  
net of reinsurance’
‘Reserve releases’ divided by ‘adjusted earned premium, 
net of reinsurance’

Sum of the ‘attritional claims ratio’, the ‘major claims ratio’ 
and the ‘reserve release ratio’  
Note 5: Segmental information

‘Acquisition costs – commissions’ divided by ‘adjusted 
earned premium, net of reinsurance’
‘Acquisition costs – other’, ‘other insurance related 
expenses, ‘other income’ and ‘gains/(losses) on other 
financial liabilities’ divided by ‘adjusted earned premium, 
net of reinsurance’ 

Sum of the ‘commission expense ratio’ and the  
‘operating expense ratio’ 
Note 5: Segmental information

Sum of the ‘claims ratio’ and the ‘expense ratio’.
Note 5: Segmental information

2021
$m

1,754.3
344.1

2,098.4

2020
$m

1,710.7
–

1,710.7

(657.3)
(324.4)

(897.7)
(404.8)

35.0
65.1 

–
63.4

(881.6)
(344.1)

(1,239.1)
–

(1,225.7)

(1,239.1)

(528.4)

(453.3)

(312.8)
56.6
2.5

(782.1)

90.6

(259.3)
29.7
(6.0)

(688.9)

(217.3)

47.7%

52.5%

15.5%

23.7%

(4.8)%

(3.7)%

58.4%

72.4%

25.2%

26.5%

12.1%

13.8%

37.3%

40.3%

95.7%

112.7%

Note (i): This adjustment adds back the premium paid for the loss portfolio reinsurance to premium earned net of reinsurance, with an equal and opposite adjustment to net claims incurred.  
The Directors believe that the ratios when calculated after these adjustments present a more consistent and understandable view of the Group’s performance. 
Note (ii): The combined ratio excluding the impact of COVID-19 is based on the above calculation, but adjusted for COVID-19 related claims (2021: $28.2m; 2020: $271.4m) and COVID-19 related 
reserve releases (2021: $12.3m; 2020: nil).

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

181

 
 
 
 
 
 
Additional Information

Investment return
We assess the performance of our investment portfolio by comparing the return generated by our invested assets, net of external 
investment related expenses, against the value of those invested assets.

Share of net profit of associates
Return on financial investments and cash and  

cash equivalents

Return on investment related derivatives

Return on invested assets

Comment/financial statements reference

Consolidated income statement

Note 6: Investment return (Note 1)
Note 7: Return on derivative contracts

Investment in associated undertakings
Financial investments
Derivative contracts (investment related)
Cash and cash equivalents

Note 15: Investment in associated undertakings
Note 24: Financial investments
Note 25: Derivative contracts
Note 28: Cash and cash equivalents

Invested assets

Opening invested assets
Closing invested assets
Average invested assets

Investment return (%)

Return on invested assets divided by  
average invested assets

3.3%

1.0%

Capital ratio
The capital ratio measures the strength of our statement of financial position by comparing our available capital resources to the 
capital we need to hold to meet our management entity capital requirements. 

Total equity attributable to owners of the parent
Less: Intangible assets
Net tangible assets

Comment/financial statements reference

Consolidated statement of financial position
Consolidated statement of financial position

Add: Deferred tax liability on intangible assets

Note 21: Deferred taxation

2021
$m

1.7

167.2
3.0

171.9

15.0
4,015.0
5.9
1,510.3

5,546.2

4,857.1
5,546.2
5,201.7

2020
$m

2.0

56.5
(13.9)

44.6

20.5
4,056.6
4.3
775.7

4,857.1

4,182.2
4,857.1
4,519.7

2021
$m

1,912.4
(205.3)
1,707.1

33.5

1,740.6
182.9

2020
$m

1,592.6
(181.2)
1,411.4

25.4

1,436.8
184.5

276.0

260.0

2,199.5

1,881.3

Note 30: Borrowings
Under our capital policy we have identified a maximum 
of $250.0m of our revolving credit facility to form part 
of our capital resources; In addition, we have identified 
the owners of the parent’s share of the letter of credit 
held to support Ki’s underwriting

The capital required by an entity for business strategy 
and regulatory requirements.

(1,581.6)

(1,540.3)

Total available capital resources divided by 
management entity capital requirements

617.9

341.0

139.1%

122.1%

Adjusted net tangible assets
Subordinated debt
Letters of credit/contingent funding

Total available capital resources
Management entity capital requirements

Excess of resources over management entity  

capital requirements

Capital ratio

182 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

reconciliation of key performance indicators to the financial statements 
 
 
 
 
company information

Company Information

Directors
Mr Gordon Campbell – Chair
Mr Matthew Wilson – Group Chief Executive Officer
Mr Martin Thompson – Interim Group Chief Executive Officer (appointed 3 November 2021)
Mr Gavin Wilkinson – Group Chief Financial Officer (appointed 28 July 2021)
Mr Mark Allan – Executive Director
Mr Andrew Barnard – Non-executive Director 
Mr Ken Miner – Non-executive Director (appointed 27 August 2021)
Ms Andrea Welsch – Non-executive Director

Company Secretary
Mr Tim Harmer

Registered Office
The Leadenhall Building
122 Leadenhall Street
London EC3V 4AB
UK

Telephone: +44 (0) 20 3857 0000

Website
www.britinsurance.com
The Company website provides information about Brit Limited including information on the business,  
annual reports, half yearly reports and announcements to the London Stock Exchange.

Registered Number
08821629

Auditor
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
7 More London Riverside
London
SE1 2RT

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

183

 
 
Glossary

A
Acquisition costs: Costs incurred in the course of writing 
business and issuing policies including commissions paid 
to intermediaries and related internal expenses such 
as underwriter related costs.

Adjusted net tangible assets or adjusted NTA: Total equity, 
less intangible assets net of the deferred tax liability on those 
intangible assets, less non-controlling interest. 

Aggregate exposure: The expected maximum total 
of claims that could be incurred by an insurer in respect 
of any event or series of similar events. Also see ‘realistic 
disaster scenarios’.

Asset allocation: The allocation of our investments across 
different kinds of asset classes, such as equities, bonds, and 
cash, in order to achieve a balance between return and risk.

Attritional claims/losses: Common claims/losses, as opposed 
to major or catastrophe losses, incurred from ordinary 
insurance and/or reinsurance operations.

Attritional claims ratio: Attritional claims incurred net 
of reinsurance divided by adjusted earned premiums net 
of reinsurance.

Available capital resources: Adjusted net tangible assets, 
subordinated debt and letters of credit/contingent funding. 

B
BGSB: Brit Global Specialty Bermuda, the business of the Group 
operating in Bermuda.

BGSU: Brit Global Specialty USA, the business of the Group 
operating in the United States, of which BISI is the managing 
general agent.

Binder business: Business conducted by a coverholder acting 
under a binding authority.

Binding authority: See ‘delegated underwriting authority’.

C
Camargue: Camargue Underwriting Managers (Proprietary) 
Limited, a South African coverholder 100% owned by Brit.

Capital ratio: Total available capital resources divided 
by management entity capital requirements.

Capital resources: Total equity attributable to owners of the 
parent, less intangible assets net of related plus subordinated 
debt, plus deferred tax, plus a proportion (as agreed from time 
to time) of our revolving credit facilities.

Captive: An entity that provides risk-mitigation services for 
other entities within the same Group only.

Catastrophe or Cat: Perils including earthquakes, hurricanes, 
hailstorms, severe winter weather, floods, fires, tornadoes, 
explosions and other natural or man-made disasters. 
Catastrophe losses may also arise from acts of war, acts 
of terrorism and political instability.

Claims: Moneys demanded by an insured for indemnity under 
an insurance contract.

Claims development triangles: Tabulations of claims 
development data, set out with underwriting years along one 
axis and calendar years of development along the other.

Claims incurred: Claims arising from events that have 
occurred, regardless of whether or not they have been 
reported to the insurer.

Claims ratio: Total available capital resources divided 
by management entity capital requirements.

Combined ratio (CoR): The sum of the claims ratio and the 
expense ratio.

Capital resources: Total equity attributable to owners of the 
parent, less intangible assets net of related plus subordinated 
debt, plus deferred tax, plus a proportion (as agreed from time 
to time) of our revolving credit facilities.

BISI: Brit Insurance Services USA, Inc., a company incorporated 
in Illinois, USA.

Commission expense ratio: Commission costs divided 
by adjusted earned premiums net of reinsurance.

Brit Re: Brit Reinsurance (Bermuda) Limited.

BMA: Bermuda Monetary Authority, the integrated regulator 
of financial services in Bermuda, established under the 
Bermuda Monetary Authority Act 1969. 

Broker: An intermediary who negotiates contracts of insurance 
or reinsurance, receiving a commission for placement and other 
services rendered.

Constant FX rates: An increase or decrease in figures between 
two years after eliminating the effect of foreign exchange 
rate movements.

Corporate member: A company providing the capital to support 
the underwriting activity of a syndicate at Lloyd’s. Brit’s 
corporate member is Brit UW Limited.

Coverholder: An entity authorised by an insurer to enter into 
a contract of insurance on its behalf.

184 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

glossaryGlossary

G
Gearing ratio: Calculated as total borrowings (subordinated 
debt, revolving credit facility cash drawdowns and 
uncollateralised drawn letters of credit) divided by adjusted net 
tangible assets and subordinated debt.

Gross written premium or gross premiums written or GWP: 
Amounts payable by the insured, including any brokerage 
or commission deducted by intermediaries but excluding any 
taxes or duties levied on the premium.

H
Hardening or hard market: An insurance market where 
prevalent prices are high, with more restrictive terms and 
conditions offered by insurers.

HMRC: Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs.

I
ILS or Insurance-linked securities: ILSs are essentially financial 
instruments which are sold to investors whose value is affected 
by an insured loss event. 

Incurred but not reported or IBNR: Claims incurred but 
not reported, including claims which are incurred but not 
enough reported (i.e. where the amount of the notification 
is insufficient).

International Accounting Standards or IAS: See ‘International 
Financial Reporting Standards’.

International Financial Reporting Standards or IFRS: 
Accounting and reporting Standards established by the 
International Accounting Standards Board, as adopted in the UK. 
UK listed entities have reported on an IFRS basis since 2005.

Invested assets: Financial investments, investment in associated 
undertakings, cash and cash equivalents and investment 
related derivatives.

Investment related derivatives: Includes options and interest 
rate swaps. Excludes currency forwards.

Investment return percentage: Investment return expressed 
as a percentage of average invested assets.

D
Deferred acquisition costs or DAC: Costs incurred for the 
acquisition or renewal of insurance policies which are capitalised 
and amortised over the term of those policies.

Delegated underwriting authority: An authority granted 
by an underwriter to an agent (known as a coverholder) whereby 
that agent is entitled to accept, within certain limits, insurance 
business on behalf of the underwriter. The coverholder has full 
power to commit the underwriter within  
the terms of the authority.

Dollar ($): Refers to the US dollar.

E
Earned premium: That proportion of a premium which relates 
to the portion of a risk which has expired during a given period.

ESOS: The energy savings opportunity scheme or ESOS, 
is a mandatory government initiative to promote energy 
efficiency in large businesses. 

Excess and Surplus or E&S: A generic US regulatory 
classification referring to insurance coverage not ordinarily 
written by insurers fully admitted in various states. The E&S 
lines business is largely unregulated as to rate and form but 
insurers must be authorised to write such business in a state 
by the local regulator.

Excess of loss or XL: A type of reinsurance that covers specified 
losses incurred by the reinsured party in excess of a stated 
amount (the excess) up to a higher amount of limit, for example 
$5m excess of $1m. Such coverage can operate on a per loss 
basis or an aggregate basis.

Executive Committee or EC: A committee at Brit consisting 
of the senior management and the Group CEO.

Expense ratio: The sum of the commission expense ratio and  
the operating expense ratio.

F
FCA: The UK Financial Conduct Authority, established pursuant 
to the Financial Services Act 2012 and responsible for, among 
other things, the conduct regulation of all firms authorised and 
regulated under FSMA and the prudential regulation of firms 
which are not regulated by the PRA.

First Dollar: An insurance policy written with low excess and 
deductible, and written in the admitted market.

Funds at Lloyd’s or FAL: Funds held in trust at Lloyd’s to support 
a Lloyd’s underwriter’s underwriting activities.

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

185

 
 
Glossary

L
Lead underwriter or lead: A lead underwriter (usually 
a specialist in the field of the insurance concerned) is the first 
underwriter to take a portion of a risk, quote an appropriate 
rate of premium and set terms and conditions.

Letter of credit or LoC: A written undertaking by a financial 
institution to provide funding if required.

LIBOR: The daily London Interbank Offered Rate set by the 
British Banking Association.

Line size: The proportion of an insurance or reinsurance risk 
that is accepted by an underwriter or which an underwriter 
is willing to accept.

Lloyd’s Brussels (LBS): The insurance company of Lloyd’s 
located in Brussels, authorised and regulated by the National 
Bank of Belgium, which writes all non-life risks from the 
European Economic Area. 

Lloyd’s China Platform: The branch of Lloyd’s in Shanghai in the 
People’s Republic of China operated through Lloyd’s Insurance 
Company (China) Limited, on which certain Lloyd’s syndicates 
have representation.

Lloyd’s of London: The Society of Lloyd’s and Corporation 
of Lloyd’s created and governed by the Lloyd’s Acts 1871-
1982, including the Council of Lloyd’s (and its delegates and 
other persons through whom the Council may act), as the 
context may require.

London Market: The London insurance market, which includes 
the Lloyd’s market.

Long-tail: The term used to describe business where the 
difference between the timing of the average premium receipt 
and the timing of the average claim payment is over three years.

M
Major claims or Major losses: Major claims are defined 
as claims which are initially assessed as having the potential 
to exceed $15.0m (net of reinsurance and allowing for 
reinstatements), incurred from natural or man-made 
catastrophes, or from large single risk loss events.

Major claims ratio: Claims incurred from major loss events 
net of reinsurance divided by adjusted earned premiums net 
of reinsurance.

Management entity capital requirement: The capital required 
by an entity for business strategy and regulatory requirements.

N
Net earned premium or NEP: The net written premium adjusted 
by the change in net unearned premium (i.e. the premium for 
which insurance exposure has yet to be incurred) for a year.

Net tangible assets or NTA: The total assets of a company, 
minus any intangible assets, less all liabilities.

Net written premiums or NWP: Gross premiums written during 
a specified period less outwards reinsurance premiums ceded. 

Non-controlling interest: The equity in a subsidiary not 
attributable, directly or indirectly, to a parent.

O
Operating expense ratio: Other acquisition costs, other 
insurance related expenses, gains/losses on other financial 
liabilities and other income divided by adjusted earned premiums 
net of reinsurance. 

Outstanding claims: Claims which have been notified at the 
reporting date but not settled.

Own risk and solvency assessment or ORSA: The name given 
to the entirety of the processes and procedures employed 
by an insurer to identify, assess, monitor, manage and report 
the short and long-term risks it faces or may face and 
to determine the capital necessary to ensure that the insurer’s 
overall solvency needs are met at all times.

P
PRA: The UK Prudential Regulation Authority established 
pursuant to the Financial Services Act 2012 and responsible 
for the prudential regulation and supervision of banks, building 
societies, credit unions, insurers and major investment firms.

Protected cell company or PCC: A company that has been 
separated into legally distinct portions or cells. The revenue 
streams, assets and liabilities of each cell are kept separate 
from all other cells. Each cell has its own separate portion of the 
PCC’s overall share capital, allowing shareholders to maintain 
sole ownership of an entire cell.

Q
Quota share or QS: A type of reinsurance which provides 
that the reassured shall cede to the reinsurer a specified 
percentage of all the premiums that it receives in respect 
of a given section or of all of its underwriting account for a given 
period in return for which the reinsurer is obliged to pay the 
same percentage of any claims and specified expenses arising 
on the reinsured business.

186 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

glossaryGlossary

R
Rate change: See risk adjusted rate change. 

Realistic Disaster Scenarios or RDS: Specific scenarios which 
the Group uses to test its ability to settle claims arising from 
certain types of disaster. 

Reinsurance: The transfer of some or all of an insurance risk 
to another insurer. The company transferring the risk is called 
the ‘ceding company’ and the company assuming the risk 
is called the ‘assuming company’ or the ‘reinsurer’.

Representative office: An office established by Brit to conduct 
marketing and other non-transactional operations overseas.

Reserves: Outstanding claims and claims incurred 
but not reported.

Reserve releases: The amount of the reserves at the end of the 
previous period determined as being excess to requirements 
at the end of the current period.

Reserve release ratio: Reserve releases divided by adjusted 
earned premiums net of reinsurance.

Retention ratio: The ratio, in percent, of the value of premiums 
relating to risks written in one year renewed in the following 
year. The data used is risk adjusted (i.e. it allows for changes 
to terms and conditions).

Risk adjusted rate change: Change in premium rates during the 
year expressed as a percentage of opening premium rates. The 
data reflects internal estimates by Brit’s underwriters, based 
on available year-on-year underlying renewal data after allowing 
for changes to terms and conditions. Generally, no adjustment 
is made to the figures to reflect the impact of inflation beyond 
the level of inflation in the underlying exposure measure 
used in pricing.

Risk management framework or RMF: The Group’s own internal 
framework for risk management.

Return on net tangible assets (RoNTA): Profit/(loss) for 
the year after tax attributable to the owners of Brit Limited 
(adjusted for amortisation net of tax, defined benefit pension 
scheme’s charges/credits net of tax, and foreign exchange 
movements net of tax), divided by total equity attributable to the 
owners of Brit Limited at start of year (less intangible assets net 
of deferred tax, and pension asset net of deferred tax), adjusted 
on a time weighted basis for any distributions and shares issued 

during the year.

Running yield: The income return, expressed either 
as a percentage or a monetary amount, on invested assets.

S
Service companies: Subsidiary companies set up to operate 
a binding authority on behalf of the Syndicate to write business 
from non-Lloyd’s brokers or direct from policymakers.

Short-tail: The term used to describe business where the 
difference between the timing of the average premium 
receipt and the timing of the average claim payment 
is under three years.

Softening or soft market: An insurance market where prevalent 
prices are low, and terms and conditions offered by insurers are 
less restrictive.

Solvency capital requirement or SCR: The higher of the two 
capital levels required by Solvency II. The SCR is the prudent 
amount of assets to be held in excess of liabilities and functions 
as an early warning mechanism if it is breached. The SCR 
is calculated using either the standard formula or an approved 
internal model.

Solvency matched: The matching of the currencies of the 
Group’s liabilities and management entity capital requirements 
with the currencies of the assets held by the Group.

Solvency II: A combination of several EU Directives that codify 
and harmonise EU insurance regulation, primarily concerning 
the amount of capital that EU insurance companies must 
hold to reduce the risk of insolvency. Principal components 
are Directive 2009/138/EC on the taking-up and pursuit 
of the business of insurance and reinsurance and Directive 
2012/23/EU on the financial position of insurance undertakings. 
Solvency II came into force in all EU member states 
on 1 January 2016.

Strategic asset allocation or SAA: The Group’s strategic asset 
allocation defines the overall Group investment strategy and 
reflects entity-level considerations and governance matters. 
See ‘asset allocation’.

Syndicate: A group of underwriting members of Lloyd’s 
or a single corporate member managed as a unit to underwrite 
insurance business at Lloyd’s to which a particular syndicate 
number is assigned by or with the authority of Lloyd’s of London. 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021 

187

 
 
Glossary

T
Tail: See ‘short-tail’ and ‘long-tail’.

Technical price: The price for the risk which is expected 
to produce the long-term required return on capital 
for the Group.

The Company: Brit Limited.

The Group: Brit Limited and its subsidiaries.

The Syndicate: Brit Syndicate 2987, Brit Syndicate 2988 or  
Ki Syndicate 1618.

Total invested assets: See ‘invested assets’.

Total operating expenses: These represent all expenses 
incurred by the Group, excluding commission costs. 

Treaty: A reinsurance contract pursuant to which the reinsurer 
is obliged to accept, within agreed limits, all risks underwritten 
by the reinsured within specified classes of business 
in a given time period.

U
Ultimate claims: The total forecast claims expected to arise 
from a policy or class of business. Ultimate claims include those 
losses paid, those notified and IBNR.

Underlying operating expenses: Calculated as Total operating 
expenses less project costs and other timing differences. 
Underlying operating expenses include bonus costs. 

Underwriting capacity: The maximum premium income which 
a Lloyd’s syndicate is permitted to underwrite. A capacity 
figure is assigned to each underwriting year and the relevant 
premium income is defined as gross written premiums less 
commission payable.

Underwriting profit: Operating profit generated by our 
underwriting segments less investment return.

Unearned premium reserve or UPR: The portion of premium 
income written in the calendar year that is attributable 
to periods after the reporting date. It is accounted for 
as unearned premiums in the underwriting provisions.

Unrealised gains or Unrealised losses: Gains or losses that 
are yet to be crystallised in the form of a cash movement from 
disposals of invested assets. 

188 

Brit Limited  Annual Report 2021

glossaryBrit Limited
The Leadenhall Building, 122 Leadenhall Street, London, EC3V 4AB, UK
www.britinsurance.com