Captive Insurance Milestone Recognized in Delaware

Delaware Gov. Jack Markell has presented Insurance Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart with a proclamation recognizing the Department of Insurance for licensing the state's 1,000th captive insurance company, AWI, Inc., of Voorhees, New Jersey.

According to a Delaware Department of Insurance press release, the November 9, 2015, proclamation recognizes Delaware as one of the foremost captive domiciles in the world, currently the sixth largest globally and the third largest nationwide. The department's captive bureau is self-sustaining and currently contributes an annual surplus of tax and fee revenue of over $3 million to the Delaware general fund, the press release said.

Captive insurance entities are owned by the companies that they insure, and are generally formed by businesses that wish to better manage the cost and administration of their insurance coverage.

"When I took office in 2009, Delaware was home to only 38 captive insurance companies," Ms. Stewart said, as quoted in the press release. "I immediately saw the revenue potential for growing our captive insurance business.

"I promptly formed the Bureau of Captive and Financial Insurance Products," Ms. Stewart said. "Since then the bureau has generated more than $11 million in revenue."

Ms. Stewart went to say, "I want to thank the Governor and the General Assembly for their continued cooperation in making Delaware a friendly place for corporations around the country and the world to do business.

"Of course Delaware’s unique Court of Chancery also deserves credit for establishing a stable and reliable legal environment in which captives can thrive," she said.

"In the future, I intend to reach out around the world to new markets for captive insurance and continue to increase the number of captive insurance entities domiciled in Delaware," Ms. Stewart said.

AWI‘s parent company, American Water, was founded in 1886 and is the largest and most geographically diverse publicly traded water and wastewater utility company in the United States.

AWI will receive formal recognition as Delaware’s 1,000th captive at the Delaware Captive Insurance Association Fall Forum on November 12 at the Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington.

Pictured above: Karen Weldin Stewart

Pictured below: Seated: Governor Markell. 

Front Row: Deputy Insurance Commissioner Hardy Drane; Assistant Secretary of State Rick Geisenberger; Insurance Commissioner Karen Weldin Stewart; Senior Captive Analyst Rasa Zubielaite.

Back Row: Captive Director Assistant Mark Murowany; DOI Chief of Staff Paul Reynolds; Captive Bureau Director Steve Kinion; DOI Director of Communications Jerry Grant; Captive Office Manager Jamie Bafundo; Insurance Examiner Raciel Moratin.