5. REINSURANCE

Overview

Reinsurance is used to mitigate the exposure to losses, manage capacity and protect capital resources. The Company reinsures (cedes) a portion of written premiums on an excess of loss or a quota share basis in order to limit the Company’s loss exposure. To the extent that reinsuring companies are unable to meet their obligations assumed under these reinsurance agreements, the Company remain primarily liable to its policyholders.

The Company is selective in choosing reinsurers and consider numerous factors, the most important of which is the financial stability of the reinsurer or capital specifically pledged to uphold the contract, its history of responding to claims and its overall reputation. In an effort to minimize the Company’s exposure to the insolvency of a reinsurer, the Company evaluates the acceptability and review the financial condition of the reinsurer at least annually with the assistance of the Company’s reinsurance broker.

Significant Reinsurance Contracts

2016-2017 Reinsurance Programs

FNIC’s 2016-2017 reinsurance programs, costing $179.5 million, included $125.6 million for the private reinsurance for FNIC’s Florida exposure, including prepaid automatic premium reinstatement protection on all layers, along with $53.9 million payable to the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund (“FHCF”). The combination of private and FHCF reinsurance treaties afforded FNIC with $2.2 billion of aggregate coverage with a maximum single event coverage totaling $1.6 billion, exclusive of retentions. FNIC maintained its FHCF participation at 75% for the 2016 hurricane season. FNIC’s single event pre-tax retention for a catastrophic event in Florida was $18.5 million. In addition, FNIC purchased separate underlying reinsurance layers in Louisiana, Texas, South Carolina and Alabama to cover losses and LAE outside of Florida for each catastrophic event from $8.0 million to $18.5 million. Depending on the characteristics of the catastrophic event, and the states involved, FNIC’s single event pre-tax retention could have been as low as $8.0 million. The maximum pre-tax retention was $18.5 million.

Additionally, our private market excess of loss treaties became effective June 1, 2016 and July 1, 2016, and all private layers, except the FHCF supplemental layer reinsurance contract, have prepaid automatic reinstatement protection, which afforded us with additional coverage against multiple catastrophic events in the same hurricane season. We obtained multiple year protection for a portion of its program; as a result, some of the coverage expired on June 30, 2017, and a portion of the coverage will remain in-force one additional treaty year until June 30, 2018. These private market excess of loss treaties structure coverage into layers, with a cascading feature such that substantially all private layers attach after $18.5 million in losses for FNIC’s Florida exposure. If the aggregate limit of the preceding layer is exhausted, the next layer drops down (cascades) in its place. Additionally, any unused layer protection drops down for subsequent events until exhausted.

MNIC’s 2016-2017 catastrophe reinsurance program, which ran from either June 1 to May 31 or June 1 to June 30 (13 month period), consisted of the FHCF and private market excess of loss treaties. All private layers had prepaid automatic reinstatement protection, which afforded MNIC additional coverage, and had a cascading feature such that substantially all layers attached at $3.4 million for MNIC’s Florida exposure.

2017-2018 Reinsurance Programs

FNIC’s 2017-2018 reinsurance programs costing $173.9 million, including $124.0 million for the private reinsurance for FNIC’s Florida exposure including prepaid automatic premium reinstatement protection on all layers, along with $49.9 million payable to the FHCF. The combination of private and FHCF reinsurance treaties will afford FNIC with $2.2 billion of aggregate coverage with a maximum single event coverage totaling $1.5 billion, exclusive of retentions. FNIC maintained its FHCF participation at 75% for the 2017 hurricane season. FNIC’s single event pre-tax retention for a catastrophic event in Florida is $18.0 million, down slightly from the 2016-2017 reinsurance programs.

FNIC’s private market excess of loss treaties, covering both Florida and non-Florida exposures, became effective June 1, 2017 and July 1, 2017. All private layers have prepaid automatic reinstatement protection, except the FHCF supplemental layer reinsurance contract, which affords FNIC additional coverage for subsequent events. The reinsurance program includes multiple year protection with $89.0 million of new multiple year protection this year and $156.0 million of renewing multiple year protection from last year. As in our 2016-2017 program, these private market excess of loss treaties structure coverage into layers, with a cascading feature such that substantially all layers attach after $25.1 million in losses for FNIC’s exposure. FNIC purchased an underlying limit of protection for $7.1 million excess of $18.0 million with prepaid automatic reinstatement protection. These treaties are with reinsurers that currently have an A.M. Best Company (“A.M. Best”) or Standard & Poor’s rating of “A-” or better, or have fully collateralized their maximum potential obligations in dedicated trusts.

FNIC’s non-Florida excess of loss reinsurance treaties affords us up to an additional $21.0 million of aggregate coverage with first event coverage totaling $5.0 million and second event coverage up to $16.0 million. The non-Florida retention is lowered to $13.0 million for the first event and $2.0 million for the second event (for hurricane losses only) on a gross basis, though the retention is reduced to $6.5 million and to $1.0 million on a net basis after taking into account the profit share agreement that FNIC has with our non-affiliated managing general underwriter that writes our non-Florida property business. FNIC’s non-Florida reinsurance program cost includes $1.7 million for this private reinsurance, including prepaid automatic premium reinstatement protection.

MNIC’s 2017-2018 reinsurance program costing $5.0 million, including $3.2 million for the private reinsurance for MNIC’s Florida exposure including prepaid automatic premium reinstatement protection on all layers, along with $1.8 million payable to the FHCF. The combination of private and FHCF reinsurance treaties affords MNIC with $109.0 million of aggregate coverage with a maximum single event coverage of $64.9 million, exclusive of retentions. MNIC maintained its FHCF participation at 75% for the 2017 hurricane season.

MNIC’s private market excess of loss treaties became effective July 1, 2017, and all private layers have prepaid automatic reinstatement protection, which affords MNIC additional coverage for subsequent events, and have a cascading feature such that substantially all layers attach at $3.4 million for MNIC’s Florida exposure. These treaties are with reinsurers that currently have an A.M. Best or Standard & Poor’s rating of “A-” or better, or have fully collateralized their maximum potential obligations in dedicated trusts.

In addition to the excess of loss coverages described above, our reinsurance program also includes property quota-share treaties. One such treaty for 30% became effective July 1, 2014, and another for 10% became effective July 1, 2015 with each running for two years. The combined treaties provided up to a 40% quota-share reinsurance on all non-catastrophe homeowners property insurance claims in Florida, and 40% quota share coverage on the first $100 million of covered catastrophe losses for the homeowners property insurance program in Florida per occurrence; $200 million any one contract year. The treaties embodied an experience account and are accounted for as retrospectively rated contracts whereby the estimated ultimate premium or commission is recognized over the period of the contracts.

On July 1, 2016, the 30% property quota-share treaty expired on a cut-off basis, which means as of that date we retained an incremental 30% of the underlying unearned premiums and losses. On July 1, 2017, the 10% property quota-share treaty expired on a cut-off basis, which means as of that date we retained an incremental 10% of the underlying unearned premiums and losses. The reinsurers remain liable for 30% and 10% of the paid losses occurring during the terms of the treaties, until each treaty is commuted.

On July 1, 2017, FNIC bound a new 10% quota-share on its Florida homeowners book of business, which excludes named storms. This treaty is not subject to accounting as a retrospectively rated contract.

Our private passenger automobile quota share treaties are typically one year programs which become effective at different points in the year and cover automobile policies across several states. These automobile quota share treaties cede approximately 75% of all written premiums entered into by the Company, subject to certain limitations including but not limited to premium and other caps.

Certain reinsurance agreements require FNIC and MNIC to secure the credit, regulatory and business risk. Fully funded trust agreements securing these risks for FNIC were $2.6 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016. Fully funded trust agreements securing these risks for MNIC were $0.3 million as of December 31, 2017 and 2016.

Reinsurance Recoverable, Net

Amounts recoverable from reinsurers are recognized in a manner consistent with the claims liabilities associated with the reinsurance placement and presented on the consolidated balance sheet as reinsurance recoverables. Reinsurance recoverable, net consisted of the following:



	December 31,
	2017		2016
	(In thousands)

Reinsurance recoverable on paid losses	$	26,256	$	7,451
Reinsurance recoverable on unpaid losses	98,345		40,412
Reinsurance recoverable, net	$	124,601	$	47,863

As of December 31, 2017, the Company has $88.0 million in reinsurance recoverables as a result of Hurricane Irma. Hurricane Irma made landfall in the United States as a Category 4 hurricane on September 10, 2017. Approximately 15% of the reinsurance recoverable at December 31, 2017, was concentrated in one reinsurer related to Hurricane Irma. This one reinsurer and all other reinsurers in our excess-of-loss reinsurance programs have an A.M. Best or Standard & Poor’s rating of “A-“ or better, or have fully collateralized their maximum potential obligations in dedicated trusts.

Net Premiums Written and Net Premiums Earned

Net premiums written and net premiums earned consisted of the following:

໿



	Year Ended December 31,
	2017			2016			2015
	(In thousands)
Net premiums written:
Direct	$	603,417		$	605,485		$	493,770
Ceded	(260,524		)	(285,986		)	(268,516		)
Net premiums written	$	342,893		$	319,499		$	225,254

Net premiums earned:
Direct	$	603,193		$	565,423		$	432,233
Ceded	(269,712		)	(304,054		)	(219,213		)
Net premiums earned	$	333,481		$	261,369		$	213,020