Heather Takahashi's questions to RLI Corp (RLI) leadership • Q4 2024
Question
Heather Takahashi from Thrivent asked for the cause of the adverse development in the Surety segment and what actions were taken to address it. She also inquired about potential E&S market opportunities arising from the California wildfires.
Answer
CFO Todd Bryant stated the adverse development in contract surety was minor (~$1M) and not indicative of a trend. COO Jen Klobnak added that while the industry is seeing higher frequency, RLI is not, and the development stemmed from just two claims which did not alter their underwriting approach. President and CEO Craig Kliethermes commented that wildfire-related opportunities would likely be in the residential space, which RLI avoids, and that the impact on their commercial focus has been small so far.