Kingstone Companies, Inc., a regional property and casualty insurance holding company, managed to cut the cost of its core catastrophe excess of loss (XoL) reinsurance coverage by over 15% for 2026/2027, despite purchasing more limit, improving terms, and adding the wildfire peril to its programme.
Mid-year reinsurance renewal reports and commentary from broking groups have highlighted continued catastrophe reinsurance softening, and Kingstone is the latest buyer to report a significant risk-adjusted cost decrease for its 2026-2027 renewal.
“While we raised the limit purchased, added wildfire to the mix and improved terms, the cost of our core catastrophe excess of loss coverage decreased more than 15% on a risk-adjusted basis. The catastrophe program cost is approximately 11% of projected direct premiums earned, down from 13% for the previous treaty period. This coverage strengthens our balance sheet protection and helps reduce the volatility of our results while supporting our continued profitable growth,” said Meryl Golden, President and Chief Executive Officer.
Kingstone’s 2026/2027 core catastrophe reinsurance programme is effective from July 1st, 2026, through June 30th, 2027, and provides the firm with $500 million of loss limit. This is a 14%, or $60 million increase in reinsurance limit secured when compared with the 2025/2026 placement, which itself increased by 57%, or $160 million year-on-year.
At its July 2026 renewal, Kingstone was able to maintain low first-event retentions of $3.5 million for wildfire, $5 million for named storm, and $6 million for winter storm.
The $500 million of reinsurance secured for 2026/2027 includes $125 million of multi-year limit via 1886 Re Ltd. (Series 2025-1), the carrier’s first Rule 144A catastrophe bond issued in 2025.
“I am pleased to announce the successful completion of our 2026/2027 catastrophe reinsurance placement on favorable terms. Due to the significant increase in exposure experienced in the past year, we made the decision to raise our catastrophe reinsurance limit by $60 million to $500 million,” said Golden.
“We appreciate the broad support of our valued reinsurance partners, with over 34 reinsurers participating in the program, including six new reinsurers. Their continued confidence underscores the quality of our underwriting, the strength of our claims execution, and our disciplined approach to risk management. With this placement complete, we are well positioned to continue our profitable growth trajectory toward our goal of $500 million of annual written premium by year end 2029,” added Golden.
