Why choose casualty to go into?

[gizmo]

Why would someone choose property casualty to go into over life and health or pensions?

[Irish Blues]

MY personal opinion....because P&C is constantly umpredictable. That is, something that happens now isn't guaranteed to happen tomorrow, a month from now, a year from now, etc. etc. - assumptions and solutions you thought were good today won't necessarily be good at any point in the future. I'm the kind of person who likes coming up with a solution, coming back 6 months later to see if the solution is still good, and picking it apart to find a new, better solution to fit the current situation.

Health is much like P&C so I could see me in health, but P&C actuaries are in high demand...so I gravitated there.

Life IMO is stable - the challenge is in determining which of the insureds will die this year, but you know X% of the population aged YY will die in the next year. Pensions is a bit more unpredictable, but for me it never grabbed my interest like P&C always has.

[Sherwin]

So unpredictable that the solution seldom fits the actual fact well. When someone else satirizes you for that, what will you do?

[joeorez]

Our exposures are more dynamic. Insurance against loss from satellites. Internet liability. Cell phone radiation liability. The subprime mortgage crisis. I think these things are more interesting than life insurance or pensions.

By the way, which do you think is more common: Experienced life & pension actuaries switching to P&C, or experienced P&C actuaries switching to life & pension?

[Sherwin]

All the things that you are much interested in do not fit you at all maybe, however. So the interest should not be the main reason that you choose the P&C actuaries.

Yes, it is more common that life actuaries switch to P&C. But I don't think the main reason for this is the interest. Maybe, just my guess, because there are so few P&C acyuaries and some life actuaries try meeting the meed. And another reason is that the life actuarial techniques are a liitle more complicated than the P&C actuarial techniques, I feel. I just say complicated, not difficult, hehe. Hope the words do not make some people angry.

[R_T]

Every P&C actuary who reads your post is going to love you!

[majamin]

Our exposures are more dynamic. Insurance against loss from satellites. Internet liability. Cell phone radiation liability. [...]

I know this is off-topic somewhat, but I hope that "cell phone radiation liability" isn't an actual insured risk. Scientific studies are quite conclusive about this topic; and the conclusion is: there is no causal link between cell phone radiation and cancer. None.

[ya5er]

I know this is off-topic somewhat, but I hope that "cell phone radiation liability" isn't an actual insured risk. Scientific studies are quite conclusive about this topic; and the conclusion is: there is no causal link between cell phone radiation and cancer. None.

LOL... i hope you are just acting naiive :wink:

[shailesh]

Hi,

I am an Insurance guy currently working on UK insurnace products. I plan to have a new actuarial set up in my office & I plan to get some actuarial work. I would like to know which product is preferred the most. Is it Life , Pensions or P&C.

We currently have a good knowledge base about Life & Pensions. :smiloe:

[dagojr]

At what point should you "decide" what field to get into, as in P&C, Life, Pension, etc.?

I have one exam under my belt. I'll (hopefully) have a couple more in about a half year or so. Is that the time to decide? Is it important in interviews to know which way you're leaning?