Captive regulation pioneer honoured with award

Ed Meehan, pioneer of captive insurance regulation in the United States, was honoured posthumously with an award from the National Risk Retention Association (NRRA).

He was awarded the Karen Cutts Visionary Award, which is granted annually to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the risk retention and purchasing group industry.

Meehan laid the foundations for captive regulation in the US as Vermont's first director of captive operations following enactment of the State's captive insurance law in 1981. Vermont went on to become the preeminent domicile licensing more than 1,000 captive insurance companies over the years.

The NRRA said the principles Meehan established remain solidly in place: regulation free of politics, strong capital requirements, firm but flexible, rigorous oversight, and always ready to hold captives accountable.

The award was presented at NRRA's annual conference by Sanford Elsass, chairman of NRRA; Len Crouse, former deputy commissioner of the Vermont Captive division; and Derick White, president of Strategic Risk Solutions-Vermont and formerly the State's director of captive insurance.

Meehan's son Mike, a consultant with Milliman, accepted the award on behalf of his father.