Company: BRK-A
Filing Date: 2025-02-24
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000950170-25-025210
Chunk: 11

Company: BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY INC
Filing Date: 2025-02-24
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1
Chunk 11
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, as well as on an excess and surplus lines basis. USLI markets policies in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Canada through wholesale and retail insurance agents. USLI also underwrites and markets a wide variety of specialty insurance products. USLI is based in Wayne, Pennsylvania. The GUARD Insurance Companies (“GUARD”) consist of five insurance companies that provide a comprehensive suite of commercial insurance solutions to over 200,000 small-to-medium sized businesses. These insurance products are accessible through independent agents and wholesale brokers. GUARD is based in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. 

Berkshire Hathaway Direct Insurance Company and its affiliates (“BH Direct”) offer commercial insurance products (including workers’ compensation, property, auto, general and professional liability) to small business customers. BH Direct’s products are primarily sold through two internet-based distribution platforms, biBERK.com and Threeinsurance.com. BH Direct writes policies on an admitted basis and is based in Stamford, Connecticut. 

Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group—Berkshire’s combined global reinsurance business, referred to as the Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group (“BHRG”), offers a wide range of coverages on property, casualty, life and health risks to insurers and reinsurers worldwide. BHRG conducts business activities in 24 countries. Reinsurance business is written through NICO and affiliates (“NICO Group”), General Re Corporation and its subsidiaries (“General Re Group”) and Transatlantic Reinsurance Company and its affiliates (“TransRe Group”). U.S. underwriting operations of the NICO Group and General Re Group are based in Stamford, Connecticut while the TransRe Group is based in New York, New York.

Reinsurance contracts are normally classified as treaty or facultative. Treaty reinsurance refers to reinsurance coverage for all or a portion of a specified group or class of risks ceded by a direct insurer or reinsurer, while facultative reinsurance involves coverage of specific individual underlying risks. Reinsurance contracts are further classified as quota-share or excess-of-loss. Under quota-share (proportional or pro-rata) reinsurance, the reinsurer shares proportionally in the original premiums and losses of the direct insurer or reinsurer. Excess-of-loss (or non-proportional) reinsurance provides for the indemnification of the direct insurer or reinsurer for all or a portion of the loss in excess of an agreed upon amount or “retention.” Both quota-share and excess-of-loss reinsurance contracts may provide for aggregate limits of indemnification.