At A Glance: Insurance (2018)

In 1976 a breaking point for the insurance industry was reached. After a time of political movement and economic upheaval, liability insurance pay-outs in the US had reached an unsustainable rate, seeing several major insurers withdrawing completely from the market. Needing to secure adequate coverage for their physicians, Harvard Medical Institutions took matters into their own hands and formed the first offshore captive insurance company in Cayman: Controlled Risk Insurance Company Ltd (CRICO).

The word 'captive' refers to the relationship between the insurance company and its owner. Companies use captive insurance as a risk management and cost reduction tool; they are effectively a form of self-insurance, where an insurance company is created and owned by one or more companies, providing coverage for themselves, and taking responsibility for insuring their own risks.