Leading developments.

The July issue of Best's Review is a special issue each year, bringing you A.M. Best's rankings of the top life insurers and the top property/casualty insurers, based on admitted assets for life and net premiums written for property/casualty. Although there is often movement among the rankings, 2004 was an especially significant year for life writers, as American International Group took the No. 1 spot from longtime leader MetLife. The change may be short-lived, however. Following MetLife's planned acquisition of Travelers Life later in 2005, its assets should surpass AIG's.

Accompanying the rankings, our two cover stories examine developments and strategies that will affect the industry in 2005. On the life side, "Two for One" (page 27) describes the growth in sales of combination products, particularly those combining life and long-term-care insurance. Some insurers are offering disability or critical illness as the secondary coverage, but combining long-term care and life is particularly attractive because of the big drop in long-term-care sales last year.

For property/casualty writers, the threat of another four-way hurricane punch like the one that hit Florida in 2004 looms large in a hurricane season that got off to an early start with Tropical Storm Arlene in June. "On the Storm Front" (page 39) looks at what provisions Florida's neighboring states have to help insurers cope with losses as large as the ones Florida experienced last year. Although many states are vulnerable, none has the equivalent of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund.

As an enhancement to the rankings lists this year, we've included contact information for the top 25 life writers and the top 25 property/casualty writers (pages 37 and 47).

We're also providing another source of contact information in this issue of Best's Review--a listing of captive domiciles and their regulators (page 53). Along with this list, "Capitalizing on Captives" (page 48) discusses some of the advantages states gain from becoming domiciles, such as helping build the private sector and tax base and boosting tourism.

Sally Whitney is editor. You may reach her at [phone], Ext. 5340, by writing to A.M. Best co., Ambest Road, Oldwick, NJ 08858, or by e-mail at [e-mail]. The e-mail address for Best's Review is [e-mail].