Headed by Syndicate Actuary Ben Canagaretna, the Barbican actuarial team use sophisticated models to provide information to support decision-making across the business. Our three core principles are reserving, pricing and capital modelling.

Reserving, done quarterly, helps the board decide what level of assets should be earmarked to cover claims. This enables us to measure profitability both at group level and by individual lines of business.

Pricing uses specially-created rating tools to calculate a technical price for individual risks. The Performance Management Data thus generated gives our underwriters a consistent platform to measure loss ratio and rate change.

The current main purpose of the capital model is to submit an Individual Assessment to Lloyd's. An FSA regulatory requirement, this sets out the level of capital required in the business to contain the risk of insolvency within set limits.

The actuarial team is highly focused on preparing for Solvency II, the new EU regulations due to come in at the beginning of 2013. In addition to ensuring we meet the required standards – in which Barbican has been recognised as a market leader – and introducing new measures and techniques, the team is also involved in an education programme across the business, ensuring all staff understand the principles and purpose of Solvency II.