Berkshire Shareholder Letters 2011 (Insurance)

心得：

• 這一部分沒什麼意思，除非我們將來開保險公司，就可模仿 Berkshire 概念，利用 float money 投資。
• 以會計角度來看 float money，這是負債，但它本質就是錢，而且是沒有成本的錢 (需要付利息的錢叫做貸款，貸款是要成本的)。

  Our float is deducted in full as a liability in calculating Berkshire’s book value, just as if we had to pay it out tomorrow and were unable to replenish it. But that’s an incorrect way to view float, which should instead be viewed as a revolving fund.

  看似一切順利，但我們應該考慮 float money 投資失敗的風險，倘若碰到黑天鵝，保險公司必須理賠，那又該怎麼辦？一般保險公司玩不起 Berkshire-quality float。因此 Berkshire 保險業務比其他同業還要來的保守許多。(應該啦，肯定是這樣，不然怎麼玩 float money？)
  
• 面對會計商譽，Berkshire 也謹守 Ben Graham 的教誨，將商譽視為毫無價值。
  
• 接著 Berkshire 談保險公司營運目標，這有點廢話，保險公司本來就要如此操作。但我們可以用此標準來檢驗台灣的保險公司。
  
  1. understand all exposures that might cause a policy to incur losses;
     
  2. conservatively evaluate the likelihood of any exposure actually causing a loss and the probable cost if it does;
     
  3. set a premium that will deliver a profit, on average, after both prospective loss costs and operating expenses are covered; and
     
  4. be willing to walk away if the appropriate premium can’t be obtained. (傳說中的停損，賠錢的生意不要做)