Assessing Board Audit Committees

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act has focused the attention of the business community on the role of the audit committees of companies’ boards of directors.  The NAIC also is considering whether to apply portions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to non-public insurance companies.  As a result, audit committees will be subject to ever greater scrutiny by regulators.

R&A can assess the audit committee of an insurance company’s board of directors on behalf of the company or an insurance regulator.  R&A will tailor the assessment to the needs of the company or regulator and can:

• Review the insurance business and accounting experience of the committee members and of senior management
• Interview audit committee members, senior management, and CPA firm staff who conduct the company’s audit
• Review insurance company materials to verify information obtained during interviews and to learn about information provided to the audit committee.  Materials can include CPA audit, Annual and Quarterly Statements, board minutes, and materials distributed at board meetings.