Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited Reports Fourth Quarter And Twelve Months To December 31, 2004 Financial Results And Increasing Dividend

HAMILTON, BERMUDA, March 3, 2005 - Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited (NYSE: AHL;BSX:AHL.BH) today reported a net income of $72.2 million, or $1.01 per diluted share, for the three months ended December 31, 2004 and net income of  $195.1 million, or $2.74 per diluted share, for the twelve months to December 31, 2004.

Gross written premiums were $216.2 million for the fourth quarter 2004 and $1,586.2 million for the twelve months to December 31, 2004.

Chris O'Kane, chief executive officer, said, "Our fourth quarter results demonstrate the fundamental strengths of Aspen's business platform.  Our diversification strategy and underwriting discipline have resulted in a strong finish to 2004, with which we are pleased.  Our performance to date combined with sound balance sheet management have positioned us to take advantage of new business opportunities in 2005." 

Net investment income was $22.0 million for the fourth quarter 2004 and $68.3 million for the twelve months to December 31, 2004.

The Company reports separately on its reinsurance and insurance operations.  Gross written premiums for the reinsurance segment were $95.1 million for the fourth quarter 2004 and $1,177.7 million for the twelve months to December 31, 2004. The reinsurance operations reported a combined ratio of 75% for the fourth quarter 2004 and 85% for the twelve months to December 31, 2004.   Gross written premiums for the insurance segment were $121.1 million for the fourth quarter 2004 and $408.5 million for the twelve months to December 31, 2004.  The insurance operations reported a combined ratio of 70% for the fourth quarter 2004 and 79% for the twelve months to December 31, 2004.

Shareholders' equity increased from $1,298.7 million at December 31, 2003 to $1,481.5 million at December 31, 2004.

Today, Aspen's board of directors announced an increase in the quarterly dividend to $0.15 per ordinary share from $0.03 per ordinary share.  The dividend will be payable on March 25, 2005 to shareholders of record on March 15, 2005.

Earnings conference call

Aspen will hold a conference call tomorrow, March 4, 2005 at 8:30 a.m. (ET) to discuss fourth quarter and year-end 2004 financial results.  Investors may participate in the live conference call by dialing 800-473-6123 (toll-free domestic U.S.) or 973-582-2706 (international).  Please call to register at least 10 minutes before the conference call begins.  A replay of the call will be available for 10 days via telephone starting approximately two hours following the live call on March 4, 2005,  and can be accessed at 877-519-4471 (toll-free domestic U.S.) or 973-341-3080 (international); passcode: 5594843. The live call and a replay can also be heard via Aspen's website at www.aspen.bm.

In addition, a financial supplement relating to the Company's financial results for the fourth quarter 2004 and twelve months to December 31, 2004 is available in the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at www.aspen.bm.

About Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited

Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited was established in June 2002.  Aspen is a Bermudian holding company that provides property and casualty reinsurance in the global market, property and liability insurance principally in the United Kingdom and surplus lines insurance in the United States. Aspen's operations are conducted through its wholly-owned subsidiaries located in London, Bermuda and the United States: Aspen Insurance UK Limited, Aspen Insurance Limited and Aspen Specialty Insurance Company. Aspen's reinsurance segment consists of property reinsurance, casualty reinsurance and specialty reinsurance lines of business. Aspen's insurance segment consists of commercial property, commercial liability, marine and aviation, and U.S. surplus insurance lines of business. Aspen's principal existing shareholders include The Blackstone Group, Candover Partners Limited, Wellington Underwriting plc and Credit Suisse First Boston Private Equity.  For more information about Aspen, please visit the Company's website at www.aspen.bm.  

Application of the Safe Harbor of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:

This press release contains, and Aspen's earnings conference call may contain, written or oral "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws.  These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  Forward-looking statements include all statements that do not relate solely to historical or current facts, and can be identified by the use of words such as "expect," "intend," "plan," "believe," "project," "anticipate," "seek," "will,"  "estimate," "may," "continue," and similar expressions of a future or forward-looking nature.

All forward-looking statements rely on a number of assumptions concerning future events and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside the Company's control that could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements.  Important events that could cause the actual results to differ include, but are not limited to: the impact of acts of terrorism and acts of war and related legislations; the possibility of greater frequency or severity of or unanticipated losses from natural or man-made catastrophes, including losses developing from the recent windstorms in the southeastern U.S. and Japan; the effectiveness of the Company's loss limitation methods; changes in the availability, cost or quality of reinsurance or retrocessional coverage; the loss of key personnel; a decline in the operating subsidiaries' ratings with Standard & Poor's, A.M. Best or Moody's; changes in general economic conditions; increased competition on the basis of pricing, capacity, coverage terms or other factors; decrease in demand for the Company's insurance or reinsurance products and cyclical downturn of the industry; and changes in governmental regulation or tax laws in the jurisdictions where the Company conducts business, the total industry losses resulting from the recent windstorms, the actual number of the Company's insureds incurring losses from these storms, the limited actual loss reports received from the Company's insureds to date, the Company's reliance on industry loss estimates and those generated by modeling techniques, the impact of these storms on the Company's reinsurers, the amount and timing of reinsurance recoverables and reimbursements actually received by the Company from its reinsurers and the overall level of competition, and the related demand and supply dynamics, in the wind exposed property reinsurance lines as contracts come up for renewal.  For a more detailed description of these uncertainties and other factors, please see the "Risk Factors" section in Aspen's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2003, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on March 26, 2004.  Aspen undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.  Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the dates on which they are made.