Alleghany is a property and casualty insurance company that owns and manages subsidiaries that operate reinsurance and insurance operations. The company also executes certain private capital investments. The company classifies its business into two reportable segments: reinsurance and insurance. These segments' underwriting activities are evaluated separately from investment and corporate activities. Reinsurance contracts are generally classified as treaty or facultative contracts. Treaty reinsurance provides for the automatic reinsuring of all or a portion of a specified class of risk underwritten by the ceding company. Facultative reinsurance is geared toward individual risks.