XML 37 R26.htm IDEA: XBRL DOCUMENT
v3.21.1

Commitments and Contingencies | 3 Months Ended
--- | ---
Mar. 31, 2021
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract] |
Commitments and Contingencies | Commitments and Contingencies Legal Contingencies White Mountains is subject to litigation and arbitration in the normal course of business. White Mountains considers the requirements of ASC 450 when evaluating its exposure to litigation and arbitration. ASC 450 requires that accruals be established for litigation and arbitration if it is probable that a loss has been incurred and it can be reasonably estimated. ASC 450 also requires that litigation and arbitration be disclosed if it is probable that a loss has been incurred or if there is a reasonable possibility that a loss may have been incurred. White Mountains does not have any current litigation that may have a material adverse effect on White Mountains’s financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. The following description presents significant legal contingencies, ongoing non-claims related litigation or arbitration as of March 31, 2021: Esurance On October 7, 2011, the Company completed the sale of its Esurance Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries and Answer Financial Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively, “Esurance”) to The Allstate Corporation (“Allstate”) pursuant to a Stock Purchase Agreement dated as of May 17, 2011. Subject to specified thresholds and limits, the Company remains contingently liable to Allstate for specified matters related to the pre-closing period, including (a) losses of Esurance arising from extra-contractual claims and claims in excess of policy limits, (b) certain corporate reorganizations effected to remove entities from Esurance that were not being sold in the transaction, and (c) certain tax matters, including certain net operating losses being less than stated levels. Sirius Group Tax Contingency In the first quarter of 2021, White Mountains recorded a $17.6 million gain within discontinued operations as a result of reversing a liability arising from the tax indemnification provided in connection with the sale of Sirius International Insurance Group, Ltd. (“Sirius Group”) in 2016. The liability related to certain interest deductions claimed by Sirius Group that had been disputed by the Swedish Tax Agency (STA). In April 2021, the STA informed the Swedish Administrative Court of Appeal that, as a result of the Swedish Supreme Administrative Court having ruled that the Swedish interest disallowance rules violate the European Union’s freedom of establishment principle, Sirius Group should prevail in its appeal (and that the interest deductions should not be disallowed).

X
- References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_CommitmentsAndContingenciesDisclosureAbstract
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition The entire disclosure for loss and gain contingencies. Describes any existing condition, situation, or set of circumstances involving uncertainty as of the balance sheet date (or prior to issuance of the financial statements) as to a probable or reasonably possible loss incurred by an entity that will ultimately be resolved when one or more future events occur or fail to occur, and typically discloses the amount of loss recorded or a range of possible loss, or an assertion that no reasonable estimate can be made. + References Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 450 -SubTopic 30 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/subtopic&trid=2127197 Reference 2: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 450 -SubTopic 20 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/subtopic&trid=2127163 + Details
Name: | us-gaap_LossContingencyDisclosures
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | nonnum:textBlockItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration