Subsequent Events	6 Months Ended
Subsequent Events	Jun. 30, 2011
Subsequent Events
Subsequent Events	17. SUBSEQUENT EVENTS Allied World Switzerland entered into a definitive agreement and plan of merger (the "Merger Agreement") on June 12, 2011 with GO Sub, LLC, a newly formed Delaware limited liability company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Allied World Switzerland ("Merger Sub"), and Transatlantic Holdings, Inc. ("Transatlantic"), a Delaware corporation. The Merger Agreement provides for the merger of Merger Sub with and into Transatlantic, with Transatlantic continuing as the surviving corporation and a wholly-owned subsidiary of Allied World Switzerland. Transatlantic offers reinsurance capacity for a full range of property and casualty products, directly and through brokers, to insurance and reinsurance companies, in both the domestic and international markets on both a treaty and facultative basis. Upon completion of the merger, Allied World Switzerland will be the parent company of Transatlantic and Allied World Switzerland's name will be changed to "TransAllied Group Holdings, AG." Pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement, stockholders of Transatlantic will be entitled to receive 0.88 shares of Allied World Switzerland for each share of Transatlantic together with cash in lieu of any fractional shares, as applicable. The transaction is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of 2011 subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. The transaction will be accounted for using the acquisition method of accounting with Transatlantic being considered the acquirer for accounting purposes. Accordingly, the assets, liabilities and commitments of Allied World Switzerland will be recorded at their fair values on the acquisition date. On May 5, 2011, the shareholders approved the Company's proposal to pay dividends in the form of a distribution by way of par value reduction. The aggregate reduction amount will be paid to shareholders in quarterly installments of $0.375 per share. The Company made the first such quarterly dividend payment on August 5, 2011 to shareholders of record on July 27, 2011. The amount of the par value reduction was CHF 0.30, based on the exchange rate as of July 18, 2011.

Tabular disclosure of significant events or transactions that occurred after the balance sheet date through the date the financial statements were issued or the date the financial statements were available to be issued. Examples include: the sale of a capital stock issue, purchase of a business, settlement of litigation, losses resulting from fire or flood, losses on receivables, significant realized and unrealized gains and losses that result from changes in quoted market prices of securities, declines in market prices of inventory, changes in authorized or issued debt (SEC), significant foreign exchange rate changes, substantial loans to insiders or affiliates, significant long-term investments, and substantial dividends not in the ordinary course of business.

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