Approximation and estimation of some compound distributions

The distribution of the total amount claimed up to time t can often be written in the form of a compound distribution G_t(x) = Σp_n(t)F⁽ⁿ⁾(x) where p_n(t) is the probability of exactly n claims while F is the distribution of a single claim. In the actuarial literature one often finds approximations of G_t(x) when the time t is large. It seems more natural to take t fixed and to look for approximations for x large. This paper contains a number of such results for a Poisson process and for a Pascal process. Different hypotheses on the tail behaviour of F(t) yield different expressions to estimate 1 - G_t(x). The results obtained should prove to have wider applicability than suggested by the insurance context. Within it, however, applications to premium calculation principles are immediate.