NEWS
The 30 biggest non-life insurers in Europe grew last year
But their profits slipped last year, says an October report from AM Best.
Gross written premium (GWP) of the 30 largest non-life insurers in Europe grew by 11 percent year on year in 2022—and the biggest 10 of those companies grew the fastest. But the profits of the companies slipped.
That was the finding of an AM Best report published on October 17 titled “Big names dominate European insurance landscape as overall profits slip”. The top five insurers by gross written premiums were Allianz, AXA, Lloyd’s, Chubb and Zurich Insurance.
Only one insurer, UK-based RSA, saw its GWP drop in the period. AIG Europe returned to the top 30 again, after dropping out last year, at the expense of Baloise Holdings, based in Switzerland.
While the 13 companies at the top of the ranking remained in the same positions as last year, there were some significant changes further down the table. Vienna Insurance Group climbed three spots to 14, with premium growth of 17 percent. Aéma Groupe moved three spots to 15; Beazley climbed four spots to 23 with GWP growth of 21 percent; and Grupo Catalana Occidente moved to position 26 with growth of more than 10 percent.
“Claims inflation, especially in motor and property, was another key factor.”
Overall profits after tax for the group were significantly down in 2022, however. AM Best said this was largely due to poorer investment results, driven by movement in the market value of investment portfolios due to rapidly increasing interest rates. The contrast was increased because their 2021 results had bounced back from the impact of COVID-19 in 2020.
Claims inflation, especially in motor and property, was another key factor in the declining profits. Parts and labour costs have soared while the frequency of claims also increased after a benign period caused by the pandemic. AM Best noted that while many insurers have moved to increase premiums to counter these trends, the impact of that is lagging the impact of inflation on claims costs.
Three groups, Aviva, Lloyd’s and R+V, made losses in 2022, although these were all driven by negative investment results, and they all reported a technical profit. There were some notable exceptions on profit: HDI Group increased its after-tax profit to €2.5 billion from €1.7 billion a year earlier driven by its international business, which includes the non-life contribution from Hannover Re.
“There were some notable exceptions on profit.”
Largest European non-life insurers in 2022 by GWP
Main image: Shutterstock / Markus Pfaff