Source: https://www.readkong.com/page/european-insurance-in-figures-2016-data-9434535
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European Insurance in Figures 3 Methodological note Insurance Europe compiles and analyses annually a substantial amount of general, financial and technical data relating to insurance, obtained from its members. This financial information is collected in each market’s national currency. For non-eurozone countries, it is then converted into euros with the end-of-year exchange rate, as published by Eurostat. Growth rates Growth rates are calculated in nominal terms but at constant endof-year exchange rates (2016) in order to remove the impact of variations in exchange rates on the growth-rate calculation.
Samples Data, and in particular historical data, is not available for all markets. Each indicator contains only those countries for which the entire historical data series is available. In some cases, data in the charts depicting 10-year series differs from figures quoted in the text and in the charts based on two-year samples due to different sample sizes. Samples for all charts and tables are listed in the Notes on p52.
Premiums Unless otherwise stated in the Notes, premiums are gross written premiums (direct business) on home territory underwritten by domestic companies and third-country branches. A full data set is available on the Insurance Europe website (www. insuranceeurope.eu). Special note: comparability with previous years’ data In 2016, a number of countries started reporting data based on the definitions in the EU’s new Solvency II regulatory regime. This means that the 2016 figures in this report are not directly comparable with those of earlier years, primarily for health and non-life business but also in terms of the number of companies.
For more detail, please see the Notes on p52.
The UK, the largest European market, has also refined its methodology for gathering property & casualty premiums. This further affects the comparability of the 2016 figures with those of earlier years. To provide meaningful growth figures, therefore, the year-on-year percentage growth figures in the Overview and Property & Casualty sections have been calculated on figures excluding this refinement and are marked with an asterisk (*).
4 Insurance Europe Austria (AT) — Verband der Versicherungsunternehmen Österreichs (VVO) Belgium (BE) — Assuralia Bulgaria (BG) — Association of Bulgarian Insurers (ABZ) Croatia (HR) — Hrvatski ured za osiguranje (HUO) Cyprus (CY) — Insurance Association of Cyprus Czech Republic (CZ) — Česká asociace pojišťoven (ČAP) Denmark (DK) — Insurance & Pension Denmark Estonia (EE) — Eesti Kindlustusseltside Liit Finland (FI) — Finanssiala ry France (FR) — Fédération Française de l’Assurance (FFA) Germany (DE) — Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft (GDV) Greece (GR) — Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies Hungary (HU) — Magyar Biztosítók Szövetsége (MABISZ) Iceland (IS) — Samtök Fjármálafyrirtækja (SFF) Ireland (IE) — Insurance Ireland Italy (IT) — Associazione Nazionale fra le Imprese Assicuratrici (ANIA) Latvia (LV) — Latvijas Apdrošinātāju asociācija (LAA) Liechtenstein (LI) — Liechtensteinischer Versicherungsverband Luxembourg (LU) — Association des Compagnies d’Assurances et de Réassurances du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg (ACA) Malta (MT) — Malta Insurance Association (MIA) Netherlands (NL) — Verbond van Verzekeraars Norway (NO) — Finans Norge Poland (PL) — Polska Izba Ubezpieczeń (PIU) Portugal (PT) — Associação Portuguesa de Seguradores (APS) Romania (RO) — Uniunea Naţională a Societăţilor de Asigurare şi Reasigurare din Romania (UNSAR) Slovakia (SK) — Slovenská asociácia poisťovní (SLASPO) Slovenia (SI) — Slovensko Zavarovalno Združenje (SZZ) Spain (ES) — Unión Española de Entidades Aseguradoras y Reaseguradoras (UNESPA) Sweden (SE) — Svensk Försäkring Switzerland (CH) — Schweizerischer Versicherungsverband (ASA/SVV) Turkey (TR) — Türkiye Sigorta, Reasürans ve Emeklilik Şirketleri Birliği United Kingdom (UK) — The British Insurers’ European Committee: Association of British Insurers (ABI) International Underwriting Association of London (IUA) Lloyd’s Member associations and country codes
European Insurance in Figures 5 Contents 1. European insurance in 2016 2. Insurers’ investment portfolio 3. Market structure Foreword 6 Economic environment 7 1.2 Life insurance 16 1.3 Health insurance 22 1.4 Property & casualty (P&C) insurance 27 Reporting countries and notes 49 2.1 Evolution of the portfolio 40 2.2 Impact of financial market performance on insurers’ portfolios 41 3.1 Companies and employees 45 3.2 Distribution channels 46 1.1 Overview 11
6 Insurance Europe Foreword In a world that can feel increasingly troubled and uncertain, a robust and trusted insurance sector provides a valuable bedrock of security.
This publication sets out the size and strength of Europe’s insurance industry and demonstrates its dual role as a provider of protection and long-term savings products and as a long-term, stable investor underpinning the economy. Our report contains data on the European insurance industry’s life, health and non-life premiums, benefits and claims paid and investment portfolios, as well as information on the sector’s structure. A more extensive dataset is available free of charge on Insurance Europe’s website at www.insuranceeurope.eu. In 2016, Europe’s insurers generated total premium income of €1 189bn and had €10 112bn invested in the economy.
They paid out the equivalent of €2.64bn a day in claims to help businesses and individuals through difficult moments and in benefits to longterm savers.
This was against the background of a noticeably improving economic environment. Growth has continued and financial markets performed well overall, despite significant volatility triggered by political events. Ultra-low interest rates, though, continue to constitute a challenging environment in which to provide long-term savings products, and insurers’ own long-term investments and liabilities also suffer from flaws in their treatment under the EU’s Solvency II regulatory regime that still need ironing out. Largely due to the protracted low interest-rate environment, life premiums decreased 2.2% year-on-year in 2016, albeit with significant differences between individual countries.
Meanwhile the premiums in most non-life business lines — which are driven by levels of economic activity — increased. Health insurance premiums rose 2.4%. In total, premium income fell slightly by 0.4%. Insurance Europe will continue to work with European and global policymakers, regulators and supervisors to ensure that there is a regulatory framework in which Europe’s insurers can continue to innovate and thrive in order to help policyholders meet the many and evolving challenges they face in today’s world. Michaela Koller Director General
European Insurance in Figures 7 Economic environment The macroeconomic environment for European insurers improved in 2016. The European economy continued to grow, albeit at a slower pace, with the real gross domestic product (GDP) of the 28 EU member states increasing by 1.9%, after 2.3% growth in 2015. This — now confirmed — EU economic recovery occurred amid decreasing or stagnating GDP growth rates in the world’s other large economies. In the US, economic activity slowed down considerably, with real GDP growth at 1.5% on average in 2016, compared to 2.9% the previous year. In China, annual GDP growth slightly decreased to 6.7% in 2016 from 6.9% the previous year.
Within the EU, economies grew at different speeds: Spain at 3.3%, the Netherlands 2.2%, Germany 1.9% and France 1.2%, while Italy’s real GDP increased by only 0.9%. The UK economy grew 1.8%; a significantly slower pace than the 3.1% recorded in 2014 and the 2.3% in 2015. Finland emerged from recession by registering a 1.9% real GDP growth in 2016, compared with 0% the previous year, while Greece’s real GDP contracted by 0.2%.
As a result of policies specifically to reduce deficits (increased taxes, lower public spending or both) and of better growth numbers, the EU-28’s government deficit-to-GDP ratio decreased from 2.4% in 2015 to 1.7% in 2016. The average ratio of government debt to GDP decreased as well, from 84.9% at the end of 2015 to 83.5% at the end of 2016. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate fell in the EU from 9.4% in 2015 to 8.2% at the end of 2016. EU GDP increased by 1.9% in 2016
8 Insurance Europe During the course of the year, the euro remained broadly stable in value compared to the US dollar, going from $1.09 in January 2016 to $1.04 at the end of the year, with a high of $1.15 in May.
This limited depreciation was due partly to diverging monetary policy stances in the US and the euro area but also to different growth prospects in the two economic areas. The visible growth in GDP finally resulted in higher inflation in the euro area, and the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) went from 0.3% in January 2016 to 1.1% in December, due primarily to higher energy and food prices. Core inflation (which excludes these highly volatile prices) remained broadly stable at 0.9% on average.
The European Central Bank’s monetary policy continued to be extremely accommodative; this is explained by the fact that the inflation rate remained significantly below the ECB’s objective of a rate below, but close to, 2%. The bank’s key interest rates were lowered to historically low levels in March 2016: the rate for main refinancing operations, which provide the bulk of liquidity to the banking system, was lowered to 0% (from 0.05%); the marginal lending facility rate, at which overnight credit is offered to banks, was lowered to 0.25% (from 0.3%); and the rate on the deposit facility that banks use to make overnight deposits with the Eurosystem was lowered deeper into negative territory to -0.4% from -0.3%.
As a result of the ECB’s measures, financing conditions in Europe continued to be very favourable.
Core inflation in Europe also remained broadly stable in 2016 at 0.9% on average In 2016 the euro remained broadly stable in value compared to the US dollar
European Insurance in Figures 9 The European stock market performance was also rather good, despite considerable volatility throughout the year. This was at least partly driven by firms taking advantage of low borrowing costs to fund share buybacks. The MSCI Europe Index started 2016 at a value of 1 421 to reach a peak of 1 501 at the end of the year. The Euro Stoxx 50 Index also increased from 3 268 at the end of December 2015 to 3 291 at the end of December 2016 (+0.7%).
Overall, the combination of recovering economic growth and well-performing financial markets resulted in a visibly improved economic environment, even though the continued low interest-rate environment remains very challenging for insurers.
10 Insurance Europe 1. European insurance in 2016 €1 189bn Total gross direct written premiums €963bn Total claims and benefits paid €1 981 Average spent per capita on insurance
European Insurance in Figures 11 1.1 Overview Premiums In 2016, total premiums in Europe declined -0.4%* at constant exchange rates to €1 189bn after three years of relatively strong growth of an average of 3.3% per annum. Looking back longer term, total European premiums in 2016 were 5.7%* higher than 10 years earlier. The four largest European markets in terms of premiums — the UK, France, Germany and Italy — were responsible for 65.8% of the Insurance Europe total in 2016, down 0.7* percentage points compared with the year before.
The UK and Germany registered growth in gross direct written premiums in 2016 (+0.5%* and +0.2% respectively). France and Italy, in contrast, reported 0.1% and 8.7% declines in premiums during the year.
Gross written premiums (€bn) at current exchange rates Nominal growth 2015 2016 Current exchange rates Constant exchange rates Life 739 696 -5.9% -2.2% Health 128 129 1.5% 2.4% Property & casualty (P&C) 349 363 -1.2%* 2.0%* Motor 133 136 1.1%* 3.8%* Property 93 99 -1.6%* 1.6%* General liability 37 40 -9.7%* -5.8%* Accident 35 35 0.1%* 0.9%* Total 1 216 1 189 -3.7%* -0.4%* Table 1: Premiums and growth — 2015–2016 * Growth percentages are based on 2016 figures before the change in UK methodology. See Special note on p3.
12 Insurance Europe Globally1 , premiums increased by 2.9% to $4 732bn in 2016, after 4.3% growth the year before.
Global volumes increased as a result of a 10.5% increase in premium volume in Asia and a 2.4% increase in North America. Premium volume declined in Latin America (-7.7%), Oceania (-4.6%) and other parts of the world. Claims and benefits paid Total claims and benefits paid to customers by European insurers increased by 0.7%* to reach €963bn in 2016, after 2.4% growth the year before. The four largest European economies — the UK, France, Germany and Italy — were responsible for paying 67% of that total, up 0.6%* on 2015. Benefits and claims paid in the UK, France and Germany increased by 1.3%, 3.6% and 4.7% respectively, while in Italy they went down by 6.3%.
Density and penetration In 2016, the average amount per capita spent on insurance (known as insurance density) in Europe fell by €18 or 0.9%* to €1 981. Of this amount, €1 159 was spent on life insurance, €215 on health and €621 on property and casualty (P&C) insurance2 ___ 1
Global gross written premiums in nominal (unadjusted for inflation) US dollars are from Swiss Re’s Sigma world insurance database. Global premium growth rates are US dollar denominated. 2 The total density differs from the sum of the life, health and P&C densities due to differences in the sample sizes (number of countries reporting) 1 000 2 000 3 000 4 000 5 000 6 000 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Chart 2: Worldwide premiums — 2007–2016 ($bn)1 $bn Europe Asia North America Latin America Oceania Other Chart 1: Distribution of worldwide premiums — 20161 Europe 31.1% North America 31.0% Asia 31.6% Oceania 2.0% Latin America 3.1% Other 1.3%
European Insurance in Figures 13 Insurance penetration — gross written premiums as a percentage of the area’s gross domestic product — is an indicator of insurance activity in the economy. Average insurance penetration in Europe amounted to 7.19% in 2016, a decrease of 0.6* percentage points compared with 2015. The decrease in average penetration was due to the decline in life premiums, where the penetration rate declined to 4.21% in 2016 from 4.49% the year before. Both the health and P&C insurance penetration rates increased in 2016 to 0.79% and 2.20%* respectively.
Claims and benefits paid (€bn) at current exchange rates Nominal growth 2015 2016 Current exchange rates Constant exchange rates Life 642 616 -4.0% 0.3% Health 103 105 2.4% 3.2% P&C 232 242 -2.3%* 0.7%* Motor 99 104 1.0%* 3.5%* Property 45 45 -4.5%* -1.3%* General liability 18 21 -7.2%* -2.5%* Accident 22 22 0.6%* 1.0%* Total 977 963 -3.0%* 0.7%* Table 2: Claims and benefits paid and growth — 2015–2016 Per person (€) at current exchange rates Nominal growth 2015 2016 Current exchange rates Constant exchange rates Life 1 238 1 159 -6.4% -2.7% Health 213 215 0.9% 1.9% P&C 600 621 -1.6%* 1.6%* Motor 220 223 0.6%* 3.5%* Property 153 162 -2.1%* 1.2%* General liability 60 65 -10.5%* -6.5%* Accident 61 61 -0.3%* 0.5%* Total 2 037 1 981 -4.2%* -0.9%* Table 3: Density — 2015–2016 Premiums to GDP (%) at current exchange rates Nominal growth (percentage points) 2015 2016 Current exchange rate Constant exchange rate Life 4.49 4.21 -0.28 p.p.
0.11 p.p. Health 0.78 0.79 0.01 p.p. 0.02 p.p. P&C 2.12 2.20 -0.03 p.p.* 0.03 p.p.* Motor 0.81 0.83 0.00 p.p.* 0.03 p.p.* Property 0.57 0.60 -0.01 p.p.* 0.01 p.p.* General liability 0.22 0.24 -0.02 p.p.* -0.01 p.p.* Accident 0.21 0.21 -0.01 p.p.* -0.01 p.p.* Total 7.39 7.19 -0.31 p.p.* -0.6 p.p.* Table 4: Penetration — 2015–2016
14 Insurance Europe 1 000 2 000 3 000 4 000 5 000 6 000 7 000 2015 2016 Chart 3: Total premiums per capita by country — 2015–2016 (€) € The average amount spent per capita on insurance in Europe in 2016 was €1 981 €1 159 was spent on life insurance, €215 on health and €621 on property and casualty insurance
European Insurance in Figures 15 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% Chart 4: Total premiums as % of GDP by country (penetration) — 2015–2016 2015 2016 Insurance penetration is an indicator of insurance activity in the economy Average insurance penetration in Europe amounted to 7.19% in 2016
16 Insurance Europe Life insurance in Europe 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €739bn €696bn -5.9% -2.2% Premiums 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €642bn €616bn -4.0% 0.3% Benefits paid 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €1 238 €1 159 -6.4% -2.7% Density 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) 4.49% 4.21% -0.28 p.p. -0.11 p.p. Penetration
European Insurance in Figures 17 1.2 Life insurance Premiums Despite the European economic upswing in 2016, life premiums decreased 2.2% on 2015, falling to €696bn.
A major reason for this reduction was the protracted low interest-rate environment in Europe and the resulting reduced attractiveness of guaranteed products. Of all life premiums, 71.2% were written in Europe’s four largest markets, namely the UK, France, Italy and Germany. Those countries’ combined share of Europe’s total premiums in 2016 decreased by 0.3 percentage points as a result of a steep (-11.0%) drop in life premiums in Italy, as well as slight decreases in France (-1.2%) and Germany (-2.0%). Life premiums in the UK, on the other hand, grew by 2.0%.
The trend to shift from traditional to unit-linked products that was highlighted in last year’s “European Insurance in Figures” continued in 2016. In general, this shift was driven by one or both of the following reasons:
Low interest rates, which make products with guarantees less attractive.
The increased cost of capital for traditional products as a result of their treatment under the EU’s new Solvency II regulatory regime. This trend is observed notably in Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Poland, which all registered growth in unit-linked contracts. In France, Italy, Finland and Spain, however, the volume of unit-linked contracts went down in 2016.
In Germany, life premiums fell by 2.0%, primarily as a result of single premium business decreasing by 6%. Annuities became less popular, as they are more expensive for insurers, so the move to unit-linked products continued. Households’ propensity to save in 2016 was fairly low compared to previous years, and this trend is expected to continue. -12% -10% -8% -6% -4% -2% 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 500 550 600 650 700 750 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn Life premiums Growth rate Chart 5: Life premiums — 2007–2016 (€bn)
18 Insurance Europe In Switzerland, where life premiums fell by 6.0% in 2016, life business also lost attractiveness owing to low interest rates and the high capital requirements the Swiss solvency test imposes on life companies.
This had a dampening effect on the offer of products with guaranteed interest. In Portugal, life insurance continued to decrease (-24.4%) due to a combination of ongoing low long-term interest rates and a reduction in the private savings rate. In the Czech Republic, life premiums decreased by 4.8%. Life policies continued to be affected by early contract terminations. Weak performance in the financial markets and changes in national legislation, which significantly limited the tax deductibility of paid life premiums and capped commissions for intermediaries, both led to considerably lower life insurance sales.
In contrast, a number of countries saw a strong increase in life premiums in 2016. These included Spain (+21.1%), where life insurance regained popularity, notably because bank deposits — the most popular way of saving in Spain — did not yield as much interest as life insurance products due to the low interest rates.
In Greece, life premiums increased by 6.1%, mainly on the back of growth in traditional life insurance products and insurers’ management of group pension funds. Growth in traditional life insurance was the unintended consequence of the capital controls that were imposed on Greek banks in mid-2015. As a result, life insurance linked to investments outside Greece was severely restricted, while life insurance linked to domestic investments appeared unattractive to consumers. Insurers thus offered traditional life insurance schemes with guaranteed Traditional life contracts 77% Unit-linked contracts 23% Individual life contracts 77% Group life contracts 23%
European Insurance in Figures 19 returns, which proved more attractive than the other options available on the market. In the UK, a modest increase of 2% was recorded. There was a shift away from annuities that can be explained by the pension freedom reforms introduced in 2015, which allow defined contribution scheme members to cash in up to 25% of their pension pot tax-free. Benefits paid Life benefits paid inched up by 0.3% in 2016, totalling €616bn or €1 027 per capita. Compared to 2007, life insurers paid out 7.3% more in benefits, equivalent to an additional €33 per person. Three out of the four biggest markets registered growth in life benefits paid: Germany (+6.9%), France (+2.8%) and the UK (+2.5%).
The Italian market registered a 7.7% drop in benefits paid, mainly due to a decrease in the amount redeemed, accounting for 64% of total payments.
Density and penetration In 2016, an average of €1 159 per person was spent on life insurance in Europe. The average premium per person fell by 2.7% from an eight-year high of €1 238 in 2015, owing to the decline in life premiums written in 2016 across Europe. The penetration of life premiums dropped to 4.2% of GDP in 2016 from 4.5% in 2015 as a result of both lower GDP growth and the decline in premiums witnessed in 2016. Chart 6: Life benefits paid — 2007–2016 (€bn) -10% -5% 0% 5% 10% 15% 500 520 540 560 580 600 620 640 660 680 700 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Life benefits paid Growth rate €bn In 2016 life insurers paid out €1.69bn a day in benefits
20 Insurance Europe 500 1 000 1 500 2 000 2 500 3 000 3 500 4 000 2015 2016 Chart 7: Life premiums per capita by country — 2015–2016 (€) € The average life premium per person fell by 2.7% in 2016 An average of €1 159 per person was spent on life insurance in Europe
European Insurance in Figures 21 0% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 7% 8% 9% 10% Chart 8: Life premiums as % of GDP by country (penetration) — 2015–2016 2015 2016 Average life insurance penetration in Europe dropped to 4.2% This drop is the result of lower GDP growth and the decline in life premiums in 2016
22 Insurance Europe Health insurance in Europe 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €128bn €129bn 1.5% 2.4% Premiums 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €103bn €105bn 2.4% 3.2% Claims paid 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €213 €215 0.9% 1.9% Density 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) 0.78% 0.79% 0.01 p.p.
0.02 p.p. Penetration
European Insurance in Figures 23 1.3 Health insurance Premiums Private health insurers provide individuals or groups not only with cover for the medical costs of illness or accidents but also with other products, such as critical illness cover and disability or long-term care insurance. As in previous years, the increase in gross health premiums is driven by ageing populations and increasing medical costs. Most European markets experienced growth in 2016. Overall, health premiums grew by 2.4% year-on-year, rising to €129bn in 2016, of which almost 62% is written in the two largest markets, the Netherlands and Germany.
In the largest market, the Netherlands, health premiums decreased by 0.2% in 2016. Meanwhile, Germany experienced an increase of 1.2% as a result of rate increases. Health premiums also grew in France in 2016 — by 3.4%. This is due to the increasing number of collective contracts signed by companies, which became mandatory in 2016. Similarly, an increasing number of contracts was also behind the 4.7% rise in health premiums in Austria in 2016, where uncertainty over the social security system boosted the take-up of private health insurance.
In Italy, new health insurance products were introduced by private insurers on top of statutory health insurance and this led health premiums to expand by 9.6% in 2016.
1% 1% 3% 5% 7% 9% 11% 13% 15% 50 70 90 110 130 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn Health premiums Growth rate Chart 9: Health premiums — 2007–2016 (€bn) Almost 62% of European health premiums are written in the Netherlands and Germany
24 Insurance Europe In central and eastern European markets, there is substantial growth in premium volumes because of the increasing popularity of supplementary healthcare systems, most notably in Croatia (+24.3%) and Turkey (+23.0%). In Romania, health premiums grew by 60.2% as a result of tax incentives for private health insurance being included in a new tax code to boost the development of the private health insurance market from the start of the year. Claims paid Total European health claims paid amounted to €105bn in 2016, a 3.2% increase on 2015. Over 80% of total claims were paid out in just four countries: the Netherlands (39.7%), Germany (25.2%), France (8.7%) and Switzerland (6.9%). 0% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 7% 8% 9% 10% 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn Health claims Growth rate Chart 10: Health claims paid — 2007–2016 (€bn) National differences The role of private health insurance differs significantly between markets due to the differences in national health and social security systems. Private health insurance in Europe takes four basic forms, or a combination thereof:
Additional (complementary and supplementary) insurance is voluntary cover to complete the health insurance needs of the statutory insured (as in Denmark, France or Italy)
Substitute insurance replaces publicly funded healthcare (as in Germany for the self-employed)
Duplicate insurance operates as a private alternative in parallel to the public system (as in the UK, Spain and Portugal)
Mandatory private health regimes include some public aspects and fully private complementary cover (as in the Netherlands and Switzerland)
European Insurance in Figures 25 Density and penetration On average, the amount spent per capita on private health insurance (insurance density) in Europe in 2016 was €215, which is €2 more than in 2015. Health insurance penetration in Europe inched up to an average of 0.79%. The average amount per capita spent on health insurance in Europe in 2016 was €215 200 400 600 800 1 000 1 200 2015 2016 Chart 11: Health premiums per capita by country — 2015–2016 (€) 8
26 Insurance Europe 0.0% 0.2% 0.4% 0.6% 0.8% 1.0% 1.2% 1.4% 1.6% 1.8% 2015 2016 Chart 12: Health premiums as % of GDP by country (penetration) — 2015–2016 6 ___ 2
9 % 6 ___ 1
1 % Health insurance penetration in Europe inched up to an average of 0.79%
European Insurance in Figures 27 Property & casualty (P&C) insurance in Europe 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €349bn €363bn -1.2%* 2.0%* Premiums 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €232bn €242bn -2.3%* 0.7%* Claims paid 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) €600 €621 -1.6%* 1.6%* Density 2015 2016 Growth (current exchange rates) Growth (constant exchange rates) 2.12% 2.20% -0.03 p.p.* 0.03 p.p.* Penetration
28 Insurance Europe 1.4 Property & casualty (P&C) insurance The four main business lines of the P&C insurance market are motor, property, general liability and accident.
Economic conditions tend to strongly affect the performance of the P&C sector, since higher levels of economic activity create greater demand for protection products. The P&C sector is also cyclical; when the price of risk is high, new capital is attracted into the market, but the increased competition that results then pushes prices down and some providers exit. The cycle then starts again. Premiums European P&C premiums totalled €363bn in 2016, a 2.0%* increase compared with 2015. Motor insurance premiums increased to €136bn (growth of 3.8%* in 2016 or 38% of the P&C total. Property premiums amounted to €99bn (a 1.6%* increase year-on-year), or 27% of the P&C total.
General liability premiums totalled €40bn or 11% of the total, and accident premiums were at €35bn or 10%.
Growth in P&C premiums was registered in the vast majority of European markets. This was the case notably in Germany and France, where they increased by 2.9% and 1.7% respectively in 2016. In contrast, in Italy and the UK, declines of 0.9% and 4.8% respectively were observed. Although premium income in German P&C insurance normally follows the usual cyclical pattern, there has been a departure in recent years in motor business, where premium volume has been rising since 2011. This is driven by the introduction of innovative products — partly as a result of digitalisation — creating greater demand.
In Italy, a decline in P&C premiums was driven by the motor line (and in particular by third-party liability (MTPL), which accounts for half of Italian motor business), which reduced by * Growth percentages are based on 2016 figures before the change in UK methodology. See Special note on p3. -1.0% -0.5% 0.0% 0.5% 1.0% 1.5% 2.0% 2.5% 3.0% 3.5% 250 270 290 310 330 350 370 390 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Chart 13: P&C premiums — 2007–2016 (€bn) €bn P&C premiums Growth rate
European Insurance in Figures 29 3.1%. Over the past five years, motor fell by a total of 25%.
Strong performers in the P&C market in 2016 were Turkey (up 32.1%), Poland (+17.3%), Ireland and Luxembourg (+13.7% each), Romania (+10.2%) and Spain (+7.2%). In Turkey, the significant increase in P&C premiums is largely due to an increase in average premiums in 2016. In Poland, growth in premiums is explained by an increase in prices for MTPL cover. In Spain, the growth in P&C premiums was mainly the result of the continuing recovery in the MTPL side of motor business, which had experienced a sharp downturn during the economic crisis.
38% 27% 11% 10% 14% Motor Property General liability Accident Other Chart 14: Breakdown of non-life premiums — 2016 0 50 100 150 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Chart 15: P&C premiums by business line — 2007–2016 (€bn) €bn Motor Property General liability Accident Other Accident General liability Property Motor
30 Insurance Europe Negative dynamics in P&C premiums were registered in Greece, Latvia and the Netherlands; three countries that have seen a prolonged, multi-year contraction in P&C premiums. In Greece, the downturn started in 2010 and the cumulative decline between then and 2016 has been 45%.
A particularly strong decline in written premiums was observed in the motor, legal expenses and marine, aviation and transport (MAT) business lines over this sixyear period. In the Netherlands, the decline in P&C premiums started in 2008, leading to a 24% deterioration over the eight years to 2016. Part of the reason is the fact that the Dutch P&C market is saturated, creating strong pressure on prices. Another explanation is that some foreign companies have gradually shifted their business away from Dutch supervision, meaning that the premiums they collect do not appear in the Dutch market figures.
In Latvia, the drop in P&C premiums in 2016 from a peak in 2008 amounted to 67%. Motor, property, general liability and MAT premiums were most affected during this eight-year period. In 2016, one big domestic company turned into a branch, resulting in its premiums not being included in the Latvian market figures. Claims paid P&C claims paid grew by 0.7%* in 2016, reaching an all-time high of €242bn. The following markets were the biggest contributors to this dynamic: Cyprus (+16.5%), Estonia (+10.4%), the Czech Republic (+10.3%), Turkey (+9.2%), Ireland (+8.7%), Hungary (+7.2%), France (+5.9%), Portugal (+5.3%) and Germany (+2.3%).
In contrast, many markets registered a decline in the amount of P&C claims paid. These included the Netherlands (-11.7%), Bulgaria (-5.3%), Romania (-4.6%), Switzerland (-4.0%), Malta (-3.6%), Croatia (-2.5%), Austria (-2.4%) and Italy (-2.2%). -1.0% -0.5% 0.0% 0.5% 1.0% 1.5% 2.0% 2.5% 3.0% 3.5% 250 270 290 310 330 350 370 390 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn P&C claims Growth rate Chart 16: P&C claims paid — 2007–2016 (€bn)
European Insurance in Figures 31 Density and penetration The average amount of money spent on P&C premiums per inhabitant in Europe in 2016 amounted to €621, which is €10 or 1.6%* more than the year before.
P&C premiums as a share of GDP (penetration) in Europe crept up 0.03* percentage points to 2.20% compared with 2015. 0 20 40 60 80 100 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Accident General Liability Property Motor Chart 17: P&C claims paid by business line — 2007–2016 (€bn) €bn Accident General liability Property Motor
32 Insurance Europe 200 400 600 800 1 000 1 200 1 400 1 600 1 800 2 000 2015 2016 Chart 18: P&C premiums per capita by country — 2015–2016 (€) € The average amount per capita spent on P&C insurance in Europe in 2016 was €621
European Insurance in Figures 33 0.0% 0.5% 1.0% 1.5% 2.0% 2.5% 3.0% 3.5% 2015 2016 Chart 19: P&C premiums as % of GDP by country (penetration) — 2015–2016 P&C insurance penetration in Europe crept up to 2.2% ___ 2
% ___ 2
34 Insurance Europe 1.4.1 Motor insurance Motor insurance is the most widely purchased P&C insurance product in Europe.
With a 38% share of the whole P&C market, motor insurance remains the largest P&C business line, followed by property insurance. Premiums In 2016, motor insurance premiums grew for the second year in a row, at a rate of 3.8%*, to reach a record €136bn. Most European markets contributed to this, including the top three markets: Germany (+2.7%), France (+1.5%) and the UK (+3.6%*). The fourth largest motor insurance market, Italy, registered a 3.1% decline in motor premiums in 2016 owing to a continuous decline in the MTPL market. Average motor premiums in Italy decreased significantly due to a reduction in bodily injury claims as a result of a new law covering small disability claims.
Strong market competition also contributed to the fall in premiums, as did the widespread introduction of in-vehicle telematics or “black boxes”, which has reduced uninsured driving and fraudulent claims and led, in turn, to a substantial drop in average premiums. Nominal growth 2015 2016 Current exchange rates Constant exchange rates Premiums €133bn €136bn 1.1%* 3.8%* Claims paid €99bn €104bn 1.0%* 3.5%* Density €220 €223 0.6%* 3.5%* Penetration 0.81% 0.83% 0.00 p.p.* 0.03 p.p.* Table 5: Motor insurance overview — 2015–2016 -3% -2% -1% 0% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 100 105 110 115 120 125 130 135 140 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn Motor premiums Growth rate Chart 20: Motor premiums — 2007–2016 (€bn) European motor insurance premiums grew to €136bn in 2016
European Insurance in Figures 35 In Spain, the MTPL line within motor business steadily recovered from its earlier crisis. The insured vehicle fleet grew faster in 2016 than the year before, which translated into a 5% growth in motor insurance after a multi-year decline. However, profitability in the MTPL market was generally low in 2016, albeit with signs of improvement towards the end of the year; a key element of this evolution has been the revision of the legal system for assessing bodily injuries as a result of road accidents. Some smaller motor markets have experienced strong growth, including Turkey (+46.5%), Poland (+33.8%), Ireland (+24.8%), Hungary (+23.2%), Romania (+18.5%) and Malta (+12.1%).
Claims paid European motor insurers paid €104bn in claims in 2016, 3.5%* more than the year before. Looking back over 10 years, total claims paid were 9.7%* higher than a decade ago. Of all motor claims in Europe in 2016, 66% were paid out in the four largest markets: the UK, Germany, France and Italy, and this is 0.1* percentage points up on 2015. In the UK, claims paid increased by 5.7%*, a result of the change in the methodology for calculating bodily injury claims. In Germany, motor claims paid increased by 4.0% and in France they rose 5.0%. By contrast, in Italy, motor claims paid were largely stable (-0.2%) year-on-year.
Some smaller countries also experienced a rapid increase in motor claims paid in 2016, notably Hungary (+19.6%) and Turkey (+19.1%). The increase in Hungary is due to a combination of an increase in claims frequency, an increase in average claims and an increase in the number of policies. In Turkey, the high growth -6% -4% -2% 0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 75 80 85 90 95 100 105 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn Motor claims Growth rate Chart 21: Motor claims paid — 2007–2016 (€bn) European motor insurers paid €104bn in claims in 2016
36 Insurance Europe rate can be explained, inter alia, by the mounting cost of spare parts and an increasing minimum wage. Density and penetration An average of €223 was spent on motor insurance in Europe in 2016, a 3.5%* increase on the year before. Motor insurance penetration was 0.83% of GDP in 2016, up by 0.03* percentage points on 2015. 1.4.2 Property insurance Property insurance includes a variety of policies that protect against risks to property such as fire, theft and some types of weather damage.
Premiums In 2016, property premiums grew by 1.6%* to reach a record high of €99bn.
The four biggest property markets — the UK, Germany, France and Spain — accounted for 62% of the European property premiums written in 2016. Nominal growth 2015 2016 Current exchange rate Constant exchange rate Premiums €93bn €99bn -1.6%* 1.6%* Claims paid €45bn €45bn -4.5%* -1.3%* Density €153 €162 -2.1%* 1.2%* Penetration 0.57% 0.60% -0.01 p.p.* 0.01 p.p.* Table 6: Property insurance overview — 2015–2016 -2% -1% 0% 1% 2% 3% 4% 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn Property premiums Growth rate Chart 22: Property premiums — 2007–2016 (€bn) European property insurance premiums grew to €99bn in 2016
European Insurance in Figures 37 The German property insurance market grew by 4.1% in both 2015 and 2016 to total €18.7bn. In France, property premiums grew by 1.4% in 2016, slower than a year earlier. Property premiums in Spain grew by 4.2% in 2016, after growth of 1.1% the year before. Strong growth in property premiums was observed in some of the smaller European markets, including Luxembourg (+33.0%), Turkey (+13.0%), Hungary, Estonia and Slovakia (+5.1% each). Property premiums fell in Latvia (-12.1%), Bulgaria (-7.5%), the Netherlands (-5.8%), Romania (-2.1%) and Austria (-1.1%). Claims paid Claims paid in the property sector in Europe reduced slightly (-1.3%*) in 2016 to €45bn, after 5.4% growth in 2015.
The four largest property markets— the UK, Germany, Spain and Italy — paid out 70% of all European property claims in 2016. 2016 was a rather bad year in Europe in terms of property damage, with Swiss Re estimating the total economic cost of natural catastrophes and man-made disasters at €15bn3 , of which €7.1bn was covered by insurers. In late spring 2016, thunderstorms, torrential rain and flooding hit France, Germany and Belgium. The cost of these weather events in France was particularly high, amounting to €2.4bn. Between the summer of 2016 and the first months of 2017, a series of the most powerful earthquakes in Italy since 1980 3 Source: Swiss Re Sigma No.2/2017: “Natural catastrophes and man-made disasters in 2016: a year of widespread damages” -15% -10% -5% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn Property claims Growth rate Chart 23: Property claims paid — 2007–2016 (€bn) European property insurers paid €45bn in claims in 2016
38 Insurance Europe caused around 300 deaths and combined economic losses of €5.7bn, according to Swiss Re. However, this did not result in an increase in Italian insurers’ claims paid in 2016, since only a small number of the affected properties were insured. In Spain, severe floods in 2016 damaged vehicles, plants and bridges, pushing property claims paid up by 3.5%. Claims paid also increased in a handful of smaller countries in 2016, notably in Cyprus (+111.1%), Estonia (33.3%), Portugal (+8.8%), Romania (+6.6%) and the Czech Republic (+5.8%). In Cyprus, the leap is due to one insurer paying out €20m in 2016 as a result of an explosion at a naval base back in 2011, which caused major damage to one of the country’s largest electrical power stations.
In Portugal, wildfires in Madeira damaged a large number of homes, hotels and businesses. In contrast, several countries registered a decrease in property claims paid. These include Bulgaria (-27.4%), Switzerland (-18.4%), Sweden (-13.1%), Ireland (-17.2%), Poland (-12.6%) and Malta (-12.5%).
Density and penetration In 2016, €162 was spent per person on property insurance, which is 1.2%* more than in 2015. In tune with that, property insurance penetration grew to 0.60%, up by 0.01* percentage points on the year before. 1.4.3 General liability and accident insurance After four years of annual average growth of 3.3% between 2012 and 2015, general liability premiums decreased by 5.8%* in 2016. In Germany, premiums grew 1.9%, and they rose 0.7% in Italy, while in France they fell 0.9%. Total claims paid for general liability insurance fell 2.5%* to €21bn in 2016. Accident insurance — which provides financial help to an insured in the event of a serious accident or injury, or to their beneficiaries in the event of a fatal accident — grew 0.9%* in 2016 to reach €35bn.
France, the largest market in accident insurance in Europe, recorded a 3.3% increase in accident premiums in 2016. Germany and Italy, the two other largest markets, reported 1.3% and 1.6% growth respectively.
Claims paid for accident insurance grew 1.0%* in 2016, reaching €22bn. Claims in this sector have been on the rise throughout the past decade at an average rate of 3.4% a year. The average spent per capita on property insurance in Europe in 2016 was €162
2. Insurers’ investment portfolio €10 112bn Total value of insurers’ investment portfolio 61.9% Ratio of the investment portfolio to EU GDP 46% of insurers’ assets are government and corporate bonds
40 Insurance Europe 2.1 Evolution of the portfolio4 Investments are a key component of the insurance business model, in which premiums paid to insurers are invested until liabilities fall due.
The insurance industry is the largest institutional investor in Europe, making it an important provider of the investment needed for economic growth. Since most of their assets back long-term liabilities, insurers tend to invest long-term. How their investment portfolio evolves is therefore closely linked to a range of (macro-)economic factors and developments in financial markets. (Macro-)economic developments — and a range of other factors such as monetary policy rates — can affect the amount of premiums insurers have to invest, while developments in financial markets directly affect the performance of their long-term assets.
The total investment portfolio managed by Insurance Europe’s member companies grew 5.6% in 2016 to €10 112bn. Insurers in most countries contributed to this growth, including the UK (+10.7%), Italy (+7.0%), Sweden (+6.4%), France (+6.0%), 4 Insurance Europe defines insurers’ investment portfolio as the sum of investments (other than assets held for index-linked and unit-linked funds) + assets held for index-linked and unit-linked funds + loans and mortgages + loans on policies Germany (+4.6%), the Netherlands (+3.4%) and Switzerland (+2.0%). Growth in the investment portfolio of some smaller members was outstanding in 2016, such as 11.2% in Bulgaria, where premiums grew by 2.2%, and 26.5% in Turkey, where premiums grew by an impressive 31.3%, mainly in P&C lines.
The investment portfolio shrank in only three countries: Malta (-41.1%), Portugal (-6.5%) and Liechtenstein (-3.2%). Chart 24: Insurers’ investment portfolio — 2007–2016 (€bn) -15% -10% -5% 0% 5% 10% 15% 4 000 5 000 6 000 7 000 8 000 9 000 10 000 11 000 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 €bn Total investments Growth rate The total investment portfolio grew 5.6% in 2016 to €10 112bn
European Insurance in Figures 41 2.2 Impact of financial market performance on insurers’ portfolios In 2016, financial markets exhibited significant volatility, largely due to reactions to several major political events, such as the UK referendum on EU membership in June and the US elections in November. In some large European markets, equity indices posted gains. While the Euro Stoxx 50 index showed a modest increase of 0.7%, the German DAX index increased by 6% and the French CAC 40 increased by around 5%, while the UK FTSE 100 increased by 20%, recording an all-time high.
Overall, government bond yields declined in 2016, leading to an increase in bonds prices:
10-year German Bund yield decreased by 43 bps to 0.21%
10-year French government bond yield decreased by 31 bps to 0.68%
10-year Belgium government bond yield decreased by 43 bps to 0.55% Similar decreases occurred in Spain (-39 bps to 1.39%) and Ireland (-38 bps to 0.77%). By contrast, yields increased by 122 bps to 3.76% in Portugal and by 21 bps to 1.82% in Italy — leading to decreases in bond portfolios in these cases.
Annual changes in insurers’ investment portfolio in 2016 can therefore be explained by the mixed performance in some segments of the financial markets. For example, Italy registered a 7% increase in insurers’ investment portfolio, despite a 6.3% decrease in premiums and despite a 10% drop in the Italian equity benchmark FTSE MIB. The positive insurer investment performance in Italy can therefore be explained by decreases in 500 1 000 1 500 2 000 2 500 3 000 3 500 4 000 4 500 5 000 600 700 800 900 1 000 1 100 1 200 1 300 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Total premiums Euro Stoxx 50 index €bn Chart 25: Premiums provide a stable source of funding Insurers’ investment portfolio in 2016 was equivalent to 61.9% of the EU’s GDP
42 Insurance Europe credit spreads, which positively impacted corporate bond debt. Elsewhere, a 6.0% increase in French insurers’ portfolio against stable premiums can be explained by positive equity markets and lowering yields on French debt. Growth in insurers’ investment portfolio has kept pace with the growth in the EU’s GDP over the past few years, and in 2016 was equivalent to 61.9% of the area’s GDP. 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 2015 2016 Chart 26: Insurers’ investment portfolio as % of GDP — 2015–2016
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