Cristian Roșu (ASF): Evoluții favorabile ale pieței asigurărilor în primul trimestru al anului 2019
Source: Financiarul.ro.
Overview of the Romanian Insurance Market in Q1 2019
In the first quarter of 2019, insurance companies regulated by the ASF reported gross premiums amounting to 2.71 billion lei, marking a 7.4% increase compared to the same period in the previous year.
Growth in Life Insurance Sector
The life insurance segment continued its upward trend during the first quarter of 2019, achieving an impressive growth rate of 8.75% compared to the first quarter of 2018.
General Insurance Dominance
Despite the growth in life insurance, the Romanian insurance market remains predominantly focused on general insurance, which accounts for 79% of the total gross premiums written (GPW).
Capital Requirements Met by Insurers
By the end of March 2019, all insurance companies met both the Solvency Capital Requirement (SCR) and the Minimum Capital Requirement (MCR). The SCR ratio for the market stood at 1.70, while the MCR ratio was at 3.93, indicating a healthy capital position across the sector.
Market Composition
As of March 31, 2019, there were 28 insurance companies operating in the market, with 15 focusing solely on general insurance, 7 on life insurance, and 6 offering composite services.
Market Concentration
The Romanian insurance market exhibits a medium to high concentration level. In Q1 2019, around 91% of the total gross premiums were generated by just 10 of the 28 licensed insurers.
Gross Premiums for General and Life Insurance
During the January-March 2019 period, gross premiums for general insurance reached approximately 2.14 billion lei, reflecting a 7% increase from the previous year. Meanwhile, life insurance premiums totaled around 575 million lei, up by 8.75% compared to Q1 2018.
Claims Paid by Insurers
In the first quarter of 2019, insurers reported gross claims paid (excluding maturity and partial or total redemptions) totaling 1,393,450,954 lei for both general and life insurance. Of this amount, 1,343,017,736 lei (96%) was attributed to general insurance, representing a 13% increase from the same quarter in 2018. Life insurance claims amounted to 50,433,218 lei, an increase of approximately 8% year-on-year.
Claims Ratio Analysis
The combined claims ratio for all classes of general insurance was 110.6% in the first three months of the year, up from 99% during the same period last year.
Motor Insurance Market Insights
The total value of premiums for RCA (mandatory motor insurance) in the first quarter of 2019 reached approximately 970 million lei, with the remainder of the A10 class (1.022 billion lei) consisting of cargo transport insurance and RCA policies issued in other EU member states. This represents a 4.65% increase compared to the first quarter of the previous year.
As of March 31, 2019, the most common policy durations were 6 months (about 33%) and 12 months (also 33%). The average annual RCA premium saw a slight increase of around 3% in Q1 2019, reaching 609 lei.
The average RCA claim for bodily injuries decreased by 9% compared to the same quarter last year, while claims for property damage rose by 14%.
In the first three months of 2019, RCA insurers, regulated by the ASF, processed 63,464 direct settlement clauses, with gross premiums written amounting to 5,980,405 lei.
Home Insurance Trends
As of March 31, 2019, the number of active contracts for mandatory home insurance increased by approximately 1%, with gross premiums rising by about 2%. Notably, gross claims paid surged by 417% during this period.
Voluntary home insurance subscriptions also saw a growth of around 6% compared to the first quarter of the previous year, with gross claims paid increasing by approximately 29% and the number of new contracts rising by 3%.
Health Insurance Developments
By the end of Q1 2019, health insurance gross premiums totaled approximately 93.1 million lei, reflecting a 20% increase from the same period in 2018. Of this, general insurance premiums accounted for 62.5 million lei (up 14%), representing about 67% of total health insurance premiums, while life insurance premiums reached 30.6 million lei, a 33% increase.
Branch Operations
As of March 31, 2019, there were 11 branches operating in the insurance market, with 8 engaged in general insurance and 3 in life insurance. These branches collectively reported gross premiums of 204.9 million lei, an 18% increase from the previous year, and paid out approximately 56 million lei in claims across both categories.
Insurance Brokerage Landscape
As of March 31, 2019, the Financial Supervisory Authority recorded 340 authorized brokers, with 296 actively operating, 14 temporarily suspended, and 30 prohibited from operating. Reports from brokerage firms indicated an 8.4% increase in the value of premiums intermediated for both general and life insurance, rising from 1,540,926,092 lei to 1,670,365,009 lei. In Q1 2019, brokers facilitated around 62% of the total gross premiums written by insurers for these two categories, a slight increase from the previous year.
Brokerage revenues from intermediary activities grew by 16% in the first quarter of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018, increasing from 254,669,849 lei to 295,255,037 lei.
