Insurers see strong 9-month underwriting results: Best
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The U.S. property/casualty insurance industry’s net underwriting income improved in the first nine months of 2018 to $3.5 billion, compared with a $21.2 billion underwriting loss in the first nine months of 2017, according to an A.M. Best Co. Inc. report released Wednesday.
At the same time, the combined ratio for the industry improved to 97.6% for the first nine months of 2018 from 104.3% in the prior-year period, the report said.
Overall industry net income more than doubled to $49.1 billion from $22.0 billion in the prior-year period.
Net premiums written grew 11.3% to $460.7 billion in the first nine months of 2018 from $413.8 billion in the first nine months of 2017, the Best report said.
Net investment income also rose, 17.3%, to $41.7 billion from $35.5 billion in the year-ago period.
Catastrophe losses played a smaller role in the aggregate combined ratio this year, according to the Best data.
“Following a record year of catastrophe losses in 2017, cat losses in the first nine months of 2018 returned to a more normalized level. We estimate that catastrophe losses accounted for 5.1 points for the nine-month 2018 combined ratio, down from an estimated 9.9 points in the prior-year period,” the Best report said.
The policyholders’ surplus grew 7.6% to $743.9 billion for the period ended Sept. 30 from $691.1 billion in the year-ago period, Best data showed.
The data in this report are from companies whose nine-month 2018 interim period statutory statements were received as of Nov. 19, 2018, Best said. These companies account for an estimated 97% of total industry net premiums written and 95% of policyholder surplus.
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