Overview
· Gross premiums written increased by 29% to $3,271m (Q3 2020: $2,534m)
· Premium rates on renewal business increased by 23%, ahead of our expectations
· Q3 catastrophe loss estimates are $125m net of reinsurance, $85m in respect of Hurricane Ida and $40m for European floods
· Underwriting action taken since October 2020 continues to have a positive impact on cyber ransomware trends
· Investment return of $99m (Q3 2020: $124m)
· Capital surplus remains within our preferred range
Adrian Cox, Chief Executive Officer, said:
"I am delighted that the momentum from the first half has persisted into the second with rate rises and premium growth that have exceeded our expectations. We continue to be strongly capitalised and are well placed to take advantage of these favourable market conditions. I remain excited about the opportunity in the cyber market and with our disciplined and prudent risk selection, our market leading product offering and the ongoing investment in our cyber infrastructure, I believe we are in a great position to capitalise on this."
| 30 September 2021 | 30 September 2020 | % increase | |
| Gross premiums written ($m) | 3,271 | 2,534 | 29 |
| Investments and cash ($m) | 7,453 | 6,511 | 14 |
| Year to date investment return | 1.4% | 2.0% | |
| Rate increase | 23% | 14% |
Premiums
Growth has been achieved in all of our divisions with gross premiums written for the nine months ended 30 September 2021 increasing by 29% year on year to $3,271m.
Our performance to the end of September 2021 by business division is:
Gross premiums written
30 September 2021
| Gross premiums written
30 September 2020
| % increase/ (decrease) | Year to date Rate change | |
| $m | $m | % | % | |
| Cyber & Executive Risk | 991 | 686 | 44% | 48% |
| Marine | 283 | 256 | 11% | 9% |
| Market Facilities | 145 | 96 | 51% | 15% |
| Political, Accident & Contingency | 231 | 205 | 13% | 6% |
| Property | 435 | 354 | 23% | 10% |
| Reinsurance | 207 | 192 | 8% | 13% |
| Specialty Lines | 979 | 745 | 31% | 15% |
| OVERALL | 3,271 | 2,534 | 29% | 23% |
Gross written premiums are higher than expected. While we have seen rates increase across all divisions, the main drivers of the premium growth are Cyber & Executive Risk and our Specialty Lines divisions.
Rates within the Cyber & Executive Risk division are up 48%, driven predominantly by Cyber where the rates continue to exceed expectations.
In Specialty Lines, we have benefited from the continued hard market with particularly good rate increases within International Financial Lines.
The Marine, Property and Reinsurance divisions continue to perform broadly as expected with respect to both growth and pricing.
The contingency market remains in a relative state of flux as a result of COVID-19 and growth is slightly below expectations within our PAC division. We expect to see a more predictable environment by early 2022.
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