Following on from a previous post on insurance cycles and other recent posts, I have been looking over the inter-relationship between insurance cycles in the US P&C market, the Lloyds of London market and the reinsurance market. Ideally, the comparisons should be done on an accident year basis (calendar year less prior year reserve movements) with catastrophic/large losses for 2001/2005/2011 excluded but I don’t (yet) have sufficient historical data to make such meaningful comparisons.
The first graph shows calendar year combined ratios in each of the three markets. The US P&C figures contain both consumer and commercial business and as a result are less volatile with the other markets. For example, Lloyds results are from specialty business classes like energy, marine, credit & surety, A&H, specialty casualty, excess and surplus (E&S) lines and reinsurance. The reinsurance ratios are those for most reinsurers as per S&P in their annual global reports. For good measure, I have also included the US real interest rates to show the impact that reduced investment income is having on the trend in combined ratios across all markets. Overall, ratios have been on a downward trend since the early 1990s. However, if catastrophic losses and reserve releases are excluded ratios have been on an upward trend since 2006 across Lloyds and the reinsurance markets. Recent rate increases in the US such as the high single digit rate increases in commercial property & workers comp (see Aon Benfield January report for details on US primary rate trends) may mean that the US P&C market comes in with a combined ratio below 100% for the full 2013 year (from 102% and 106% in 2012 and 2011 respectively).
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As commented on above, the US P&C ratios cover consumer and commercial exposures and don’t fully show the inter-relationship between the different business classes across that market. The graph below shows the calendar year ratios in the US across the main business classes and paint a more volatile picture than the red line above.
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This blog represents my personal views and is not reflective of the views or opinions held by any company or employer I work for currently or have worked for in the past. The views expressed herein are based solely upon publicly available data. No views expressed herein should be taken as an endorsement to take any particular course of action in the markets. The basis of this blog is that different views should be expressed and readers make up their own minds on the what they believe and act accordingly.
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