Q2 Direct Premium Written Up Nearly 5% for P/C Companies

Overall, property/casualty insurance companies continued to serve their clients during an increased number of catastrophic events in 2011 as well as the tough economic conditions that have defined the better part of the past decade. Perhaps as a reward for persevering in the face of adversity, the P/C market is showing signs of hardening.

Through the second quarter 2012, total direct premium written (DPW) for all P/C insurers is up 4.65 percent compared to DPW through second quarter 2011. This increase in DPW represents nearly $11.4 billion in premium growth, of which approximately $4.4 billion is attributed to the Top 25 P/C insurers in terms of direct premium growth.

For the six months ending June 30, 2012, P/C companies comprising the Top 25 in terms of direct premium growth leveraged their experience and increased their DPW nearly 8.8 percent over the six months ending June 30, 2011. This continues the Top 25 insurers’ impressive display of premium growth, financial stability and execution. The Top 25 accounted for almost 39 percent of the total DPW growth for the P/C insurance industry.

In contrast, insurers that comprise the rest of the industry reported an increase in DPW growth of only about 3.6 percent, or approximately $7 billion, period-over-period. In total, DPW for the P/C industry grew 4.65 percent, nearly $11.4 billion.

As mentioned last quarter, if P/C insurers can continue to demonstrate the same rate of premium growth for the remainder of 2012, total DPW will exceed $500 billion for the year. In fact, when analyzing the second quarter and year-end results from the past 10 years, if premiums hold to historical patterns, year-end DPW would total $517 billion for 2012, the highest level of DPW ever reported by the P/C industry.

Topics Trends Pricing Trends Market Property Casualty