Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial Insurers

Transcription

1 A Datamonitor report Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial Insurers Published: Jul-05 Product Code: Providing you with: Key statistical data on each of the players profiled including GEP, market share and profitability ratios Unique insight into their business and distribution strategies and intention for the future based on primary research Use this report to Benchmarking of the players along a number of key metrics enabling the reader to see which players are performing well and which are underperforming Understand your competitors strategies so you can better plan your own corporate strategy

2 Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial General Insurers An introduction to the report This report will profile in-depth information of the top UK commercial insurers. Key market data on each player and their position within the principal lines of commercial business will be examined. The report analyzes the strategies of these players in order to build an overall picture of the competitive direction of the commercial insurance market. Key findings and highlights The following companies are examined: Norwich Union, Royal and SunAlliance, Zurich, AXA, Allianz Cornhill and NIG. Each of the competitor profiles commences with an overview of the company, detailing its parentage if applicable. An outline of how the company is organized is then provided, followed by a review of the company's general insurance strategy and an examination of how it distributes its products. This is followed by a look at the company's commercial insurance book in terms of premium income, market share and profitability. This is augmented by a discussion of how each company looks set to develop over the short-term. Reasons to buy NIG s commercial property book has expanded very quickly between 1999 and It grew from 26.7million in 1999 to 163.4million in 2003, which represents a compound annual growth rate of 57.2 per cent. AXA has reduced its exposure to large fleet business in favor of smaller commercial vehicle accounts in recent years. Large fleet business was thought to be less profitable than smaller accounts. As a result, its share of the commercial motor market has decreased from 6.6 per cent in 1999 to 4.2 per cent in Norwich Union has acquired motoring services group, RAC for 1.1billion. This will boost its general insurance business. Norwich Union will aim to sell additional products to RAC s membership base and change the current product holding of RAC customers from a rate of 13 per cent currently owning more than one product to over 50 per cent. Understand your competitors strategies so you can better plan your own corporate strategy Benchmark your performance against your competitors in terms of GEP growth, market share and profitability Understand the lines of business that your competitors are focusing on in order to form a strategic response Contact us... From Europe: tel: fax: [email protected] From Germany: tel: fax: [email protected] From the US: tel: fax: [email protected] From Asia Pacific: tel: fax: [email protected]

3 Sample pages from the report Comparison of Players Profiled Figure 46: The hardening market means that all players saw their commercial property book increase between 1999 and ,000, , , ,000 NIG Norwich Union RSA GEP, , , , ,000 Figure 38: Zurich FS NIG AXA has increased its focus on commercial insurance since 2001 Allianz 200, , % 60.0% % Source: Datamonitor analysis of ABI statistics & SynThesys Non-Life database Commercial GEP as a % of total GEP 40.0% Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial Insurers Total 217, , , , , % Page 121 Datamonitor (Published 07/2005) This report is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied Commercial as % Smaller 4,000 of total 35.5% 37.3% provincials 36.1% 33% 47.6% 57.6% na NIG Zurich FS D A T A M O N I T O R 30.0% Table 26: Commercial property GEP for players profiled, Distribution strategy 20.0% CAGR 10.0% STGR Zurich deals with international, provincial and small brokers 0.0% Norwich Union 722, , , , , % 17.4% Zurich distributes an estimated 99 per cent of its commercial insurance through the R&SA , , , , , % % broker channel. It deals with brokers of all sizes from small to international. A third of Zurich 471, , , , , % 33.5% its business comes from international brokers, a third comes from the top 150 AXA 302, , , , , % 19.7% Allianz Cornhill 197, , ,904 Source: 302,442 Datamonitor 364,566 analysis of 16.5% ABI statistics 20.5% and provincials SynThesys and Non-Life the remaining database third D A T comes A M O N I from T O R around 4,000 smaller brokers. NIG 26,743 37,561 54, , , % 62.1% Zurich is the market leader in online distribution to brokers with 60 per cent of its new SynThesys Non-Life Table 20: database D A T A M O N I T business O R coming from brokers logging on to its website. However, brokers will soon NIG s UK general insurance premium split between personal Source: Datamonitor analysis of ABI statistics & have another online route to Zurich when it joins imarket, the Internet portal for and commercial, brokers. For more information on imarket, see pp s CAGR Figure 17: Zurich s business is evenly spread among the international, Personal 140, , , , , % Commercial 76,894 98, ,350 large, 240,532 medium 405,187 and small 51.5% brokers Total commercial market, m 13,284 13,521 16,477 19,216 22, % Internationals 33% Source: Datamonitor analysis of ABI statistics and SynThesys Non-Life database D A T A M O N I T O R Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial Insurers Top 150 Datamonitor (Published 07/2005) Page provincials % This report is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied Source: Datamonitor analysis of industry interviews D A T A M O N I T O R Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial Insurers Datamonitor (Published 07/2005) Page 64 This report is a licensed product and is not to be photocopied Request more sample pages...for FREE! From Europe: tel: fax: [email protected] From Germany: tel: fax: [email protected] From the US: tel: fax: [email protected] From Asia Pacific: tel: fax: [email protected]

4 Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial General Insurers Table of contents INTRODUCTION THE UK COMMERCIAL INSURANCE MARKET The commercial insurance market has hardened in recent years but some lines are showing signs of softening - The commercial market grew strongly between 2000 and 2003; however, growth slowed in Profitability has improved in the commercial sector - Some lines of commercial business are softening in 2005 and others are on the verge of softening NORWICH UNION - Norwich Union is part of the Aviva Group - Norwich Union is the UK's largest general insurer - Norwich Union's commercial premium income grew faster than personal premium income between 1999 and Motor plays a more important role in Norwich Union's UK portfolio compared to its peers Norwich Union's commercial book has grown slower than the overall market between 1999 and 2003 due to rationalization - Norwich Union's commercial property book has grown slower than the market between 1999 and 2003, as it exited its global risks business - Commercial motor is a good performing business for Norwich Union - Norwich Union's pecuniary loss business has grown slower than the overall market between 1999 and Norwich Union has reduced its exposure to the liability market - Group accident and health is a relatively small part of Norwich Union's commercial book - Norwich Union generates the majority of its commercial business through brokers - Corporate partnerships account for a small proportion of the overall commercial book - Norwich Union may roll out online commercial insurance - Norwich Union has set a group combined operating ratio target of 100% in 2005 and Norwich Union will be looking to keep its expense ratio down - Norwich Union aims to cut costs and grow revenue through the acquisition of the RAC - Norwich Unions general insurance profits improved in 2004 due to greater revenue, reduced weather claims and claims cost savings Company outlook - Norwich Union's group target combined ratio of 100% in 2005 and 2006 is ambitious ROYAL AND SUNALLIANCE - R&SA is a global general insurer - R&SA was created from the merger of Royal Insurance and Sun Alliance in The organization of R&SA has changed dramatically in recent years - Commercial business accounts for approximately 60 per cent of R&SA's UK general insurance business - The structure of R&SA's commercial portfolio fits closely with the average of the competitors profiled - R&SA has rationalized its commercial property book - The gross ratio on R&SA's liability book reduced significantly in R&SA moved from number three to number two in the commercial motor market in R&SA's pecuniary loss combined ratio is poor - R&SA held top spot in the group accident and health market; however, it has since exited the market - R&SA targets brokers that give it access to its target market - R&SA is aiming to develop its commercial direct arm - Corporate partnerships are not a point of focus for R&SA - R&SA is focusing on the profitability of its customers - R&SA is expanding the range of products it offers to SMEs in a bid to win more SME business - R&SA is giving its smaller brokers access to more complex products - R&SA is looking to lower costs by outsourcing to India - R&SA UK Commercial moved into profitability in 2004 Company outlook - R&SA's focus on reducing costs and its customer profitability programme will help it to improve profits over the long term...perhaps the most interesting area of distribution is the direct channel because this is where the insurers differ considerably... If direct distribution does take off then this could be an area where some insurers prosper at the expense of their competitors... Andrew Birkett, Datamonitor Financial Services Analyst

5 ZURICH FS - Zurich FS is a global insurer with a large presence in North America - Zurich FS is the UK's third largest commercial general insurer - Zurich's commercial business is broadly comprised of Zurich UK Commercial, Zurich Global Corporate UK and Zurich Municipal - The hardening commercial market has seen commercial business become more important to Zurich's general insurance portfolio - Zurich's largest book of business is general liability - Zurich dropped to second place in the motor market in Zurich's commercial property book expanded rapidly in Zurich has managed to grow its general liability book profitably - Zurich does not focus on pecuniary loss business - Zurich deals with international, provincial and small brokers - Zurich has a small direct book but there are no plans to grow the channel - The net income of Zurich's UKISA division more than doubled in 2004 Company outlook - Zurich's general liability book is its major strength AXA - AXA Group is a largely European insurer - AXA's UK division was launched in UK commercial insurance generates a large proportion of the Group's total worldwide general insurance GWP - AXA UK is comprised of four business units - AXA has increased its focus on commercial lines - AXA's commercial portfolio is structured heavily towards A&H business - AXA has reduced its exposure to large fleet business - AXA is focused on commercial property - AXA's group A&H GEP has declined since 2000 due to changes in its business mix; however, GEP rose marginally in General liability GEP grew by 13.5 per cent - AXA is not focusing on pecuniary loss business - AXA is aiming to grow through multinational and superprovincial brokers - Corporate partnerships also have a role to play in AXA's distribution strategy - AXA Group adopted a new corporate strategy in AXA Insurance was restructured to support the new strategy - Customer segmentation is a major part of AXA's strategy - AXA aims to be number one in the SME sector - AXA is aiming for a combined ratio of 98 per cent to 102 per cent across the cycle - AXA's UK and Ireland general insurance business recorded much improved profits in 2004 Company outlook - AXA has made significant progress in its general insurance business; however, it remains to be seen whether it can keep up the good performance ALLIANZ CORNHILL - Allianz Group is a European composite insurer - Allianz Cornhill's history dates back to UK commercial insurance forms a small part of Allianz Group's worldwide general insurance operation - Allianz Cornhill is comprised of three businesses - Commercial business dominates Allianz Cornhill's UK general insurance business - Allianz Cornhill's commercial portfolio is led by property and motor insurance - Allianz Cornhill's commercial property book achieved a very low gross claims ratio in Allianz Cornhill has managed to increase the size and profitability of its commercial motor book - Allianz Cornhill's general liability book grew at approximately the same rate as the market between 1999 and Allianz Cornhill's business is largely broker-based - Allianz Cornhill is aiming to increase business from smaller brokers - Allianz Cornhill has a number of large corporate partners - Allianz Cornhill will continue to be a broad-based insurer - In order to support its strategy of servicing all elements of the market, it believes it is key to invest in technical skills...the corporate focus of the six players profiled differs widely. For instance Norwich Union is diversifying with its 1.1billion takeover of RAC while AXA is focused on growth and other insurers such as R&SA are intent on improving the profitability of their existing business... Andrew Birkett, Datamonitor Financial Services Analyst

6 Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial General Insurers - Having local expertise is key to its strategy Company outlook - Allianz Cornhill Commercial's combined ratio may worsen as the commercial market softens further NIG - NIG is part of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group - NIG is the eighth largest commercial insurer in the UK - NIG is split into personal and commercial business - NIG has re-weighted its GI business towards commercial lines - Within its commercial portfolio, property leads - NIG was the fastest growing player in the top 10 commercial motor insurers in The combined ratio on NIG's general liability book increased in Datamonitor estimates that NIG's commercial pecuniary loss book was worth approximately 20 million in NIG is committed to dealing with brokers that want to develop long-term relationships - NIG will continue to focus on the SME market - Profits improved for RBS Insurance in 2004, largely due to growth in premium income Company outlook Market share - Zurich FS has won the most market share in the general liability sector - Norwich Union's share of the commercial property market almost halved between 1999 and All of the players excluding NIG saw their market share of pecuniary loss decrease - Zurich FS, Allianz Cornhill and NIG all increased their market share of commercial motor from 1999's levels - All of the profiled insurers lost market share in the group accident and health sector, due to the growing dominance of BUPA Benchmarking gross claims ratio - Norwich Union held the lowest public and general liability gross claims ratio in All of the players profiled achieved significant improvements in their employers' liability gross claims ratio as rates hardened - Performance for commercial vehicle was split, with three players reporting a decrease in their gross claims ratio, while three saw increases - R&SA was the only insurer to experience a decrease in its fleet gross claims ratio - Zurich significantly improved its pecuniary loss gross claims ratio in Better claims ratios on commercial property across the board, due to benign claims costs and higher rates Conclusion - The six insurers profiled will come up against tougher times as the commercial market softens further COMPARISON OF PLAYERS PROFILED All of the players profiled saw commercial insurance increase as a proportion of their overall portfolio Corporate strategy - The strategies of the six players vary widely - Insurers have mixed attitudes towards the direct channel Benchmarking GEP - Zurich's liability GEP grew by 500 million between 1999 and NIG's commercial property book grew at a faster rate than the other players over both the short and medium-term - The six insurers have had mixed experiences in the pecuniary loss market - NIG has been expanding in the commercial motor sector - All three players saw slow growth in group accident and health in the medium-term APPENDIX TABLES Table 1: Commercial insurance market GWP, e Table 2: Commercial general insurance market premium income and year-on-year growth, split by sector, e Table 3: Commercial underwriting result by line of business, e Table 4: Norwich Union's UK general insurance premium split between personal and commercial, Table 5: Key statistics relating to Norwich Union, Table 6: Operating profit and combined ratio for Norwich Union UK General Insurance business, Table 7: Combined operating ratio and operating profit by country, Aviva, Table 8: R&SA's UK general insurance premium split between personal and commercial, Contact us... From Europe: tel: fax: [email protected] From Germany: tel: fax: [email protected] From the US: tel: fax: [email protected] From Asia Pacific: tel: fax: [email protected]

7 Table 9: Key statistics relating to R&SA, Table 10: NWP and underwriting result for R&SA UK Commercial, Table 11: Zurich FS's UK general insurance premium split between personal and commercial, Table 12: Key statistics relating to Zurich FS, Table 13: GWP, net income, loss and expense ratio for Zurich UKISA, Table 14: AXA's UK general insurance premium split between personal and commercial, Table 15: Key statistics relating to AXA, Table 16: Gross revenues, net investment result, adjusted earnings for AXA UK & Ireland, Table 17: Allianz Cornhill's UK general insurance premium split between personal and commercial, Table 18: Key statistics relating to Allianz Cornhill, Table 19: Gross written premium and balance on the technical account, Allianz Cornhill Table 20: NIG's UK general insurance premium split between personal and commercial, Table 21: Key statistics relating to NIG, Table 22: NIG's commercial office network Table 23: Earned premiums, combined ratio and contribution, RBS Insurance, Table 24: Percentage split of personal and commercial business for the top UK commercial insurers, Table 25: Liability GEP for players profiled, Table 26: Commercial property GEP for players profiled, Table 27: Pecuniary loss GEP for players profiled, Table 28: Commercial motor GEP for players profiled, Table 29: Group A&H GEP for players profiled, Table 30: Liability market share by competitor, Table 31: Commercial property market share by competitor, Table 32: Pecuniary loss market share by competitor, Table 33: Commercial motor market share by competitor, Table 34: Group A&H market share by competitor, Table 35: Gross claims ratio for public and general liability, Table 36: Gross claims ratio for employers' liability, Table 37: Gross claims ratio for commercial vehicle, FIGURES Figure 1: The commercial insurance market has gone through a period of significant hardening since 2000 Figure 2: The GWP of all commercial lines grew in 2004 Figure 3: Figure 4: Figure 5: Figure 6: Figure 7: Figure 8: Aviva is predominantly a European long-term savings provider Commercial premium income has increased as a proportion of total general insurance premium income Norwich Union's commercial portfolio is weighted more towards motor than its competitors Norwich Union's commercial property and commercial motor book have been the fastest growing lines between 1999 and 2003 Norwich Union's UK general insurance profits improved in 2004 The UK is R&SA's largest market Figure 9: R&SA's commercial focus has increased between 1999 Figure 10: Figure 11: Figure 12: Figure 13: Figure 14: Figure 15: Figure 16: Figure 17: Figure 18: Figure 20: Figure 21: Figure 22: Figure 23: and 2003 as it exited certain personal lines and commercial rates hardened The structure of R&SA's commercial portfolio is very similar to the average of the competitors profiled All of R&SA's commercial lines of business grew between 1999 and 2003 with the exception of its group A+H business The profits of R&SA's UK Commercial division improved markedly in 2004 Zurich FS has a big presence in North America Commercial insurance has increased as a proportion of Zurich's overall general insurance portfolio Zurich's liability business is bigger than average Zurich has seen healthy growth in its general liability, commercial property and commercial motor books Zurich's business is evenly spread among the international, large, medium and small brokers Figure 19: The UK and Ireland is AXA's second largest general insurance market UK commercial insurance accounts for approximately 12 per cent of AXA's worldwide general insurance premium income AXA UK comprises four business units AXA has been re-weighting its portfolio towards commercial insurance between 1999 and 2003 AXA's has a much larger market share of group accident and health than its peers For the full list of tables, [email protected] with TOC in the subject line. For the full list of figures, [email protected] with TOC in the subject line. Contact us... From Europe: tel: fax: [email protected] From Germany: tel: fax: [email protected] From the US: tel: fax: [email protected] From Asia Pacific: tel: fax: [email protected]

8 Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Commercial General Insurers Datamonitor: Your total information solution Datamonitor is a premium business information company helping 5,000 of the world's leading companies across the Automotive, Consumer Markets, Energy, Financial Services, Healthcare and Technology sectors. Our products and services are specifically designed to support our clients key business processes from corporate strategy to competitive intelligence. We provide an independent and trustworthy source of data, analysis and forecasts to improve these processes and ultimately, to help grow your business. Corporate Strategy & Business Planning Product Development & Commercialization Targeting & Influencing the Market Market & Competitive Intelligence Quality Data Expert Analysis Future Forecasts Make more effective strategic and business decisions Accelerate delivery of commercial success Assess and influence your commercial and market environment Maintain or obtain critical competitive advantage HELPING TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS No-one speaks louder than our clients Abbey ABN AMRO AIB Bank AIG Alliance & Leicester American Express AXA Bank of Ireland Barclays BNP Paribas Bradford & -Bingley BUPA Capital One Citibank Commerzbank Co-operative Group Crédit Agricole Crédit Lyonnais Credit Suisse Deutsche Bank Dresdner Bank Fortis Friends Provident Gartmore GE Group Halifax Plc HBOS HFC HSBC ING Intelligent Finance Invesco JP Morgan Legal & General Lloyd s of London Lloyds TSB Marsh MBNA Merrill Lynch National Australia Group Nationwide Building Society NFU Mutual NM Rothschild Nordea Asset Management Prudential Rabobank Royal & SunAlliance Royal Bank of Scotland Scottish Widows Skandia International Société Générale Standard Life Group UBS VISA Western Union Zurich Group For 91% of our clients, Datamonitor research helps their company to respond to competitive threats Source: Datamonitor Customer Research

9 Datamonitor is the UK's leading provider of information on the General Insurance industry across Europe. Interested in this topic? Our portfolio of personal and commercial insurance reports combines all the major data sources on the products, markets and distribution channels in the insurance industry, and the results of consumer research and industry interviews, together with the analysis of our experienced team of insurance experts. Changes in levels and distribution of wealth, market consolidation and new ventures, regulatory pressure and government initiatives, product development and changing distribution channels are combining to fundamentally reshape the savings and investments environment. Other reports available in this series Targeting SMEs in UK General Insurance 2005 An insight into the potential for commercial insurers selling to small and medium-sized businesses. Published: May-05 Product code: DMFS1742 UK Commercial Insurance Distribution 2004 This report comprehensive guide to the distribution of commercial general insurance in the UK, featuring Datamonitor's Insurance Broker Survey and two exclusive surveys of brokers and SMEs. Published: Oct-04 Product code: DMFS1692 Competitor Profiles of the Top UK Personal General Insurers A report examining the leading players within this market. Published: May-04 Product code: DMFS1630 UK Commercial Liability Insurance 2004 Gives the reader expert insight into three sectors of the UK commercial liability insurance market, examining its size, growth, competitive structure and prospects for profitability. Published: Apr-04 Product code: DMFS1632 For more information on reports and briefs go to: Subscribe to Monitor A monthly update of Datamonitor's new products, delivered to you by . [email protected]

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