The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has released its Quarterly General Insurance Performance Statistics and Quarterly General Insurance Institution Level Statistics publications for the December 2019 quarter.
The Quarterly General Insurance Performance Statistics publication provides industry aggregate summaries of financial performance, financial position, capital adequacy and key ratios. The publication also includes detailed statistics at a class-of-business level, a breakdown of operating income and expenses, and more granular solvency information.
Key performance statistics for the general insurance industry in the year ended 31 December 2019:
December 2018 | December 2019 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
Net earned premium | $34.0 billion | $36.2 billion | +6.6% |
Net claims expense | $22.1 billion | $24.9 billion | +12.6% |
Underwriting result | $3.5 billion | $2.3 billion | -34.9% |
Investment income | $2.2 billion | $3.4 billion | +55.4% |
Net profit after tax | $3.4billion | $3.1 billion | -7.9% |
Key ratios for the general insurance industry in the year ended 31 December 2019:
December 2018 | December 2019 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
Net loss ratio | 65% | 69% | +4pp |
Return on net assets | 12.4% | 11.4% | -1pp |
Prescribed capital amount coverage ratio | 1.74x | 1.68x | -0.06x |
Industry underwriting profit for the year to 31 December 2019 was $2.3 billion (2018: $3.5 billion). The result was negatively impacted primarily by the Townsville flood catastrophe event and the multiple bushfire events during the year, and a strengthening of claims reserves in long tail classes primarily due to falling bond yields. The falling bond yields also resulted in a significant increase in investment income primarily due to unrealised gains in fixed interest investments.
The Quarterly General Insurance Institution-level Statistics publication contains individual insurer information about financial performance, financial position, capital adequacy and key ratios. The quarterly performance statistics of insurers may be impacted by factors outside of their control, such as natural catastrophe events, as well as those driven by their internal processes, such as the timing of actuarial valuations. Users should take these factors into account when interpreting the statistics.
Copies of the 31 December 2019 quarterly publications are available on APRA’s website at: Quarterly general insurance statistics.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) is the prudential regulator of the financial services industry. It oversees banks, credit unions, building societies, general insurance and reinsurance companies, life insurance, private health insurers, friendly societies, and most members of the superannuation industry. APRA currently supervises institutions holding $6.5 trillion in assets for Australian depositors, policyholders and superannuation fund members.
