LEARN - Lloyd's of London Reports 6.5% rise in 2024 premiums

Lloyd's of London, the renowned insurance market, has announced a 6.5% rise in premiums written for 2024.

In a trading update released this morning ahead of its comprehensive results due on 20 March 2025, Lloyd's revealed that gross written premiums climbed to £55.5bn from £52.1bn in the previous year, as reported by City AM.

The premium growth was attributed to an 8.5% increase in property and reinsurance gross written premium, along with a slight price change of 0.3% and a foreign exchange impact of negative 2.3%.

The market's combined ratio, a crucial indicator of underwriting profitability, stood at 86.9%, having risen by 2.9 percentage points from 2023 due to significant claims in the latter half of the year.

Recently, insurers Beazley, Hiscox and Lancashire Holdings, all with a substantial presence at Lloyd's, reported impressive results. Beazley posted a record pre-tax profit of $1.4bn (£1.1bn) for 2024, marking a 13% increase from the prior year.

Hiscox also reported a record profit for the year ending 31 December 2024. Although the Californian wildfires were not included in the full-year results, Lloyd's of London estimated the net loss to be around $2.3bn (£1.8bn).

Excluding large claims, the underlying combined ratio improved to 79.1%, down from 80.5% in the previous year. The investment return for the year was £4.9bn, a decrease from £5.3bn in 2023.

Despite market volatility in the last quarter, the portfolio saw benefits from high interest rates. Lloyd's of London reported that underwriting profit declined to £5.3 billion compared to £5.9 billion in the prior year, while pre-tax profits dropped to £9.6 billion from £10.7 billion.

The attritional loss ratio improved, showing a drop to 47.1 percent, which indicates sustained underwriting discipline; this is a decrease from 48.3 percent in 2023. The expense ratio held steady at 34.4 percent.

CFO Burkhard Keese remarked on the year's strong performance, "2024 saw us maintain our focus on strong profitability and disciplined growth. Our market delivered another excellent underwriting year for our investors, while providing best-in-class solutions for our customers to protect their business flows and balance sheets."

He also offered condolences related to the recent California fires: "We would like to extend our deepest sympathies to those affected by the California fires earlier this year. Although we are still assessing the full impact, we do not expect this to be a capital event."

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