Austrian insurance undertakings increased their premium volume in the first quarter of 2022 by +6.96 % to € 6.26 billion compared with the first quarter of 2021. The result from ordinary activities (German: EGT; Ergebnis der gewöhnlichen Geschäftstätigkeit) fell during this period by € 220.21 million to € 102.21 million. The was attributable to the fact that the technical result fell by € 191.82 million (-88.97%) to € 23.78 million, while the financial result fell by € 259.73 million (-48.47%) to € 276.18 million. The total of all assets at market values (excluding investments from unit-linked and index-linked life insurance) stood at € 111.87 billion as at 31 March 2022, a decrease by € 4.81 billion or -4.1% compared with the year-end values for 2021 due to the turbulence of the capital markets as a consequence of Russia’s war of aggression against its neighbour Ukraine.These are the findings of the Austrian Financial Market Authority’s (FMA) “Q1 2022 Quarterly Report – Insurance Undertakings”, which was published today.
Fall in earnings, but capital basis remains good
Broken down by insurance classes, the volume of premiums for non-life and accident insurance increased by +8.34% to € 4.11 billion, while the volume of premiums for life insurance increased by +4.1% to € 1.48 billion, and those of health insurance increased by +5.12% to € 671 million; these values are compared with those for the 1st quarter of 2021. Claims incurred stood at € 3.98 billion during the reporting period, which corresponds to an increase of 2.21% compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
The yield on turnover (result on ordinary activities to premiums) is a significant indicator of earning capacity, and fell by 467 basis points, nevertheless remaining positive at +1.99%.
The capital base of insurance undertakings remained good: during the reporting period 67% of undertakings had a solvency capital ratio (SCR) of in excess of 200%, meaning that they had twice as high financial means as was necessary to fulfil all commitments. However, the hidden reserves of capital investments (excluding those of funds and index-based life insurance) on a quarter-by-quarter basis fell by -19.86% to € 19.34 billion. At the end of the reporting period the reserve ratio therefore stood at 20.58%.
The full quarterly report can be found on the FMA website (in German only) on the page on FMA Quarterly Reports
Journalists may address further enquiries to:
Klaus Grubelnik
+43/(0)1/24959-6006
+43/(0)676 88 249 516