The premium volume of Austrian insurance undertakings increased during the second quarter of 2022 by +7.05% to € 5.12 billion compared with the second quarter of 2021. This increase is broken down as follows for the individual insurances classes: Non-life/accident +8.91% to € 3.10 bn, life insurance +3.94% to € 1.36 bn as well as health insurance +5.08% to € 656 million. The premium volume for the first half of 2022 as a whole rose to € 11.38 billion (+ € 750 million or + 7.06% year-on-year), with non-life/accident insurance increasing by +8.59 % to € 7.21 billion, health insurance increasing by +4.02% to € 2.84 billion, and life insurance premium volume increasing by +5.10% to € 1.33 billion. These findings have emerged from the Report on the Austrian Insurance Sector for the second quarter of 2022, which was published today by the Austrian Financial Market Authority (FMA).
Significantly deteriorated earnings situation
The financial result of Austrian insurance undertakings for the 1st half of 2022 was dominated by the capital markets turbulence as a result of the fragile economic performance triggered as a consequence of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. At € 845.42 million, it was € 985.31 million lower than in the first half of 2021. At the same time the technical result fell by € 276.26 mn to €187.71 mn year-on-year, while the result from ordinary activities (German: Ergebnis der gewöhnlichen Geschäftstätigkeit (EGT)) during the frist half of 2022 fell by € 788.25 mn or 58.48% to € 559.74 mn.
The total of all assets at market value (excluding investments in the area of unit-linked and index-linked life insurance) of the insurance undertakings stood at €106 bn at the end of the first half of 2021, a decrease of approx. € 10.1 billion or 8.7% over the previous year. They stood at € 116.7 bn at year end 2021, and € 111.9 bn at the end of the 1st Quarter of 2022.
The undisclosed reserves of investments (excluding funds- and index-based life insurance) fell by 42.32%, from € 24.1 billion to € 13.9 billion, between year-end 2021 and the end of the second quarter. At the end of the first quarter of 2022, undisclosed reserves stood at € 19.3 bn. At the end of the reporting period the reserve ratio therefore stood at 14.80%; a year previously it had stood at 25.46%.
Insurance industry on a very stable footing
The solvency of Austrian insurance undertakings however remains very stable. Approximately two-thirds (69.7%) of the undertakings have a solvency capital requirement (SCR) of over 200% as of the end of H1 2022, i.e. twice as much own funds as required. This is more or less unchanged compared to the previous year. As of 30 June 2022, the average level (median) stood at 230.56% (end of H1 2021: 221%), compared with 199.29% in mid-2020.
The full quarterly report can be found on the FMA website (in German only) at https://www.fma.gv.at/versicherungen/offenlegung/quartalsberichte/
Journalists may address further enquiries to:
Klaus Grubelnik (FMA Media Spokesperson):
+43/(0)1/24959-6006
+43/(0)676/882 49 516