The U.S. property & casualty (P&C) industry recorded a $9.3 billion net underwriting gain in the first quarter of 2024, marking a substantial improvement from the $8.5 billion loss recorded in the prior year period, according to global ratings agency AM Best.
The turnaround in the personal lines segment was a key contributor towards the improvement in the underwriting result, Best noted.
At the same time, net premiums written for Q124 sat at $222.9 billion, a 7.4% gain from the previous years $207.5 billion figure.
A notable figure to highlight is the $39.9 billion net income that the U.S. P&C industry recorded in Q1, representing a 408.3% rise from the prior years $7.9 billion.
The underwriting gain, combined with a 33.3% increase in earned net investment income, reportedly drove pre-tax operating income up 332.9%, to reach $30.0 billion.
Moreover, the industry’s combined ratio improved to 94.2%, compared to last years 102.5%.
AM Best estimates that catastrophe losses accounted for 5.1 points on the three-month 2024 combined ratio, down from an estimated 7.6 points in the prior year, which had been impacted by record severe convective storm losses.
Excluding $6.9 billion of favorable reserve development during the first three months of 2024, the industry’s accident year combined ratio sat at 97.5%.
This analysis was based on data from companies’ three-month 2024 interim period statutory statements as of May 29, 2024, which AM Best estimates to be representative 98% of total industry net premiums written and 97% of policyholder surplus.
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