In most instances, when A.M. Best issues its Top 200 U.S Property/Casualty Writers results, there is some jockeying for position – up or down a position or two. However, the 2018 results issued in July 2019 revealed something that literally flew off the page. One insurer moved up 28 positions, another 29 and a third a staggering 121 positions. While the upward movement is interesting in and of itself, it was who the insurers are that really caught my attention – reinsurers! Swiss Re jumped 28 spots, Everest Re 29 and Arch 121. And Munich Re is already at number 18.
See also: More Opportunities for Reinsurers in Health
Now, it is easy to rationalize these position changes – mergers and acquisitions. However, it’s what lies beneath that is critical for all insurers to recognize – and changes the market’s competitive landscape in four critical areas:
- Data: Reinsurers have an abundance of data, across numerous categories and geographies. Data is king, and reinsurers have it in spades. This changes the foundation for insights and puts these organizations ahead of the pack because most primary insurers do not have diverse data – at least not yet.
- Information: Data generates information. Reinsurers have information about products, segments, buyers, distributors, channels, loss outcomes – you name it. This allows their decision making to be immediately more robust.
- Skills: At a time when every insurance executive sees a lack of skill as a major issue for their organization, reinsurers have had skills, particularly data and analytics skills, embedded in their organizations for a long time. This puts them down the road in terms of leveraging the explosion of data and information – and using cutting-edge technology to do so.
- Money: Reinsurers have a good deal of money. For a number of years, catastrophe outcomes have not drained coffers, and capital remains abundant. This allows reinsurers to invest in their subsidiaries. And they are doing so, which affects primary insurers directly.
