The insurers have already paid out EUR 13 million for the damage caused by the storm at the end of July, which includes compensation for the damage caused to property, agricultural crops and vehicles, according to the data collected by the Latvian Insurers Association (LAA) as of September 11.
During the week, the amount of insurance indemnities paid out to clients affected by the storm at the end of July increased by EUR 2 million, reaching a total of EUR 9 million paid out to clients.
Latvian insurers ended Q1 2024 with gross written premiums (GWP) worth EUR 329,15 million, 11.42% up y-o-y. Life insurance accounted for almost 19% of this total, while motor insurance is the business segment eith the largest participation to the market portfolio (32%).
Due to the storm and rains at the end of July, insurers have so far received 8,366 claims for a total of EUR 17.2 million. At that EUR 4.2 million have already been paid out, settling 2,864 insurance cases, according to data collected by the Association of Latvian Insurers (LAA) as of August 14.
During the last summer travel season, Latvian insurers paid out EUR 1.66 million to their clients for various types of accidents. 68% of this amount represents reimbursements for travelers' medical expenses and repatriation, according to data collected by the Association of Latvian Insurers (LAA).
This year insurers in Latvia already paid out about EUR 9 million to farmers for frozen winter crops and other crop damage, according to the data compiled by the Association of Latvian Insurers (LAA), which includes Latvian insurers and one German insurer working in the Latvian agroinsurance market.
In 2023, insurers in Latvia paid for damages in more than 150 fires caused by problems with electricity, and this is 20% of the total number of fire damages paid by insurers, according to the data collected by members of the Association of Latvian Insurers (LAA).
Insurance company BALTA (PZU group) exceeded EUR 169.6 million in GWP in 2023, which means 17.3% growth. Its total paid claims also increased, slightly exceeding the threshold of EUR 87 million, while the company's profit last year reached EUR 20.4 million, the Latvian Insurers Association (LAA) said.
The most significant challenges of the insurance industry in the field of regulation and development in the coming years are related to data and digitization.
The Latvian Insurers Association (LAA) is organizing for the 19th time the international conference "Insurance and reinsurance in the Baltics", which will be held on April 25, 2024 in Riga, the Association said.
At the end of December 2023, Latvian insurers' aggregate GWP (local and EU branches, summed-up) totaled EUR 1.11 billion, up by 12.02% y-o-y, while the amount paid in claims and indemnities increased by 10.64% y-o-y to EUR 710.93 million, according to the quarterly figures published by the Central Bank (Latvijas Banka).
In 2023, the ombudsman of the Latvian Insurers Association (LAA) received 44 customer complaints about insurance services. The largest number of complaints were about property insurance (18), the Association said.
Health insurance is the most popular type of insurance in Latvia. The president of the Association of Latvian Insurers, Janis Abasins, explained the 10% annual increase in health insurance by the fact that employers need healthy employees, lsm.lv wrote.
Compared to seven years ago, the situation with car theft in Latvia has significantly improved, and the number of stolen insured cars has decreased seven times, the Latvian Insurers Association (LAA) reports.
In Latvia, only a third of the sowing area is currently insured. Although the amount of insured land increased last year, farmers are still very reluctant to insure their fields. In addition, the past year caused great losses to agriculture precisely because of weather conditions, LSM.lv wrote.
Starting from January 22, 2024, the insurance brokerage company UNIBROKKER INSURANCE & CONSULTING and its employees will merge with R&D Insurance Broker, a subsidiary of RENOMIA, the leading insurance broker in Central Europe, the Latvian broker announced. The combined company will become the premier service provider in Latvia.
The two most important factors for Latvians when choosing an insurance company are the price and the insurance contract terms, according to the insurance industry study conducted by the research center SKDS in November 2023, the Latvian Insurers Association (LAA) reports.
According to the Q3 2023 market data published by the Financial and Capital Market Commission (FKTK), in terms of premiums, the Latvian insurance market totaled EUR 836.4 million at the end of September 2023, about 13.4% more y-o-y. There were 4 non-life insurance companies and 2 life insurance companies operating in Latvia, as well as 11 branches of foreign insurers (7 non-life & 4 life).
Life insurance premiums per capita in the Baltic States ranges from EUR 60 to EUR 104, which is several times less than the average in Europe, but is comparable to other Central European countries, the Latvian Insurers Association (LAA) reports.
At the end of the harvest season, the Latvian Insurers' Association (LAA) collected data on agricultural insurance - Latvian insurers paid out EUR 18.5 million to farmers in 8 months this year, which is 30% more y-o-y. On the other hand, in the last two years, the amount has even doubled, the Latvian Insurers Association (LAA) reports.