Insurance giant Beazley plc buoyant despite ‘high incidence’ of natural disasters

Insurance giant Beazley plc achieved revenue growth last year despite a “high incidence” of natural disasters driving up claims.

The London-headquartered company saw revenues climb to $2.04bn in the 12 months to December 31, up from $1.89bn the year previous.

Profit before tax stood at $168m, a drop of more than 42% in comparison to the $293.2m recorded in 2016.

Last year was, Beazley’s chief underwriting officer Neil Maidment said in a statement, “defined by a high incidence of natural catastrophe events”.

Among them were hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, the Mexican earthquakes and the wildfires in California.

As a result of the events, net insurance claims rose by $220.1m to pass $1.075bn.

Total expenses for 2017 were $1.85bn, compared with $1.59bn in 2016.

CEO Andrew Horton commented: “Beazley achieved an underwriting profit in 2017, a year in which hurricanes, earthquakes and wildfires generated heavy claims for the insurance industry.

“More importantly, we delivered on our commitments to our policyholders, already paying out more than $110m in claims following the year’s natural catastrophes.”

He added: “Premiums grew 7% in 2017 – a strong performance given market conditions. Looking ahead, we see potential for double digit growth in 2018.”

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