Fitch has found that 120 U.S. insurance groups reported writing $1 billion in direct written premiums in 2015. In the newly released report, ‘U.S. Cyber Insurance Market Share and Performance,’ Fitch used data from the new 2015 NAIC statutory supplement “to compile company and industry statistics on cyber insurance.” According to the report, the largest cyber insurance writers are AIG, which accounts for 22 percent of the market, Chubb Limited with 12 percent and XL Group LTD at 11 percent.
While global cyber insurance is predicted to reach $20 billion by 2020, the limited information on cyber insurance makes it a challenge to evaluate and price risk. Additionally, “Challenges in isolating cyber related premiums and exposures from other risks within a package policy create limitations in analyzing the supplemental filing as total cyber insurance premiums are likely understated,” said James Auden, managing director of Fitch Ratings.
Experts also indicate that there is plenty of capacity in the cyber insurance marketplace and most firms have found cyber insurance to be profitable. In 2015, the direct loss ratio for cyber stand-alone business was 65.2 percent. However, Gerry Glombicki, director of Fitch Ratings, explains that “the ultimate profitability of the P/C industry’s cyber insurance efforts will take some time to assess as the market matures and future cyber-related loss events emerge.”