Excess and surplus carriers in the U.S. keep stacking gains. Fitch Ratings says direct written premiums jumped 11% in 2024, marking the seventh straight year of double-digit expansion.
Growth slowed from 15% in 2023 but still outpaced the broader property/casualty segment, which managed 8%.
It’s not just a short streak either. Premiums in E&S have risen for 14 years in a row. The latest leg started in 2018 and pushed the sector’s share of total P&C premiums to 9%, nearly double its 2017 level.
That share didn’t budge this year, holding steady despite continued strong top-line expansion.
Every major product line posted growth, but the intensity varied. Other liability-occurrence, allied and fire, commercial auto, and medical professional liability saw double-digit increases.
Other liability-claims made and commercial multiperil lagged with only low single-digit gains. Until 2023, expansion ran consistently hot across all key product categories.
Underwriting results paint an even sharper picture. E&S insurers posted an 88% direct combined ratio for 2024, compared with 95% for the full P&C insurance market.
That’s weaker than the 86% ratio a year earlier but still far stronger than the five-year average of 97%.
The segment has now beaten the wider P&C industry on underwriting performance three years straight.
Fitch’s review leaves little doubt: E&S carriers are still riding a long, profitable wave, even as the pace begins to cool.
The global P&C insurance market has doubled in size over the past 20 years to $2.4 tn. Two decades of innovation resulted in broader access to coverage through a blend of conventional and alternative structures than 20 years ago, according to Swiss Re.
Global P&C premiums are projected to grow broadly in line with GDP over the next 10 years, with total premiums set to almost double by 2040. At the same time, market concentration is easing as competition increases.
A growing number of smaller, specialised players drive efficiency gains, while robust reinsurers and alternative risk solutions help improve capacity in view of a riskier world.
The USD 2.4 tn global P&C insurance market has doubled in 20 years as new players and risk-transfer channels emerge to better provide capacity, improve pricing, and broaden coverage.
