Poland
According to EMIS, the Polish insurance market is the largest insurance market in Central and Eastern Europe, but it is less developed than larger European markets. Insurance density and penetration rate (2.2%) is well below the European average in all insurance segments, especially life and health. For comparison, market penetration in Denmark, which ranks first in Europe, is 10.9%.
The gross written premium of the Poland general insurance market was PLN50.8 billion ($11.4 billion) in 2022, out of which Poland life insurance market accounted for PLN21.5 billion ($4.8 billion). In 2023, the Poland life and non-life insurance market has generated a revenue of $18.71 billion and is expected to achieve a CAGR of 4% for the forecast period of 2024-2029.
The Insurance market in Poland consists of both life and non-life insurance segments. Life insurance protects against events such as death or disability, while non-life insurance covers risks like motor accidents, property damage, and liability. Motor insurance has the highest market share, in the Polish general insurance market, followed by property insurance.
The market is well regulated, with developed regulatory practices and supervision processes. As a member of the EU, Poland adopted the risk-adjusted Solvency II framework, which further improved the sophistication of insurers’ enterprise risk management and strengthened regulatory oversight.
In 2022, 53 insurance companies were authorized to conduct insurance business in Poland, and all of them conducted operations. Twenty-four companies were active in life insurance domain. The remaining thirty-four enterprises, including one reinsurance company, providedpersonal and non-life insurance sevices.
There are no restrictions to foreign ownership in the insurance sector in Poland, thus the Polish insurance market includes both domestic and international insurance providers. The share of foreign capital was 60.4% in 2022. The competition is intense, with the market share of the top five companies reaching above 70 %. International insurance brokerage and distribution is entering the Polish non-life insurance market mostly through strategic acquisitions of local companies.
At present, there are no Asian insurance providers operating in Poland.
Czech Republic
The gross written premium of the Czech Republic general insurance market was CZK145.8 billion ($6.2 billion) in 2022. According to the CAP (Czech Insurance Association) quarterly figures, at the end of September 2023 the aggregate GWP (gross written premium) reported by member companies totaled CZK 127 billion (EUR 5.2 billion) up by 6.5% y-o-y. Life insurance accounted for 30% of GWP portfolio (CZK 38.2 billion, up by 2.3% y-o-y), the remaining 70% (or CZK 88.8 billion, up by 8.5% y-o-y) being accounted by non-life portfolio, the largest shares being accounted by Motor TPL (18.37% of total GWP), MoD (18.35%), industry and business (16%) and retail property & liability insurance (10.4%). Life and non-life insurance market in the Czech Republic is estimated to grow at a CAGR of approximately 5% during the forecast period of 2024-29.
The Czech Republic's insurance sector is well developed, with the non-life sector accounting for approximately three-quarters of the overall market. Within this, the largest lines are motor and property insurance. The life insurance market is highly concentrated. Based on gross written premium, the top five companies control 64.9% of the market. The rest of the market is controlled by 18 other insurance companies. The non-life market is also highly concentrated, with the five largest firms accounting for 73.5% of the total gross written premium. Insurance penetration is declining, and it turns out to be an opportunity for companies to expand their business. There are plenty of relatively small insurers in both segments, which means there is still room for consolidation.
The total number of Insurance Companies in Czech Republic is 2,727. Prague is the largest province with a 20% market share (559 insurance companies). Second is Brno with 317 insurance companies (12%). Ostrava also has a large number of insurance companies: 282. These three provinces combined have a 42% market share in the total Czech insurance industry.
Czech Republic's insurance industry is facing stiff competition as the insurance companies not only compete with each other, but also compete with the risk retention groups, government, and self-insurance. The companies generally compete mainly based on two factors including the quality of the services and price that they provide. Many large organizations self-insure for most of their employee benefits like health coverage that lowers market scope for insurance companies.
At present, there are no Asian insurance providers operating in the Czech Republic.
Source : MATRADE