The UK branch of Copenhagen Re has stopped writing marine treaty business and facultative property, but the move will have little effect on the firm's premium income, according to Copenhagen Re's assistant general manager, Susanne Riley.
She said the loss of these lines of premium income would be more than compensated for by Copenhagen Re's continued geographical expansion and an increase in the company's business due to ongoing industry consolidation.
“It's expected that, over the next several years, the decline in volume from these lines will be equivalent to 15% to 20% of the 2000 net premium in London,” she said.
“We withdrew simply because we were tired with the high frequency of claims in those two lines. They were negatively affecting the positive results of other lines.”
However Riley reaffirmed the Danish reinsurer's commitment to its other lines of business in London, including engineering and banks facultative cover.
Copenhagen Re announced last week that it had ceased underwriting marine treaty business (where reinsurance is automatically placed) in London.
That followed last year's withdrawal from marine facultative reinsurance (where each risk is individually reinsured) and its decision to leave the UK property facultative reinsurance sector.
Riley said Copenhagen Re was profiting from the reinsurance industry's current consolidation, particularly in its Singaporean and Australian offices.
She said a new branch in Madrid had been established to serve the Iberian peninsula, as well as South America. Copenhagen Re is anticipating strong growth in these regions.
