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New Zealand Q3 & Q4 Market Update 2021

This report is for the time period of Q3 and Q4 of 2021. For more recent updates, please find these here.

Following an unprecedented 18 consecutive quarters of premium rate increases, the general outlook for insurance buyers in the New Zealand insurance market is more positive as we move through the second half of 2021 and into 2022.

Our latest Q3 and Q4 Insurance Market Update 2021 takes a look at the state of market throughout the first half of the year, including a detailed breakdown of premium analysis by insurance class, coverage trends, insurer appetite, market influences and outlook across:

  • Property insurance
  • Liability insurance
  • Directors and officers liability (D&O) insurance
  • Professional indemnity insurance
  • Crime insurance
  • Cyber insurance
  • Construction insurance
  • Environmental liability insurance
  • Employee benefits (Accident & health, life, private health)

At a glance

For property insurance and directors and officers liability (D&O) insurance, premiums continued to increase throughout the first half of 2021, but at a lower rate. There are some signs of competition returning for loss-free quality property accounts. With market capacity stabilising, moderation of premium increases is the anticipated trend as we move through to the new year.

Marsh’s ongoing advocacy for changes to continuous disclosure laws in Australia played a role in driving a permanent change to continuous disclosure obligations passed through parliament in early August, 2021. This is a significant and positive development, which we hope will have a profound impact in the D&O space in reducing claims activity, reducing pricing and improving the availability of coverage in general.

The casualty market continues to face challenging conditions, experiencing the largest premium increases since 2012 with capacity tightening for certain high hazard industries and exposures.

The cyber insurance market is in a state of flux. A number of high profile claims has seen insurers refining their underwriting strategy, reducing capacity and increasing premiums significantly.

 

For more trends and insights on the state of market in New Zealand, download our full report.