PartnerRe blames winter storms for Q1 loss despite positive price hikes

Bermuda-based reinsurer  PartnerRe reported a loss in the first quarter of 2021. The loss was smaller than the losses for the same period in 2020, and Jacques Bonneau,  PartnerRe’s president and chief executive officer, said that severe winter storms in Q1 masked the extent of the underwriting improvements it has made.

PartnerRe reported a net loss of $65.9 million in Q1, which included $104 million of net losses related to Winter Storm Uri. In the first three months of 2020 PartnerRe made a loss of $433.4 million.

The re/insurer reported gross written premiums of $2.47 billion in the first three months of 2021, up from $2.04 billion the previous year. Its combined ratio was 96.7 percent, or 97.7 percent for the property and casualty segment and 94.8 percent for specialty.

PartnerRe President and chief executive officer Jacques Bonneau commented: “The 2021 underwriting year started on a positive note from a pricing perspective, and we have seen continued momentum throughout our April 1 non-life renewals, while remaining focused on the execution of our strategy to improve profitability. We are seeing positive rate movement in most, if not all, of our lines of business while achieving price improvements in new and renewal business of approximately 9 percent for our non-life portfolio through April 1.

"We were also able to reduce our exposures on poorly performing lines and programs as we continue to drive for increased margins. The underwriting improvements in the first quarter were masked by Winter Storm Uri. The favourable pricing conditions, combined with the benefits we are seeing from our re-underwriting actions and significant growth in third party capital, position us well to deliver improvements in our underwriting and financial results during the remainder of 2021.”

Did you get value from this story?  Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories like this sent straight to your inbox.