Best’s News & Research Service - July 21, 2023 11:33 AM (EDT)
AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of UnipolSai Assicurazioni S.p.A.
- July 21, 2023 11:33 AM (EDT)
Amsterdam //BestWire// - AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “a-” (Excellent) of UnipolSai Assicurazioni S.p.A. (UnipolSai) (Italy). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.
The ratings reflect UnipolSai’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as its strong operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
UnipolSai’s risk-adjusted capitalisation, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), fell to the very strong level from the strongest level at year-end 2022, mainly due to the devaluation of the company’s fixed income investment portfolio, which was caused by the increase in interest rates, an effect seen with other market players. AM Best expects the company’s risk-adjusted capitalisation to be maintained, at least, at the very strong level over the medium term. Factors supporting the balance sheet strength assessment include the company’s low reinsurance dependence, good internal capital generation and good financial flexibility. An offsetting factor is the concentration, albeit reduced by over 5% from year-end 2021, of UnipolSai’s investment portfolio in Italian government bonds (33.3% of investments at year-end 2022), which exposes its risk-adjusted capitalisation to volatility. UnipolSai’s solvency capital requirement ratio under Solvency II stood at 294% at the end of first-quarter 2023.
The risk-adjusted capitalisation level for UnipolSai’s holding company, Unipol Gruppo S.p.A. (Unipol Gruppo), fell to the strong level from the very strong level at year-end 2022. Unipol Gruppo is considered to have a neutral impact on UnipolSai’s ratings, although it has a higher level of financial leverage than UnipolSai.
AM Best expects UnipolSai’s technical performance to remain strong, driven by non-life business, and for the life business, a healthy margin of 2.15% (at first-quarter 2023) between the average yield of segregated accounts and average minimum guarantee. A track record of good non-life underwriting performance is demonstrated by the company’s five-year average combined ratio of 91.4% (2018-2022) (as calculated by AM Best). Non-life technical performance remained strong in 2022, with a combined ratio of 93.0% (as calculated by AM Best), which is in line with the company’s track record. Life revenues (as reported by the company) remain stable year-on-year, although the business mix varied significantly, with a decrease in premium volumes for traditional and unit linked products being offset by large growth in pension funds.
UnipolSai is one of the two largest players in the Italian non-life insurance market, with a particularly strong position in the motor market. Performance is supported by the company’s access to data and sophisticated pricing capabilities, as well as its extensive use of telematics applied to the non-life segment. However, the concentration of its business portfolio in Italy exposes UnipolSai’s operations to any adverse changes in the country’s economic, political and regulatory environments.
This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best’s Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Performance Assessments, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s Ratings & Assessments.
AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specialising in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City.