Delvag reports profit and premium increase as aviation sector recovers
Delvag Versicherungs, the insurance operation of Germany’s Lufthansa Group, has posted decent figures for 2021 partly on the back of the tentative recovery in the global aviation sector as the impact of Covid-19 recedes.
Delvag, the in-house captive for Lufthansa and specialist third-party carrier for the global aviation sector, said it had shown “resilience” in the second year of the pandemic and successfully completed 2021.
Overall, the company achieved a profit from normal business activities of €16.4m in 2021, compared with €12.4m in 2020.
“Despite ongoing challenges, we once again demonstrated our resilience in 2021. This is also reflected in our result. The aviation industry has started to recover, which is accompanied by corresponding increases in premiums. In combination with the effects of the strategic realignment of the reinsurance area and a further improvement in the claims ratio, we have achieved a very good result,” said Lorenz Hanelt, board member at Delvag.
“The result confirms our previous strategy of achieving profitable growth in our core businesses. Above all, we would like to thank our employees, who have contributed to our economic success with their above-average commitment. They are the ones who have successfully accompanied our customers and our company through the pandemic,” added Roland Kern, who also serves as a board member at Delvag.
Increased premiums in the aviation insurance business significantly improved the claims ratio, which fell from 67.1% to 41.3%, driven also by lower claims in marine and aircraft insurance.
In the financial year, Delvag generated gross premiums of €80.4m compared to €73.9m in 2020, up by 8.8%.
In direct business, gross premiums fell to €49.1m, against €51.6m the year before. The group said higher premium income in aviation insurance was not able to compensate for the reduced premium income in transport insurance and other insurance branches of direct business.
Delvag increased premiums in reinsurance assumed to €31.2m, against €22.2m in 2020. The increase came primarily from higher premium income in aviation insurance and general accident insurance.
Delvag said the strategic realignment of its reinsurance business, chiefly the separation from active third-party business, is “proceeding as planned”.
As part of this, Delvag has entered into a loss portfolio transfer retrospectively as of 1 January 2021. “The resulting positive effects on gross premiums and claims expenditure ultimately led to an improvement in the underwriting result,” said Delvag.