a.s.r. offers P&C products for the retail and commercial markets under the brand a.s.r. and the label 'Ik kies zelf van a.s.r.'. In 2024, Aegon NL's portfolio was migrated to the a.s.r. P&C administration to create a single claims organisation in which customers and intermediaries of Aegon NL are retained as much as possible (within target). The Aegon NL’s portfolio is well diversified (proportionally more fire then motor). The a.s.r. brand focuses on the retail and commercial markets through advisors and mandated brokers. 'Ik kies zelf van a.s.r.' offers direct online distribution to individuals and travel and recreational insurance via travel agents. Additionally, the managing general agent Corins operates as an independent entity on the Dutch co-insurance market. Corins represents a panel of reputable international insurers and reinsurers, underwriting commercial and industrial risks.
In 2023, a.s.r. invested in more sustainable (repairs) insurance with two new partnerships. a.s.r. holds a majority interest in Soople and a minority interest in Fixxer. In 2024, a.s.r. expanded the partnership with Fixxer and opened an extra location for Soople in Vianen. Soople helps its customers by taking on full day-to-day maintenance of properties, including the initial contact with residents, planning, implementation and invoicing. By becoming co-owner of Soople, a.s.r. can conduct sustainable repairs for customers and ultimately add to this service sustainable maintenance and other sustainable services.
Fixxer is a new company set up in collaboration with Belfius Insurance and focuses on the management and further development of a digital service platform for claims of customers.
The combined ratio decreased to 90.7% (2023: 93.6%) primarily driven by the impact of a lower level of weather-related calamities, cost synergies of the Aegon NL portfolio, less major damages and a positive impact on the discounting of incurred claims. Premium increases were implemented in the retail portfolio and in the commercial portfolio.
(in %)
Market
The Dutch P&C market is fairly consolidated. The three top P&C insurers have a combined market share of 60.6%1 (2022: 61.6%), a.s.r. ranks among the top three Property & Casualty (P&C) insurers in the Netherlands, with a market share of 14.7% in 2023 (2022: 14.6%), measured by GWP.
Consolidation has also occurred among the distribution partners and mandated brokers. Inflation has had a big impact on the P&C market in the last three years. Higher claims and expenses led to higher premiums.
Per 1 July 2024 the new Dutch law (Wijzigingsbesluit financiële markten 2023 actieve provisietransparantie bij schadeverzekeringen) for retail P&C insurance came into effect. Advisors will therefore be required to actively inform customers of the average amount of commission per product and per person. This could provide a stimulus for change in the distribution landscape.
Products
a.s.r. offers a wide range of P&C products in the retail and commercial markets. This includes products in the following categories:
Motor policies provide third party liability coverage for motor vehicles and commercial fleets, property damage and physical injury as well as coverage against theft, fire and collision damage.
Fire policies provide cover against various property risks, including fire, flood, storms and burglary. Private cover is provided on both a single-risk and a multi-risk basis, with multi-risk policies providing cover against loss of, or damage to, dwellings and damage to personal goods.
Other P&C insurance products such as liability, legal aid, travel and recreation, pet insurance and transport insurance.
(in %)
Strategy and achievements
a.s.r. has a strong track record of being a profitable P&C insurer, with a good customer satisfaction score. Long-term growth is typically driven by the increase of the gross domestic product (GDP). a.s.r. is strongly represented among advisors, mandated brokers and in the co-insurance market, via Corins. In the direct channel, a.s.r.'s revenue ('Ik kies zelf van a.s.r.') is stable and profitable.
Simplifying and modernising the IT landscape is an important part of the strategy. This enables further digitalisation of the chain, improvement of services to customers and advisors, and cost reduction. Through further digitalisation/AI, the personal online environment My a.s.r. (Mijn a.s.r.) for customers has been expanded and a few activities are digitalised (such as speech to text and document handler).
The NPS-c measures customers satisfaction during contact moments. The 2024 NPS-c score of 39 is slightly lower compared to last year (2023: 41), this is partially due to the integration of Aegon NL.
(score: -100 to 100)
Outlook for 2025
The portfolio of Aegon NL is migrated to the a.s.r. P&C administration to create a single claims organisation in which customers and intermediaries of Aegon NL are retained as much as possible (within target). The decommissioning of the Aegon NL platform will be finished at the beginning of 2025.
a.s.r. expects further growth of the P&C portfolio, by 3-5% per annum, with growth opportunities primarily in the commercial market. Inflation is continuously monitored in relation to the claims and pricing of the products.
In order to strengthen its position in the commercial market, a.s.r. will improve and simplify the business proposition. Additional measures will be implemented towards further digitalisation/AI of the chain in order to improve a.s.r.'s customer service. 'Mijn a.s.r.', will be expanded, and further digitalisation/AI of the claims handling process is planned.
- 1Source: Market shares DNB (2023), market shares 2024 are not available yet. The 2022 figure has been adjusted to include Aegon NL.