Major insurers curb losses

The insurance market went into the red in 2006 and since then losses have deepened by the year. In 2009, though, major insurers seem to have had better results. Will the insurance industry revert to profit or will shareholders further pump tens of million euros into companies? Several top ten insurers have managed to rein in their losses in 2009, which could lead to an improved net figure for the insurance market or even its going back into the black, after it logged net total losses of over 900m RON in 2006-2008 period. "I do not know whether the market will go back to profit, this is difficult to estimate. We have a more atypical market, insurers are more willing to make sacrifices and cut prices. Competition is fiercer than in other countries," says Cristian Fugaciu, general manager of Marsh, a major insurance broker domestically. Insurers' heavy losses of recent years have been triggered by the rough battle for market share. "This year, insurers may have a tighter grip on expenses, it is clear 2010 will be worse than last year. It would be normal that profit should improve under the circumstances, but the problem is revenues have also dropped quite significantly, at least in the first quarter," Marsh manager also says.