Generali, 26% increase on general insurance

Generali, a top ten insurer domestically, ended last year with gross underwritten premiums worth 501.5m RON (119m euros), up 20% from 2008. On the segment of general insurance, premiums rose by 26%, to 417.2m RON, but they went down by 1% on life insurance, to 84.4m RON. “Considering economic turmoil seriously hurt the insurance market, which registered modest growth in 2009 compared with expectations and the past years’ record, our overall two-digit growth strengthens the fact that the strategy we embraced was accurate,” stated Marie Kovarova, general manager of Generali, a company part of Generali PPF group. For 2010, the company expects turnover to go up by over 5%. “Though the market trend is to look at 2010 with scepticism, because, indeed, it seems to be as difficult as 2009, we’re trying to focus on opportunities. (…) For 2010, we want sound and profitable growth along all business lines and an overall trend of gross underwritten premiums above the market average, put at 4-5%,” Kovarova says.