Zurich Insurance Group continued to grow in the first nine months of 2026. Gross written premiums in property and casualty insurance rose 7 percent on a comparable basis to $42.1 billion, according to a statement on Thursday. The corporate client business in Global Specialty and Middle Market performed particularly strongly.

In the corporate client business, gross written premiums increased by 5 percent. Global Specialty grew by 9 percent, Middle Market by 6 percent. In the retail business, gross written premiums rose by as much as 9 percent. A key growth driver was motor insurance, which increased by 14 percent.

"Zurich continues to deliver strong growth, particularly in areas where we see attractive returns, including Global Specialty, Middle Market and protection products," said Group CFO Claudia Cordioli.

Severe weather weighs on claims development

At the same time, severe weather events weighed on claims development. In the EMEA region, storms in Switzerland, Germany and Italy led to higher claims in the third quarter. The catastrophe claims ratio stood at 3.2 percent after nine months, compared with 1.4 percent in the prior-year period.

The life insurance business also developed positively. Gross written premiums rose by 3 percent to $28.6 billion. The protection products business developed particularly dynamically, with an 11 percent increase. Unit-linked products rose by 8 percent.

At Farmers Exchanges, gross written premiums increased by 4 percent to $23.5 billion. The number of insurance policies rose by 342,000 since the start of the year. The surplus ratio improved to 61.5 percent.

Strong capital position

Zurich's capital position remains strong. The estimated Swiss Solvency Test (SST) ratio stood at 271 percent at the end of September, up from 266 percent at the end of June. However, this figure does not yet include the acquisition of specialist insurer Beazley completed on October 2 or the associated capital increase.

With the completion of the Beazley acquisition, Zurich sees itself as better positioned in the specialty insurance business. "With the combination of Zurich and Beazley, we have created the world's leading specialty insurer and positioned the group for further attractive growth," the chief financial officer added.

Investor day next week

On November 17, the group plans to inform investors in Zurich about the growth prospects for life insurance and Global Specialty, as well as the integration of Beazley, among other topics.

"Thanks to our diversified business model and disciplined approach, we are able to respond successfully to a changing market environment. This reinforces our confidence that we will exceed all of our targets," the company said in its outlook for the rest of the year.