PartnerRe sees continuing risk retention

PartnerRe Ltd. (NYSE: PRE) is reporting a slight decline of premium as of the Jan. 1, 2007 renewal season because insurers are continuing a trend of retaining more risk.

PartnerRe has indicated on its Web site that during the Jan.1, 2007 renewal season, it had written and bound approx-imately US$1.8 billion of estimated non-life premium.

“On a constant foreign exchange basis, that represents a 4% decline over total renewable expiring premium of US$1.9 billion,” the reinsurer reported on its Web site.

PartnerRe president and CEO Patrick Thiele said the numbers were a result of primary insurers retaining more risk. “Overall, we found the market to be orderly at January 1,” he said. “A significant amount of business – almost 10% of our renewable premium – left the reinsurance market as cedants continued to retain more risk.”

The company noted renewable expiring premium of US$1.9 billion excludes policies remaining in process or which were extended for renewal later in 2007. Of this amount, approximately US$207 million, or 11%, was removed from the market as a result of cedants’ decisions to retain more of their business, or restructure quota share coverages to excess of loss treaties, which provide less premium.