Reinsurance company Scor saw its losses multiply by 6.5 in the third quarter compared to the same period in 2021 to -270 million, mainly weighed down by the costs of natural disasters.
The company, whose activity consists of insuring insurance companies to compensate them in case of excessive claims, registered this loss despite an increase in its turnover of 11.6% over a year, 5.14 billion euros.
This result is worse than expected by analysts who expected a loss of between 175.4 million and 182 million, according to the consensus established by Bloomberg and Factset respectively.
According to Laurent Rousseau, CEO of Scor, who spoke to AFP, this difference is mainly due to the company’s decision to postpone the use of certain tax credits, up to 94 million euros. euros in the third quarter, to wait for the return of profits, targeted for 2023.
A loss of 509 million euros over nine months
The group has suffered from natural disasters, including a cost of 279 million euros from Hurricane Ian at the end of September and 166 million euros for the storms at the end of June in France.
Anticipating a continued rise in inflation and claims costs, Scor decided to strengthen its balance sheet by adding 485 million euros to the reserves of its non-life reinsurance branch.
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Its combined ratio was 117.2%, excluding the provision (and 141.4% including it). This indicator, crucial for the sector, measures the profitability of the activity. When it’s over 100, it means it’s losing money.
To return to the green, the group plans to reduce its volatility by less exposing itself to natural disasters, to increase its prices, to take advantage of the rise in interest rates and to reduce its costs, especially by speeding up its non-replacement policy of certain departures, Mr. Rousseau explained.
