Analytics, Banks, Financial Services, Insurance, Lithuania

Over the three quarters of 2018, insurance premiums in Lithuania amounted to €655 mln. On a year-on-year basis, non-life insurance premiums increased by 14.5% to €475 mln, while life assurance premiums rose by 8.8%, exceeding €179 mln. This was mainly underpinned by robust growth in unit-linked and transport insurance. 

Over the review period, insurers paid €331.5 mln in insurance claims, a year-on-year increase of 2.3%. Life assurance claims declined by 3.9% to €96.1 million (mainly due to claims paid upon the expiration of insurance contracts), while non-life insurance claims expanded by 5.0%, to €235 mln. The main bulk of the latter – nearly €112 mln – was comprised of claims paid under compulsory motor third party liability insurance. 

At the end of the third quarter of 2018, insurance services in Lithuania were provided by 20 registered insurers (9 undertakings and 11 branches of companies registered in other EU countries). The total number of insurance brokerage firms operating in Lithuania stood at 98.  

Almost all insurance undertakings operated at a profit, earning €37.6 mln. Activities of insurance brokerage firms were also profitable, earning them €6.2 mln. All undertakings complied with their compulsory solvency capital requirements.  

The amendments to the Republic of Lithuania Law on Insurance that came into force in early October 2018 have set uniform requirements for life assurance undertakings to clearly specify all fees imposed by their contracts. As of next year, they will no longer be allowed to charge for governance of life assurance investment directions if they do not conduct it. Moreover, all insurance (including non-life insurance) offers will now have to be consistent with the client’s requirements and needs; the key information will have to be presented in a standardised form, which will make comparison of offers easier and more convenient. Insurance undertakings will only be authorised to charge a contract termination fee that covers direct costs or amounts up to 2% of the value of the accumulated capital, but not more than €50.