An 80.5% surge in Alternative Solutions premiums powered SCOR's January 2026 property and casualty renewals, as the French reinsurer leaned into capital relief transactions amid softer pricing across the broader market. Traditional reinsurance grew by a more modest 4.7%.
The January renewals represent approximately two-thirds of SCOR's P&C reinsurance book and about 50% of its total P&C premiums. They follow a period of strong financial performance: in Q3 2025, SCOR's P&C business reported a combined ratio of 80.9%, an improvement from 88.3% a year earlier.
Group net income reached €217 million for the quarter and €642 million for the first nine months, with annualized return on equity of 22.1% in Q3 and 19.9% for the nine-month period.
P&C Lines saw EGPI increase by 7.4% to €2,848 million, with natural catastrophe business driving part of this growth through a 12.5% increase. Specialty Lines – which include agriculture, aviation, credit and surety, marine and offshore, and cyber – grew by just 0.3% to €1,645 million, a result SCOR attributed to pricing pressure across insurance and reinsurance markets.
Alternative Solutions recorded €1,185 million in premiums, with growth largely driven by capital relief transactions. These are reinsurance arrangements that allow insurers to reduce the capital they must hold against liabilities by transferring risk.
Total traditional reinsurance premiums reached €4,493 million. The company reported an expected increase of 2.0 percentage points in its net underwriting ratio, supported by retrocession purchasing.
The renewals took place against a backdrop of declining rates. According to Howden, risk-adjusted global property-catastrophe reinsurance rates-on-line decreased by an average of 14.7% – the largest year-on-year reduction since 2014.
In Europe, programs recorded average rate decreases of between 10% and 20%, with France, Italy, Switzerland, and the UK seeing the steepest reductions. Dedicated reinsurance capital reached approximately $501 billion at year-end 2025, lifting the sector's solvency margin ratio to 113% – its highest since 2021.
SCOR noted that demand for reinsurance coverage remains elevated, though competition has intensified following strong industry profits and increased capital supply. Prices have declined in most lines, particularly on non-proportional placements, while structures and terms and conditions remained stable.
Jean-Paul Conoscente (pictured above), CEO of P&C at SCOR, said the company is "satisfied with the outcome of the 1.1 renewals, which combine growth with an adequate level of profitability."
He added that SCOR leveraged its franchise to grow with core clients under broadly stable terms and conditions, including attachment points, and that Alternative Solutions delivered "another strong renewal season driven mostly by our core appetite for capital relief transactions."
Looking ahead, SCOR indicated it expects continued competitive conditions for the remaining 2026 renewals and plans to maintain its Forward 2026 diversified growth strategy.
