While headlines often focus on rising premiums, the UK insurance industry in 2022 quietly demonstrated its colossal financial strength and pivotal role in the economy, with £290.4 billion in premiums written, a £1.9 trillion investment portfolio, and over £128 billion paid out to support customers and businesses in their time of need.
Key Takeaways
- In 2022, the UK insurance market's total gross written premiums (GWP) reached £290.4 billion, marking a 5% increase from 2021
- The UK insurance industry's contribution to GDP was £51.7 billion in 2022, equivalent to 1.9% of total UK GDP
- UK insurers held £1.9 trillion in assets under management as of end-2022, representing 40% of the UK's total financial assets
- In 2022, UK life insurance new business premiums totaled £18.5 billion, up 8% YoY
- Protection insurance sales reached 2.1 million policies in 2022, average premium £25/month
- Group life insurance covered 25 million lives in 2022, premiums £1.2 billion
- In 2022, motor insurance premiums totaled £50.2 billion, up 14% YoY
- Home insurance GWP reached £7.8 billion in 2022, average household premium £347
- Employers' liability insurance claims cost £2.1 billion in 2022
- In 2022, UK insurers paid out £128 billion in claims across all lines
- Motor claims frequency fell 5% to 12.5% in 2022, average cost £4,200
- Home claims totaled 1.8 million in 2022, payouts £5.6 billion, claims ratio 72%
- In 2022, the UK insurance sector employed 318,000 people full-time equivalent
- Insurance brokers numbered 5,200 firms employing 45,000 in 2022
- Diversity: 45% women in insurance workforce in 2022, up from 42% in 2020
The UK insurance industry grew strongly in 2022 with increased premiums, profits, and digital adoption.
Claims and Underwriting
- In 2022, UK insurers paid out £128 billion in claims across all lines
- Motor claims frequency fell 5% to 12.5% in 2022, average cost £4,200
- Home claims totaled 1.8 million in 2022, payouts £5.6 billion, claims ratio 72%
- Injury claims under EL/PL cost £2.5 billion in 2022, 140,000 claims
- Life insurance claims paid £15.2 billion in 2022, including 450,000 death claims
- Fraudulent claims detected saved £1.3 billion in 2022, 150,000 cases
- Average bodily injury claim severity up 8% to £22,000 in 2022
- Whiplash claims reduced 20% post-reforms to 45,000 in 2022
- Property damage claims ratio 55% in 2022 for general insurance
- PMI claims utilization rate 42% in 2022, total £2.4 billion
- Cyber claims notified 2,500 in 2022, average cost £320,000
- Catastrophe claims from storms cost £1.2 billion in 2022
- Denied claims rate averaged 8% across personal lines in 2022
- Average settlement time for motor claims 25 days in 2022
- EL injury claims success rate 75% in 2022
- Travel claims payouts £1.1 billion in 2022, 1.2 million claims
- Pet claims settlement ratio 95% in 2022
- Large commercial claims over £1m numbered 850 in 2022
- Underwriting profit for GI was £6.2 billion in 2022
- Expense ratio for non-life insurers 28% in 2022
Claims and Underwriting Interpretation
While paying out a colossal £128 billion in claims—nearly a London Olympics’ worth of settlements—the UK insurance industry demonstrated a surprisingly agile balance sheet, deftly managing everything from costly storms and whiplash reforms to rising injury costs and sophisticated fraud, all while still booking a robust £6.2 billion in underwriting profit.
Employment and Regulation
- In 2022, the UK insurance sector employed 318,000 people full-time equivalent
- Insurance brokers numbered 5,200 firms employing 45,000 in 2022
- Diversity: 45% women in insurance workforce in 2022, up from 42% in 2020
- FCA regulated 1,800 insurers and 38,000 intermediaries in 2022
- Average salary in insurance £52,000 in 2022, 15% above national average
- 12% of workforce cyber-skilled in insurance per 2022 survey
- Apprenticeships in insurance reached 4,500 starts in 2022
- Regulatory fines totaled £120 million in 2022, mostly consumer duty breaches
- Solvency II compliance cost insurers £450 million annually in 2022
- Complaints to FOS from insurance: 185,000 in 2022, 65% upheld for consumers
- PRA supervision covered 99% of premium income in 2022
- Consumer Duty implementation affected 90% of firms by end-2022
- Insurtech firms employed 15,000 in 2022, 20% growth
- Actuarial vacancies 2,500 unfilled in 2022
- Training spend per employee £2,100 in 2022
- Regional employment: London 40% of total insurance jobs in 2022
- Under-30s 18% of workforce in 2022
- Brexit-related relocations created 1,200 jobs in UK insurance hubs in 2022
- IFoA members in insurance 12,000 in 2022
- Regulatory reporting submissions 1.2 million in 2022
Employment and Regulation Interpretation
The UK insurance sector in 2022 was a vast, tightly-regulated, and profitable machine—employing over 300,000 people, paying them well, and diligently fining itself £120 million—while quietly grappling with a talent crunch, a cyber-skills gap, and the persistent hum of nearly 200,000 customer complaints.
General Insurance
- In 2022, motor insurance premiums totaled £50.2 billion, up 14% YoY
- Home insurance GWP reached £7.8 billion in 2022, average household premium £347
- Employers' liability insurance claims cost £2.1 billion in 2022
- Property insurance payouts for weather events totaled £1.4 billion in 2022
- Commercial motor fleet policies numbered 1.2 million in 2022, premiums £8.5 billion
- Liability insurance GWP was £12.3 billion in 2022, 14% growth
- Travel insurance policies sold 15 million in 2022, GWP £2.9 billion
- Pet insurance claims paid £850 million in 2022, average claim £1,200
- Business interruption claims from Covid totaled £1.8 billion resolved by end-2022
- Motor theft claims rose 12% to 120,000 in 2022, cost £500 million
- Flood claims payouts were £530 million in 2022, affecting 25,000 homes
- Private medical insurance subscribers 7.5 million in 2022, premiums £6.2 billion
- Cyber insurance policies grew to 85,000 in 2022, premiums £1.2 billion
- Construction insurance GWP £4.1 billion in 2022, claims ratio 65%
- Average motor comprehensive premium £701 in Q4 2022, up 20% YoY
- Home buildings premium inflation 11% in 2022
- Public liability claims averaged £45,000 payout in 2022
- GAP insurance add-ons on 25% of new cars in 2022, premiums £450 million
- Marine cargo insurance GWP £2.3 billion in 2022
- Directors & Officers (D&O) premiums up 25% to £1.1 billion in 2022
General Insurance Interpretation
The figures paint a picture of a society paying dearly for the privilege of modern life, where our premiums are chasing everything from our pricier cars and weather-beaten homes to our vulnerable pets, litigious employees, and hackable data at a truly relentless pace.
Life Insurance
- In 2022, UK life insurance new business premiums totaled £18.5 billion, up 8% YoY
- Protection insurance sales reached 2.1 million policies in 2022, average premium £25/month
- Group life insurance covered 25 million lives in 2022, premiums £1.2 billion
- Critical illness cover claims paid £1.1 billion in 2022, average payout £85,000
- Term assurance policies in force numbered 18.4 million in 2022
- Whole of life market GWP was £3.2 billion in 2022, 12% market share
- Pension annuities sold 45,000 in 2022, total value £2.8 billion
- Income protection claims rose 10% to 65,000 in 2022, total payouts £450 million
- Life insurance persistency rate averaged 88% in year 1 for 2022 policies
- Over-65s held 55% of life insurance policies in 2022
- Digital life insurance quotes grew 40% to 12 million in 2022
- Guaranteed premiums now standard in 95% of life policies post-2022 reforms
- Life insurers' solvency ratio averaged 210% in 2022
- PRT deals numbered 15 in 2022, transferring £25bn liabilities
- Equity release lending hit £4.1 billion in 2022, 12% growth
- Funeral plans sold 180,000 in 2022, market value £1.5 billion
- Life insurance complaints to FOS totaled 5,200 in 2022, up 15%
- Average life cover amount was £175,000 for new policies in 2022
- Women represented 45% of life policyholders in 2022
- Joint policies accounted for 62% of new life sales in 2022
- Lapse rates for life policies were 4.2% in 2022
- Life insurance ad spend was £120 million in 2022
- 28% of UK adults have no life cover in 2022
- Average term length for term assurance was 22 years in 2022
- Life sector investment return was 3.8% in 2022 despite market volatility
- Overseas life business GWP £4.5 billion in 2022
Life Insurance Interpretation
While Brits are clearly doubling down on 'adulting'—signing up for protection in droves and paying out a billion in critical illness claims—the industry still faces the stark reality that over a quarter of adults have no cover at all, proving that selling peace of mind requires both witty marketing and serious persuasion.
Market Size and Growth
- In 2022, the UK insurance market's total gross written premiums (GWP) reached £290.4 billion, marking a 5% increase from 2021
- The UK insurance industry's contribution to GDP was £51.7 billion in 2022, equivalent to 1.9% of total UK GDP
- UK insurers held £1.9 trillion in assets under management as of end-2022, representing 40% of the UK's total financial assets
- The non-life insurance segment accounted for 60% of total GWP in 2022, totaling £174.2 billion
- Life and pensions insurance GWP grew by 4.2% to £116.2 billion in 2022, driven by pension risk transfer deals
- The UK insurance market saw 1,200 new product launches in 2022, a 15% rise from 2021
- Insurance penetration rate in the UK stood at 11.8% of GDP in 2022, above the European average of 9.2%
- The sector's return on equity (RoE) averaged 10.5% in 2022, up from 7.8% in 2021
- UK insurance M&A activity reached 450 deals in 2022, valued at £12.5 billion
- Digital insurance sales accounted for 42% of new policies in 2022, up from 35% in 2020
- The market's combined ratio for non-life insurance improved to 92.1% in 2022 from 95.3% in 2021
- UK insurance exports generated £8.7 billion in 2022, primarily reinsurance services
- There were 1,050 active insurers licensed in the UK as of 2022, down 2% from 2021 due to consolidations
- Insurtech investment in the UK totaled £2.1 billion in 2022 across 180 startups
- The sector's solvency coverage ratio averaged 180% under Solvency II in 2022
- Premium growth rate for the UK market was 7.1% in real terms in 2022
- Household insurance density reached £2,450 per capita in 2022
- Commercial insurance GWP hit £85 billion in 2022, up 6.8%
- The market's total equity capital stood at £210 billion in 2022
- Insurance intermediation turnover was £28.4 billion in 2022, employing 400,000 people
- Cyber insurance premiums grew 25% to £1.2 billion in 2022
- Pet insurance policies reached 4.5 million in 2022, premiums £1.4 billion
- Travel insurance GWP was £2.9 billion in 2022, recovering 80% from pre-pandemic levels
- Motor insurance market share of personal lines was 52% in 2022
- Home insurance average premium rose 12% to £350 annually in 2022
- Pension risk transfer volumes hit £25 billion in 2022
- Reinsurance recoverables for UK insurers were £45 billion in 2022
- The sector paid £14.5 billion in corporation tax in 2022
- Embedded insurance partnerships grew 30% to 500 in 2022
- UK insurance density was £4,300 per capita in 2022, highest in Europe
Market Size and Growth Interpretation
While the nation frets over the cost of living, the UK insurance industry is calmly building a fortress of finance—managing an eye-watering £1.9 trillion in assets, launching new products with the zeal of a tech startup, and proving that even in a crisis, there’s serious money in making sure we’re all covered for it.
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