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Europe’s Big Four reinsurers keep property cat appetite amid softening rates
AM Best said 2026 renewal pricing is softening but still within the reinsurers’ risk appetites, while the group targets growth in life and specialty lines like cyber.
Europe’s largest reinsurers, Swiss Re, Munich Re, Hannover Re and SCOR, are maintaining an active appetite for property catastrophe reinsurance even as rates soften, according to AM Best’s recent market segment report.
AM Best said the stance comes after reinsurers right-sized their portfolios, including raising attachment points and shifting away from aggregate covers and working layers. For the 2026 renewals, it noted that pricing continued to soften but stayed broadly within the Big Four’s risk appetites, with differences across the companies.
Beyond property cat, AM Best said the group is also targeting growth across life and non-life portfolios. In life, longevity products and financial solutions are highlighted, while specialty lines such as cyber, marine and engineering are viewed as attractive for both insurance and reinsurance business, with the goal of diversification and steadier earnings.
AM Best added that concerns about adverse development in US casualty books persisted into 2025, even as the Big Four strengthened non-life loss reserves using strong operating performance. For 2026, the ratings agency said the reinsurers are keeping ambitious profit targets despite softer rates and greater uncertainty tied to the geopolitical environment, and it reported strong performance in the first half of 2026 aided by a relatively benign catastrophe experience.