Following our overview of the Life Insurance market, this companion brief maps the state of Non-Life (P&C)—the engine that manages risk in the real economy across property, motor, liability, specialty, and more. In 2024, global non-life premiums reached about $2.8 trillion, expanding 7.7% year over year. North America led with 8.2% premium growth, reflecting sustained pricing power in commercial lines and solid personal lines performance. Broadening the lens, estimates that include health components place the P&C universe near $3.0 trillion, while commercial P&C alone is roughly $1.3 trillion, having grown about 8% per year over the last five years.
Several forces underpinned 2024’s strength. First, rate hardening continued across property and liability classes, helping carriers re-align to loss trends. Second, inflation pass-through—both in pricing and sums insured—supported top-line growth in personal and commercial segments. Third, natural catastrophe losses lifted risk awareness and demand for cover, while simultaneously driving sharper underwriting and reinsurance purchasing. Finally, carriers doubled down on discipline: portfolio remediation, attachment point resets, and more selective deployment of capacity.
The non-life market remains concentrated. The United States leads with approximately $1.46 trillion in premiums (about 50% of global P&C), supported by property-catastrophe repricing, liability rate firmness, and expanding commercial demand. China follows at $235 billion, having nearly doubled its global share over the past decade. The United Kingdom at $152 billion reflects a robust specialty market anchored by London. Germany ($109B) and France ($106B) remain large continental markets, with established bancassurance and specialty franchises. South Korea ($97B) and Japan ($73B) illustrate advanced Asian markets with strong regulatory oversight and catastrophe product sophistication. Canada ($61B), Italy ($51B), and Australia ($47B) round out the top ten, each with heightened focus on climate-exposed property risks. Collectively, the top ten account for roughly 82% of global premiums.
The next decade’s momentum, however, is set to come from emerging markets. Projections for 2025–2035 CAGR place Nigeria and Vietnam at 12.7%, India at 9.5%, the Philippines at 8.3%, and Kenya at 7.5%. These economies combine low insurance penetration with rapid urbanization, motorization, and digital distribution—conditions that typically precede sustained P&C growth. Regulatory reform and increasing technical pricing capabilities will be critical to converting macro potential into profitable portfolios.
Strategically, non-life carriers are shifting from capacity provision to capability leadership. Climate analytics and scenario modeling are informing property pricing and aggregates. Commercial underwriting is becoming more data-driven, combining risk engineering with improved submission triage. On the consumer side, straight-through claims, telematics-led motor pricing, and embedded distribution are redefining the customer experience and expense curves.
Viewed alongside the Life Insurance market, P&C completes the industry’s risk-return profile: Life concentrates on long-term savings and protection; Non-Life anchors real-economy resilience. The path to sustainable profitability will hinge on pricing quality, climate realism, and technology execution—especially as emerging markets contribute a growing share of global premium growth.
Key takeaways
• 2024 non-life premiums ≈ $2.8T, up 7.7%; commercial P&C ≈ $1.3T
• Top 10 markets ≈ 82% of global P&C; US $1.46T remains anchor
• Emerging markets lead 2025–2035 CAGR: Nigeria, Vietnam, India, Philippines, Kenya
• Profitability depends on disciplined pricing, climate-informed underwriting, digital claims, and efficient distribution
