Chubb reported first quarter 2025 net income of US$1.33 billion and core operating income of US$1.49 billion, down from US$2.14 billion and US$2.16 billion, respectively, in the same period last year.
The company cited US$1.64 billion in pre-tax catastrophe losses, primarily from California wildfires, as the primary driver of the earnings decline.
The California wildfires accounted for US$1.47 billion of the total catastrophe losses, contributing 15.9 percentage points to the combined ratio. After-tax net catastrophe losses totalled US$1.30 billion, or US$3.21 per share. In comparison, first quarter 2024 catastrophe losses totalled US$435 million, or 4.4 percentage points of the combined ratio.
Chubb’s property and casualty (P&C) underwriting income reached US$441 million, with a combined ratio of 95.7%. Excluding catastrophe losses, current accident year underwriting income rose 12.2% year-over-year to US$1.83 billion, with a combined ratio of 82.3%.
Looking ahead, Chubb Chairman and CEO Evan G. Greenberg said that about 80% of Chubb’s global P&C and life businesses have strong growth potential, but expressed caution about the broader economic outlook.
He highlighted concerns around US trade policy, inflation, and the potential for recession. Greenberg said policy uncertainty was affecting confidence and called for greater clarity to support business and economic stability.
In comparison, Chubb achieved record net income of US$9.27 billion for FY2024, or US$22.70 per share, and core operating income of US$9.20 billion, or US$22.51 per share. Consolidated net premiums written were US$51.5 billion, up 8.7%, with global P&C up 9.6% and life insurance up 15.7%. The P&C combined ratio for the year was 86.6%.
Pre-tax catastrophe losses in Q4 totalled US$607 million, including US$309 million from Hurricane Milton and US$140 million from Hurricane Helene.
Meanwhile, net premiums written for the P&C segment in Q1 2025 rose 3.2% to US$10.93 billion, or 5.0% in constant currency. In North America, premiums grew 3.4%, though this was tempered by two one-off items: reinstatement premiums related to wildfire losses in personal insurance and unusually large structured transactions written in the prior year.
Adjusting for these, North America saw a 6.4% increase, with personal insurance up 10.1% and commercial insurance up 5.3%.
Overseas general posted a 1.8% rise in net premiums written, or 6.5% on a constant dollar basis. P&C premiums grew 9.3%, with consumer and commercial insurance up 5.0% and 7.3%, respectively. Regional results showed growth in Latin America (6.1%), Asia (6.1%), and Europe (5.5%).
Life insurance premiums reached US$1.72 billion, an increase of 5.3%, or 10.3% in constant currency. Segment income rose to US$291 million, up 8.6%, or 15.7% in constant currency.
Pre-tax net investment income was US$1.56 billion, up 12.2%, while adjusted net investment income rose 12.7% to US$1.67 billion. Annualised return on equity was 8.2%, with core operating return on tangible equity at 13.0% and core operating ROE at 8.6%.
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