Insurance brokers will come to account for 35% in policies sold on the Romanian insurance market in the next three years, believes Patrick Lucas, managing partner with Gras Savoye French insurance broker. The insurance brokers' share of the market is put at 20-25% of a market worth 1.6 billion euros in 2006 and the increase to 35% is likely to bring domestic brokers over 16 million euros more in fee revenues.
"Insurance brokers can play a significant role on this market and could reach a weight of 35% in the next three years given the considerable increase witnessed by brokers as part of the overall market in Poland," stated Lucas. Gras Savoye is one of the most important French insurance brokers, having posted turnover worth 461 million euros globally last year.
Taking into consideration the evolution of the French insurance market, Lucas believes auto insurance will continue to account for a significant share of the overall market though the growth drivers over the next three years will be life and health insurance.
"Domestically, insurance is a competitive market and you are going to see international companies getting more involved on the market owing to globalisation and Romania's being a EU member," he also says.
European insurers' rising interest in the Romanian market has been indicated by 66 EU companies notifying the Insurance Supervision Commission on their decision to directly operate from their country of origin in the wake of the Romanian financial market's deregulation.
Lucas believes culture is what is making the difference between the Romanian insurance market and those of West-European countries. "Romanians do not have a culture of insurance, but this will be shaped up as a rising number of multinationals arrive on the Romanian market," Lucas believes.
In his opinion, Romanian firms do not consider sealing several
