Insurance executives in Thailand expect premium increases across several major lines this year as the market responds to higher catastrophe losses, higher reinsurance costs, and geopolitical risks affecting trade. Motor, property, health, marine, and aviation covers are all seeing pricing pressure, according to senior leaders at AXA Insurance Thailand and Allianz Ayudhya Assurance.

Guillaume Mirabaud, chief executive of AXA Insurance Thailand, said recent loss experience and reinsurance renewals are feeding directly into technical pricing for domestic business. “Following two significant natural catastrophes last year, the industry needs to restore profitability, particularly as reinsurance costs have risen considerably. As a result, some price adjustment is expected on motor and property lines,” Mirabaud told Bangkok Post.

Mirabaud said the loss environment in 2025 put stress on the sector’s risk‑sharing model. “The insurance industry is built on the principle of mutualisation, and the cost of claims was exceptionally high in 2025,” he said. He added that a “measured price correction” is needed to support the sector’s financial soundness. “Without this change, smaller insurance companies face a heightened risk of insolvency, which would not serve the interests of policyholders or the market as a whole,” Mirabaud said. For Thai non-life carriers, the combination of catastrophe claims, inflation in repair and construction costs, and higher reinsurance pricing is narrowing margins and prompting a review of rate adequacy, particularly for catastrophe‑exposed property and motor portfolios.

Health, property, and specialty classes face rising costs

Thomas Wilson, president and chief executive of Allianz Ayudhya Assurance, said cost trends are also affecting health and other lines. “For example, continued double-digit private hospital medical claims inflation is likely to increase health insurance premiums for both new and existing health insurance policies,” Wilson told the Bangkok Post. He said general insurance pricing is likely to adjust in line with a “changing risk landscape,” with attention on property insurance for condominiums and corporate risks with earthquake or flood exposure. On the specialty side, he noted that marine, cargo, and aviation business is being repriced in response to global tensions.

Premiums for these segments are “likely to be adjusted to reflect the ‘heightened risk profile for international trade due to the Middle East conflict,’” he said. Underwriters are tracking changes in trade routes, accumulation exposure, and potential disruptions as they consider revisions to terms, limits and deductibles. For motor, Wilson indicated that rate movements may be more contained in the near term. Auto premiums may remain within “a stable range as lower utilisation is offset by higher replacement parts inflation,” he said, suggesting that lower driving activity is helping to balance higher severity in some claims.

Economic constraints shape demand and policy options

Wilson also pointed to the broader economic backdrop for insurers. He said the Thai government has taken steps to limit the near‑term impact of the Middle East conflict by prioritising energy supply, working on energy security through diversification, using monetary tools to support stability, and protecting Thai nationals. He also questioned how long some of the most direct interventions can continue. The more impactful measures, such as capping diesel prices and subsidising other fuel prices, are “not sustainable long-term,” Wilson said, referring to pressure on the fiscal budget.

“The Thai economy is vulnerable due to limited fiscal policy room to manoeuvre due to budget constraints and limited monetary policy room to further cut interest rates to stimulate economic growth,” he said. High household debt, he added, makes it difficult to lift consumer spending, with knock‑on effects for insurance purchasing and persistency. To reduce vulnerability, Wilson suggested measures to protect small and medium‑sized enterprises from unfair competition, including the effects of US tariffs and low‑cost Chinese exports, along with accelerating free trade agreements, promoting tourism, and supporting heavily indebted households. These macro conditions intersect with underwriting strategy, product design, and distribution and may lead to tighter focus on risk selection and capital deployment as premiums adjust.

OIC’s fifth development plan outlines risk and resilience priorities

As the market reassesses pricing, the Office of the Insurance Commission (OIC) is progressing a new strategic roadmap that sets out how the sector is expected to support national risk management. The fifth Insurance Development Plan, covering 2026-2030, describes a role for the insurance system as a core component of economic resilience and sets priorities for how the industry responds to structural shifts in Thailand and abroad.

According to Bangkok Post’s report, OIC secretary-general Chuchatr Pramoolpol has said the plan focuses on three main challenge areas: the impact of climate change and more severe natural disasters, Thailand’s transition to a super‑aged society, and the rapid digital transformation of insurance operations and distribution. The roadmap sets a policy framework for both life and non-life sectors, including risk-based capital frameworks, product development, consumer protection, and disaster risk financing. It also relies on cooperation across the market, including insurers, associations, brokers, actuaries, and advisers.

Industry consultation highlights pressures across segments

In a public hearing held in late September, 229 representatives from life and non-life insurers, industry associations, and intermediaries provided feedback on the draft plan. The Thai Life Assurance Association raised concerns about the impact of prolonged low interest rates and rising medical costs on life and health portfolios, pointing to strain on long‑term guarantees and pressure to adjust product structures. The Thai General Insurance Association focused on changes in motor insurance arising from the rapid uptake of electric vehicles, a trend that could alter risk profiles, repair patterns, and claims costs in that class.

Chuchatr has said the OIC will review and consolidate input from the consultation to refine the roadmap before submitting it to the OIC board. Once approved, the plan is expected to set direction for how the sector responds to climate risk, demographic change, and digitalisation and how it contributes to financial stability objectives. The combination of hardening premiums, macroeconomic constraints, and the pending regulatory roadmap suggests a period of adjustment in Thailand’s market, with implications for pricing, product structures, and capital planning across both life and non-life lines.