Pseudo Insurance Operations in 2008 - the 1st half of 2009: still waters have deep schemes

Back to schemes: notwithstanding general decrease in the share of pseudo insurance operations, at a number of companies characterized by high goodwill, increase in the share of schemes has been observed. Pseudo insurance operations became again not only the appanage of the endangered kind of circuit designers but also an alternative "business" for companies operating in the real insurance market. The reasons for return to the non-classical insurance - aspiration of owners of a number of companies to maintain the business of insurers at the breakeven level and to finance damping.

The tendency for return of schemes to companies having high goodwill, is still weaker than the reverse process - exit from the market of companies specialized in non-risk insurance. As a result, decline of the share of schemes continued in 2008 and in the first half of 2009 (9.5 and 7.9% of aggregate premiums of insurance, respectively). In addition to active actions of the Federal Service for Insurance Supervision, increase of the share of schemes is also prevented by narrowing of demand for such operations as a result of decrease in volumes of available funds at enterprises. According to forecasts of Expert RA, in 2009 the share of schemes in the Russian insurance market will be within the range from 7.8 to 8.2%, in 2010 it will increase to a certain extent and will stabilize at the level of 8-8.5%.

Mutation of schemes: from tax optimizing operations to appropriation of budgetary funds. In terms of economic essence, schemes are subdivided into three main groups:

• Tax optimizing operations (part of life "insurance", reactive voluntary medical insurance and mono polices).
• Operations for withdrawal of funds from companies (risk-free "insurance" of property and liability as well as part of "insurance" of financial risks).
• Operations for appropriation of budgetary funds (part of agricultural "insurance" taking into account state subventions).
• Over several recent years the share of tax optimizing operations in the aggregate amount of schemes materially reduced from 31% in 2006 to 16% in the first half of 2009. At that, the share of operations associated with appropriation of budgetary funds increased significantly: from 1.5% in 2006 to 19% in the first half of 2009. The share of operations for withdrawal of funds has not almost changed (6735 and 65% respectively).

Anti-heroes: ranking of the most scheme-intensive types of insurance in the first half of 2009. Top 5 most scheme-intensive types of insurance in terms of interest relation of real and non-classical operations:

1. Insurance of agricultural risks (59% premiums in this type of insurance fall on schemes).
2. Cargo insurance (39%).
3. Other types of insurance of property and liability (19%).
4. Insurance of construction and assembly risks (17%).
5. Insurance of property of legal entities against fire and other risks (17%).

The following the top 5 most scheme-intensive types of insurance in terms of the amount of premiums received within the framework of non-classical insurance:

1. Insurance of property of legal entities against fire and other risks (5 billion rubles gained within the framework of this type of insurance fall on pseudo insurance which constitutes 24% of the aggregate volume of schemes).
2. Insurance of agricultural risks (4 billion rubles or 19%).
3. Cargo insurance (2.7 billion rubles or 13%).
4. Voluntary medical insurance (2.6 billion rubles or 12%).
5. Insurance against construction and assembly risks (1.4 billion rubles or 6%).