It all
started with
a hat stand...
Beazley plc | Annual report and accounts 2024
Strategic report
01
Highlights
02
Key performance indicators
03
Our strategy
04
Our business model
06
Statement of the Chair
08
Group Chief Executive’s statement
10
Group Chief Underwriting Officer’s report
14
Performance by division
16
Group Chief Financial Officer's statement
17
Financial review
17
Capital structure
19
Group performance
24
Balance sheet management
26
Sustainability
32
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures
(TCFD) 2024
62
Non-financial and sustainability information statement
67
Stakeholder engagement
74
Section 172 statement
76
Risk management and compliance
Governance
83
Governance at a glance
85
Chair’s introduction to governance
87
Board of Directors
90
Corporate Governance report
109
Nomination Committee
116
Audit Committee
125
Risk Committee
131
Remuneration Committee
133
Letter from the Chair of our Remuneration Committee
135
Directors’ remuneration report
158
Statement of Directors’ responsibilities
159
Directors’ report
165
Independent auditor’s report
Financial statements
178
Consolidated statement of profit or loss
179
Consolidated statement of comprehensive income
180
Consolidated statement of changes in equity
181
Consolidated statement of financial position
182
Consolidated statement of cash flows
183
Notes to the financial statements
255
Company financial statements
262
Alternative performance measures (APMs)
www.beazley.com
Highlights
Financial
Insurance written premiums*
Net insurance written premiums*
Insurance service result
$6,164.1m
$5,152.3m
$1,236.0m
(2023: $5,601.4m)
(2023: $4,696.2m)
(2023: $1,251.0m)
Net investment income
Cash and investments
Investment return*
$574.4m
$11,492.7m
5.2%
(2023: $480.2m)
(2023: $10,477.8m)
(2023: 4.9%)
Rate (decrease)/increase on
renewals
Profit before tax for the financial year
Undiscounted combined ratio*
(0.5%)
$1,423.5m
79.0%
(2023: 4.3%)
(2023: $1,254.4m)
(2023: 74.0%)
The Group is of the view that some of the above metrics constitute alternative performance measures (APMs). These are
indicated using an asterisk (*), with further information included in the APMs section on pages 262-264.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
01
Key performance indicators
Financial
Earnings per share (c)
154.7
175.1
2023
2024
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
200
Net assets per share (c)*
560.9
699.9
24.9
31.5
Tangible
Intangible
2023
2024
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
Insurance written premiums
($m)*
5,601.4
6,164.1
2023
2024
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
Dividends per share (p)
14.2
25.0
2023
2024
0
5
10
15
20
25
Return on equity (%)*
30.0
26.6
2023
2024
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Combined ratio (%)*
31.6
31.7
39.4
43.1
71.0
74.8
Expense ratio
Claims ratio
2023
2024
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
The Group is of the view that some of its Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) constitute APMs, as indicated by an asterisk (*).
Further information is included in the Financial review on page 17 and the APMs section on pages 262-264.
Non-financial
Senior leadership roles held by women
People of Colour representation in the workforce
Overall carbon emissions
45%
28%
6,708.4 tCO2e
(2023: 45%)
(2023: 27%)
(2023: 6,998.8 tCO2e)
Employee engagement
Employee favourability
85%
78%
(2023: 86%)
(2023: 80%)
02
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Our strategy
The foundations of our business are our culture and values of being bold, striving for better and doing the
right thing, these underpin the five key pillars of our business: clients, protection, people, tools and
responsible business. Together they support our vision to be the highest performing specialty insurer and,
in that role, we can fulfil our purpose of enabling our stakeholders to explore, create and build.
Explore.
Create. Build.
Our vision is to be the highest performing sustainable specialty insurer
Client
Protection
People
Tools
Sustainability
Creating products
and services our
clients need and
brokers want and
delivering them
through multiple
distribution
channels
Managing volatility
and market cycles
to protect our
business and that
of our insureds
We attract and
nurture talented
colleagues who
champion diversity
of thought and live
our values
Deploying tools and
technology plus
leveraging
innovations that
improve efficiencies
and expense
management
Managing our
business
responsibly, whilst
supporting our
clients to transition
Being bold
Striving for better
Doing the right thing
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
03
Our business model
Insurance.
Just different.
Our vision
Our vision is to be the highest performing sustainable specialty insurer.
To deliver this, we have built a business that operates around the globe and across multiple
platforms. We are a diversified insurer, underwriting multiple lines of specialty insurance
products from aviation to cyber and directors & officers liability to property risks.
Ambitious for our business, we are focused on long-term sustainable growth that delivers real
value to all our stakeholders, fulfilling our purpose of helping them to explore, create and build.
Bringing different to life
Our people, values and
culture underpin our
success. They shape the
way we show up, how we
approach our business and –
how we treat each other.
It’s by working with us that
you’ll experience the Beazley
difference, bringing to life
what sets us apart.
Being bold
across all our activities
We enjoy the freedom and encouragement to confidently question the
status quo and push the edges. We dare to be different and explore bold
possibilities to create more innovative, fair and satisfying outcomes for our
people, our clients, partners and investors.
Striving for better
by always going above and beyond
Good is a start, but we go all out for better. We actively champion and
support each other to be the best we can – a community of driven individuals
relentlessly pushing the needle and creating value.
Doing the right thing
for our people, partners and planet
Acting with integrity in a straightforward, decent way is instinctive. Open and
honest with each other, we show respect and empathy however challenging
the situation. Doing the right thing makes for a fair-minded, rewarding
environment and makes work and life better for all.
04
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
How we deliver different
Platform
diversification
Our strategy is to achieve a successful intersection of
platforms and products that offers our brokers and clients
access to our expertise and specialist underwriting capacity
where and when they do business. We believe that a mix of
international, wholesale and domestic business is the most
effective way to deliver this.
Product
specialisation
We complement our platform strength with a product
set focused on markets where issues can be complex,
changing or emerging and terms and conditions and
pricing are sustainable. We commit to these markets
for the long term as we see demand grow for
specialist insurance capacity.
Financial
strength
Enabling us to support both long-term
strategies for navigating change whilst
positioning us to take advantage
of market opportunities and focus
on innovating.
Brand
positioning
Our distinctive brand, and the
perceptions it generates, help
us to grow our business, sustain
relationships and attract and retain
talented people.
Deep stakeholder
partnerships
We build strong, long-term
relationships with like-minded
stakeholders of which clients and
brokers are key – whose principles
align with ours and through which
each partner benefits.
How different drives value
Investors
Underwriting discipline
to ensure price adequacy
and agility in deploying
capital across our
diversified portfolio allows
us to reduce volatility and
deliver a cross-cycle ROE
of 15%.
Average ROE over 5 years
17.7%*
Average ROE over 10 years
15.5%*
Overall NAVps growth
over 5 years
136%*
*The Group is of the view that these metrics
constitute alternative performance measures
(APMs). Further information is included in the
APMs section on pages 262-264.
Colleagues
Enabling our people to
learn, develop and
progress. We employ
talented people and
invest in expanding their
skills and helping them
build rewarding careers.
Strong employee
engagement:
85%
Brokers
and clients
To ensure the best
possible experiences and
outcomes, we continue to
monitor broker and client
perceptions of our service
in a variety of ways,
including through
detailed surveys.
Outstanding Service
Quality Marque - for the
9th year in a row, our
claims service has been
awarded the Outstanding
Service Quality Marque
which is based on broker
responses by independent
Gracechurch survey.
World’s Fifth
Best Company
for Sustainable
Growth
Based on strong revenue
growth and profit margins
relative to peers and our
commitment to
sustainability, we are
ranked fifth globally and
the UK’s best company
for sustainable growth.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
05
Statement of the Chair
"I am proud that Beazley
has played its part as a leading,
specialty insurer to add real
value to businesses around
the world."
Clive Bannister
Chair
An era of accelerating risk
2024 produced more evidence that we are living in a period of
change, where risk is rapidly increasing and businesses look
to specialist insurers for support, as they manage an often
challenging environment.
The global IT outage in July 2024 reminded us of the potential
for interconnected technology to cause mass disruption. We
also have more experience as to how climate risk is changing
in the face of extreme weather events. This was seen in the
extension of the geographic locations impacted by North
Atlantic hurricanes or the intensity of the flooding experienced
in the Valencia region of Spain during 2024. The year also
saw more than 4 billion people take part in elections, in which
digital media dominated much of the debate, bringing
increased risk and more uncertain outcomes.
In this environment, I am proud that Beazley has played its
part as a leading, global specialty insurer to add real value to
businesses around the world. We provided them with effective
risk transfer and management to reduce and mitigate threats
or, in the worst case scenario, provided them with financial
support to get back on their feet.
Businesses need global, specialty insurance expertise
In our Risk & Resilience research with 3,500 senior managers
of risk across the world, they tell us that in recent years their
businesses have consistently felt risk is rising while their
resilience is diminishing.
Beazley’s purpose is to help all our stakeholders explore,
create and build. It is clear that, as a specialty insurer, we are
an increasingly vital asset to businesses. This goes beyond
simply transferring risk to our balance sheet, to supporting
economic progress by delivering risk management advice and
protection. The result is growing demand for our insurance
and reinsurance products. This offers an opportunity for us to
leverage demand-led growth to extend our brand of specialty
insurance to an expanding global pool of insured risks.
We aim to offer continuity of cover for our clients, create
innovative products and services for our broker partners,
and ensure we deliver strong profitability for our shareholders.
Our approach to underwriting combines active management of
the insurance cycle with providing a diverse set of insurance
products. Focused selection of risks means we were able to
deliver our strongest ever full-year result for 2024, achieving
a profit before tax of $1,423.5m (2023: $1,254.4m) despite
an active external loss environment.
We are committed to managing our capital by investing in
future profitable growth and capital distribution. Following the
2023 results, we announced a $325m share buyback, which
was concluded in September 2024. I am delighted to say that
the strong result in 2024 allows us to launch a share buyback
of $500m. Furthermore, we believe the strength of our results
supports a one-off rebasing of the ordinary dividend by 76%
to 25p.
06
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Board evolution, strengthening expertise
During 2024, we saw further maturation of the Board. First,
we have a strong group of Non-Executive Directors from whom
we are able to draw on their market and corporate experience
to guide our decision-making. During 2024, specific mention
goes to Pierre-Olivier Desaulle who became our new Senior
Independent Non-Executive Director, following Christine
LaSala’s retirement.
Second, we were pleased that Carolyn Johnson, who brings a
wealth of experience in the North American market, joined the
plc Board and became Chair of our North American business.
Third, we are actively "future proofing" our Group structure by
invigorating our three platforms as they become increasingly
important to our ability to access risk globally. We have
strengthened our leadership and governance in North America,
Europe and in London Wholesale, ensuring ongoing access to
business across these platforms, enabling continued strong
relationships with our brokers and insureds. Just as important
is effective engagement with our regulators in each geography
as we continue to strengthen our risk management
infrastructure to ensure it is effective now and in the future.
Confidence in the future
I am proud of the entire team at Beazley. A pride that is
rightly demonstrated by our ranking as the 5th best business
globally for sustainable growth by TIME magazine. This
ranking includes the measurement of growth, profits and
sustainability, a combination which clearly reflects our value
and historic, long-term success, and allows us to anticipate
the opportunities ahead for your Company.
Achieving this excellent result for 2024 was due to the hard
work by Beazley’s talented team, guided by our experienced
Board of Directors. I would like to thank them all for their
continued efforts, which demonstrate our values of “Being
Bold, Doing the Right Thing and Striving for Better”.
As we look ahead, we remain focused on delivering on our
promises to you, our investors, and to all our stakeholders,
which includes our broker partners and clients, together with
our outstanding team at Beazley. I am grateful for the ongoing
support of all of you and I am confident in our shared future.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
07
Group Chief Executive Officer’s statement
"The robustness of our
business model ensures
we continue to achieve
strong results as market
conditions change."
Adrian Cox
Group Chief Executive Officer
The power of expertise
Resilient business model delivers in 2024
2024 saw Beazley deliver our highest ever profit before tax of
$1,423.5m (2023: $1,254.4m) for the full year and I am
proud of the work of our team across the Company in
achieving this strong outcome.
This result was delivered in a year with a significant global IT
outage, an active hurricane season and ongoing geopolitical
volatility, illustrating the resilience of our business. We
achieved an undiscounted Combined Ratio (COR) of 79.0%
(2023: 74.0%) and, during the year, were able to improve our
COR guidance to the market given the positive performance
of our business. We saw ongoing demand-led growth for our
specialty insurance products, achieving 10.0% Insurance
Written Premium (IWP) growth* for 2024 (2023: 6.8%),
even as the rating environment continued to stabilise.
Our comprehensive understanding of our underwriting
landscape means we were able to give early information and
reassurance to our investors about our exposure to the global
IT outage and hurricanes Helene and Milton. These events,
whilst causing significant market losses and devastating for
those in the front line, remained within our risk appetite and
are testimony to the strength of our underwriting capabilities
and the quality of our risk selection. The January 2025
California Wildfires were another significant market event and
one which further demonstrates the increasingly volatile,
complex and changing risk environment we are operating in.
Our initial estimate of exposure to this event is around $80m.
*Beazley Staff Underwriting Limited's participation in syndicate 623 at Lloyd’s, is now fully
consolidated within the Group accounts on a line-by-line basis due to an increase in
materiality. Excluding the impact of this consolidation of premium, growth for the year would
have been 8.5% on a gross basis and 8.2% on a net basis.
Product-led approach underpinned by platform strength
The robustness of our business model ensures we continue to
achieve strong results as market conditions change. This is built
on a strategic framework which champions underwriting agility
through product, sector and geographic diversification to actively
manage the cycle. We have a product suite designed to access
pools of risk that are growing, driven by increasing demand from
our clients and broker partners, particularly where the risks they
face are complex, volatile or changing.
Our three platforms in North America and Europe, and global
Wholesale are enabling us to be close to our clients and
brokers, strengthening relationships and ensuring we are able
to understand the risks they face. We are investing for the
long term into these entities, expanding our teams,
capabilities and local knowledge in each market. Our presence
across the three platforms allows us to deliver our specialty
proposition, where it is most valuable. In October, Bethany
Greenwood, Group Head of Specialty Risks, took over as Chair
of our Wholesale Committee. We have executive management
oversight on all three of our platforms, with Fred Kleiterp
heading up Europe and Lou Ann Layton overseeing our
business in North America. Today the premium written on our
three platforms is split: Wholesale (Lloyd’s) 49%, North
America 43% and Europe 8%.
In North America, our Excess & Surplus (E&S) lines carrier
saw continued growth in its first full year in business, as
brokers sought more expertise and help with increasingly
complex risks that this specialist marketplace is ideally suited
to deal with. This is further proof of our commitment to the
North American marketplace, with our team of more than
1,000 colleagues, based in 15 offices across the continental
US and Canada, writing IWP of more than $2bn.
08
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Our European business made great strides forward in 2024
and we now have a team of 200 colleagues across four
country clusters, with country managers appointed in France,
Germany, Spain and the UK. The continued investment we
are making is driving growing awareness of our capabilities
and subsequent demand for the specialist lines of business
in which we concentrate, such as cyber and
management liability.
The Wholesale platform remains a leader at Lloyd’s. In this
subscription market, where multiple insurers participate in
risk sharing, we believe automatic-follow solutions, where a
market leader’s underwriting is automatically followed, bring
welcome efficiency. Beazley was an early mover in the follow
market for facilities and consortia via Smart Tracker syndicate
5623. During 2024, we took an additional step into the follow
market in a new partnership with Ki, where we are learning
more about follow-only algorithmic underwriting for open
market business. Lloyd’s is traditionally a subscription
marketplace where risk is syndicated between lead and follow
underwriters, providing capacity for complex and large risks.
In recent years, we have seen the emergence of "Follow"
underwriting models, providing automatic dedicated follow
capacity for facilitised, digital or algorithmically
traded portfolios.
Leadership and innovation
Developing an effective market for cyber catastrophe
reinsurance is vital if we are to create a cyber insurance
market capable of meeting demand from business. Having
launched the market’s first cyber catastrophe bond in 2023,
we followed this with a further bond at the start of this year.
With three tranches issued during the course of 2024, cyber
catastrophe bonds now provide $510m of cover. In October
2024, we issued the market’s largest and first cyber industry
loss warranty (ILW), providing $290m of cover should industry
losses exceed $9bn. Together with traditional reinsurance,
we have $1bn of cyber catastrophe reinsurance in place,
providing powerful protection for our business and
demonstrating the innovation needed to drive this
market forward.
In June, Beazley Security was launched, bringing together our
in-house Cyber Services team and our wholly owned cyber
security company Lodestone. Beazley Security is a key
component in our Full Spectrum Cyber offering, which
incorporates integrated risk management services and cyber
insurance. Our experience shows that not only are our clients
better able to pre-empt, respond and adapt to cyber threats,
but by keeping them one step ahead we are also effectively
managing our own underwriting outcome, as demonstrated
by our Cyber Risks combined ratio of 64.4% (2023: 68.3%).
Talent and expertise
During 2024, we continued to strengthen our senior team,
with the appointment of Liz Ashford as our Chief People and
Sustainability Officer and Barbara Plucnar Jensen as our
Group Chief Financial Officer.
I was also delighted that Paul Bantick stepped up to become
Group Chief Underwriting Officer, following Bob Quane’s
retirement. Paul is an outstanding insurance leader, who has
driven the growth of our Cyber Risks business and the ongoing
development and maturation of the global cyber insurance
market. Alessandro Lezzi succeeded Paul as Group Head of
Cyber Risks from the start of 2025, and joins the Executive
Committee. Alessandro has a strong track record at Beazley,
having built out our International Cyber business.
I am pleased to note that our in-house talent, together with
our ability to attract outstanding new colleagues to Beazley,
means we are able to appoint high-calibre people to positions
throughout the business.
We work hard to retain and develop our people, and our
incentive schemes, including profit-related pay for all of our
underwriters and long-term incentive and Save-As-You-Earn
schemes, allow everyone to share in the Company’s success.
Expertise is at the heart of handling complex claims that arise
from specialty underwriting, and this is demonstrated by our
multi-award winning claims team, which in January 2025 was
awarded the Outstanding Service Quality mark by Gracechurch
for the 9th year in a row.
Sustainability
Our sustainability strategy reflects the range of work we are
engaged in across the sustainability landscape. Our three
point framework - responsibly managing our business,
supporting our clients in the transition and delivering success
by doing the right thing - ensures that sustainability is an
integral part of what we do every day in a way that is right for
our business and meets the needs of all stakeholders.
Whilst we are actively tracking our progress ourselves, it is
pleasing to be recognised for the success of our efforts. This
year, we were ranked the 5th best business globally, and the
highest in the UK, for sustainable growth by TIME magazine,
a measure which assesses growth compared with peers,
profitability and commitment to sustainability.
Outlook
I am excited to once again deliver a record profit. This level of
success, even as 2024 offered a challenging risk landscape
and a moderating rating environment, is testament to the
talent and hard work of the entire Beazley team as well as the
support of our broker partners and the ongoing commitment
of our investors. I am grateful to all of you and look forward
to what we will achieve together in 2025.
There is significant long-term opportunity for our business in
this era of accelerating risk, which means our clients need our
expertise and strong underwriting capabilities. And, as we
demonstrated again in 2024, Beazley is a market leader that
can deliver against that opportunity as we move forward.
We do operate in a cyclical market and one where conditions
can change quickly. The industry continues to navigate an
active claims environment, including recent natural
catastrophe activity which could result in the pricing outlook
evolving. However our central expectation at this time is that
prices will continue to soften this year, and we are forecasting
mid-single digit growth for 2025. Accounting for the provision
already made in respect of the January 2025 Wildfires, we
expect to deliver a mid-80s undiscounted combined ratio.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
09
Group Chief Underwriting Officer’s report
"We deliver what I believe
is the best end to end
underwriting and claims
experience in the
Specialty market."
Paul Bantick
Group Chief Underwriting Officer
Long-term outperformance
I am proud to have taken the role of Group Chief Underwriting
Officer and to be leading such an outstanding underwriting
team, which I have had the privilege of working with for the
past two decades.
In 2024, the team once again delivered an excellent
insurance service result of $1,236.0m (2023: $1,251.0m)
and IWP growth of 10.0%. Against a backdrop of significant
loss events and a moderating rating environment, the result
speaks to the active cycle management and focus on risk
selection that we have embedded at Beazley.
Our underwriting is focused on delivering long-term
outperformance, which we achieve by actively managing the
insurance market cycle, building diversification across a broad
suite of products and geographies, and effective, careful risk
selection. This is combined with a passion for innovation and
a focus on commerciality that puts the needs of our broker
partners and clients at its heart. Combined with our award
winning claims team, we deliver what I believe is the best
end to end underwriting and claims experience in the
Specialty market.
I am delighted that this talented team has built a strong
succession pipeline, which sees Alessandro Lezzi step up to
succeed me as Group Head of Cyber Risks. We have worked
together for nearly two decades at the forefront of developing
and growing the global cyber insurance market and I am
excited to see how Alessandro will take the team even
further. James Wright has been appointed Head of Digital
Underwriting and, under his experienced leadership, his team
will be extending digital technology and distribution across our
underwriting operations.
Insurance written premiums
2024
2023
$m
$m
Cyber Risks
1,275.9
1,184.3
Digital
246.6
227.5
MAP Risks
950.3
964.3
Property Risks
1,703.2
1,351.9
Specialty Risks
1,988.1
1,873.4
Total
6,164.1
5,601.4
10
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Net insurance written premiums
2024
2023
$m
$m
Cyber Risks
860.5
912.9
Digital
207.0
202.4
MAP Risks
859.3
851.6
Property Risks
1,454.9
1,157.3
Specialty Risks
1,770.6
1,572.0
Total
5,152.3
4,696.2
Active cycle management
We continually assess the evolving geopolitical,
environmental and technological landscape, and evaluate
economic and insurance market conditions to determine
opportunities and risks.
During 2024, this approach saw us continue to lean into
the Property market, which saw strong growth of 26.0%.
The teams' expertise and market insights have enabled the
division to achieve these growth levels despite a reduction
in rate increases to 1.3%, down from the very notable
increase of 22.4% seen in 2023.
Our assessment of market conditions continued to make
us cautious in classes impacted by social inflation, where
we maintain our robust approach to managing the cycle.
Our ability to move with agility as market conditions evolve
ensures we are able to remain relevant to our clients and
brokers over the long-term whilst ensuring the profitability
of our business.
Underwriting innovation
Product diversity is further enhanced by innovation, which
sees us identify new and emerging categories of risk and
create solutions for them. For example, our Safeguard
product, which helps organisations protect their people
from or mitigates the impacts of sexual abuse incidents,
reached its 10-year milestone in 2024. It is designed to
help organisations take preventative action and avoid
incidents and, having identified the need more than a
decade ago, we have pioneered and led this relatively new
class of insurance which helps protect institutions and
society from harm.
In addition to traditional insurance indemnification, clients
increasingly want help in managing the full spectrum of
risks they face to avoid any gaps in cover. At the same
time, our broker partners are telling us they are seeking
higher capacity limits for their clients as the risk landscape
becomes increasingly complex. To meet these needs, we
use our leading market position to lead consortium
arrangements, and two notable examples in 2024 were
Beazley FLEX and Beazley Quantum.
Beazley FLEX addresses the full range of crime,
professional and cyber risks that financial institutions face
and brings together our financial institutions and cyber
experts to lead the consortium.
Beazley Quantum provides comprehensive cover for large
corporates with up to a $100m limit, bringing much needed
additional capacity to large businesses which are in the
front line of the cyber threat.
In both instances, the consortium offers access to
our market, leading Full Spectrum Cyber capabilities,
which combine all of Beazley's cyber risk management
and underwriting capabilities into the market’s only
end-to-end cyber solution that brings together cyber
insurance and security.
During the year, we looked closely at the new business
opportunities and efficiency gains that follow underwriting
can deliver, through ongoing success with Smart Tracker
syndicate 5623 and with the start of a new partnership
with Ki algorithmic underwriting.
As we moved through the year, we began to see the real
benefits that AI will bring to our underwriting and claims
teams, and we also continued to look closely to identify
new risks, including the threat of AI-washing or the risk that
companies overstate the benefits the technology will bring
to their operations. We expect to see improved
understanding of the risks and the opportunities of AI
continue to come through in 2025.
Despite a challenging and volatile claims environment,
our success in 2024 is based on our fundamental values,
focus on underwriting excellence and effective risk
management of our business, which is driving real value
for our brokers and clients.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
11
Group Chief Underwriting Officer’s report continued
Cyber Risks
Our strong COR of 64.4% in a year of moderating pricing
demonstrates both our cyber expertise and that the rate
environment remains adequate. We experienced
competition in the international markets during the year as
they entered the next phase of maturity. However, the
three major IT outages experienced during 2024 provided a
reminder of the scale of risk that cyber threats from malign
or non-malicious sources pose to businesses. In the US,
this experience resulted in a reduction in the intensity of
competitive rating pressures.
Cyber Risks retained its leadership role in the global cyber
insurance market in 2024, with the creation of new cyber
reinsurance capacity, in the form of additional catastrophe
bonds and the launch of the market’s largest cyber ILW.
These innovations, together with our probabilistic modelling
approach for cyber, ensure that Beazley has strong
protection across its cyber business.
The most significant achievement of the year was
the creation of Full Spectrum Cyber and, as part of it,
Beazley Security, our wholly owned cyber security firm.
Together they deliver the market’s first end-to-end cyber
security and insurance protection solution, ensuring clients
have effective cyber insurance coupled with pre-emptive
and responsive cyber security intelligence.
Beazley also played its part in building a robust modelling
framework for cyber catastrophes during 2024, following a
year-long collaboration with Munich Re and Gallagher Re on
the modelling of cyber accumulation risk from significant
malware events. The published white paper is freely
available to anyone interested in cyber modelling.
Please see our website "Cyber realistic disaster scenario
development and modelling" for further information.
Looking ahead, we anticipate continuing demand-led
growth in our international segment. The mid to small
end of the market in the US will see ongoing opportunity
as businesses seek to protect themselves from the ever-
changing cyber threat.
Digital
Digital trading is accelerating as we continue to invest, and
our broker partners are also doing the same, to increase
the use of technology across the underwriting and claims
process. During 2024, this continued to drive an increase
in submissions via our digital trading platforms in all
geographies. At the same time, we also saw an increase
in competition across all lines of our specialist insurance
offering, which serves small businesses.
As digital trading of cyber risks continued to expand, we
increased our line size available digitally, focusing on the
US and Germany, and resulting in growing submissions.
We expect to see the continued roll out of technology
across our three platforms and right through our
underwriting divisions as digital solutions increasingly
become business as usual for Beazley.
MAP Risks
MAP achieved a COR of 80.9%, based on a continued
positive rating environment, of which ongoing geopolitical
uncertainty is a key driver.
This has been particularly true of the political risk and
political violence segment, where demand remains
consistently strong and where we remain steadfast in our
support of our clients, but always exercise caution given
the level of unpredictability.
Ongoing volatility is resulting in businesses identifying
gaps in cover and seeking comprehensive solutions.
In particular, we are experiencing growing demand for
our Deadly Weapons Protection product, which offers
risk management and prevention expertise, alongside
indemnity and recovery advice, to protect clients from the
worst impacts of attacks involving deadly weapons.
During the year, the marine market has had to navigate
a number of challenges, including the Baltimore Bridge
disaster, the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle
East, and more specifically the targeting of vessels trading
through the Red Sea. The Market’s success over the
preceding years has encouraged competition to enter,
particularly in Hull & Cargo, where we are seeing rates
falling away, while the experience of the bridge collapse
is generating a somewhat more stable rating environment
for marine liability.
Our renewables business took off in 2024, growing its
relevance and presence with brokers. This is part of a long-
term investment we are making into this growth energy
business as part of our commitment to supporting clients
in the transition, which includes investigating insurance
solutions for the development of nuclear fusion.
During the last 12 months, we have also grown our
position within the Lead/Follow underwriting arena in
Lloyd's. As the market leader with Smart Tracker syndicate
5623, we act as a lead insurer on facilities and support
over 30 consortia arrangements, with both mechanisms
bringing much needed efficiencies and additional capacity
to the market.
There is no indication that geopolitical uncertainty is
receding and we have increased our reserves to reflect this.
Looking ahead, we believe we will see ongoing demand for
our products and services, which we will be building out into
the European markets during the year ahead.
12
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Property Risks
Property Risks saw strong momentum during the year,
growing IWP by 26.0%. Rate increases persisted but, as
anticipated, at a lower level than in the previous year, at
1.3% (2023: 22.4%). Demand for our expertise continued,
particularly in North America, where we have worked over
recent years to better understand the impact of a changing
climate on property risks. As a result of our onshore E&S
carrier we have increased proximity to our brokers and
clients, leading to an enhanced new business pipeline.
2024 brought yet more experience of extreme weather,
notably an active Atlantic hurricane season, reminding
the market of the importance of a sustainable approach
to underwriting which is focused on risk quality and
rate adequacy.
Individual regional markets that saw significant impacts
from natural catastrophe activity, such as the Southeastern
US, Canada and Europe, are all now experiencing stronger
rating increases.
As the climate continues to change we have seen an
increase in the frequency and severity of catastrophic
events and demand for specialist property insurance.
As we move into 2025, we see further opportunity for
organic growth of our specialist products and services that
support our clients and brokers to navigate this volatile risk
landscape. We will continue our long-term investment in
property underwriting including additional capabilities,
notably in Europe and Asia.
Specialty Risks
Specialty Risks COR of 79.2% reflects strong underwriting
skill and how our highly diversified book, spread over more
than 25 lines of business in multiple geographies with
varying insured sizes, continues to deliver success.
As a result, we achieved 6.1% IWP growth, driven
by the maturation of our niche lines of business,
which are becoming meaningful contributors to our
overall proposition.
Highly specialised lines of insurance, such as
Environmental Liability, our Programmes business and
Safeguard, contributed positively. In Directors & Officers
(D&O), we are now seeing early signs that rates are
stabilising and are narrowing to flat, although we maintain
a laser-like focus on rate adequacy.
Effectively managing the cycle also means that we are
constantly assessing where social inflation is undermining
the long-term viability of insurance and, where needed
we will take the difficult decision to reduce or pull
back altogether.
We are actively watching capital markets activity with signs
of a pickup in activity in 2025. More capital markets and
mergers & acquisitions (M&A) activity creates demand
for insurance products such as D&O and Environmental
Liability during the course of transactions and we stand
ready to support the market.
Our clients face complex problems that often involve
litigation and our focus is on providing them with speciality
products, risk management advice and stable capacity so
that they can get on with the task of running a successful
business and we are optimistic of the opportunities to
deliver that in 2025.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
13
Performance by division
Strong underwriting performance across all of our divisions
Our market-leading Cyber
offering protects businesses
against cyber threats by building
resilience and minimising risk.
Beazley is a pioneer in cyber
insurance and has led the
development of the cyber
Insurance Linked Securities (ILS)
market. Our Full Spectrum Cyber
ecosystem protects clients
before, during and after a cyber
incident and also includes our
wholly owned cyber security
company, Beazley Security.
Portfolio mix
2024
2023
Cyber
83 %
81 %
Technology
Errors &
Omissions
17 %
19 %
2024
$m
2023
$m
Insurance
written
premiums
1,275.9 1,184.3
Net insurance
written
premiums
860.5
912.9
Segment result
355.4
307.4
Claims ratio
39.4 %
42.2 %
Expense ratio
25.0 %
26.1 %
Combined ratio
64.4 %
68.3 %
Undiscounted
combined ratio
68.1%
72.3%
Rate change
(5.5) %
(5.1) %
Digital offers cross-class
specialist digital underwriting
capabilities to the small
business market. It gives brokers
one Beazley point of contact,
supported by a cross-functional
team, to access multiple product
lines and digital services via their
preferred platform or channel.
Portfolio mix
2024
2023
Cyber
87 %
75 %
Specialty
7 %
17 %
Marine
4 %
4 %
Contingency
2 %
4 %
2024
$m
2023
$m
Insurance
written
premiums
246.6
227.5
Net insurance
written
premiums
207.0
202.4
Segment result
57.1
59.4
Claims ratio
28.7 %
23.4 %
Expense ratio
45.6 %
44.9 %
Combined ratio
74.3 %
68.3 %
Undiscounted
combined ratio
77.3%
69.7%
Rate change
(3.2) %
0.5 %
14
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Beazley's Marine, Aviation,
Political, Accident, Contingency
and Portfolio underwriting come
together in MAP risks.
These highly specialist classes
are mainly underwritten on a
wholesale basis and our expert
underwriters are predominantly
the market leader.
Portfolio mix
2024
2023
Marine
53 %
47 %
Political
15 %
12 %
Accident
14 %
15 %
Contingency
10 %
8 %
Portfolio
Underwriting
8 %
18 %
2024
$m
2023
$m
Insurance
written
premiums
950.3
964.3
Net insurance
written
premiums
859.3
851.6
Segment result
182.6
158.2
Claims ratio
44.2 %
40.6 %
Expense ratio
36.7 %
37.9 %
Combined ratio
80.9 %
78.5 %
Undiscounted
combined ratio
83.2%
79.3%
Rate change
1.3 %
5.6 %
Bringing together our direct and
reinsurance Property underwriting,
the division gives strategic insight
at both site and high-level trends,
delivering a bird's eye view of
property market dynamics.
Business is underwritten around
the globe, with an emphasis on
North American-based property
risks.
Portfolio mix
2024
2023
Commercial
Property
49 %
57 %
Treaty
21 %
22 %
Jewellers &
Homeowners
15 %
8 %
Small Property
Business
15 %
13 %
2024
$m
2023
$m
Insurance
written
premiums
1,703.2 1,351.9
Net insurance
written
premiums
1,454.9 1,157.3
Segment result
391.2
354.7
Claims ratio
41.9 %
35.4 %
Expense ratio
31.0 %
29.8 %
Combined ratio
72.9 %
65.2 %
Undiscounted
combined ratio
74.6%
66.7%
Rate change
1.3%
22.4 %
Specialty Risks supports clients
to deal with the consequences
of incidents and issues that can
lead to litigation and/or regulatory
action. It offers scale and
diversification across more than 25
different product lines, including
D&0, M&A, Environmental Liability
and specialist insurance for the life
sciences industries.
Portfolio mix
2024
2023
Executive Risks
24 %
26 %
Professions*
22 %
20 %
International
Specialties
15 %
19 %
Healthcare
15 %
15 %
Global Treaty
13 %
11 %
Specialties and US
programmes
11 %
9 %
2024
$m
2023
$m
Insurance
written
premiums
1,988.1
1,873.4
Net insurance
written
premiums
1,770.6
1,572.0
Segment
result
476.5
415.3
Claims ratio
47.5 %
41.9 %
Expense ratio
31.7 %
30.8 %
Combined ratio
79.2 %
72.7 %
Undiscounted
combined ratio
87.1%
78.4%
Rate change
1.4 %
(0.9) %
*
this includes Environmental and
M&A
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
15
Group Chief Financial Officer’s statement
"We aim to deliver a consistent financial
performance by exercising underwriting
discipline to ensure rate adequacy as well as
deploying capital across our diversified
portfolio in areas which allow us to deliver a
strong return"
Barbara Plucnar Jensen
Group Chief Financial Officer
The value of a specialty insurer
I am very pleased to have joined Beazley as Group Chief
Financial Officer in what has been an incredibly successful
year for our Company, marked by such strong financial results.
Our record pre-tax profit of $1,423.5m (2023: $1,254.4m)
was delivered, despite an active claims environment and
experiencing moderating rates. However, given the significant
rate increases across many areas of our book in recent years,
we remain confident on pricing adequacy at an overall Group
level. The delivery of an undiscounted combined ratio (COR)
of 79.0% (2023: 74.0% undiscounted) is demonstrative of
our ability to effectively manage the cyclical nature of our
business whilst maintaining strong results. Our investments
also made an important contribution to our overall
performance, with an income of $574.4m (2023: $480.2m),
which represents a return of 5.2% (2023: 4.9%).
Consistent financial performance through the cycle
The return on equity for the year was 26.6% (2023: 30.0%).
As a specialty insurer, the risks we underwrite are volatile,
complex and changing. However, we aim to deliver a
consistent financial performance by exercising underwriting
discipline to ensure rate adequacy as well as deploying capital
across our diversified portfolio in areas which allow us to
deliver a strong return.
Whilst the nature of our business is cyclical, predictability
of our results is important to us and we target a cross-cycle
return on equity (ROE) of 15%. Our average return on equity
across the last 10 years is 15.5%, with a five-year average
of 17.7%. This has been achieved despite COVID losses in
2020, an extraordinary year in terms of losses and the only
year in the Company's history which did not generate a profit.
This demonstrates the very strong underwriting discipline
which ensures sustainability of our financial performance
through the cycle.
Cross-Cycle ROE1, 2
Investment ROE
Insurance ROE
ROE
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
(30)%
(15)%
—%
15%
30%
1
2014 - 2021 - calculated on IFRS 4 basis, 2022 - 2024 calculated on IFRS 17 basis.
2
Investment and Insurance (including other income) ROE has been calculated based on the contribution which each provided to profit before tax in the year.
16
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Financial review
Capital structure
Effective capital utilisation
When deciding on the appropriate level of capital, we consider
several criteria: firstly, we aim to maintain a solvency ratio
in excess of 170% of solvency capital requirement (SCR).
We also seek to absorb volatility to ensure financial resilience
should a 1-in-250 event occur as well as assessing the
impact of interest rate movements. Finally, we consider the
opportunities for growth, which encompass the business plan
for the following year as well as the opportunities for growth in
the medium term (subsequent 1-2 years) whilst ensuring we
can swiftly take advantage of rising unforeseen opportunities.
In the past, our primary focus has been on organic growth,
particularly in recent years given the extraordinary market
conditions across many lines of our business. However,
we are open to opportunities for organic and/or acquisitive
growth where it aligns with our strategy and competence.
The growth in our company in recent years combined with
the current market conditions may foster more relevant
prospects in this space, allowing us to explore suitable
acquisition opportunities like those we have executed in
the past, continuously demonstrating a desire to balance
prudence and maximise returns for investors.
We deploy capital where we can generate most value, and are
committed to return any surplus capital to our shareholders.
We have grown significantly in recent years, and to reflect this
growth and our confidence in the sustainability of our results,
we have decided to rebase our ordinary dividend by 76% to
25.0p to be paid on 2 May 2025. We will also commence a
share buyback of $500m.
Our aim is to continue to deliver value to our shareholders
while navigating the dynamic market landscape. Looking
ahead, we remain committed to maintaining a strong capital
discipline. We make decisions to support value creation.
Whilst ensuring consistency and predictability in our results,
we intend to continue to leverage our strong financial
foundation to drive sustainable growth.
Capital structure
Given the global business and structure of Beazley, the
Group and subsidiaries need to adhere to several regulatory
requirements. Capital is required to support underwriting at
Lloyd’s, in the US and through our European branches, and
is subject to prudential regulation by local regulators (the
Prudential Regulation Authority, Lloyd’s, the Central Bank
of Ireland (CBI), and the US state level supervisors). Beazley
is subject to the capital adequacy requirements of the
European Union (EU) Solvency II regime.
The capitalisation ensures we achieve adequate ratings from
A.M. Best and Fitch for Beazley Insurance Company, Inc.
(BICI), Beazley America Insurance Company Inc. (BAIC),
Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance Company, Inc (BESI),
and Beazley Insurance dac (BIDAC) in order to be able to
conduct business freely with our preferred client base.
As of 31 December 2024, our Solvency II coverage is
estimated at 264% (31 December 2023: 219%, net of
announced share buybacks and dividends). The capital
requirement (SCR) is established using our Solvency II
approved internal model approved by the CBI and reflects
the business we expect to write through to the end of 2025
as per our business plan, which is targeting gross growth
of mid single digits.
The projected year-end Group Solvency II ratio of 264% takes
into account the ordinary dividend of 25.0p and share
buyback of $500m.
2024
Estimate*
2023
$m
$m
Eligible Tier 1 capital
4,291.3 3,980.9
Eligible Tier 2 capital
564.9
520.8
Total Solvency II eligible own funds
4,856.2 4,501.7
Capital requirement
1,837.1 2,058.2
Group Solvency II ratio
264 %
219 %
*The final 2024 ratio is subject to review and audit and will be published in
the Group 2024 Solvency and Financial Condition Report (SFCR).
Our funding comes from a mixture of Tier 1 basic own funds
and $564.9m of Tier 2 own funds. This is predominantly
$552.2m of Tier 2 subordinated debt ($550.0m after
capitalised borrowing costs and fair value adjustments).
Both Tier 2 subordinated debt issuances in 2016 and 2019
are issued by BIDAC, which maintains an Insurer Financial
Strength (IFS) rating of "A+" by Fitch.
Scenario sensitivity analysis
The table below shows the impact on the Group’s estimated
Solvency II ratio as of 31 December 2024 in the event of the
scenarios shown. The impact on the Group’s Solvency II ratio
could arise from movements in both the Group’s SCR and
own funds.
Scenario
Impact on
Solvency II
ratio
Cyber 1-in-250 Cyber scenario*
(29) %
Nat Cat 1-in-250 Combined scenario
(31) %
50 bps decrease in interest rates**
(12) %
• Based on Cyber Probabilistic Model.
** This considers the impact on the SCR in isolation to the impact on
eligible own funds.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
17
Financial review continued
Capital structure continued
Group structure
The Group operates across Europe, Asia, Canada and the US
through a variety of legal entities and structures. As at 31
December 2024, the main entities within the legal entity
structure are as follows:
• Beazley plc – Group holding company, listed on the London
Stock Exchange;
• Beazley Ireland Holdings plc – intermediate holding
company;
• Beazley Underwriting Limited – corporate member at Lloyd’s
providing all capital to syndicates 2623, 3622 and 3623,
and 20% of capital to 5623 (2023:18%);
• Beazley Staff Underwriting Limited – corporate member at
Lloyd's providing approximately 9% of the capital to
syndicate 623;
• Beazley Furlonge Limited – managing agency for the seven
syndicates managed by the Group 623, 2623, 3622, 3623,
4321, 5623 and 6107;
• BIDAC – insurance company based in Ireland that acts as
an internal group reinsurer, and also writes business
directly in Europe;
• Syndicate 2623 – a Lloyd’s syndicate through which the
Group underwrites its general insurance business excluding
life and portfolio underwriting. Business is written in parallel
with syndicate 623;
• Syndicate 3622 – a Lloyd’s syndicate through which
the Group underwrites its life insurance and
reinsurance business;
• Syndicate 3623 – a Lloyd’s syndicate which underwrote
business through our North American coverholders in 2024;
• Syndicate 5623 – a Lloyd’s syndicate through which the
Group underwrites across a diverse mix of classes via its
portfolio underwriting business;
• Syndicate 4321 – a Lloyd's syndicate which focused on
writing business on a consortium basis led by syndicate
2623/623 based on environmental, social and governance
(sustainability) scores of insureds, now in run-off;
• Syndicate 623 – a Lloyd’s syndicate which has its capital
supplied by third-party names and Beazley Staff
Underwriting Limited;
• Syndicate 6107 – special purpose Lloyd's syndicate writing
cyber reinsurance ceded from syndicates 623 and 2623 on
behalf of third-party names;
• BAIC – admitted insurance company regulated in the US.
• BICI – admitted insurance company regulated in the US.
Licensed to write insurance business in all 50 states;
• Beazley USA Services, Inc. (BUSA) – service company based
in West Hartford, Connecticut. Underwrites business on
behalf of Syndicate 3623, BICI, BESI and BAIC;
• Beazley NewCo Captive Company, Inc. – provides internal
reinsurance to BICI on older accident years; and
• BESI – insurance company regulated in the US to write
surplus lines business.
18
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Group performance
Result
We are proud to have delivered an outstanding profit before
tax of $1,423.5m (2023: $1,254.4m). This was achieved
through a combination of strong performance on both the
insurance and investment results. An insurance service result
of $1,236.0m (2023: $1,251.0m), driven by an undiscounted
combined ratio of 79.0% (2023: 74.0%), together with net
investment income of $574.4m (2023: $480.2m), which
represents an investment return of 5.2% (2023: 4.9%),
delivering record profits for a second year in a row.
Premiums
Insurance written premiums increased by 10.0% in 2024 to
$6,164.1m (2023: $5,601.4m). The Group participates in
the underwriting of syndicate 623 on behalf of the staff
underwriting incentive scheme, with the return generated from
this participation previously recognised as "other income".
From the 2024 year of account onwards, this participation has
been fully consolidated into the Group accounts on a line by
line basis given the increase in the relative materiality of the
return generated. This recognition is effective from the year
end 2024 onwards and contributes to the overall 10% growth
achieved on insurance premium written in 2024. Excluding the
impact of this, insurance written premiums grew by 8.5% in
2024. Rates on renewal business on average decreased by
0.5% across the portfolio (2023: increased by 4.3%); however,
we remain confident in the level of rate adequacy we are
seeing from an overall Group perspective, particularly against
a backdrop of extraordinary rate increases within Property
Risks and Cyber Risks in recent years.
Our net insurance written premiums increased by 9.7% in
2024 to $5,152.3m (2023: $4,696.2m). Excluding the impact
of consolidating the internal Staff Underwriting Scheme, net
insurance written premium grew by 8.2%. The alignment in
gross and net growth follows an increase in reinsurance
spend in the second half of the year, following an opportunity
identified to further manage our cyber catastrophe exposure
by placing additional cyber catastrophe bonds as well as
an ILW. We are committed to actively encouraging the
development of the alternative risk transfer market for cyber,
which will support the structural growth expected in the cyber
insurance market in the coming years.
Statement of profit or loss
2024
2023
$m
$m
Insurance service result
1,236.0
1,251.0
Net investment income
574.4
480.2
Net insurance finance expense
(55.9)
(153.4)
Net insurance and financial result
1,754.5
1,577.8
Other income
106.0
78.5
Operating expenses
(388.6)
(365.8)
Foreign exchange (losses)/gains
(9.1)
4.5
Finance costs
(39.3)
(40.6)
Profit before tax
1,423.5
1,254.4
Income tax expense
(293.2)
(227.6)
Profit after tax
1,130.3
1,026.8
Claims ratio
43.1 %
39.4 %
Expense ratio
31.7 %
31.6 %
Combined ratio
74.8 %
71.0 %
Rate (decrease)/increase
(0.5) %
4.3 %
Investment return
5.2 %
4.9 %
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
19
Financial review continued
Group performance continued
Statement of profit or loss
Insurance type
2024
2023
Insurance
91 %
92 %
Reinsurance
9 %
8 %
Premiums by division1
1 Based on IWP.
2024
2023
Cyber Risks
21 %
21 %
Digital Risks
4 %
4 %
MAP Risks
15 %
17 %
Property Risks
28 %
24 %
Specialty Risks
32 %
34 %
Premium written by claim
settlement term
2024
2023
Short tail
59 %
55 %
Long tail
41 %
45 %
Geographical distribution
of premiums2
2
The graph shows the location
in which the insured resides.
2024
2023
Europe
16 %
16 %
Worldwide
23 %
22 %
US
61 %
62 %
20
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Insurance service result
The Group achieved an insurance service result of $1,236.0m
(2023: $1,251.0m). Insurance revenue of $5,678.1m (2023:
$5,442.4m), a 4.3% increase, reflecting the continued growth
of the business during 2024.
During the second half of 2024, a number of natural
catastrophes occurred, including Hurricanes Helene and
Milton, following a reasonably benign hurricane season in
2023. The claims environment remains elevated overall and
in the second half of the year we saw more normalised
claims experience compared with the better than expected
experience in 2023. This resulted in a claims ratio of 43.1%
(2023: 39.4%). The expense ratio remained consistent with
prior year at 31.7% (2023: 31.6%) as we continued to focus
on managing our expenses during the year, whilst continuing
to invest with our technology modernisation programme.
The allocation of reinsurance premium decreased by 32.1%
to $764.9m (2023: $1,127.3m) following a period of actively
purchasing less proportional reinsurance within our Cyber
Risks and Specialty Risks divisions year on year. Amounts
recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims decreased
to $255.8m (2023: $528.5m). As prior year gross claims
estimates have decreased, together with the reduction in
reinsurance coverage purchased, the amounts recoverable
from reinsurers has also reduced. Reinsurers' share of
directly attributable expenses has increased to $4.4m
(2023: $3.6m).
Combined ratio
The combined ratio of an insurance company is a measure
of its performance from transacting (re)insurance contracts.
Under IFRS 17, this represents the ratio of its insurance
service expense less directly attributable expenses and
amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims,
to the total insurance revenue less allocation of reinsurance
premium. This is all on a discounted basis and excludes
operating expenses which are non-directly attributable
and excluded from the insurance service result.
A combined ratio under 100% indicates a profit on the
insurance service result. Beazley has continued to deliver
underwriting profitability with a combined ratio of 74.8% in
2024 (2023: 71.0%). For further information, please see the
APMs section on pages 262-264.
Other income
Other income increased by 35% to $106.0m (2023: $78.5m),
primarily driven by increased income received from third-party
syndicates from a one-off adjustment to realign the
recognition of the operation of an internal Staff Underwriting
Scheme for the 2023 year of account and prior.
Reserve confidence level
Beazley has a consistent reserving philosophy, with initial
reserves being set to include a risk adjustment that may be
released over time as and when any uncertainty reduces.
We maintain a preferred confidence level of between 80th
and 90th percentile. This percentile indicates the strength
of reserves held across both the best estimate and risk
adjustment for non-financial risk. IFRS 17 outlines the key
principles in order to calculate the risk adjustment for non-
financial risk. There are two principles that are particularly
important, and thus worth highlighting. First, the level needs
to be consistent with how Beazley considers the risk at the
point of underwriting. The second principle states that the
risk adjustment level should make the firm neutral to running
off the obligations or selling them.
At the end of 2024, our confidence level was at the 84th
percentile (2023: 85th percentile).
Past service development
Net past service development saw a net release of $(144.5)m
in 2024 (2023: net release of $(109.8)m), which represented
(2.9)% (2023: (2.5)%) of insurance revenue less allocation
of reinsurance premiums. The largest releases were from:
• Property Risks $68.4m (2023: $78.0m); and
• Cyber Risks $63.0m (2023: strengthening $9.9m).
Property and Cyber Risks both experienced favourable
attritional claims experience throughout the year,
supplemented by the release of Cyber catastrophe loads
and benign movements on existing Property catastrophes.
Property has benefited from particularly benign attritional
experience in the US market, and Cyber releases reflect
ongoing positive experience on international risks.
Specialty Risks released $37.7m (2023: $8.1m), due to
sustained favourable attritional claims experience on books
where underwriter action has been taken in previous years.
This is partially offset by strengthening on specific events on
several older underwriting years together with deteriorations
in US health and medical covers partially attributed to ongoing
social inflation.
Digital released $31.1m (2023: $28.0m), driven by favourable
attritional claims experience on the cyber business.
In MAP risks, reserves have been strengthened due to
ongoing geopolitical uncertainty. Despite this, MAP has still
delivered an undiscounted COR of 83.2% and remains a highly
profitable part of our business.
Prior year claims adjustment
2024
2023
Net
$m
$m
Cyber Risks
(63.0)
9.9
Digital
(31.1)
(28.0)
MAP Risks
55.7
(5.6)
Property Risks
(68.4)
(78.0)
Specialty Risks
(37.7)
(8.1)
Total
(144.5)
(109.8)
Release as a percentage of
insurance revenue less allocation
of reinsurance premiums
(2.9) %
(2.5) %
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
21
Financial review continued
Group performance continued
Total expenditure
The expense ratio, which under IFRS 17 only includes
expenses directly attributed to insurance activities,
increased marginally to 31.7% for 2024 (2023: 31.6%).
For 2024, non-directly attributable expenses of $388.6m
(2023: $365.8m) fall outside the insurance result.
Taking these items together, total expenses for 2024
totalled $1,946.7m (2023: $1,728.4m).
We continue to focus on our total expense base, allowing
for additional expenses where aligned to underlying
business growth or to enhancement to our business model.
Together with the focus on our expense base, the reduction
in the total expense ratio to 39.6% (2023: 40.1%) reflects
the costs incurred in the prior year as a result of the
modernisation of our underwriting and finance platforms
as well as enhancing our digital trading capabilities.
Expense ratio (%)
40.1
39.6
31.6
31.7
8.5
7.9
Directly attributable
Operating expenses
2023
2024
0
10
20
30
40
50
Foreign exchange
The majority of Beazley’s business is transacted in US dollars
(80.9%), which is the currency we have reported in since 2010
and the currency in which we aim to hold the Company’s net
assets. Changes in the US dollar exchange rate with sterling,
the Canadian dollar and the euro do have an impact as we
receive premiums in those currencies and a material number
of our staff receive their salary in sterling. Beazley’s foreign
exchange movement, taken through the statement of profit
or loss in 2024, was a $9.1m loss (2023: $4.5m gain).
Investment performance
Beazley’s investment portfolio generated a return of $574.4m,
or 5.2%, in 2024 (2023: a return of $480.2m, or 4.9%).
Our financial assets grew to $11.5bn as at 31 December
2024 (2023: $10.5bn). Returns were again driven by
strong performance from our equity, credit and hedge fund
exposures; and by the level of risk-free yield available in the
market, where the interest rate risk on our assets closely
matches our liabilities.
US GDP growth was surprisingly strong, shaking off high short-
term interest rates to register approximately 3% for 2024, led
by services and consumption. US Government bond yields
were volatile, rising early in the year before falling through Q3,
and rising again in Q4 as financial market participants began
to digest a possible Republican presidential victory and the
Federal Reserve indicated a slower than expected pace of
future cuts. The shape of the yield curve changed, pivoting
around the two-year mark where yields were little changed;
yield on shorter maturities fell, whilst longer maturities rose.
Despite this volatility, and with most of our exposures at the
short end, the portfolio performed well.
Equity markets again delivered a strong return. Our equity
portfolio, which continues to be focused on US markets,
and selected to align with our responsible investment
commitments, returned in excess of 23%. Performance was
strong throughout the year, buoyed in Q4 by the US elections.
Our corporate exposures performed strongly as well, with both
high yield and investment grade spreads tightening. High-yield
spreads came close to the historic low of 240bps, before
finishing the year just below 300bps. Our hedge fund portfolio
also delivered a solid return, with low volatility and correlation
to other asset classes. We continue to build on our impact
portfolio, where our commitments have increased to $60m
in funds that have measurable social or environmental
benefits. We expect to hit our target of $100m in committed
capital in 2025.
We made an allocation to securitised credit for the first time
in many years in 2024, selecting an external manager to
invest in the highest quality tranches (AAA-AA) of collateralised
loan obligations (CLOs). The portfolio was initiated in the
second half of the year, and has been ramped to its target.
The yield of our fixed income portfolio at 31 December 2024
was 4.6%, with a duration of 1.6 years. This level of yield
is a positive starting point for investment returns in 2025.
However, there are plenty of risks: economic growth is
diverging; remaining solid in the US, but slowing elsewhere.
Geopolitical risks are elevated, and markets will likely have
to weather a shift in US foreign and domestic policy under
the new administration. Our investment portfolio
remains diversified and well positioned for a range
of market outcomes.
Comparison of returns - major assets classes ($m)
116.5
457.9
87.5
392.7
2024
2023
Capital growth portfolio
Core portfolio
-200
-100
0
100
200
300
400
500
22
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Beazley group funds ($m)
5,851
6,672
7,875
8,998
10,478
11,493
Group funds including funds at Lloyd's
Syndicates 2623, 3623 and 3622
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
0
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
The table below details the breakdown of our portfolio by asset class:
31 Dec 2024
31 Dec 2023
$m
%
$m
%
Cash and cash equivalents
882.1
7.7
812.3
7.8
Fixed and floating rate debt securities
– Government issued
4,289.1
37.3
4,469.1
42.6
– Corporate bonds
– Investment grade
3,862.3
33.6
3,578.3
34.1
– High yield
662.4
5.8
489.0
4.7
– Securitised
– Collateralised loan obligations
480.0
4.2
—
—
Syndicate loans
29.5
0.3
34.1
0.3
Derivative financial assets
11.2
0.1
10.0
0.1
Core portfolio
10,216.6
89.0
9,392.8
89.6
Equity funds
348.7
3.0
282.7
2.7
Hedge funds
752.0
6.5
582.2
5.6
Illiquid credit assets
175.4
1.5
220.1
2.1
Total capital growth assets
1,276.1
11.0
1,085.0
10.4
Total
11,492.7
100.0
10,477.8
100.0
Comparison of return by major asset class:
31 Dec 2024
31 Dec 2023
$m
%
$m
%
Core portfolio
457.9
4.7
392.7
4.5
Capital growth assets
116.5
9.9
87.5
8.8
Overall return
574.4
5.2
480.2
4.9
Tax
Beazley is liable to corporation tax in a number of jurisdictions, notably the UK, the US and Ireland. Beazley’s effective tax rate
is thus a composite tax rate mainly driven by the Irish, UK and US tax rates. The weighted average of 18.6% (2023: 17.6%) is
higher than last year due to this year's composition of profit and losses across the Group, including the impact of the Pillar 2
minimum tax on profits arising in Ireland.
The effective tax rate has increased in 2024 to 20.6% (2023: 18.1%).
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
23
Financial review continued
Balance sheet management
Summary statement of financial position
2024
2023
Movement
$m
$m
%
Intangible assets
198.0
165.3
20
Insurance contract assets
20.2
101.5
(80)
Reinsurance contract assets
2,666.6
2,426.7
10
Other assets
1,041.5
494.1
111
Financial assets at fair value and cash and cash equivalents
11,492.7
10,477.8
10
Total assets
15,419.0
13,665.4
13
Insurance contract liabilities
8,814.3
7,992.2
10
Reinsurance contract liabilities
297.1
333.5
(11)
Financial liabilities
576.0
554.6
4
Other liabilities
1,124.8
903.0
25
Total liabilities
10,812.2
9,783.3
11
Net assets
4,606.8
3,882.1
19
Net assets per share (cents)
731.4c
585.8c
25
Net tangible assets per share (cents)
699.9c
560.9c
25
Net assets per share (pence)
570.5p
468.6p
22
Net tangible assets per share (pence)
545.9p
448.7p
22
Number of shares1
629.9m
662.7m
(5)
1 Excludes shares held in the employee share trust and treasury shares.
Intangible assets
Intangible assets consist of goodwill on acquisitions of
$62.0m (2023: $62.0m), purchased syndicate capacity of
$31.3m (2023: $31.3m), US admitted licences of $9.3m
(2023: $9.3m) and capitalised expenditure on IT projects
of $95.4m (2023: $62.7m).
Net reinsurance contract assets
Net reinsurance contract assets represent recoveries from
reinsurers, and comprise of the asset for remaining coverage
(ARC) and the asset for incurred claims (AIC). At 31 December
2024, the ARC was in a net asset position of $139.7m
(2023: $321.9m net liability) as the future premium payable
to the reinsurers was lower than the expected claim
recoveries. The AIC was in a net asset position of $2,229.8m
at 31 December 2024 (2023: $2,415.1m net asset).
The Group’s exposure to reinsurers is managed through:
• minimising risk through selection of reinsurers who meet
strict financial criteria e.g. minimum net assets, minimum
‘A’ rating by S&P (these criteria vary by type of business,
eg short vs medium tail);
• timely calculation and issuance of reinsurance collection
notes from our ceded reinsurance team; and
• regular monitoring of the outstanding debtor position
by our Reinsurance Security Committee and Credit
Control Committee.
24
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Net insurance contract liabilities
Net insurance contract liabilities of $8,794.1m (2023:
$7,890.7m) consist of two main elements, being the liability
for remaining coverage (LRC) and the liability for incurred
claims (LIC).
The LIC and LRC balance is made up of a reserve for expected
claims and a risk adjustment. In addition, the LRC contains a
contractual service margin, provision for onerous contracts
and premium debtors. At 31 December 2024, the LRC
balance was $1,194.4m (2023: $755.4m). Our LIC has
increased by 6.5% to $7,599.7m (2023: $7,135.3m).
CSM Sustainability
The Contractual Service Margin (CSM) reflects the expected
profit of contracts within the liability/asset for remaining
coverage. We have calculated the CSM sustainability as the
closing CSM divided by the opening CSM, and thus a value of
1 and above shows that the expected profit within the LRC/
ARC is higher than the previous valuation. For more
information on CSM Sustainability, including the calculation,
please refer to the APM section on pages 262 to 264.
As at 31 December 2024, the gross CSM sustainability score
was 1.40 (2023: 1.01) while the net CSM sustainability score
was 1.15 (2023: 1.17). This is a pleasing result and shows
the strength of the expected profit contained on the balance
sheet has increased on a gross basis, with a marginal
decrease on a net basis following an increase in the purchase
of cyber reinsurance during 2024. This puts us in good stead
as we move in to 2025.
Discounting impacts
During 2024, the net finance expense was $55.9m (2023:
$153.4m), which was broken down into a $292.1m (2023:
$294.7m) unwind of discounting recognised on existing
business, partially offset by $236.2m (2023: $141.3m) of
income from changes in financial assumptions.
Financial liabilities
Financial liabilities comprise borrowings and derivative
financial liabilities. The Group utilises two long-term debt
facilities:
• In November 2016, Beazley Insurance dac issued $250.0m
of 5.875% subordinated Tier 2 notes due in 2026.
• In September 2019, Beazley Insurance dac issued
$300.0m of 5.5% subordinated Tier 2 notes due in 2029.
The Group has a syndicated short-term banking facility led by
Lloyds Banking Group plc. This provides potential borrowings
of up to $450.0m which may be advanced as cash. Of this,
$225.0m has been drawn as letters of credit to support
underwriting at Lloyd’s at 31 December 2024 (2023:
$225.0m). The cost of the facility is based on a commitment
fee of 0.4725% per annum, and any amounts drawn are
charged at a margin of 1.5% per annum above this fee.
The cash element of the facility will expire on 25 May 2026,
whilst letters of credit issued under the facility can be used to
provide support for the 2023, 2024 and 2025 underwriting
years. In 2024, $225.0m has been placed as a letter of credit
as Funds at Lloyd’s (FAL).
Other assets
Other assets are analysed separately in the notes to the
financial statements. The items included comprise:
• amounts due from syndicates 5623, 623 and 4321;
• prepayments and accrued income; and
• other receivables.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
25
Sustainability
Our vision is to be the highest performing sustainable specialty insurer.
Sustainability is at the core of how we operate.
Responsibly managing our business, supporting our clients
and delivering success are the fundamental components
of our sustainability framework.
By operating in this interconnected way, which engages
our colleagues and gives back to our communities,
we can be confident that we are on the right path
towards a sustainable future.
To ensure we make progress, we set ourselves a series
of goals that aim to build better resilience for our clients,
motivate our staff and deliver for our communities and
stakeholders. In 2024 we published our Net Zero Transition
plan and refreshed our Sustainability strategy with three key
areas of focus.
We continue to set metrics against which we can measure our
performance. These are regularly reviewed by our Executive
Committee and Board. Beazley’s Responsible Business
Steering Group, led by our CEO, challenges the progress
and development of the strategy and provides support to the
business as it addresses sustainability issues and climate
related risk in a way that delivers success to our Company.
A summary of key metrics for Sustainability are summarised
on pages 29-31.
We manage our business responsibly
Managing our business responsibly is embedded in our
thinking. It supports our deep understanding of specialist risk
and is at the core of our culture and values.
It means we strive for better and seek to do the right thing,
for our people, planet and our investment and supply chain
partners. It also means we set bold goals to ensure we are
able to deliver on our commitment to sustainability.
Supply chain
Ensuring that our supply chain is responsible is vital for us
to deliver a seamless service to clients. With much of our
supply chain focused mainly on services, products are only a
significant part of the mix when associated with an office fit
out, the procurement of office supplies, or the delivery of
events. During 2024, we continued to use our environmental
management system and leveraged sustainability data to
appraise and inform our procurement decisions. Our focus
now is on embedding this approach beyond our operations
and into our claims supply chain.
Human rights and commitments under the
Modern Slavery Act
We continue to be committed to supporting and respecting
internationally proclaimed human rights and seek to avoid
complicity in human rights abuses. To achieve this, we adhere
to the principles as defined by the United Nations (UN)
Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the UN
International Bill of Human Rights and the International
Labour Organization's (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental
Principles and Rights at Work. We are a signatory to the
UN Global Compact.
We recognise that our approach to identifying, remedying and
preventing human rights abuses and modern slavery risks
within our business and our supply chain will continue to
evolve as our business and our partnerships evolve.
Given our progress so far, our main priorities
for 2024 included:
• publishing our supplier code of conduct, which sets out our
minimum expectations on our suppliers to manage human
rights and modern slavery risks;
• establishing KPIs in order to measure the effectiveness
of our actions and progress in tackling modern slavery
and human trafficking; and
• continuing to reinforce the Company values, encouraging
a “speak up” culture, examples include dignity and respect
training and executive coffee sessions which are hosted
each month in order to encourage two-way conversation.
26
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Inclusion and diversity
We believe that building a talented and diverse team that
reflects the communities and geographies in which we operate
will deliver outstanding results for our business.
In 2024, 45% of our senior leadership roles were held by
women which aligns with our aim to maintain gender balance
across the Company. In 2024, 28% of the Company were
People of Colour. The census data in the places we do
business, show we have work to do to fully reflect these
communities and as such our aim is to increase the People
of Colour in our workforce to 33% by March 2028, also
aiming for 8% of our employee base to identify as Black
by the same date.
We remain focused on increasing the representation of People
of Colour in our senior leadership team, aiming for at least
17% by March 2028. At the end of 2024 this stood at 12%.
Decisions relating to performance, hiring and promotion
at Beazley continue to be based on individual merit
and performance.
We are focused on inclusion for all our staff and actively
encourage them to engage with our employee networks.
Each of our networks is run for our employees, by our
employees and have a senior sponsor. You can find more
details about our networks in our Sustainability Report 2024
on our website.
We support our clients to transition
Our clients are grappling with the dramatic effects of climate
change. By understanding this complex risk landscape,
we support our clients to transition towards a greener,
equitable future. In an era of accelerating risk, stable long-
term insurance capacity builds better business resilience.
As a specialty insurer, we will use the power of our expertise
to help our clients by:
• developing new products and adjusting existing ones to
support clients to understand and mitigate the expected
impacts of climate risk;
• providing supporting services to help clients manage their
own energy transitions; and
• working with our industry peers to create and share good
quality data and common assessment frameworks to
support change.
Climate change
As a specialty insurer, we underwrite in areas that are
vulnerable to the impact of climate change, with Property
Risks particularly exposed. Our response to climate change
needs to reflect both effective management of the risk; and
our responsibility to play our part in mitigation. On pages 32
to 33 you can read our disclosures made as part of Task
Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), which
will give you an in depth overview of how Beazley is addressing
the challenges of climate change.
We deliver success by doing the right thing
Doing the right thing makes good business sense. As our
financial results, community outcomes and staff engagement
show we are delivering success alongside our sustainable
approach to doing business.
Put simply, our values inspire the way we work, how we
engage with stakeholders and colleagues, the design of our
workspaces, and form the basis of our service to customers,
ensuring our behaviour is that of a sustainable business.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
27
Sustainability continued
Investments
Beazley adopts a responsible approach to the management
of our asset portfolio, reflecting our belief that companies
committed to a sustainable business strategy gain long-term
competitive advantages, enabling them to generate stronger
and more stable returns over time.
Our Responsible Investment Policy sets out our approach to
incorporating sustainability considerations in our investment
process, decision-making and ownership practices. In doing
so, we aim to positively impact the financial value of our
investments and recognise the positive influence investment
strategies can have in the wider world.
Impact investing
To demonstrate our commitment to doing the right thing,
we have allocated up to $100m from our asset portfolio
to impact investments. These investments focus on
opportunities that have measurable social or environmental
impact, as well as a financial return. Our investments aim
to improve outcomes in communities local to our offices
and in developing countries overseas.
Since the inception of the fund in 2021 we have committed
capital of $60m to five funds, investing in a wide range of
target outcomes including the expansion of renewable energy
capacity, financial inclusion and the circular economy.
In 2023, we became a founding investor in the Big Issue
Social Impact Debt Fund which funds housing, care and
social infrastructure projects with the goal of alleviating
poverty in the UK. In 2024, we made commitments to two
funds. The first provides debt financing to facilitate the
expansion of solar energy in the US with a focus on
community projects. The second is a private equity fund
targeting businesses supporting themes of sustainable
planet, future skills, stronger communities and healthier lives.
Social impact
2024 marked the 10th anniversary of Beazley’s "Make a
Difference" campaign, our annual community volunteering
programme. In celebration, we successfully launched several
new initiatives, resulting in a substantial increase in our
volunteer support and achieving over 5,000 hours of
community service.
Our community initiatives, often executed in collaboration with
charitable organisations, primarily focus on the communities
surrounding our employees' homes and offices. Beazley
provides up to 2.5 days of volunteer leave annually and
through our volunteering campaigns, encourage employees,
both individually and as teams, to support various local
communities. We aim to ensure local office representatives
are actively involved and work alongside each other to ensure
we are donating our time and money where it is most needed.
Our 2024 charity initiatives focused on supporting our
corporate charity partner through fundraisers, match funding
for employee fundraising and disaster relief efforts. This year
marked the final year of our corporate partnership with World
Central Kitchen, a global charity that supports communities
facing disaster by providing meals. In 2024, Beazley donated
over $350,000 to World Central Kitchen helping them
provide meals in response to humanitarian, climate and
community crises.
Moving forward
Our sustainability strategy balances an inward-looking view
of how we manage our business, with an external focus on
how we interact with clients and impact the world around us.
Having launched our net-zero transition plan in 2024, we aim
to continue to focus on progress on our sustainability journey
– enhancing our data collection capabilities to support
our ambitions.
In 2024, Beazley also became a founding member of
Humanity Insured, an innovative charity designed to support
vulnerable communities by enhancing their climate resilience
through insurance. We look forward to an ongoing partnership
with them moving forwards.
On our Sustainability and Culture & Values pages of our
website you will find detailed information and our key
policies and disclosures are contained within our 2024
Sustainability report.
28
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Sustainability
Key Metrics 2024
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
29
Tonnes CO2e/FTE
5.3
1.87
1.15
2.44
2.82
2.57
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
0
2
4
6
Tonnes CO2e/$m
revenue
75.5
49.9
44.4
46.7
2021
2022
2023
2024
0
20
40
60
80
Responsible culture
2021
2022
2023
2024
People of Colour representation in workforce
23%
25%
27%
28%
Senior leadership roles held by women
38%
43%
45%
45%
Employee engagement
86%
85%
86%
85%
(9% above global average)
(8% above global average)
(8% above global average)
(7% above global average)
Climate responsibility
Investments
Charity and communities
2021
2022
2023
2024
Employee volunteer
hours
911
1693
2697
5529
Beazley donations1
$380k
$474k
$603k
$845k
1 Includes monetary and gifts in kind, donations.
Sustainability continued
Gender diversity1, 3 as at 31 December 2024
Number of
Board
members
Percentage
of the
Board
Number of
senior
positions
on the
Board
(CEO, CFO,
SID and
Chair)
Number in
executive
management
Percentage of
executive
management
Percentage
of
Beazley's
senior
leadership
team2
Percentage
of Executive
Committee
and direct
reports5
Number of
senior
managers
of the
Company in
accordance
with the
Companies
Act 20066
Number of
all
employees6
Percentage
of all
employees
Men
6
55 %
3
9
60 %
55 %
60 %
27
1,138
47 %
Women
5
45 %
1
6
40 %
45 %
40 %
18
1,274
53 %
Not specified/prefer
not to say
—
— %
—
—
— %
— %
— %
4
7
— %
Ethnic diversity1, 3 as at 31 December 2024
Number of
Board
members
Percentage
of the
Board
Number of
senior
positions
on the
Board
(CEO, CFO,
SID and
Chair)
Number in
executive
management
Percentage of
executive
management
Percentage
of
Beazley's
senior
leadership
team2
Percentage
of Executive
Committee
and direct
reports5
Number of
senior
managers
of the
Company in
accordance
with the
Companies
Act 2006
Number of
all
employees
Percentage
of all
employees
White British or
other white
(including minority-
white groups)
9
82 %
4
13
86 %
79 %
77 %
32
1,425
65 %
Mixed/multiple
ethnic groups
—
— %
—
—
— %
1 %
— %
0
72
3 %
Asian/Asian British
2
18 %
—
—
— %
5 %
6 %
1
244
11 %
Black/African/
Caribbean/Black
British
—
— %
—
1
7 %
3 %
5 %
2
154
7 %
Other ethnic groups
—
— %
—
—
— %
3 %
5 %
3
144
7 %
Not specified/prefer
not to say
—
— %
—
1
7 %
9 %
8 %
11
137
6 %
30
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Beazley's ethnicity goals as at 31 December 2024
In 2021, Beazley set the goal to ensure that at least 25% of our global population, in the locations we are able to track the
data, would be People of Colour by the end of 2023. We met this goal ahead of schedule, and are now aiming for 33% of our
population to be People of Colour by March 2028. At Beazley, the term People of Colour is used to describe the collective group
of people who identify as part of; American Indian, Alaskan Natives, Arab, Asian, Black, Chinese, Hispanic, Latinx, Hawaiian,
Pacific Islanders, Indian or mixed and multiple racial identities, or other racial identities excluding those who identify as White.
Singapore's ethnicity data is not included when we calculate progress against our public diversity goals as it paints a more
favourable diversity picture than is reflective of the journey still to be made across the other offices. We include the data for all
other seniority splits for completeness and transparency.
Number of
Board
members
Percentage
of the
Board
Number of
senior
positions
on the
Board
(CEO, CFO,
SID and
Chair)
Number in
Executive
Management
Percentage of
Executive
Management
Percentage
of
Beazley's
senior
leadership
team2
Percentage
of Executive
Committee
and direct
reports5
Number of
senior
managers
of the
Company in
accordance
with the
Companies
Act 2006
Number of
all
employees
Percentage
of all
employees
People of Colour4
2
18 %
0
1
7 %
12 %
15 %
10 %
614
28 %
1 The gender and ethnicity data in columns 1 to 5 is provided pursuant to the UK Listing Rule 6.6.6R(10). For the purposes of the Listing Rules executive
management includes the members of Beazley's Executive Committee (the most senior executive body below the Board) and the Company Secretary, but
excluding administrative and support staff.
2 Beazley's senior leadership team is defined as the most senior group of individuals from which succession for the Executive Committee could likely be sourced.
They are the individuals who make up the Company's strategy and performance group and those who receive extended long-term incentive awards as part of their
remuneration. These individuals drive and influence business strategy and performance or are those leading or directly participating in strategic projects. We use
this group when tracking and monitoring the inclusion and diversity of our leadership population for our own targets and monitoring. The % reported are from the
global senior leadership team. The make up of this team is calculated once per year and the data provided is correct as at 1 April 2024. The rest of the table is
correct as at 31 December 2024.
3 Our approach to gathering, holding and reporting on demographic diversity data is consistent across all of our locations, and in accordance with relevant local
laws. We currently hold gender data for all our global locations, and report the ethnicity data for permanent and fixed-term employees and also Board members
based in the UK, US, and Ireland. Singapore's ethnicity data is not included when we calculate progress against our public ethnicity targets (People of Colour) as
it paints a more favourable diversity picture than is reflective of the journey still to be made across the other offices. Beazley uses the HR system Oracle to
collect, hold and report ethnicity and gender data securely. Where we collect this data, employees are able to self-report their gender and/or ethnicity or prefer
not to say. The reporting options provided are based on government census options in each country and grouped according to the categories prescribed in the UK
Listing Rules. Any ethnicities not aligned with those prescribed categories are included in the 'other ethnic groups' row.
4 At Beazley, the term People of Colour is used to describe the collective group of people who identify as part of; American Indian, Alaskan Natives, Arab, Asian,
Black, Chinese, Hispanic, Latinx, Hawaiian, Pacific Islanders, Indian or mixed and multiple racial identities, or other racial identities excluding those who identify
as White. This ethnicity data is for all permanent employees in the US, UK and Ireland (out of a total of 2066 as at 31 December 2024).
5 This figure is provided pursuant to the UK Corporate Governance Code 2018 requirement to confirm the gender balance of those in senior management and their
direct reports. The Code defines senior management as the Executive Committee and the Company Secretary. We have also disclosed the ethnicity data for the
same group.
6 The number of senior managers and the number of employees of each sex is disclosed for the purposes of section 414 (C) (8) of the Companies Act 2006.
In accordance with section 414(C)(9) and 414(C)(10), senior management is comprises of the Executive Committee and the directors of subsidiaries included
in the Beazley plc consolidated accounts. We have also disclosed the ethnicity data for the same groups. Note that the Companies Act 2006 definition of senior
management includes directors of subsidiaries, and some of our subsidiary directors are not employees. This data excludes the 180 employees of the Group's
arm length subsidiary, Beazley Security, for which data is not held by the Group.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
31
Task Force on Climate-related
Financial Disclosures (TCFD) 2024
Our climate-related responsibilities are something we take very seriously at Beazley. They are central to our vision – to be “the
highest performing sustainable specialty insurer”; align with our values – being bold, striving for better, and doing the right
thing; and are embodied in the "sustainable business" pillar of our corporate strategy.
This report details the governance, strategy, scenario analysis, risk management, and metrics we have in place to deliver on our
responsibilities.
1. Governance
1.1 Board oversight on climate-related risks and opportunities
1.1.1 Plc Board oversight
The plc Board and supporting committees maintain active oversight of climate-related issues, by discussing the topic regularly,
factoring it into decisions, and receiving papers, training and awareness. Further, specific detail on our approach to governance
is shown below (and a summary of our corporate governance structure is on page 94).
Plc Board
Audit Committee
Risk Committee
Nomination Committee
Remuneration
Committee
The plc Board tracks
progress on climate-
related goals via papers
and reports from across
the business, as well as
a metrics dashboard,
which is aligned to our
overall risk appetite and
risk management
framework, the CEO
report and Executive
Committee KPI
dashboard.
The Audit Committee is
responsible for TCFD
reporting and is involved
in signing off and
approving all annual
TCFD disclosures and
metrics. The metrics in
this report were
proposed and approved
by the committee during
2024.
The plc Board has
delegated oversight of
the risk management
framework. The Risk
Committee’s
responsibilities include
overseeing the
effectiveness of the risk
management strategy at
Beazley, of which
climate-related risk is a
key part.
The Nomination
Committee considers
the current and future
leadership needs of the
business, and
recommends the annual
board knowledge and
training plan, which
includes climate-related
matters.
The Remuneration
Committee is
responsible for ensuring
that the remuneration
policies for the Group as
well as Directors and
senior management,
incentivise performance
whilst promoting
effective risk
management.
In addition to the above, climate-related matters are also considered by the plc Board as part of the annual process to approve:
•
the risk appetite statements;
•
the Group’s corporate business plan, including capital adequacy and the own risk and solvency assessment (ORSA);
•
Beazley’s new sustainability strategy and corresponding transition plan objectives;
•
the Responsible Investment Policy;
•
the Investment strategy.
The remuneration policy approved at the 2024 Annual General Meeting introduced sustainability metrics into Executive Long
Term Incentive Plan (LTIP) awards. Further details on this can be found in section 5.5 of the TCFD report.
1.1.2 Training and awareness
The Culture and People team maintains skill matrices and annual training plans for the plc Board. The training provided is
shaped by current and emerging trends, stakeholder expectations, and regulatory demands. We consider the papers provided
to the plc Board and Audit Committees as providing a key role in helping create further awareness of climate-related matters.
A key stand out in 2024 was the verbal presentation by both internal and external parties, of how our TCFD disclosures
compared to that of our peers. The presentation and accompanying papers gave the Audit Committee the opportunity to
understand how Beazley compares, the areas for improvements, and how the work undertaken by the business in the past 12
months goes some way to meeting all requirements of the TCFD recommendations, in a manner which adds value to Beazley’s
approach to business and supports our vision.
1.1.3 Subsidiary Board oversight
Beazley has five key subsidiary entities: Beazley Furlonge Ltd (BFL), Beazley Insurance Designated Activity Company (BIDAC),
Beazley Insurance Company, Inc. (BICI), Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance, Inc. (BESI) and Beazley America Insurance
Company, Inc. (BAIC), each with their own Board and supporting Committees. The responsibilities of these Boards mirror those
set out at a plc Board level, to ensure it is operating in accordance with both legal and regulatory requirements, as well as
relevant Beazley Group policies and procedures. These entities are more insurance risk-focused when compared to the plc
Board. Climate-related matters are considered during their annual risk framework and ORSA approval process.
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1.2 Summary of management’s role on climate-related matters
1.2.1 Key individuals at Beazley for climate-related issues
Responsibility for ensuring climate-related issues are appropriately managed by the business is designated across a range of roles:
Responsible individual
How climate-related matters are managed
Group Chief Executive
Officer (CEO)
In addition to being an Executive Director and a member of both the plc Board and Executive Committee, the CEO chairs the
Responsible Business Steering Group and is a member of the Investment Committee.
Group Chief Risk Officer
(CRO)
The Group CRO is a member of the Executive Committee, and is ultimately responsible for our risk management framework, of which
climate-related risk is a key part. They provide updates on risk matters, including climate-related risk, to the plc Board, Executive and
Risk Committee.
Group Chief Financial
Officer (CFO)
The Group CFO is an Executive Director, and a member of both the plc Board and Executive Committee. They have responsibility for the
financial performance of the Company, and provide updates throughout the year to the Board, Executive Committee, Audit Committee
and Risk Committee. The CFO chairs the Investment Committee, which is where sustainable investments are addressed. The CFO is
also responsible for delivering the Group's sustainability reporting requirements, including TCFD.
Group Chief Underwriting
Officer (CUO)
The Group CUO is a member of the Executive Committee and is responsible for ensuring climate-related matters are embedded within
the underwriting process. The Head of Financial Climate Risk and Head of Exposure Management report into them, and they own the
outputs of the Climate Risk Working Group. The CUO provides updates on the underwriting performance of the Company, including
matters arising from climate-related exposures, progress against climate-related risk objectives, and exposure management, to the plc
Board, the Risk Committee and the Executive Committee.
The CUO is the Senior Management Function (SMF) for climate-related risk.
Group Chief Operating
Officer (COO)
The Group COO is a member of the Executive Committee and is responsible for ensuring we consider climate-related matters across
our business operations, including office energy consumption, the use of data centres, and procurement.
Group Head of Strategy
The Group Head of Strategy reports to the CEO, and oversees Beazley's business strategy and updates the plc Board on progress. They
are also a member of the Responsible Business Steering Group.
Group Chief Investment
Officer (CIO)
The Group CIO reports to the CFO and is responsible for all investment activity within the Beazley Group, including the development of
investment strategy, delivery of appropriate investment returns, and the effective management of investment risks. Managing climate
risks to our investment portfolio is a key aspect of this role.
Head of Responsible
Investment
The Head of Responsible Investments reports to the CIO. They are responsible for embedding climate-related matters into the
investment decision making process.
Chief People &
Sustainability Officer
The Chief People & Sustainability Officer is an Executive Committee member and part of the Responsible Business Steering Group. The
Head of Sustainability reports into this role.
Head of Capital
The Head of Capital ultimately reports to the CFO, and is responsible for provides quarterly updates to the Risk and Regulatory
Committee on capital allocation for potential climate-related events and insurance claims. They oversee the assessment of climate-
related capital requirements using modelled and non-modelled information to determine the impact of climate change on the business.
Head of Sustainability
The Head of Sustainability reports to the Chief People & Sustainability Officer, and is responsible for the delivery of the environmental
and social related objectives set within the Sustainability Strategy. From a climate perspective, their role is focused on climate-related
responsibility matters. They provide updates through the year on responsible business matters to a number of committees, including
the Executive Committee, plc Board, plc Audit Committee, as well as boards of Beazley subsidiaries BIDAC and BSIL. These updates
provide an overview of items discussed at the Responsible Business Steering Group.
Head of Financial
Climate Risk
The Head of Financial Climate Risk reports to the CUO, and is responsible for overseeing the integration of climate-related risk into
underwriting, coordinates climate risk initiatives, and provides expertise to strengthen Beazley's climate risk management. This role
reports to the CUO and provides quarterly updates to the Underwriting Committee and Responsible Business Steering Group.
Head of Compliance and
compliance department
The Group Head of Compliance reports to the CRO, and is responsible for overseeing the Compliance function at Beazley. The
Compliance function operates as an advisory not an assurance function at Beazley. Their mandate includes providing advice, guidance
and training to enable the business to conduct itself in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations.
Group Head of Internal
Audit and internal audit
department
The Group Head of Internal Audit reports to the Chair of the Audit Committee, and is responsible for ensuring appropriate audits are
undertaken to support our climate-related objectives, including underwriting functions, investments and TCFD disclosures.
Head of Exposure
Management
The Head of Exposure Management reports to the CUO, and leads the team responsible for developing approaches to monitoring the
aggregation of exposure to natural catastrophes. The exposure management team reports to the CUO, who in turn provides regular
updates to the Board on these matters. The Head of Exposure Management is the chair of the Physical Damage exposure management
group (PDEMG). The exposure management team is supported by the Head of Financial Climate Risk.
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
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TCFD 2024 continued
1.2.2 Summary of management-level reporting structure
To help the business address climate-related issues, there are a number of different management committees, steering groups
and working groups (shown below) for which key management individuals feed into from a climate-related perspective.
A brief description of these committees, steering groups and working groups, and the key management level individuals who
attend is as follows:
Executive Committee
Responsible Business Steering Group
(RBSG)
Investment Committee
Underwriting Committee
The Executive Committee is our central
decision-making and oversight body
responsible for shaping our strategic
direction, policies and operations. They
receive regular updates on climate-
related and sustainability issues from
sub-committees and working groups,
as well as KPI and Key Risk Indicator
(KRI) dashboards collated by the
Corporate Strategy and Risk teams.
These dashboards provide climate-
related metrics which provide insight
into business performance and inform
decision-making. The Executive
Committee met 11 times during 2024.
Chaired by the CEO, the RBSG
oversees the delivery of responsible
business across Beazley, and monitors
progress against our objectives.
The primary purpose of the committee
is to provide recommendations to
decision-makers, including the
Executive, Underwriting, and
Investment Committees. The dialogue
between the RBSG and these
committees further embeds
responsible business matters across
the organisation. The RBSG is
chaired by the CEO, and met 11
times in 2024, with non-Executive
Directors invited as observers
on a quarterly basis.
Chaired by the CFO, the Investment
Committee oversees our investment
strategy and ensures it can be
delivered in alignment with our risk
appetite, and in accordance with our
Responsible Investment Policy. The
committee, in conjunction with the
RBSG, also oversees progress against
the investment-related objectives
within the responsible business
strategy. The committee continues to
review and approve the portfolio of
impact investments which have a
measurable social and/or
environmental impact as well as a
financial return. The Investment
Committee met 11 times during 2024.
The Underwriting Committee, chaired
by our CUO, monitors progress and
ensures the delivery of underwriting,
claims, and reinsurance business
plans. It includes representation from
the underwriting teams, the Group
Head of Claims, the Group Actuary,
CRO and Group Head of Strategy. The
Committee is charged with ensuring
the efficient implementation of
sustainability in underwriting, with
prominence given to climate risk and
opportunities. It receives updates from
the Head of Sustainability and Head of
Financial Climate Risk, and reports
monthly to the Executive Committee.
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Underwriting and Risk and Regulatory sub working groups
Physical damage exposure
management group (PDEMG)
Casualty and Cyber
Management Group (CCMG)
Climate risk working group
(CRWG)
Emerging and Complex Risk
Group (ECRG)
Horizon scanning group
The PDEMG monitors the
natural catastrophe risk
appetite set by the plc Board;
risk appetites assigned to
Beazley Group companies and
the physical damage RDS plan
agreed by Lloyd’s. Its remit
includes responsibility for the
Group view of physical damage
catastrophe risk written within
the underwriting teams, and
climate change analysis.
The CCMG, chaired by the
Underwriting Strategy
Manager, is responsible for
the Group view of Cyber and
Casualty risk, including the
impact of climate change on
underwriting. It governs
climate litigation, scenario
development and monitoring.
The CRWG, predominantly
chaired by the CUO in 2024,
was established to embed
climate-related risk into the
underwriting process. It
oversees climate risk projects
and activities, and is involved
in decision-making on climate-
related matters.
The ECRG is responsible
for providing oversight and
challenge to Beazley’s risk
scenarios, as well as ensuring
adherence with the Emerging
& Complex Risk Protocol.
The ECRG also provides
input on the prioritisation
of risks (incl. climate risk)
identified for quantification
and assessment.
This informal group is focused
on looking at risks which may
have the potential to impact
the business in the future.
As our main climate-related
risks have already been
established, the group’s focus
is often on secondary impacts,
such as broader environmental
consequences as a result
of a warmer climate i.e.
increased prevalence of insect-
borne diseases.
Risk and Regulatory Committee
The plc Board has assigned oversight of the risk management department to the Executive Committee and the plc Risk
Committee. The Executive Committee has further delegated direct supervision to the Risk and Regulatory Committee, which
meets monthly and is chaired by the CRO. The Risk and Regulatory Committee is responsible for providing oversight across all
risks, and this includes climate related risk. Section 4 of the TCFD report provides further details regarding Risk Management
and Beazley's risk framework.
Emerging Risk Working group
The ERWG meet quarterly to support the delivery of the emerging risk framework, which includes climate related risks.
The group is there to:
• Oversee the identification of new emerging risk and the development of existing/evolving emerging risks.
• Oversee and contribute to the qualitative/quantitative (where available) assessments of emerging risks.
• Oversee the management of emerging risks including the setting of actions and early action triggers.
• Oversee the monitoring of emerging risks, including early action triggers and actions.
The ERWG reports half-yearly to the Risk and Regulatory committee. Further details regarding the Emerging Risk Framework
is covered in section 2.2.2 of the TCFD report.
1.3 Training
Climate risk training was delivered to the Joint Risk Committee (Risk committees from the three Beazley platforms) in Q4 2024.
The training covered the climate risk trends and developments, and how Beazley manages the risks and develops the opportunities.
This helped the committee members understand key climate risk developments at Beazley and share their challenges.
In addition to formal training, the verbal updates provided alongside the submission of papers to the relevant committees, as
well as external presentations delivered by third parties, are seen as a mechanism by which we promote awareness of climate-
related issues. They also provide a forum at which feedback can be captured to help feed into further improvements of our
approach. Examples of these improvements in 2024 include the presentation of the climate litigation heat map to the RBSG,
and the delivery of a session on carbon capture and storage by external experts to a carbon capture and storage working group.
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
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TCFD 2024 continued
2. Strategy
As climate change continues to affect our planet, it brings with it a variety of risks, including;
• Physical-related risk - physical changes to weather patterns and natural disaster risks; the impact of natural disasters causing
damage to the assets we insure.
• Climate Litigation risk - referring to any legal dispute for our insureds, arising from (or exacerbated by) either a party’s
contribution to climate change; legal disputes arising from the physical consequences of climate change; or laws, regulatory
structures, or legal duties related to climate change.
• Transition risk - socio-economic shifts as economies transition towards greener economies.
As a leading specialty insurer, Beazley is exposed to many of the impacts of climate change, both through the coverage we
provide to our insureds, and through our own operations. As such, it’s vital for Beazley to be able to identify the risks resulting
from climate change, accurately assess which of these are most material to our business, and implement measures to mitigate
and manage these risks.
2.1 Definitions of time horizons
Beazley considers risk across three broad time horizons for climate-related risks. These time horizons are reflective of our
approach to business planning, the type of products Beazley provides, and the investment decisions the Company makes.
A summary of climate-related issues which could potentially have a material financial impact on the Company within each
timeframe are shown below, based on a review of external research and information. The processes by which we have
reached these conclusions, and the opportunities which may arise as a result, are discussed further on in the report.
Time horizon
Description
Short term
(1 year)
Beazley’s performance is evaluated on the results of each financial year and the business plan is developed on this basis. Most of Beazley’s
underwriting business is in short-tail classes. The impact of physical climate-related events occurring through the year is reflected in Beazley’s
approach to underwriting and pricing. Specific climate-related issues arising within this time horizon could include:
• Possibility for increased claims arising from natural catastrophes;
• Liability-related claims relating to greenwashing;
• Reputational incidents arising from the underwriting of, or investment in, companies which have a significant impact on climate change;
• Impact of green technology;
• Failure of Beazley to act as a responsible business on these matters.
Medium term
(1 to 5 years)
Some of Beazley’s underwriting business is in medium-tail classes, whilst investment in larger projects and platform developments may run
over multiple years. Emerging risks can also crystallise over the medium term. Through this time horizon, the issues identified within the short
term are likely to persist. Acute impacts of natural catastrophes are expected to increase in frequency and severity, and liability-related claims
for failure to prepare for climate change will rise. Transitional issues from policy, market, or technology changes will also likely emerge.
The five-year time horizon is aligned with the development of Beazley’s medium-term plan (MTP). This plan sets out, at a high level, the growth
ambitions for the business across the underwriting divisions. The MTP aims to provide a bottom-up view of the business, covering both the
underwriting ‘demand’, and the operational ‘supply’, culminating in a financial plan and a sense of operational dependencies covering
2024-2028. It complements the Annual Underwriting Plan by building a view of what the business can deliver to support the underwriting
ambitions.
Long term
(5+ years)
Beazley’s strategy and strategic objectives are generally set over multiple years. Mega trends and slow-moving emerging risks may crystallise
over many years. From a climate risk perspective there will be an increased trend in the acute physical climate-related risks, whilst longer term
and more chronic impacts may also begin to be realised (such as increased droughts, or other shifts to global weather patterns). Liability
claims associated with a failure to prepare or adapt to climate change are expected to continue increasing in severity and likelihood.
Beazley uses a number of different processes to determine potential sustainability-related risks and opportunities for business,
with each process building on its predecessor in order for the business to determine which risks and opportunities could have
a financial impact on the business.
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2.2 Determining risks and opportunities
2.2.1 Outline of processes to determine risks and opportunities
To enable Beazley to build a climate focused strategy which supports the business in delivering its wider objectives and vision, a
number of approaches are followed to enable us to firstly understand which risks and opportunities may impact us, before then
applying a process to help us prioritise them. These processes are a combination of being group-wide, and specific to individual
areas i.e. underwriting and investments; they may also focus on either the risks or opportunities, or in some cases, both.
An outline of each is set out in the figure below, with the detailed explanation then provided in the following sections.
Details regarding the Emerging Risk Framework (ERF) and the Double Materiality Assessment (DMA), and how they have been
used to determine risks, is covered in section 2.2.2 of the TCFD report. Details on our approach towards climate specific risks
and opportunities is covered also in that section, and throughout sections 2.2.3 and 2.2.4 of the TCFD report. An overview of
the Sustainability Strategy is provided in section 2.3 of the TCFD report, where we outline what the risks and opportunities
mean from a business point of view, in terms of products and services, broker partnerships and how we can support a just
transition. It should be noted that how climate related matters feed into the business planning process is something that
continues to be developed. An example of this is our exploration of setting carbon reduction targets for Beazley's underwriting
portfolio, which is discussed at the end of section 2.3 of the TCFD report.
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TCFD 2024 continued
2.2.2 Detailed summary of processes used to determine risks
Business wide
Emerging Risk Framework
Detail of the risk management framework is set out in section 4 of the TCFD report. One element of the risk management
framework is the ERF, which sets out the processes that Beazley has in place to identify, assess, manage, monitor, and
report emerging risks. The ERF plays an important part in how Beazley manages both newly emerging and evolving risks relevant
to the company.
These processes and identification of the most material emerging risks help inform Beazley’s strategy and business planning.
Outputs from the risk management framework were used to inform the DMA, as well as ongoing conversations with the relevant
subject matter experts across the organisation who lead on climate-related matters.
As part of the ERF, climate-related risks are assessed for both the impact of the risk and the time horizon over which the risk is
expected to have a material impact on the business (giving an overall priority), and are mapped onto Beazley’s emerging risk radar.
For climate related matters, both climate physical risk and climate litigation risk are assessed as high priority. Both are assessed as
having a short term time horizon, with physical risk having a high impact and litigation risk having a medium impact.
Double Materiality Assessment
Beazley began to refresh our sustainability strategy in the second half of 2023. As part of this work, and to inform the strategy
development, we performed a DMA. The DMA was delivered in conjunction with a third party, and included a number of internal
workshops, deploying internal questionnaires, as well as engaging with external stakeholders to first identify a long list of
sustainability related topics for consideration, before then undertaking an exercise to determine what matters most to our
people and our business. Ten sustainability topics were identified as being material to our business from both a financial and
impact perspective, with five areas being linked to climate-related matters. The significant focus on climate-related matters
reconfirmed the value of the work we were already undertaking in that area, with the outputs of prior work feeding into the DMA
and the subsequent sustainability strategy. The DMA acted as our starting point, from which, where appropriate, more detailed
analysis could occur to help guide strategy development. The need for additional scrutiny in determining what our material risks
and opportunities are, was more prevalent in the underwriting and investments parts of our business, when compared to our
operations. A summary of the outcomes was as follows:
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Area Specific: Underwriting
Detailed Materiality Assessment for underwriting
As outlined above, Beazley is exposed to many of the impacts of climate change through our underwriting activities and the
coverage we provide to our insureds. To help identify and assess these risks, we have developed a framework to help us first
understand the risk in greater detail, and allow us to assess the severity of the risk for our business; and then determine any
appropriate mitigations which could be used to help inform our business strategy.
Where appropriate, we have tried to use the same framework across our assessment of the three areas of climate-related risk.
However, due to the different characteristics of each type of climate risk there are some differences. Continuous improvement
is a centrepiece of the framework, with previous outcomes helping to inform any subsequent materiality refresh. A summary of
this framework is as follows:
Phase 1: Identification of all climate-related risks arising in each time horizon
Phase 1 involves the collation of outputs from a range of Beazley processes which help to identify a longlist of the climate risks
which may arise across each of the time horizons. The processes used include:
Process
Outline
Climate change
research
Insights are gathered from scientific literature, and third-party led research. This activity is undertaken
to help determine the potential climate-related risks which may impact the business, whether they be
in respect to physical, litigation or transition related matters. In the case of physical perils for
underwriting, the output of this review is shared with the CRWG on a quarterly basis.
Stress and scenario
testing
Scenario analysis is undertaken to understand how climate-related matters may manifest themselves
in the future. For physical risk, scenario analysis completed as part of ORSA submissions, and
realistic disaster scenario (RDS) monitoring completed by the PDEMG allows for regular monitoring of
Beazley’s exposure to various physical climate risks. A “Future Temperature Scenario Analysis” helps
to assess impacts on losses under higher warming temperatures, and is shared with underwriters to
aid portfolio optimisation.
A “combined climate change scenario” has been developed as part of the ORSA process, which
models a multi-year, holistic climate change scenario, considering our exposure to the impacts of
climate change across physical, transition (related to our investments only) and litigation climate risks.
This work helps quantify the potential losses of different risks, which informs the assessment of
materiality. Stress and scenario testing for transition risks arising from our underwriting still needs
to be undertaken.
Underwriting
Engagement
Engagement between Beazley's Climate Risk and Underwriting teams helps to support the
identification of climate-related risks. Feedback is captured as part of the CRWG and CMOG forums,
and via questionnaires completed as part of the annual underwriting business planning process. This
has also been complimented with awareness sessions, such as the delivery of a climate litigation
workshop to underwriters in our Specialty risk division, as well as actuarial, exposure management
and climate risk functions
Emerging Risk
Identification
Beazley identifies, assesses, manages and reports on emerging risks through two lenses. The macro,
which considers high-level risks that may impact our industry and markets, using tools such as
PESTLE analysis (Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal and Environmental); and the micro,
which focuses on risks specific to our business and functions. Physical climate risk and climate
litigation risk are both captured as emerging risks, and assessed to identify their potential impacts on
Beazley, alongside our mitigation measures currently in place to manage both risks.
Monitoring of exposure
aggregation
Beazley's PDEMG issues monthly physical peril exposure reports to monitor our exposure to various
physical climate risks. These reports serve as a mechanism for managing risk and are used to update
knowledge of climate-related risks in each time horizon. Likewise, Beazley’s CMOG track and report
physical catastrophe exposure metrics to underwriting team leaders. CMOG report both present-day
modelled losses, and losses from future temperature scenario analysis. Beazley’s CCMG monitors the
greenwashing scenario quarterly.
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Phase 2: Assessment of materiality
Once all climate-related items have been identified, an assessment of materiality is undertaken to understand which items will
be most impactful to Beazley’s business activities. The purpose of materiality assessment is threefold:
1. Monitoring exposure;
2. Linking materiality analysis to climate change impact; and
3. Guiding and helping prioritise actions of Beazley projects on climate-related risks / opportunities.
To ensure the materiality assessment is as relevant as possible, factors such as geography or business sector are considered,
where appropriate. For example, physical risk assessment compares the degree of climate change impact on each physical
peril, with the level to which Beazley is exposed to each peril through our underwriting activities. To better understand our
litigation risk, this year we have developed a climate litigation heatmap for the three specialty risk teams most exposed to
litigation risk, to identify our exposure to potential litigation hotspots by both country and sector.
Through applying these factors, we are then able to identify, using estimated premiums underwritten, which perils or risks are
most material, and in which geographies or sectors (further details of material risks identified is covered in section 2.2.4 of the
TCFD report). This then enables us, as part of phase 3 of the framework, to develop an evidence-based strategy which
prioritises actions and deliverables in order of most relevance to the business.
Phase 3: Plan to mitigate the risks
Once the most material physical risks to Beazley are identified, a number of steps may be undertaken to manage and mitigate
these risks. Where we undertake actions such as developing climate-change conditioned views of risk, adjusting our pricing to
account for climate change impacts, and producing metrics to help inform our underwriters of their exposure to climate change,
we start first by focusing on the perils identified as most material by the materiality assessment, in order to focus our efforts in
the areas with the most impact to Beazley.
Given that these risks are likely to be accompanied by a business opportunity, these steps are usually not undertaken in
isolation. The linkage between the risks and opportunities, and the actions Beazley is taking are outlined in sections 2.3.2
and 4.3.2 of the TCFD report.
Area specific: Investments
Beazley continues to enhance our understanding of the materiality of the impact of climate change on our investment portfolio.
These efforts support investment decisions by helping to identify opportunities in sustainable and resilient companies fostering
longer term value creation whilst aligning with our sustainability goals. It also identifies and considers the materiality of the
risks that companies face through climate transition risk as the world shifts to a lower carbon economy which may entail
extensive policy, legal, technology and market changes.
Area specific: Operations
As Beazley developed its transition plan, published in Q4 2024 on our website, consideration was given to the materiality of the
carbon emissions associated with our Operations in comparison to those in Underwriting and Investments.
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2.2.3 Overview of processes used to determine opportunities
Underwriting
In addition to the approach to identify climate-related risks, there are also a number of processes by which Beazley identifies
climate-related opportunities which could have a material financial impact. These are detailed below:
Method of identification
Description
Identified as a result of
determining a risk
The methods used to determine a risk also enable identification of an opportunity. The development of an opportunity, where
underwriting-related, will be delivered using one of the processes described below.
Incubation process
The Incubation Underwriting team develops new products which sit outside of existing underwriting team business plans and
appetite. These can either be sourced from externally (e.g. brokers, InsurTechs) or internally. Consideration is given to the
addressable market; buyer urgency; market saturation; product economics; and customer interests. Solutions related to climate risk
and the carbon transition are currently in scope.
Should the opportunity warrant further investigation, the Incubation team will engage with experts within Beazley (e.g. Underwriting,
Actuarial, Claims) before reviewing the opportunity with the Head of Underwriting Strategy. Following feedback, presentations are
made to the CUO and/or the Underwriting Committee. Opportunities are launched in pilot periods, typically to maximum aggregate
limits, to test the opportunity, with progress reported to the Underwriting Committee. If suitably ‘proven’ in the pilot, and following
the required approvals, the opportunity will be handed over to an existing Beazley team. Their work is monitored by the
Underwriting Committee.
Business planning process
Underwriting focus group leads are responsible for developing the annual business plan, in which they may identify an area of
business in which to either enter or expand their portfolio. They will document their strategy within their business plan. This could
include the type of products/services they will insure, and the size of the market and the opportunity for Beazley. This work is
supported by input from specialists. In 2024, a series of climate risk questions were added to the business planning process,
asking underwriters to list the risks and opportunities for their teams, arising as a result of climate change. Underwriters were asked
to detail what new products and services they expected to be in greater demand due to climate change, alongside what extra
information and support they needed to assist them in managing these risks and opportunities. The responses to these questions
help to inform the Climate Risk, Incubation and Product Development teams of additional climate-related opportunities, and how best
to realise them.
Extension to an existing
product or service
Due to the specialist nature of Beazley’s products and services, there may be several existing products and services which can be
used to cover similar risks in new settings. Where this occurs, the relevant underwriting team use their knowledge and expertise to
ensure any adjustments to the policy wording are implemented. This work is supported by the product development team.
Additional underwriting
opportunities
The development and deployment of climate risk metrics within Beazley allows for opportunities to share climate risk insights with
clients. Engagement with underwriters can identify useful metrics to enhance our client’s understanding of their exposure to physical
climate risks.
Investments
The Investment Team look for opportunities arising from decarbonisation as part of the investment process. This is through a
review of corporate issuers, analysis of climate risks across the portfolio and staying abreast of developments in responsible
investment across the industry. These opportunities are underpinned by the responsible investment policy and Beazley’s own
investment strategy, as well as Beazley’s broader vision. Key opportunities the team has identified across the last couple of
years include:
• Committing to investing up to $100m in impact investments, with a target for approximately 50% of the investments
to support the transition to a lower carbon economy;
• Moving equity portfolios to funds with decarbonisation targets; and
• Developing our knowledge and understanding of transition and physical risk in the investment portfolio.
Operations
As Beazley worked to develop its transition plan, we carried out an assessment measuring our Scope 1, 2 and 3
emissions volumes.
Based on the outcome of this assessment, Beazley was then able to use this information, along with an assessment of
the scope of influence, to help determine where opportunities to further our own pathway to net zero. This resulted in the
development of our first transition plan, which encapsulates reduction targets for our scope 1 and 2 emissions, as well as
broader initiatives which will help us first better understand our scope 3 emissions, before then being able to develop further
plans in the future.
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2.2.4 Summary of risks and opportunities
Summary of risks:
Physical Risk
Based on the 2024 physical risk materiality assessment for our underwriting, and as indicated in the figure below, the US was
determined as the most material geographical location in which the Group operates and underwrites. North Atlantic hurricane
was identified as our most material climate-impacted peril, followed by US Inland Flood, US Wildfire and US Severe Convective
Storm. (SCS). Details of how these are managed is outlined in section 4.3.2 of the TCFD report.
Our understanding of the physical risks associated with our investments and operations needs to be further developed.
Climate Litigation
Our findings revealed that the United States and the Netherlands stand out as the countries with the highest underlying levels
of climate litigation risk for our underwriting, driven by an active not-for-profit litigation environment and significant numbers of
relevant and material test cases and greenwashing claims in both jurisdictions. In addition, the scale of regulatory attention on
climate and clearly defined responsibilities for businesses operating in the Netherlands sets the country aside as a key source
of regulatory exposure, whilst the lack of a “loser-pays” system for litigation costs in the US encourages private claimants to
bring litigation to court. Australia was also found to be a higher-risk jurisdiction, particularly regarding greenwashing claims,
with Australian regulators paying particular focus to greenwashing as an enforcement priority.
In terms of sector variations in litigation risk, financial institutions/services are most exposed to climate litigation on average
across all countries, driven by robust regulatory bodies for the sector and increasing attention towards financed emissions.
Consumer products are also a higher-risk sector in all countries, owing to the sector experiencing frequent claims of
greenwashing, as does the transportation sector in the high-risk jurisdictions of the Netherlands and the USA. Oil, Gas &
Consumable fuels were also identified as a high-risk sector owing to the sector’s contribution to global emissions making
businesses in this sector a key target for privately funded litigation.
A class action lawsuit against Beazley for our own disclosures is considered an operational risk. Our understanding of how
litigation risk impacts our investment portfolio continues to evolve.
Transitional risk
Based on our initial research, transitional risks related to our underwriting are likely to be seen in factors such as:
• Policy interventions;
• Geopolitical events;
• Market changes; and
• Technology advances leading to an increase in stranded assets.
The manner in which the global transition to net zero and more sustainable practices occurs is also considered a significant
risk, as if it is delivered in the wrong way, without considering the impact in the short term, it could result in significant social
implications for communities across the globe. We are still seeking to develop a holistic understanding of how sectors and
geographies are impacted by the transition and what the implications are for Beazley.
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Summary of opportunities
The business opportunities presented to Beazley as a result of the global transition vary depending on the nature of individual
climate-related risks, as well as the maturity of our strategy and thus readiness to take advantage of them.
This means that many of the opportunities we are working towards from a physical risk perspective, may also be realised in the
future from either a litigation or transition perspective. Furthermore, the very nature of a specialty insurer, means that the risks
we face can also be a considered an opportunity for Beazley to realise, as part of its business strategy. A summary of the
opportunities we may realise include:
Physical related
Litigation related
Transition related
Continued development of our knowledge of physical
climate risk, using tools such as scenario analysis.
This opportunity is pertinent to both our underwriting
and investments.
Continued development of our knowledge in respect
to climate-litigation, using our heat map as the
mechanism by which we develop our approach.
This opportunity is pertinent to our underwriting.
Continued development of our knowledge in respect
to transitional related matters. This opportunity
is pertinent to our underwriting, operations
and investments.
Further incorporation of physical risk matters into
our pricing, with an initial focus on the most material
perils and geographies. This opportunity is pertinent
to our underwriting.
Development and delivery of appropriate training and
awareness on the subject matter. This opportunity is
pertinent to both our underwriting and investments.
Development of transition-related products
and services. This opportunity is pertinent
to our underwriting.
Sharing knowledge with our insured on the impact
of physical risk. This opportunity is pertinent
to our underwriting.
Sharing insights with our specialty risk insureds,
particularly those with operations in jurisdictions
considered to be higher risk for climate-litigation
activity. This is pertinent to our underwriting.
Further industry engagement on key topics such as
measurement and monitoring towards the transition
to net zero. This opportunity is pertinent to our
underwriting, operations and investments.
Development and delivery of appropriate training and
awareness on the subject matter. This opportunity is
pertinent to both our underwriting and investments.
Delivery of Beazley’s own transition plan.
This opportunity is pertinent to our underwriting,
operations and investments.
Investment using our impact fund to support the
transition to net zero. This opportunity is pertinent
to our investments.
2.3 Climate risk and our business strategy
2.3.1 Overview of approach
Beazley used a number of different mechanisms by which to develop its business strategy. From a business perspective, our
annual business planning process, and medium-term plan are central to how the business wants to continue to grow and adapt
to the challenges our insureds may face in the future. To support these strategies from a sustainability perspective, Beazley
has developed a sustainability strategy. The aim of this strategy is to help Beazley to work towards its vision, ensuring, at all
times that it is supportive of Beazley’s broader business objectives.
2.3.2 Overview of Sustainability Strategy
Following the undertaking of the DMA, a number of workshops were conducted with stakeholders from across the business to
help develop our new sustainability strategy. Following approval by the RBSG, the objectives contained in the strategy were
approved by the plc Board in March 2024. Beazley then developed a suite of documents to articulate this position for external
audiences, information from which is now available in the sustainability section on our website.
The strategy has three pillars, which are interlinked and prioritise; what matters most to our people and our business, what we
do well, and where we can have the most significant impact:
Managing our business responsibly
Having robust governance and transparency in how
we do business; and protecting people and our planet
across our operations, investments and supply chain.
Supporting our clients to transition
Understanding and mitigating complex risks with innovative
underwriting products, enabling insureds to transition to a
greener, more equitable future.
Delivering success by doing the right thing
The impact of investment in a sustainable approach to
business is visible in our financial results, community
outcomes and staff engagement.
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Given the interconnectivity between sustainability and the transition to net zero, the sustainability strategy includes a number
of objectives which are related to our endeavours to work towards achieving net zero by 2050. For the purpose of external
communication, we have published the relevant objectives as part of our standalone Net Zero: transition plan, but, internally
they are regarded as simply another component of our wider approach to sustainability. A summary of the relevant climate—
related business as usual practices, as well as the objectives set out in the sustainability strategy are as follows:
Managing our business responsibly
Underwriting
Business as Usual practices
Over the past three years, Beazley has worked to develop our knowledge and expertise on climate-related matters in respect
to our underwriting. A summary of the activities employed to support the management of climate-related matters, in addition
to scenario analysis include:
Action
Outline of activity
Developing climate risk
adjusted pricing
For material physical perils that are affected by climate change, adjustments are made to the pricing model to reflect their risk
profile. These adjustments apply an uplift to pricing of these perils to account for the increases to physical risk due to climate
change. This is informed by research by the Pricing and Natural Hazards Research teams, investigating the historical loss trends of
risks, alongside reviews of scientific literature on the specific impacts from climate change. By the end of 2023, climate adjusted
pricing trends had been introduced for US Wildfire, US Inland Flood, US Hurricane, US Hail, US Tornado and US Winterstorm.
Portfolio optimisation
Portfolio optimisation is a process at Beazley where underwriters manage the US Property risks portfolios using risk appetite and
performance metrics and make decisions on where to expand or retract their business. Property underwriters are provided with tools
and metrics to identify and monitor their regional exposure to various forms of catastrophe risk, to plan their yearly growth and set
risk appetites for individual regions. Where climate change conditioned catastrophe models are available, scenario analyses are
conducted at a regional level to show how different regions may be affected by climate risks over time. These results are shared with
underwriters within the CMOG group, and in portfolio optimisation dashboards provided to property underwriters, helping inform
portfolio optimisation. By the end of 2023, we had implemented a catastrophe optimisation framework and dashboard, enabling
Property underwriters to refine and manage their US portfolios using risk appetite and performance metrics, with US Hurricane future
temperature scenario analysis added to portfolio optimisation dashboard in 2024.
Strategy objectives
These objectives support our ambition to ensure we appropriately manage the risks associated with climate-related matters.
An overview of the background to the objectives, and the progress made in 2024 is summarised in the table below.
A number of the outcomes of the objectives are reflected in the metrics section:
Action
Outline of activity
Strengthen modelling
capabilities to develop
forward-looking view of risk
for physical risk perils.
For material physical perils, we look to develop a climate-change conditioned forward-looking view of risk to account for climate
change impacts of physical perils, and implement it in catastrophe modelling of any affected risks. To do so, we prepare a study
examining the impact of climate change on the scientific underpinnings of the peril. The study then assesses the potential
implementation of these climate-change impacts in the models currently in use by Beazley and determines a final adjustment/model
alteration to use. We also engage external experts in this process. The forward-looking view of risk is reviewed by several internal
working groups and committees before implementation. Alongside catastrophe modelling, the forward-looking view of risk feeds into
our exposure aggregation monitoring, pricing and capital management. We have already delivered this capability for US hurricane and
have extended climate-change conditioned modelling to include US flood, US wildfire and US severe convective storm.
Develop climate litigation
risk management approach.
Informed by previous work, Beazley has spent the last two years developing its approach to the risks posed from climate litigation.
In 2024, this culminated in the creation of a climate litigation heat map, which will allow us to better understand climate litigation
hotspots. To complement this, we have also begun to monitor and record climate litigation claims, in order for us to explore if this
data could form part of our future analysis.
Develop climate scenario
analysis, including physical,
transition, and litigation
risks.
Building on a future temperature scenario analysis being developed for US hurricane in 2023, a future temperature scenario analysis
for US inland flood was developed in 2024. The Beazley “Most Likely” baseline scenario was also reviewed. We also developed
combined climate change scenario encompassing elements of physical, litigation and transition climate risk. The strategy objective
was set with a view of developing climate scenarios for each element of climate-related risk. It will continue to progress in 2025.
Consider the reputational
impact to Beazley of
underwriting particular
clients or sectors and
further develop, where
appropriate, frameworks to
support decision making.
This objective has been set for delivery in 2025.
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Investment
The following objective has been set as part of Beazley’s responsible investment approach:
Action
Outline of activity
Align our investment
portfolio (publicly listed
corporate bonds and
equities) with a less than 2-
degree pathway.
Our transition plan for the investment portfolio focuses on aligning our publicly listed corporate bonds (investment grade and high
yield) and publicly listed equities with a less than 2-degree Celsius pathway. For our internally managed investment grade fixed
income portfolios a consideration of transition pathways is incorporated into our credit review process. We track the alignment of our
issuers with their net zero targets, and we will look to disinvest from those companies not making sufficient progress to decarbonise
and who have an implied temperature rise that is inconsistent with our stated targets. For our externally managed assets, we have
moved most of our equity exposure into funds with a sustainability approach and a decarbonization benchmark. For the remaining
outsourced portfolios of in-scope assets, we are working with external managers to encourage the development of sustainability
compliant funds with a decarbonisation target, with the intention of switching our funds when suitable products are available.
Details of the carbon footprint and temperature alignment of our portfolio are published in section 5.3 of the TCFD report. For other
assets that are currently out-of-scope, we will expand reporting as new guidance is published for asset classes not currently covered
by existing methodologies. A framework for the measurement of transition and physical risks arising from climate change has been
developed and this will be externally verified in 2025. This will be incorporated into a climate risk appetite statement and materiality
assessment and will feed into our investment decision making process.
As a responsible business, Beazley recognises the opportunity it has to use its investment assets to create a positive impact
on the environment and to support the transition to a lower carbon economy. In 2021, we committed to investing up to $100m
in impact investments, which generate both a financial return and a measurable positive social and environmental impact.
To date, we have committed capital of approximately $60m into five funds, two of which provide capital to support new
renewable infrastructure projects. It is intended that when fully invested, broadly half of the positive impact will be focused
on the environment and mitigation of climate change. These investments are under the oversight of the Investment Committee.
Operations
Action
Outline of activity
Align the decarbonisation of
our Scope 1 and 2
emissions with a 1.5-
degree pathway, with
targets set out to 2034
(per our Transition plan).
Although the carbon footprint from our operations is small compared to the emissions from our investment and underwriting portfolios, it is
the area where Beazley employees can have the most influence. The operations element of our transition plan will focus on reducing carbon
emissions from the offices we lease by working with our landlords and encouraging the use of renewable electricity.
This approach builds on our current targets for reducing carbon emissions from our operations. For 2024, our aim continued to be a
reduction in our normalised carbon emissions by 50% compared to the 2019 baseline (progress is reported in the Metrics section of this
report). Beazley's GHG emissions mainly come from our Scope 2 and 3 emissions, as detailed in our GHG emissions disclosures.
Ensure all Beazley offices
derive their electricity from
renewable sources (where
possible).
This is a long-term objective, as laid out in our Transition Plan, which has been set for 2032. This timeline was set based on the
renewal dates for our office lease agreements. Achieving this objective will require maintaining close partnerships with our landlords
who often procure electricity on our behalf.
Identify how we can best
support our supply chain to
help Beazley achieve its net
zero goals
As part of our ongoing project to incorporate sustainability matters into our procurement process, we are exploring how we can
support our supply chain in transitioning to net-zero and develop a detailed plan for this area of the business. This work will support
the wider effort to onboard our supplier base into a third party procurement management tool, where sustainability related
information can be obtained from the supplier.
Explore the setting of an
internal carbon price
Business travel is a major contributor to our Scope 3 emissions. To address this, we have implemented an internal carbon budget
system, purely for business travel, similar to a financial budget. Each division is allocated a specific amount of carbon that they can
"spend" on greenhouse gas emissions resulting from business travel. Performance updates are provided throughout the year,
allowing teams to track their carbon spending. This budget system, and the resulting changes in travel patterns, has helped Beazley
achieve reductions in normalised carbon emissions, as outlined in the Metrics section of this report.
The next step in this process is to explore how an internal carbon price could help support the development of the carbon budget for
business travel.
Develop a carbon credit
framework to set the
parameters of what we will
and won’t consider in our
procurement and
operational decisions.
Carbon offsets are expected to form part of our approach to managing carbon emissions in the future, although our key priority is to
avoid using carbon offsets where possible. To help inform our decision making in respect to the purchase of good quality credits, we
committed to develop an appropriate framework to help guide decision making. This work commenced in 2024. There are also links
here with our Incubation team, who are in the process of developing a carbon credit offset invalidation product.
Capital Management
As part of our capital modelling process, adjustments are made to the capital model to account for the impacts of climate
change. Annual loadings are applied to the modelling of US Hurricane, US Inland Flood, US Wildfire, US Winter storm, European
Windstorm and Japan Typhoon, reflecting the increased losses expected for these perils due to climate change. Where forward-
looking views of risks have been developed, capital loads are implemented to match the uplifts suggested. For perils which do
not yet have a forward-looking view of risk, capital loads are implemented based on climate trends identified by the pricing and
capital teams using historical losses and climate risk research.
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Supporting the transition to net zero
Underwriting
The changing climate means that both physical and transition climate-related risks and opportunities are going to emerge in the
foreseeable future. As part of the strategy, Beazley has set the following objectives:
• Products & Services - Enhance existing and develop new products and services to help clients meet their needs in the
transition to a greener, equitable future;
• Industry frameworks - Support the development of sector specific industry frameworks to measure the progress of the
transition; and
• Data collection – Once frameworks are in place, work with stakeholders to improve the collection and reporting of emissions
data to more accurately track progress of the transition. Use the outputs to inform the further development of the transition
plan for underwriting.
Products & Services
Beazley is continuously working on products and services that support our clients from both a physical and transition
perspective. At present, these manifest themselves in either the provision of insights or the development/adjustment of
underwriting products for our insureds to use to help mitigate the risks they may face.
In 2022, we undertook a review on how Beazley's current and planned product suite applies to industries and sub-industries
that are key to the green/clean technology element of the transition to net zero. As part of this review, we gathered information
from our underwriting teams on both their appetite to provide and the demand for coverage for these industries. This exercise
clearly showed that there is a demand for products and services for renewable energies (wind, solar, hydro-electric, wave &
tidal, geo-thermal, and hydrogen), as well being demand for green technology (carbon capture & storage, battery technology,
recycling) and green services, (green consulting, technical services, green finance).
The exercise also enabled Beazley to identify the challenges to underwriting green/clean tech, including a lack of available
historical data and difficulty in predicting which green technologies will be most successful or how quickly they will be adopted.
The development of these product opportunities continued to progress in 2024.
Insights
From an insights perspective, examples of initiatives Beazley have delivered include:
Spotlights on environmental
risk 2024
This was covered by the Board in 2024 and included D&O, litigation and sustainability-related risk factors. Further information will be
provided in our 2025 report.
Location-level climate
change metrics (internal
initiative)
For US Hurricane (our most material physical peril), location-level climate risk metrics are provided to underwriters within our property
pricing tool, to help identify and mitigate physical climate risks. This metric scores each insured location based on the expected
increase to hurricane risk by 2030 due to climate change, helping encourage better risk selection and underwriting decisions.
Sharing climate insights
with Beazley insureds
A key area of opportunity is the sharing of Beazley’s climate risk insights with our clients. In 2024, we began development of a
Climate Change Spotlight report for some Property underwriting teams, which we aim to use in 2025. The Climate Change Spotlight
report will allow underwriters to share Beazley’s climate risk insights with our clients. The report can be produced for clients
particularly exposed to worsening US hurricane risk due to climate change, identifying the key locations in an insured’s schedules
which are most exposed to worsening US hurricane risk, using insights from our location level climate change metrics.
Climate risk underwriting
questions
A series of climate risk underwriting questions have been developed for some property underwriting teams, where they have clients
who are identified as being highly exposed to climate risk by the location-level climate change metrics for US Hurricane. For these
risks, underwriters are encouraged to liaise with clients to understand whether they are aware of the climate-related risks they are
exposed to, and what protection measures and emergency responses are in place. Data gathered on the climate risk mitigation
measures used by our clients will allow us to investigate the effectiveness of such measures, helping inform future engagement with
clients and allowing us to better understand the risks and make more informed underwriting decisions. By ascertaining how well
clients understand and are responding to climate risk, underwriters can both better understand and account for their own exposures
to climate risk, and encourage better resilience for our clients.
Broker partnerships
Brokers play a crucial role in connecting Beazley with our clients. As such, our collaboration with brokers is essential in
addressing climate-related issues. Beazley works closely with several strategic broker partners on various topics, including
climate-related matters. We engage with these partners, who have the capability to work with us, to establish initiatives that
benefit them, our clients, and Beazley. This includes the development of new products and services.
For our Incubation team, the relationship with brokers is a vital part of the process of developing new products and services
that address climate-related opportunities. The nature of this relationship may vary depending on the specific product being
developed. Engagement with brokers could be influenced by factors such as their involvement in the development of the new
product and their ability to assist with the placement of delegated agreements.
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Support the development of sector specific industry frameworks
During our exploration of setting carbon emission reduction targets for Beazley's underwriting portfolio, and our work with the
Sustainable Markets Initiative, we realised that a collaborative effort is needed to facilitate the transition to net-zero. At the
centre of this effort is the need for businesses to commonly report carbon emission data and for a consensus to be reached on
common sector frameworks for assessing the transition to net-zero. As a result, our transition plan for the underwriting element
of Beazley's operations will focus on two main areas:
• Improving the availability of carbon emission data for the clients we insure so that we can set reduction targets in the future.
We plan to achieve this through client engagement, collaboration with third parties, and industry initiatives.
• Delivering products and services that best support our clients as sectors begin to transition to net zero. An example of this is
our business plan to develop our renewable energy underwriting capacity at Beazley. Progress against this will be tracked
through the insurance written premium from low and zero carbon technologies, cited in section 5.2 of the TCFD report. Once
delivered, Beazley can then begin to work towards its third objective of improving data quality received from stakeholders in
order for us to more readily and accurately track progress towards net zero.
Delivering success by doing the right thing
Just Transition
For Beazley, a crucial part of the transition to net-zero is ensuring that it occurs justly, balancing the short-term social needs of
energy security against the longer-term needs to reach net-zero by 2050. In January 2022, we adopted a policy to preclude
underwriting of any new thermal coal, oil tar sands, or arctic energy exploration projects, or businesses generating more than
5% of their revenues from these areas.
However, in November 2022, due to the ongoing war in Ukraine, we revised the exclusion for thermal coal to insure new clients
transporting thermal coal from existing coal mines. This revision was reviewed in the summer of 2024, at which point it was
determined that it would continue to apply only to our Marine and Political Risk underwriting classes, until June 2025, after
which it will be reviewed once again. This approach supports the need for energy security, as several countries are increasing
their use of thermal coal plants to provide electricity.
We aim to support as many of our clients as we can during their transition to net zero. We believe that this can be delivered
through a combination of education on the need for a smooth and just transition; knowledge sharing from the learnings we gain
during our own transition journey; and the provision of products and services which support businesses in their net zero
transition. Our approach to just transition will evolve as we work to further understand how best to support it. As part of this,
one of our objectives in 2025 is to explore the just transition in more detail.
Link with biodiversity
The link between climate-related matters and biodiversity is gaining more prominence. In order to better understand this link, as
well as how we can support the preservation of biodiversity, we have set an objective to increase our preparedness for a greater
focus on nature related risks in 2025.
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TCFD 2024 continued
3. Scenario analysis
Climate scenario analysis is a valuable tool to assess financial risks from climate change and inform strategic and business
decision making. By measuring the future financial impacts of climate risk to our business, we can adjust our strategy accordingly
and ensure resilience. Analyses such as our Combined Climate Change RDS confirm that all Beazley entities would remain within
the acceptable range of our solvency risk appetite even when impacted by a broad range of physical, transition and litigation risks.
In 2021, Beazley took part in the PRA's Climate Biennial Exploratory Scenario stress test. This determined that despite the potential
for an overall balance sheet impact to Beazley being material in the long term, under no modelled scenario was Beazley rendered
unviable as a business. Building on this, we have continued to evolve our approach to scenario analysis, with our focus to date
being on our underwriting, where progress is as follows:
3.1 Physical risk
Scenario Analysis
Description
"Most Likely” baseline
scenario
In 2022, by comparing and collating scientific literature on likely climate change pathways, we developed a baseline scenario projection of how
climate risk was likely to evolve throughout the rest of the century, ensuring that all areas of the business were aligned on how to best plan for
changing conditions. This projection was reviewed again in 2024, using the latest data available, and was found to still remain valid.
The parameters used to develop this model are now used to inform Beazley’s climate change-conditioned view of risk material, physical
risk perils and location-level climate change metrics. These parameters are:
• Future emissions follow the RCP 4.5 emissions pathway;
• A very late and more aggressive policy transition. Assumes annual emissions do not decrease before 2030.
Future temperature
scenario analysis
In 2023, we developed a future temperature scenario analysis for our most significant peril - US hurricanes. This analysis examines the impact of
climate change on various property lines under different Global Mean Surface Temperature scenarios in the future, producing results at a state-
level resolution. The focus is on physical climate risk, and the analysis assesses the impact of climate change on each property line at different
future temperatures. This allows us to evaluate the effects of further global warming on our property portfolio.
The decision to use temperatures as the key parameter as opposed to future emission pathways across different time horizons, was
based on ensuring:
• We make the results easy to communicate with stakeholders;
• The use of a temperature allows results to be given with a range of time horizons, as each temperature may be reached by different
points in the future according to how future emissions develop.
The temperature increases modelled as part of this scenario are as follows:
This information was initially shared with underwriting team leaders within our CMOG. By evaluating the regional impact of climate change
on property focus groups, underwriters can understand the potential impact on their portfolios and identify the regions that will be most
affected, using this information to aid in portfolio management.
In 2024, we have extended this scenario analysis to include US flood, our next most material climate-impacted peril. In 2025 we plan on
introducing future temperature scenario analysis for US wildfire, as we continue to extend scenario analysis to include additional perils in
order of materiality to Beazley.
Findings, assumptions and limitations
Our projected climate scenario shows the percentage increase in modelled losses, with a focus on average annual losses and losses for
a 250-year return period. Some of our key findings were:
• For US hurricane losses, all modelled property lines experienced the largest increases in losses in Gulf states such as Texas,
Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Florida, as well as significant increases in the Carolinas.
• For US Flood, the greatest increases were seen in states along the Mississippi valley, including Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri, in addition
to Utah. Iowa is predicted to see the greatest flooding loss increases overall across all modelled portfolios.
• The higher temperature scenarios have more significant impacts, with a higher overall increase in losses for each portfolio, and a
wider range of loss increases across all states.
It's important to note that this scenario analysis was conducted under the assumption that our future exposure and local mitigation
measures will remain the same as they are today. As a result, there are limitations to the findings, particularly for the higher temperature
scenarios associated with longer time horizons. These limitations are driven by unmodelled variables such as changes in exposure and
local adaptation measures, as well as inherent uncertainty regarding the impact of temperature increase on hurricane impacts.
Business use cases and governance
This scenario analysis is repeated on a quarterly basis, and presented to the CMOG. In 2024, we developed a scenario analysis segment
within our portfolio optimisation dashboard, which is shared with all relevant underwriting teams to aid in portfolio optimisation
processes. By repeating scenario analysis, underwriters can monitor how their exposure to future climate risk changes as their portfolios
evolve, enabling them to make informed decisions about managing or growing their underwriting book. This also helps to integrate
scenario analysis into our processes for monitoring catastrophe risk.
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3.2 Climate litigation risk
Greenwashing scenario review
We have developed a RDS, quantifying our exposure to a hypothetical scenario in which a number of our insureds are impacted
by a series of mass greenwashing claims. In 2024, following an independent review in 2023 of our Greenwashing RDS with
external climate litigation specialists, our Exposure Management team implemented a series of recommendations to improve
our RDS.
Actions resulting from these recommendations included expanding the scope of the RDS to include analysis of additional
industry sectors exposed to risk of greenwashing claims, investigation of alternative modelling approaches and enhanced
documentation of RDS assumptions and methodology.
3.3 Transition risk
We are undertaking research on market development on transition risk scenarios for underwriting. The work we undertook this
year on identifying and assessing materiality of transition risks and opportunities will enable us to develop transition-related
scenarios in years ahead.
3.4 Combined climate change scenario
As part of our 2024 ORSA, Beazley’s risk management team developed a multi-year, holistic climate change scenario,
encompassing risks arising from climate change across physical, transition (related to our investments only) and litigation
climate risks, and reflecting the materiality of this risk to Beazley and its local entities. The risk team facilitated workshops with
relevant first line members to produce the following narrative to inform the following hypothetical scenario:
• Physical Risk: There is a clustering of severe hurricanes. This leads to significant claims,which in turn leads to greater public
awareness of increasing climate change risks. The public perceives that these risks are growing at an accelerated rate, even
if they cannot be directly attributed to climate change.
• Litigation Risk: The shift in public perception following the severe hurricanes leads to increased climate litigation activity and
a series of greenwashing claims, impacting insured parties.
• Transition Risk: The change in sentiment following the above leads investors to push large corporations to meet a 1.5°C
global warming target sooner. There is a sell-off by retail investors, insurers and major pension funds of large corporations
who are perceived as sluggish to meet targets, impacting our investment portfolio.
The analysis found that despite the losses incurred by the physical, litigation and transition risk elements of the scenario, all
Beazley entities would remain within the acceptable range of our solvency risk appetite. This confirms that our climate risk
practices, risk profile and capital assumptions are sufficient to withstand such a series of events.
Following the scenario analysis being performed in 2024, climate risk stakeholders across Beazley engaged in workshops to
review the scenario. The review identified future improvements to the scenario, such as including additional impacts of climate
change in the scenario narrative in order to further test Beazley’s resilience. The results of this review will contribute to the
development of an updated version of the climate change scenario, when it is next undertaken in 2025.
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4. Risk management
4.1 Risk management framework
4.1.1 Overview of Beazley’s risk management framework
Beazley’s risk management framework establishes our approach to identifying, measuring, mitigating and monitoring the
Group’s key risks, including climate risk. See additional detail on the risk management framework in the Strategic Report which
starts on page 1.
4.2 Identification and assessment of climate-related risks
We use the key mechanisms set out below to identify and assess a range of climate-related risks relevant to Beazley, whether
that be by geographical location, sector or product line.
Key mechanism
Description
Scenario Analysis
Scenario analysis includes stressing the scenarios of the first line or developing additional scenarios to consider climate
related risks.
Natural Catastrophe
Modelling
Beazley utilises physical damage catastrophe models, such as those created by Moody's proprietary modelling system RMS, to
help understand the implications of physical events. The Group has licensed, and validated, the RMS climate-adjusted model for
our most material peril, US Hurricane, and has validated more climate-adjusted models during 2024 which will be adopted from
2025 onwards (i.e. US Inland Flood).
The primary purpose of the model is to gather data from an underwriting portfolio and provide loss-related information about pre-
defined events, such as Lloyd's RDSs. However, it is also used to assist with determining rate adequacy and as a key input in
portfolio management decisions; for example, in terms of diversification and geographical spread.
The modelling enables the impact of climate-related risk to be reviewed from the following perspectives:
• Regional variation;
• Different climate risk scenarios; and
• Different loss perspectives.
Beyond this modelling, we also engage with other data and tool providers to review changes in physical perils at an individual
location level.
Deterministic Scenarios
Beazley has a suite of RDSs, which are run on a regular basis in order to determine the impact of different risks. The suite of
scenarios includes both natural catastrophe RDSs and climate litigation RDSs, as well as man-made related scenarios such
as Cyber. In total there are approximately 50 Deterministic Realistic Scenarios Disaster, some of which are Lloyd’s prescribed
scenarios with the rest being developed by Beazley. This modelling process is overseen by the exposure management team.
An Emerging & Complex Risk Protocol has been developed which sets out the activity in place to review potential, complex, and/or
emerging risks relating to underwriting.
These scenarios are either modelled, using data drawn from third-party modelling partners, or non-modelled, where experts across
Beazley collaborate to determine the impact. The output from these modelling processes help to determine the relative
significance of the climate-related risk in relation to other risks. In turn this informs decision-making across the business.
Climate-related
strategic risks
The Board identifies and analyses emerging and strategic risk on an annual basis for discussion at The Board level. Climate-
related matters may form part of these discussions, where applicable.
Strategic emerging risks are reviewed by the risk team as part of the emerging risk assessment process. These reviews are a
collaborative effort across the risk team, management and business functions. It is an opportunity to identify and assess emerging
risks, and provide appropriate mitigation measures to reduce/manage the risk. The emerging risk assessment is undertaken at a
micro-level and macro-level, (please see the table in section 2.1.2 for more information). This assessment is also where Beazley
captures its own response to climate change, and refers to the appropriate action being taken to improve the risk and control
framework.
Identification of emerging
risks, trends and regulatory
requirements
Regular scanning of the horizon for emerging trends, regulatory requirements and stakeholder perspectives is undertaken. Key
elements which are looked for include:
• Understanding the perspectives of stakeholders, whether they be investors, activists or our employees, through regular
dialogue;
• Determining current and emerging legal requirements, whether they be mandated or voluntary. This includes compliance with
regulatory demands and legislation. It also extends to voluntary initiatives Beazley is a member of, such as the UN Principles for
Sustainable Insurance; and
• Understanding the evolving reputational risks associated with our activities.
Regular communication on these matters occurs across the teams identified in section 1.2 in order to ensure Beazley’s approach
to responsible business meets stakeholder expectations. Where necessary, proposals outlining the considerations for these
matters are put to the responsible business steering group for further discussion or clarification and recommendations for any
appropriate action. In 2022, the Group committed to setting a net zero target for 2050.
Emerging risks are also identified and assessed as per the Emerging Risk Framework with oversight of the ERWG.
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4.3 Management of climate-related risks
4.3.1 Consideration of climate-related risk within the Risk Management Framework
Climate financial risk is a pervasive risk which spans multiple risk categories and owners; however it is a risk in its own right
and is integrated in the enterprise-wide Risk Management Framework. Below is a brief outline of how climate-related matters
are reflected in the relevant principal risk categories of the risk register.
Insurance risk
Risk type
Relevance to climate-related matters
Attritional and large claims
This is the risk that claims costs may be higher than expected leading to material losses. It includes the risk of systematic
mispricing of the medium-tailed Specialty Risks business, which could arise due to a change in the US tort environment, changes
to the supply and demand of capital or companies using incomplete data to make decisions. In the context of climate-related
matters, liability risks could manifest themselves, especially in relation to accusations of greenwashing. Transitional risk may also
play a part in claims arising from market cycle risks. The Group uses a range of techniques to mitigate this risk including
sophisticated pricing tools, analysis of macro trends, analysis of claim frequency and the expertise of our experienced underwriters
and claims managers.
Natural catastrophe
underwriting risk
This is the risk of one or more large events caused by nature affecting several policies and therefore giving rise to multiple losses.
Given Beazley’s risk profile, such an event could be a hurricane, major windstorm, earthquake or wildfire. This risk is monitored
using exposure management techniques to ensure that the risk and reward are appropriate, and that the exposure is not overly
concentrated in one area.
Climate financial risk
This relates to potential financial risks that may result from the physical impact and transition requirements of a changing climate
on Beazley’s underwriting and investment portfolios. This could be due to systemic mispricing of climate-related exposures,
mismanagement of our aggregate exposures, or greater claims costs than expected resulting in financial loss and/or reputational
damage. The Group mitigates this in a number of ways, including having a clearly defined and documented underwriting and
investment strategy. There is training and guidance on related risks as part of the business planning process. Pricing models are
regularly reviewed and updated to include/reflect climate-risk-related information. Exposure management processes are in place,
which includes stress and scenario analysis Climate research is conducted by the Exposure Management team to continue to
understand and mitigate the risks generated by the rising propensity and severity of such events.
Reserve risk
This is the risk that established reserves are not sufficient to reflect the ultimate impact climate change may have on paid losses.
This includes unanticipated liability risk losses arising from our client’s facing litigation if they are held to be responsible for
contributing to climate change, or for failing to act properly to respond to the various impacts of climate change. With support from
our Group actuarial team, claims teams and other members of management, the Group establishes financial provisions for our
ultimate claim’s liabilities. The Group maintains a consistent approach to reserving to help mitigate the uncertainty within the
reserve’s estimation process.
Market, credit and liquidity risks
Risk type
Relevance to climate-related matters
Market risk
This is a risk of investment loss, in any period, sufficient to impact capital and/or cause reputational damage. Beazley’s
investment portfolio could suffer declining returns following drops in the share prices of investments following a climate-risk-
related incident.
To mitigate this risk, an approved investment strategy is in place that provides guidance on appetite. In addition, adherence to the
investment strategy is monitored through ongoing review, oversight and audit work.
Reinsurance credit risk
In the event of material natural catastrophe events, there would be a risk that our reinsurance counterparties are unable to pay
reinsurance balances due to Beazley. If the frequency or severity of these events is increased due to climate change, this could
cause a corresponding increase in credit risk. An important consideration when placing our reinsurance programme is evaluation
of our counterparty risk. Every potential reinsurer is evaluated through a detailed benchmarking exercise which considers financial
strength ratings, capital metrics, performance metrics and other considerations.
Liquidity risk
There is a risk that losses resulting from unprecedented natural disasters or extreme weather could erode our ability to pay claims
in a timely manner, due to unavailability (or not having access to) the necessary financial resources to meet obligations.
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Strategic risk
Risk type
Relevance to climate-related matters
Sustainability
Sustainability is the umbrella term for environmental, social and governance factors that are used to measure the sustainability
and ethical impact of a business. It is paramount that we have the right practices and activities in place to meet the sustainability
standards expected of us by our stakeholders. Failure to do so could have a negative impact on the communities around us and/or
Beazley’s reputation.
We mitigate this risk by ensuring there is a clearly defined and documented sustainability strategy driven by the executive team,
that includes targets and milestones which are communicated to all staff. This is primarily governed via the RBSG to ensure we
take a consistent approach across the Group. Sustainability initiatives are incorporated into the business planning process.
Strategic direction
The Group’s performance would be affected in the event of making strategic decisions that do not add value.
The Group mitigates this risk through the combination of recommendation and challenge from Non-Executive Directors, debate
at the Executive Committee and input from the Strategy and Performance Group (a group of 30+ senior individuals from across
different disciplines at Beazley).
In the context of climate-related matters, this relates to decision making around the transition to net zero across underwriting,
investments and our operations.
Reputation
Reputational risk is often caused by the materialisation of other organisational risks, and can have a far-reaching impact
on a business.
From a climate-related risk perspective, reputational risk manifests itself in the decisions we make on climate matters.
This includes our approach to the transition to net zero, our approach to underwriting and investments, particularly in carbon-
intensive sectors, and performance against the objectives we have set within our Responsible Business Strategy.
Regulatory and legal risk
Risk type
Relevance to climate-related matters
Regulatory and legal
Regulators, legislators, investors and other stakeholders are becoming increasingly interested in companies’ responses to climate
change. Failure to appropriately engage with these stakeholders and provide transparent information could result in the risk of
reputational damage or increased scrutiny. The Group regularly monitors the regulatory and legislative landscape to ensure that we
adhere to any changes in relevant laws and regulations. This includes making any necessary regulatory or statutory filings with
regard to climate risk.
Operational risk
Risk type
Relevance to climate-related matters
Business, technology and
cyber resilience
This is the risk that the physical impact of climate-related events has a material impact on our own people, processes and
systems, leading to increased operating costs or the inability to deliver uninterrupted client service. The Group has business
continuity plans in place to minimise the risk of interrupted client service in the event of a disaster.
Third party risk
The Group aims to minimise where possible the environmental impact of its business activities and those that arise from the
occupation of its office spaces. As we operate in leased office spaces, our ability to directly influence the building's environmental
impacts is limited. However, we do choose office space with climate change mitigation in mind, and engage with our employees,
vendors and customers in an effort to reduce overall waste and our environmental footprint.
Talent management
There is a risk that employees, including senior management, could be overstretched or could fail to perform, which would have
a detrimental impact on the Group’s performance and ability to meet its strategic objectives.
The performance of the senior management team is monitored by the CEO and Culture and People team and overseen by the
Nomination Committee. Climate-related objectives are built into senior management remuneration packages. This ensures
progress can be measured and reported against.
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4.3.2 Processes for managing climate-related risks
Beazley’s risk management philosophy is to balance the risks the business takes on with the associated cost of controlling
them, while staying within the risk appetite set by The Board. The Company continuously monitors its risk profile to ensure
it stays within this appetite and takes advantage of opportunities as they arise. As a specialist insurer, Beazley underwrites
several classes of business that are vulnerable to the effects of climate change. To manage these risks, the Company has
four options: accept the risk, avoid it, mitigate it, or transfer it.
Risk Management tools to help manage climate-related risks
Beazley employs a variety of Risk Management tools to help manage climate-related risks. These are as follows:
Risk type
Relevance to climate-related matters
Stress and scenario
framework
The stress and scenario framework is a key element of the risk management framework, enabling senior management to form an
understanding of the vulnerabilities of the business model. There are two levels of stress and scenario tests conducted at Beazley,
which ensures there is coverage of the key risks facing us and ownership at the appropriate management level Single-pillar stress
and scenario tests such as RDSs are performed as part of normal business processes, with RDSs for natural catastrophes run on
a regular basis in order to determine the impact of different risks.
In addition, multi-pillar testing is conducted as part of the ORSA process, to ensure that tests continue to develop and reflect the
evolving risk environment. The analysis informs key management actions for the business to mitigate the risks identified through
the ORSA process.
Monitoring of aggregation
of exposure
The Exposure Management team has the responsibility for developing approaches to monitor the aggregation of exposure to
natural catastrophes. Part of this work involves assessing the latest views on climate change and reporting to the business on
the impacts any changes could have to the insurance portfolios. The Exposure Management team reports to the Group Chief
Underwriting Officer, who in turn provides regular updates to The Board on these matters. The Exposure Management team
is supported by the Head of Financial Climate Risk. Given the uncertainties around climate risk, the Group has continued to
actively develop climate risk pricing and aggregation tools. This has included the implementation of new climate-conditioning
to catastrophe models to help inform exposure management.
Capital modelling
The Capital Modelling team adjust the capital model assumptions to account for the impact of climate change through the capital
modelling process. An example of this is the adoption of annual uplifts taken from the climate conditioned views of risk from US
Hurricane. For perils which do not yet have a forward-looking view of risk, capital loads are implemented based on climate trends
identified by the pricing and capital teams using historical losses and climate risk research. This reflects the increased losses
expected for these perils due to climate change.
Risk appetite
On an annual basis, Beazley’s risk appetite is reviewed and is informed by outputs from the RDS, capital model, and credit risk
assessment, as well as input from the trading teams. This helps guide the underwriting teams for the following year, before being
reviewed against the capacity available.
This appetite is agreed and set by the Board, before being tracked by the exposure management team on a monthly basis, who
flag up to the business any areas where we are close to the limits the business has set. Capacity is impacted by the number of
physical weather events which occur throughout any given year, and therefore the impact of climate change is considered when
deciding on risk appetite and these are set at a number of points along the curve to limit exposures.
Risk Appetite Statements and KRIs include qualitative statements and metrics relating to the effectiveness of the CRWG and the
investment portfolio temperature alignment. These have been monitored and reported on a frequent basis across 2024 to the Risk
and Regulatory Committee, plc Risk Committee and Board; and this will be enhanced to introduce a more quantitative metric
relating to the delivery of the key strategic projects for the CRWG from 2025.
Detailed risk assessment
On a periodic basis, as part of a core element of the risk management framework, the Risk function undertakes a detailed risk
event assessment of climate financial risk. The most recent was undertaken in 2023, with results being presented to the Risk &
Regulatory Committee in February 2024. The aim of the assessment is to review the risk ownership and governance; the inherent
and residual risk scores; the risk appetite; and the control environment to mitigate the key risks appropriately.
Quantitative and qualitative assessment of climate-related risks within the Risk Management Framework
The Board-level KRIs are monitored as part of Beazley's risk management framework and are outlined in the risk appetite
statements. These KRIs are designed to provide early warning signals that can be addressed through the Company's
governance structure. They use a red, amber, and green (RAG) rating system to indicate whether a risk is within the
Company's appetite and whether any escalation is necessary. The KRIs related to climate change are as follows:
Risk type
Relevance to climate-related matters
Underwriting
Natural catastrophe aggregate exceedance probability and occurrence exceedance probability metrics;
Progress in meeting the objectives of the Climate Risk Working Group.
Investments
Compliance with responsible investment policy and transition risk.
Operations
50% reduction in normalised (per FTE) carbon emissions for our operations in 2024, compared to the 2019 baseline.
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5. Metrics
5.1 Summary of Key metrics
A summary of both the metrics and targets we use to monitor our progress on climate-related matters, are detailed in this
section of the report. At a glance, the performance of key metrics are as follows:
Key metrics
Net Estimate Premium Income arising from low and zero carbon technologies
2024 Performance (2023 Performance)
$15.6m
(2023: $5.9m)
Key metrics
Reduction in normalised (per FTE) market-based GHG emissions
2024 Performance (target)
54.4%
(50% against 2019 baseline)
Key metrics
Current Temperature Pathway Alignment
2024 Performance (target)
2-3°
(2-3°)
Key metrics
Scope 1 and 2 emissions (tCO2e)
2024 Performance (target)
820 tCO²e
(less than 856 tCO²e for 1.5° alignment)
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5.2 Underwriting Metrics
For underwriting and climate related activity, our metrics are
focused on enhancements to our underwriting process, and
premiums arising from low and zero carbon technology. In 2024
we have held discussions and been involved in forums with
others in the industry with the aim of increasing the number of
metrics we report on in future.
5.2.1 Enhancing our approach to
underwriting
The CRWG was established in 2022 to improve Beazley's
approach to climate-related issues in underwriting.
The Group's progress is measured using two quantitative
metrics: the number of perils with a climate change-
conditioned view of risk, and the number of perils with climate
loss trends incorporated into pricing model calibration.
Number of perils with climate change conditioned view
of risk
Beazley is researching climate change-conditioned models
and updating its understanding of the impact of climate
change on physical risk perils through dedicated research.
This will help the Company develop a forward-looking view
of risk that takes climate change into account.
A peril is defined as a weather hazard event or circumstance
that results in property damage losses to Beazley. To develop
a Climate Conditioned View of Risk for a peril, the following
must have been undertaken:
• The Exposure Management team have prepared a study
examining the impact of climate change on the scientific
underpinnings of the peril;
• The implications of these impacts on the models currently
in use by Beazley has been reviewed; and
• The determination of a final adjustment/model alteration to
use has been undertaken.
We introduced a climate-change conditioned view of risk for
US hurricane in 2022. Work on additional perils continued in
2023, and in 2024, we have completed a climate change
conditioned view of risk for US Wildfire, US Inland Flood and
US Severe Convective Storm.
Number of perils with climate adjusted pricing reviewed
and updated
As indicated before, a peril is defined as a weather hazard
event or circumstance that results in property damage
losses to Beazley. The trend is measured as a per annum
percentage increase in the expected losses. The climate loss
trend is considered as having been introduced into the pricing
model calibration, when the following has occurred:
• Climate trended pricing is built into the pricing model by an
actuary;
• The incorporation into the pricing model has been reviewed
by a senior actuary; and
• The pricing trend has been incorporated into the rating tool.
We have introduced climate adjusted pricing for a number of
perils across the last two years, with US Hurricane, US Flood
and US Wildfire introduced into the pricing tool for the North
America Commercial Property and Open Market Property lines
by January 2023. Subsequently US Tornado, US Hail, and US
Winterstorm were then introduced at the end of 2023. Instead
of introducing additional perils in 2024, a target was set to
review the emerging research and climate data on the six
perils already in place. Reviews of all six have been
completed.
2022
2023
2024
2 (US Wildfire,
US inland Flood)
4 (US Hurricane, US
Tornado, US Hail,
US Winterstorm)
6 (US Wildfire, US Inland
Flood, US Hurricane, US
Tornado, US Hail, US
5.2.2 Net Estimate Premium Income arising
from low and zero carbon technologies
The sum of net estimated premium income (net EPI) arising
from low and zero carbon technologies underwritten across the
last three years is as outlined in the table below. For 2024, the
scope of reporting is limited to offshore and onshore wind,
and onshore solar. The net EPI is calculated from data on the
line slip, or in the case of binders, the estimate of the
declarations as estimated by the broker and/or underwriter, as
documented in underwriting notes. The metric is based on an
estimate, therefore, could be subject to change as premiums
are adjusted through the life of the policy.
The net EPI disclosed in this report is the total estimated
premium incepted in 2024, and as measured at the end of
2024. The data has been collected from the information
entered into Beazley’s underwriting systems. Where exchange
rates have needed to be applied, these have been applied at
the date of entry into the underwriting system. For lesser used
currency conversions, these occur prior to entry.
No target was set, however, the totals for this year and prior
years (rounded to the nearest decimal 1 place) are as follows:
2022
2023
2024
$8.0m
$5.9m
$15.6m
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
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TCFD 2024 continued
5.3 Investment Metrics
For the purpose of reporting of climate metrics, our portfolio
of publicly listed corporate bonds, publicly listed equities,
collatarised loan obligations and sovereigns are considered
to be in-scope (including accrued interest). This excludes
overseas trust assets managed by Lloyd’s and the Group's
share of assets held by third party syndicates. The combined
portfolio used for emissions reporting represents 91.3% of
the market value of our total financial assets managed by
Investments as at 31 December 2024. The individual
methodologies to estimate the investment related climate
metrics are outlined in the section below. The common inputs
and processes across each metrics are as follows:
The GHG emissions data is based on Scope 1 and 2
emissions only and is sourced from S&P CAP IQ pro, S&P
collect and report GHG emission data for companies within
their platform. Where they cannot, an estimated carbon
emissions amount is used. The carbon emission data used in
the calculation of the metric will reflect a 12-month period.
The 12 month period is dependent on the financial year of
reporting for the individual company. The data is reported as
at 31st December 2024.
The investment grade corporate bond portfolio is managed
internally with portfolio and security level holding data
maintained by an investment administration system provided
by Clearwater. All other publicly listed securities are
outsourced to external managers who provide look-through
data. Security holdings are maintained on the S&P platform
for the calculation of climate metrics based on a share of
financing basis (enterprise value including cash). The
calculation of the metrics are based on the assumption that
the data contained within S&P CAP IQ Pro is correct, and the
calculation methodology used by S&P is reflective of the
calculations outlined in their methodology document. Beazley
uses data from Standard & Poor's Market Intelligence Capital
IQ pro (S&P CAP IQ pro) to calculate the following investment
portfolio metrics:
Total apportioned GHG emissions arising from our
investments
This is the total Carbon Emissions apportioned to Beazley's
in-scope assets and is the starting point for calculating the
carbon footprint of our investments. It follows a share of
financing methodology and is consistent with the GHG
Protocol accounting standard, allocating emissions based on
enterprise value including cash (EVIC) basis. Whilst no targets
are set, our performance is monitored during the year.
The calculation is the value of investment divided by the
issuers share of financing before this figure is multiplied by
the issuers Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions. This sum is
undertaken for each in scope security and totalled to provide
an overall apportioned GHG emission figure. We report
emissions data for our publicly listed equity and corporate
bond holdings. The total market value of these holdings is
$5.3bn representing 52.1% of our total assets.
2023
2024
Apportioned GHG emissions (tCO2e)
arising from publicly listed equities and
corporate bonds
76,298
84,784
Carbon reporting coverage for publicly
listed equities and corporate bonds (%)
97.6
87.3
For the first time this year we are reporting on emissions from
our Sovereign exposures. The data is sourced from S&P who
calculate sovereign financed emissions using gross general debt
attribution methodology.
2024
Apportioned GHG emissions (tCO2e) arising from sovereign exposures. 1,146,273
Carbon reporting coverage for sovereign exposures (%)
98.8
Weighted average carbon intensity (WACI)
The WACI of our publicly listed equity and corporate bond
portfolios is set out in the table below. The WACI is calculated
by taking the sum of the GHG emissions (Scope 1 and Scope
2) for the holding and dividing by the total revenue of each
holding. This figure is then multiplied by its investment weight
(the value of the holding divided by value of the total holdings,
both as at 31st December 2024). The GHG emissions data is
sourced from S&P CAP IQ. In 2024, emissions have been
reported for 87.3% of the market value of our publicly listed
bonds and equities, and are rounded to 1 decimal place.
2022
2023
2024
WACI (tCO2e/$m sales) arising from
our publicly listed equities and
corporate bonds
49.9
44.4
46.7
The carbon intensity of our sovereign exposures is sourced
from S&P using their weighted average carbon intensity
methodology incorporating country emissions divided by real
GDP in millions of constant US$.
2024
WACI (tCO2e/$m sales) arising from our sovereign
investments
285.90
Temperature alignment of our investment portfolio
The scope of the reporting is limited to the GHG emissions
arising from our publicly listed corporate bonds (investment
grade and high yield) and publicly listed equities. The data
was reported as at 31st December 2024.
The temperature alignment of Beazley’s investment portfolio
is based on the methodology set out by S&P Cap IQ for our
internally managed portfolio of publicly listed corporate bonds
and MSCI for outsourced publicly listed high yield bonds
and equities.
S&P utilise a Sectorial Decarbonisation Approach and
Greenhouse gas Emissions per unit of Value Added approach
and cover Scope 1 and 2 emissions. Overall alignment of the
portfolio is defined through apportioning the value of holdings
in regard to tonnes of CO2 under or over a budget associated
with a given temperature rise using EVIC. For externally
managed funds, temperature alignment is provided by
an external manager using MSCI sourced data, covering
Scopes 1, 2 and 3.
Temperature alignment metrics have been reported in respect
of 86.9% of the market value of in-scope assets.
2023
2024
Current Temperature Pathway
Alignment
2-3 degrees
Celsius
1.5-2 degrees
Celsius
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5.4 Operations Metrics
5.4.1 GHG emissions
Overview of performance
The GHG emissions are calculated and in accordance with the
Greenhouse Gas Protocol, Corporate Reporting and
Accounting Standard including the amended GHG Protocol
Scope 2 Guidance, and HM Government, Environmental
Reporting Guidelines, using the applicable UK Government’s
(BEIS) GHG Conversion Factors for Company Reporting unless
otherwise indicated. The full methodology, including
limitations, for calculating the GHG emissions is available on
Beazley's website, as is the full breakdown of carbon
emissions across each of the three Scopes of emissions.
Where revisions to GHG emissions in previous years have
been made, due to a change in calculation methodology,
these changes are detailed in the full methodology.
Reporting is based on operational control. Beazley Group
does not have operational control over the building
infrastructure and plant at its offices due to the presence
of facility management companies and shared tenancy;
as a result, emissions primarily fall within Scope 2 and 3
of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol.
The parameter of Scope 1 and Scope 2 reporting in 2024
includes 25 office locations in London (UK), Birmingham (UK),
Dublin (Ireland), Hamburg (Germany), Munich (Germany), Paris
(France), Barcelona (Spain), Zurich (Switzerland), Singapore,
Atlanta (US), Boston (US), Chicago (US), Dallas (US), Denver
(US), Farmington (US), Houston (US), Los Angeles (US), Miami
(US), New York (US), Philadelphia (US), San Francisco (US),
West Hartford (US), Vancouver (Canada), Toronto (Canada),
Montreal (Canada). This equates to 95.5% of Beazley
employees including contractors. For 2024, all offices
occupied by a minimum of 2 FTE have been included, and
only those where our share of energy consumption can be
adequately determined. As a result, as in prior years, our
Kuala Lumpar (Malaysia) and Shanghai (China) offices have
been excluded, the latter as it is a shared offices space
with Lloyds.
Scope 3 reporting encompasses business travel and both
personal car and taxi use. This is included for all employees.
Scope 3 also includes energy use for one third party cloud-
based data centre service provider covering two sites, as has
been the case in prior years. Due to data limitations,
emissions for two additional data centres were not included in
2019 baseline figures, nor in subsequent years. 2024
emissions for these additional sites have been estimated as
approximately 89 tCo2e. To ensure consistency with prior
years, figures for these additional data centres have not been
included in the reported emissions for 2024, but there is an
intention to report on all data centres in future years.
As in prior years, Beazley’s two US subsidiaries, Beazley
Security (based in Lewisville) & BHI Digital, LLC (based in
Miami), are excluded.
Energy consumption for the charging of electrical vehicles
in Scope 2 is included and calculated based on maximum
distance specified in terms of car lease agreements.
Location-based GHG emissions
Our GHG emissions normalised for Beazley's full-time equivalent (FTE) (including contractors) were 2.57 tonnes carbon dioxide
equivalent (tCO2e/ FTE) in 2024. This equates to a normalised (per FTE) 51.57% reduction when compared to the 2019
normalised baseline we use for setting our carbon travel budget. Total emissions, prior to normalisation, have reduced by
20.15% when compared to the 2019 baseline. This reduction continues to be in line with the target we set for a 50% reduction
in emissions against a 2019 baseline of 5.30 tCO2e/ FTE. The largest proportion of our reported emissions comes from
Beazley's business travel.
Location-based GHG Emissions (tCO2e)
2019
2021
2022
2023
2024
Scope 1
21.08
8.23
65.20
2.13
7.54
Scope 2
1,672.53
1,236.09
946.81
829.72
812.78
Scope 3
6,725.81
863.94
4,152.40
6,166.96
5,902.83
Total tCO2e
8,419.42
2,108.26
5,164.41
6,998.81
6,723.15
Total tCO2e/FTE
5.30
1.15
2.44
2.82
2.57
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TCFD 2024 continued
Market-based GHG emissions
Beazley Group’s market-based GHG reporting for 2024, taking into account the procurement of 775,466 kWh of electricity from
certified renewable sources, is summarised in the table below. Renewable electricity was procured for our Barcelona,
Birmingham, London and Munich offices, which represents an increase on 2023. Renewable electricity was procured for our old
San Francisco office, however there was a change in office location in 2024. Biogas is used in our London office. This equates
to renewable electricity being 31% of Beazley's overall in scope electricity use, and biogas being 45% of Beazley's overall in
scope imported heat use. The energy for the reported data centres was also procured from renewable sources. The
procurement of renewable energy resulted in a saving of 203.62 tonnes of CO2 equivalent for Scope 2, and a further 185.11
tonnes of CO2 equivalent for Scope 3.
The market-based emissions, which take into account the reductions achieved through the use of renewable energy are set out
in the table below. Total emissions, prior to normalisation, have reduced by 24.76% when compared to the 2019 baseline. On a
normalised (per FTE) basis, this equates to an overall 54.37% reduction when compared to the 2019 baseline.
Market-based GHG Emissions (tCO2e)
2022
2023
2024
Scope 1
65.20
2.13
7.54
Scope 2
770.32
618.67
609.22
Scope 3
3,940.07 5,958.07 5,717.72
Total tCO2e
4,775.59 6,578.87 6,334.48
Total tCO2e/FTE
2.25
2.65
2.42
Alignment with 1.5 degree pathway
One of the objectives Beazley set as part of its transition plan, was to work towards aligning its Scope 1 and 2 emissions with a
1.5 degree pathway. Using the SBTi pathway as a guide, the transition plan includes a number of interim goals to enable a 65%
reduction in emissions to be achieved by 2034, when compared to a 2022 baseline. Based on year end data cited in this
report, we can confirm we continue to be aligned with this pathway, as per the chart below.
1.5 Degree Pathway
Actual Emissions
2022
2023
2024
2025
2026
2027
2028
2029
2030
2031
2032
2033
2034
250
500
750
1000
1250
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5.4.2 Detailed breakdown of emissions
SCOPE 1
Our Scope 1 emissions arise from company car use, refrigerant top ups of air conditioning systems and back-up generator use.
For 2024, there was a top up of refrigerant for one of our office fit-outs (West Hartford), while the only location where a back-up
generator was used was in our Boston office. Total Scope 1 emissions for 2024 amounted to 7.54 tC02e, of which 6.98 tC02e
was from the use of refrigerant. As of March 2024, our company car fleet was fully electric.
SCOPE 2
Our Scope 2 emissions primarily arise from office energy consumption, with a small amount arising from company car use,
Beazley Group does not have operational control over the building infrastructure and plant at its offices due to a combination
of shared tenancy and the presence of facility management companies. Beazley offices are heated/ cooled by the building’s
central HVAC systems, which are managed by the landlord or landlord’s agent. This does influence the options we have for
procuring energy. Where possible, emissions have been calculated based on meter readings and invoiced energy consumption
figures, with estimates used if data is unavailable. Our Scope 2 emissions can be broken down by region.
Location Based GHG Emissions (tCO2e)
Location-based GHG Emissions (tCO2e)
2019
2021
2022
2023
2024
UK
826.59
439.87
246.95
224.64
196.67
Rest of World
71.52
70.77
69.02
26.59
34.47
USA
653.35
624.26
568.91
529.67
532.05
Europe
121.07
101.19
61.93
48.82
49.60
Market Based GHG Emissions (tCO2e)
Market-based GHG Emissions (tCO2e)
2019
2021
2022
2023
2024
UK
826.59
140.82
114.76
43.65
12.03
Rest of World
71.52
70.77
69.02
26.59
34.47
USA
653.35
624.26
568.91
517.96
532.05
Europe
121.07
25.60
17.63
30.47
30.67
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TCFD 2024 continued
SCOPE 3
Our overall Scope 3 emissions are as detailed below. We have provided further details of how the market-based emissions
factors also impact our overall emissions. As outlined in the Overview of Performance section, the emissions for data centres
covers two of our four sites, which is true for all years including the baseline year of 2019.
Location-based GHG Emissions (tCO2e)
2019
2021
2022
2023
2024
Air travel
6,074.04
527.39
3,666.49
5,661.32
5,403.73
Rail travel
107.65
4.20
11.93
17.17
18.47
Hotel stays
183.22
30.81
96.13
130.73
133.09
Car hire use
23.52
2.74
9.56
12.25
13.96
Electricity transmission & distribution losses (location-based)
93.84
58.42
43.42
38.19
37.16
Taxi use
165.11
22.68
99.97
49.36
58.17
Personal car use
73.92
19.15
7.79
58.09
61.94
Electric vehicle charging transmission & distribution losses
0.00
0.26
0.28
0.34
0.25
Imported heat transmissions & distribution losses (arising from steam only)
4.51
4.50
4.50
4.56
4.83
Data centres
0.00
193.79
212.33
194.95
171.23
Total
6,725.81
863.94
4,152.40
6,166.96
5,902.83
Market-based emissions (tCO2e)
2019
2021
2022
2023
2024
Air travel
6,074.04
527.39
3,666.49
5,661.32
5,403.73
Rail travel
107.65
4.20
11.93
17.17
18.47
Hotel stays
183.22
30.81
96.13
130.73
133.09
Car hire use
23.52
2.74
9.56
12.25
13.96
Electricity transmission & distribution losses (location-based)
93.84
58.42
43.42
24.25
23.29
Taxi use
165.11
22.68
99.97
49.36
58.17
Personal car use
73.92
19.15
7.79
58.09
61.94
Electric vehicle charging transmission & distribution losses
0.00
0.26
0.28
0.34
0.25
Imported heat transmissions & distribution losses (arising from steam only)
4.51
4.50
4.50
4.56
4.83
Data centres
0.00
193.79
0.00
0.00
0.00
Total
6,725.81
863.94
3,940.07
5,958.07
5,717.72
5.4.3 Carbon offsets
Beazley has not purchased carbon offsets in 2024. Beazley is currently reviewing different carbon offset options, with a view
to potentially using offsets as part of a range of measures to help reduce Beazley’s carbon footprint.
5.5 Remuneration
In order to ensure alignment between Beazley’s sustainability objectives and the Group’s performance, an element of executive
compensation is linked to the achievement of a set of sustainability objectives. Part of this compensation takes the form of the
LTIPs, which typically take 3 years to vest, with 2023 being the first year in which an element of LTIPs was specifically linked to
sustainability objectives.
2023 objectives were set out in the LTIPs granted section of the 2023 Directors' remuneration report on page 136. For 2023,
one of the sustainability objectives was a reduction in carbon emissions (Scope 1 & 2) relative to 2022 baseline. For 2024,
one of the sustainability objectives is achievement of our transition plan trajectory. Further details regarding 2024 objectives
can be found in the Directors' remuneration report starting on page 135. Performance against both the 2023 and 2024
objectives will be assessed at the end of the respective vesting periods.
Further details regarding the 2023 LTIPs can be found in the published 2023 Directors remuneration report, in the
implementation for 2024 section (page 126). Further details regarding the 2024 LTIPs can be found on pages 146 to 147.
All compensation targets and the degree to which they have been achieved, is determined by the Remuneration Committee.
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Appendix 1: Compliance with TCFD Requirements
Beazley has included on pages 32 to 61 in the Strategic
Report a climate-related financial disclosures consistent with
the TCFD’s Recommendations and Recommended
Disclosures, with the exception of the following:
General requirements
Strategy 2a: Organisations should describe the climate-
related risks and opportunities the organisation has identified
over the short, medium, and long term.
Beazley has partially disclosed against this requirement.
Beazley continues to explore climate-related risks and
opportunities as part of ongoing work on climate-related
matters. This is being undertaken in a manner which will best
align with our strategy. At the point of disclosure, it was
considered that the work currently in progress is not
sufficiently completed to meet the requirement of the
disclosure recommendation.
Strategy 2b: Organisations should describe the impact of
climate-related risks and opportunities on the organisations
business, strategy and financial planning.
Beazley has partially disclosed against this requirement,
however with regards to consideration of the potential impact
of climate-related issues on financial performance and
financial position, Beazley’s work in this area is continuing. At
this stage, it is not possible to consider all possible future
outcomes when determining asset and liability valuations,
and timing of future cash flows, as these are not yet known.
Nevertheless, the current management view is that
reasonably possible changes arising from climate risks would
not have a material impact on asset and liability valuations at
the year-end date. Our TCFD disclosures are updated on an
annual basis and we will set out our progress as part of our
2025 TCFD disclosure.
Strategy 2c: The organisation should describe how resilient
their strategies are to climate-related risks and opportunities,
taking into consideration a transition to a low-carbon economy
consistent with a 2°C or lower scenario.
Beazley’s work in this area is continuing, however at this
stage, it is not possible to consider all possible future
outcomes when determining asset and liability valuations,
and timing of future cash flows, as these are not yet known.
Nevertheless, the current management view is that
reasonably possible changes arising from climate risks would
not have a material impact on asset and liability valuations at
the year-end date. Our TCFD disclosures are updated on an
annual basis and we will set out our progress as part of our
2025 TCFD disclosure.
Metrics and Targets 4a: Organisations should disclose the
metrics used by the organisation to assess climate-related
risks and opportunities in line with its strategy and risk
management process.
Beazley partially complies with this requirement and is
currently working to develop an appropriate tranche of data
metrics by which to further monitor climate-related risks,
particularly in respect to the transition to net zero. Once
developed these metrics will compliment the metrics already
reported. At the point of disclosure, it was considered that the
work currently in progress is not sufficiently completed to
meet the requirement of the disclosure recommendation.
Supplementary requirements for insurers and asset owners
For the supplementary requirements, our status is as follows:
Strategy 2b: Beazley has partially disclosed against the
supplementary requirements for insurance companies and
asset owners. Beazley is working to further develop our
approach to climate-related matters, particularly on a
business division and sector level, and how potential impacts
influence client or broker selection.
Strategy 2c: Beazley has partially disclosed against the
supplementary requirements for insurance companies and
asset owners. As outlined in the General Requirements
section, at present is not possible to consider the full
financial impact of climate related risks and opportunities.
Risk 3a: Beazley partially complies with the supplementary
requirements for insurance companies and asset owners.
Beazley is working to further develop our approach to climate-
related matters on a business division level.
Risk 3b: Beazley partially complies with the supplementary
requirements for insurers, but is not compliant with the
supplementary requirements for asset owners, regarding the
positioning of our total portfolio.
Metrics and Targets 4a: Beazley partially complies with the
supplementary requirements for asset owners, but does not
comply with the supplementary requirements for insurers,
regarding aggregated risk exposure.
Metrics and Targets 4b: Beazley partially complies with the
supplementary requirements for asset owners, but does not
comply with the supplementary requirements for insurers,
with regards to GHG emissions associated with certain lines
of business.
For these areas of the supplementary requirements, Beazley
is working to further develop our approach to climate-related
matters. At the point of disclosure, it was considered that the
work currently in progress is not sufficiently completed to
meet the requirement of the disclosure recommendation.
Our TCFD disclosures are updated on an annual basis and we
will set out our progress as part of our 2025 TCFD disclosure.
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Non-financial and sustainability
information statement
Beazley presents its non-financial and sustainability information statement in compliance with section 414CA and 414CB of the
Companies Act 2006.
As a Company listed on the London Stock Exchange and subject to the UK Listing Rules, Beazley publishes an annual
statement in accordance with the TCFD. The new sustainability and climate-related financial information required by section
414CB(1) of the Companies Act 2006 is included in our TCFD statement. Other required non-financial information disclosures
are set out elsewhere in our Strategic Report. The table below sets out where the information can be found, including for
climate-related information, the most relevant sections of the TCFD statement.
Non-financial reporting information
A description of Beazley’s business model
Our business model and strategy (pages 3 to 5)
Principal risks relating to the non-financial matters set out in section 414CB(1)(a)
to (e) arising in connection with Beazley’s operations, likely impacts from any such
principal risks, and how they are managed
Risk management and compliance (pages 76 to 81)
TCFD statement (climate-related risks) (pages 32 to 61)
Non-financial performance indicators
Key Performance Indicators (KPI's) (page 2)
Sustainability metrics (page 29 to 31)
Sustainability and climate-related financial information
The governance arrangements in relation to assessing and managing climate-
related risks
The governance arrangements to assess and manage climate-related risks
and opportunities is outlined in the Governance section of Beazley’s
TCFD disclosure.
TCFD Statement: Section 1 (Governance), pages 32 to 35.
How Beazley identifies, assesses and manages climate-related risks and
opportunities
Beazley’s approach to identifying, assessing and managing climate-related
risks and opportunities is set out in Section 2, 3 and 4 of Beazley’s
TCFD disclosures.
TCFD statement: Section 2 (Strategy), pages 36 to 47; Section 3
(Scenario Analysis), pages 48 to 49; and Section 4 (Risk Management),
pages 50 to 53
How processes for identifying, assessing and managing climate related risks are
integrated into Beazley’s overall risk management process
Beazley’s approach to identifying, assessing and managing climate-related
risks and opportunities is set out in Section 4 of Beazley’s
TCFD disclosures.
TCFD statement: Section 4 (Risk Management), pages 50 to 53
A description of the principal climate-related risks and opportunities arising in
connection with Beazley’s operations; and the time periods by reference to which
those risks and opportunities are assessed
The risks and the expected timelines they arise for Beazley are
summarised in section 2.1 of Beazley’s TCFD disclosures. The related
opportunities are documented in 2.2.1. The opportunities arising from
climate-related matters, particularly in respect to liability and transition
related risk are still emerging. Beazley has identified that we can provide
products and services which will help support our insureds manage their
risks associated with both liability and transitional related matters. These
products and services will differ depending on the nature of the
underwriting policy, and the sector in which the insured is operating.
TCFD statement: Section 2.1-2.2 (climate related risks and opportunities),
pages 36 to 43.
Reporting requirement
Section and page reference
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A description of the actual and potential impacts of the climate-related risks and
opportunities on Beazley’s business model and strategy
The actual and potential impacts of climate-related risks and opportunities
on the business strategy and model are set out in section 2.1 to 2.2 of
Beazley’s TCFD disclosures. As an insurer the physical climate-related
risks are considered material, with transition and liability risks beginning
to emerge. The opportunities, lie in the short-term, in better understanding
the risks and how Beazley can better support our insureds in the future.
A key part of this process will be delivering products and services.
TCFD statement: Sections 2.2.1 to 2.2.4 (impact of climate-related
opportunities on business strategy and financial planning),
pages 37 to 43
An analysis of the resilience of Beazley’s business model and strategy, taking into
consideration of different climate-related scenarios
The Scenario Analysis performed by Beazley is outlined in Section 3 of the
TCFD disclosures.
TCFD statement: Section 3 (Scenario Analysis), pages 48 to 49
Targets used by Beazley to manage climate-related risks and to realise climate-
related opportunities and performance against those targets
In 2024, as laid out in the TCFD section of the ARA, Beazley set the
following targets to manage climate related risks and opportunities.
This included:
• Current Temperature Pathway Alignment for Investors - less than 2
degrees;
• Normalised GHG emissions - 50% reduction against 2019 baseline;
• Scope 1 and 2 Operation emissions (tCo2e) - Less than 856tCo2e for
1.5 degree alignment; and
• Develop climate-change-conditioned view of risk for 3 perils.
• Reviewing emerging research and climate data on six perils with
adjusted pricing in place.
Beazley’s Key Performance Indicators used to assess progress against targets
used to manage climate-related risks and realise climate-related opportunities
and a description of the calculations on which those Key Performance Indicators
are based
Performance against these targets is outlined in Section 5 of Beazley’s
TCFD disclosures. A summary of the methodology used is also outlined
in section 5.
TCFD statement: Section 5 (Metrics), pages 54 to 61
Reporting requirement
Section and page reference
Due diligence
We have a range of policies in relation to environmental matters, employees, social matters, human rights, and anti-corruption
and anti-bribery, that support our strategy and business model and ensure good outcomes for our stakeholders. Our
performance against our non-financial KPIs is an important way in which we measure the effectiveness of our strategy and
associated policies. There is an overall due diligence process in place for all of our policies. The Board ensures that the
relevant policies are in place, remain appropriate, and are operating effectively through setting a review cycle for key policies.
The Board determines which policies it must approve, and which policies may be delegated to its Committees or to
management level committees. As part of the agreed due diligence process, the key policies are reviewed by an individual
within Beazley who is a subject matter expert and listed as responsible for the continued maintenance and development of the
policy. This may include obtaining external advice, where appropriate. The Board also reviews and approves the key policies
annually or as agreed, as well as reviewing non-financial information, KPIs, and other monitoring data through regular reporting.
All policies are kept centrally and accessible via our intranet site so that employees can access them at any time. Training is
carried out for all employees on key policies through our regular compliance training programme and on an ad hoc basis where
required. Additional training on policies, procedures and controls is carried out with employees in specific roles. New policies
and procedures are supported by communication to employees to make them aware of any new requirements on them.
Our key non-financial policies, a brief description of their purpose and any important outcomes from our due diligence
processes during 2024, are set out in the table below.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
63
Non-financial and sustainability
information statement continued
Reporting requirement
Policy or standard, its purpose, and outcomes
Relevant non-financial
KPIs and other metrics
Further information
Environmental matters
Our long-term commitment
to sustainability and
playing our part in
addressing the issue of
climate change and
reducing our impact on the
environment is a key
competitive advantage.
Sustainability strategy
Our sustainability strategy ensures that we act responsibly across every aspect
of our business and includes our approach and objectives across the areas
of environment, employees, human rights, society and anti-bribery and corruption.
Our refreshed sustainability strategy was approved by the Board in 2024.
Environmental policy
This policy sets out our high-level approach and commitments to environmental
matters aligned with ISO14001:2015 and is reviewed every two years. In line with
our strategy refresh, the policy will be reviewed by the Board in 2025.
Responsible Investment policy
This financial policy sets out how environmental, social and governance matters
are incorporated into investment analysis and decision-making processes.
Weighted average
carbon intensity of
corporate bond and
equity portfolios
Overall carbon
emissions
Greenhouse gas
emissions per full time
equivalent
Reduction in
greenhouse gas
emissions
TCFD statement
(page 56)
Key Non-Financial KPIs
(page 2)
Sustainability
(page 29)
Sustainability
(page 29)
Other data is included
in the TCFD statement
and Directors' Report.
The Company’s
employees
Our people are a key pillar
within our business model
and our values of being
bold, striving for better
and doing the right thing
inspire the way we work
and deliver value for our
stakeholders.
Group and Board Inclusion and Diversity policies
These policies are reviewed and approved annually. They cover Beazley’s
commitment to creating a truly inclusive environment that operates with zero
tolerance of discrimination or harassment, fully supports and celebrates
differences, and represents the communities we operate in and serve. The Board’s
inclusion and diversity policy specifically sets out how the Board can use its
influence in meeting our diversity objectives. These policies help us identify and
remedy racial, gender or other disparities in our employment, recruitment and
promotion practices. We always seek to hire the most suitable candidate for the
role and the Company. The Responsible Business report sets out the outcomes
from our inclusion and diversity activities, including progress against our goals.
Conflicts of interest policy
This policy ensures we have effective systems in place to prevent conflicts of
interest wherever possible and that potential conflicts of interest are identified
and addressed across Beazley plc, its subsidiaries, and syndicates.
Beazley Code of Conduct
Our code of conduct sets out the minimum standards required of all employees in
their dealings in and on behalf of Beazley and is aligned with our values and ways
of working.
Employee handbooks
Our employee handbooks set out all policies and procedures for employees globally
as well as in their local jurisdiction and include items such as our inclusion and
diversity policy, employee complaints procedures and how to deal with bullying and
harassment, policy for employees with disabilities, and parental and other leave
policies amongst others. The employee handbooks are owned by the Chief People
and Sustainability Officer and are kept up to date and compliant with changing
legislation globally through annual review both internally and through external
legal counsel.
Health and safety policy
This policy details how health and safety matters are managed for our workforce,
contractors, service providers and others impacted by the Group’s activities, and
ensures we adhere to all health and safety regulations in the jurisdictions in which
we operate. The Board annually reviews the health and safety policy alongside an
annual health and safety report, including any incidents. No significant health and
safety issues were highlighted to the Board in the 2024 report. All employees
receive health and safety induction training and refresher training where required.
Female representation
in senior leadership
roles
People of Colour
representation
in the workforce
Employee engagement
score
Employee favourability
score
People of Colour
representation in senior
leadership roles
Also see: investing
in and rewarding
the workforce
Non-financial KPIs
(page 2) and
Sustainability
(page 29)
Non-financial KPIs
(page 2)
Sustainability
(page 29)
Governance report
(page 103)
64
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Human rights
Beazley is committed to
respecting human rights
and human rights are
integrated across our
responsible business
strategy.
Human rights policy
This policy explains how we fulfil our commitment to respecting human rights and
how we aim to uphold the standards set by the United Nations and International
Labour Organisation in respect of human rights. It applies to all Beazley Group
entities, employees, contractors, and third-party suppliers. It covers how we
respect human rights as an employer, investor, business partner and insurer and
incorporates other policies operated by the Group which help support our
approach. The policy sets out our commitment to prevent adverse impacts on
human rights and remedy any adverse impact if it occurs. We also seek to promote
awareness and respect along our value and supply chains. The policy is owned and
governed by our Responsible Business Steering Group.
Supplier code of conduct and procurement policies
Our supplier code of conduct and procurement policy are referenced in our Human
rights policy. They help us ensure that our suppliers are aware of and follow
applicable standards. Our supplier due diligence and RFP questionnaires require
confirmation of compliance with human rights legislation and the UK Modern
Slavery Act 2015 (where applicable), and that suppliers have appropriate policies
in place. We continue to introduce sustainable business principles into our supply
chain in accordance with Beazley’s business priorities.
Modern slavery
Beazley Group complies with the UK Modern Slavery Act 2015. In accordance with
the requirements of the Act, we release an annual Beazley Group Statement on
Modern Slavery, which outlines the actions we have taken in seeking to identify
and address the risks of modern slavery and human trafficking in our operations
and supply chain. The statement is approved by the Board.
Responsible business strategy
See above under environmental matters.
The Board does not
monitor any non-
financial KPIs in relation
to human rights,
however it receives
reporting in relation
to these policies and
matters including
the Modern Slavery
Act statement.
Positive procurement is
part of the sustainability
strategy.
Sustainability
(pages 26-31)
Stakeholder
engagement –
suppliers (page 73)
Modern Slavery Act
statement – available
on our website
(www.beazley.com)
Social matters
Charity and community
and making a difference in
our local communities is
important to Beazley and a
component of our
Sustainability strategy.
Charity and community donation policy
Our employees are encouraged to raise money and donate time to volunteering
opportunities in our local communities. The policy sets out the approach taken to
charity and community donations, including matched funding, granting employees
charitable leave, and ensuring organisations receiving donations are registered
charities and do not operate discriminatory policies. The policy is approved by
the Board.
Sustainability strategy
See above under environmental matters. We aim to use our community investment
and asset investments to achieve positive outcomes for society and our
community. As described in the Sustainability report we have donated $845,293
to our charity partners.
Number of hours
volunteered and
charitable donations.
Sustainability
(page 29)
Stakeholder
engagement – our
communities
(page 72)
Reporting requirement
Policy or standard, its purpose, and outcomes
Relevant non-financial
KPIs and other metrics
Further information
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
65
Non-financial and sustainability
information statement continued
Reporting requirement
Policy or standard, its purpose, and outcomes
Relevant non-financial
KPIs and other metrics
Further information
Anti-corruption and anti-
bribery matters
We operate a zero-
tolerance approach to
bribery, corruption and
fraud and protecting our
stakeholders is a key pillar
of our strategy. Adhering
to our values helps protect
Beazley, our stakeholders
and our communities from
financial crime.
Financial Crime policy
This policy is reviewed and approved annually by the Board. It sets out that we do
not tolerate criminal activity of any kind both within the business or by our
business partners and third-party suppliers, and we are committed to doing the
right thing and acting within the law. It covers six broad areas of anti-bribery and
corruption, anti-money laundering, sanctions, fraud, market abuse and anti-tax
evasion facilitation.
The policy sets out how our values and culture, systems and controls,
management oversight and reporting, assurance monitoring and record keeping
create an ethical environment which helps ensure the effectiveness of our policy.
Our controls require due diligence to be completed in accordance with the Group’s
due diligence guidelines, which are maintained by our Compliance function. Any
exceptions must be reported to and approved by Compliance.
All employees have an important role to play in helping to detect, prevent and deter
financial crime and our mandatory annual compliance training program ensures
that our workforce is aware of our policies, how to implement them in their day-to-
day roles, and how to report any breaches or suspicions. Policies and training
modules are maintained by our Compliance function, are reviewed annually, and
are available in our policy depository on the intranet.
Sanctions policy
Our sanctions policy is incorporated into our Financial Crime policy and is vital in
keeping our business protected during a time of increased geopolitical uncertainty
and sanctions in connection with ongoing global conflicts. To ensure that Beazley
and any agents or third parties do not violate any sanctions requirements in the
jurisdictions in which we operate, we also utilise third party screening and subject
third parties to regular sanctions screening.
Gifts and Hospitality policy
This policy aims to prevent conflicts of interest arising in the ordinary course of
business and avoid situations that may be perceived as such. This protects the
Company’s reputation and also ensures employees are protected and able to
conduct their business with integrity. All gifts and hospitality over the prescribed
thresholds are duly logged as part of the requirements of the policy.
Due Diligence guide
The guide enhances the group policy on financial crime and sanctions and is
intended to further mitigate the risk of financial crime through the use of due
diligence checks on a risk based approach. The guide helps to ensure we have
robust procedures to ascertain details of the nature of their proposed business
relationships and the related parties involved.
Whistleblowing policy
We operate a Whistleblowing policy which sets out how any concerns relating to
wrongdoing, malpractice, or danger in connection with Beazley, should be reported,
as well as the safeguarding measures in place to protect any employees who
report concerns.
An independent whistleblowing hotline acts as an additional method for the
workforce and others to report concerns. The whistleblowing policy is included in
the annual compliance training program. The Audit Committee has overall
responsibility for the effectiveness of the whistleblowing policy and procedures and
the policy is approved by the Committee annually. The Chair of the Audit
Committee is the whistleblowing champion.
The Board does not
monitor any non-
financial KPIs in relation
to these policies.
However, the Board
Risk Committee
receives quarterly
reporting on a suite of
regulatory Key Risk
Indicators, including in
relation to financial
crime and sanctions, to
monitor these topics.
Risk management and
compliance (page 76)
Risk Committee
(page 125)
66
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Stakeholder engagement
Our key stakeholders
Beazley is focused on achieving long-term sustainable growth
that delivers real value to all our stakeholders. The Board is
committed to engaging with each of our stakeholder groups to
help inform our strategy, annual plans and specific decision-
making. The Board considers the following groups as key
stakeholders: our people, brokers and clients, shareholders,
regulators and our communities. The Board also has regard
to its engagement with its suppliers.
Across the organisation, there are many examples of
stakeholder engagement influencing day-to-day activities
and strategy. Any impact on stakeholders is considered
in business decisions made across the Group, underpinned
by our values and culture.
This section of the report provides further information on how
Beazley and the Board engage with our stakeholder groups,
the outcomes of this engagement in 2024, and how the views
of stakeholders have been considered during the year.
The Board receives reports which contain information in
relation to each stakeholder group including engagement
activities. This enables the Board to keep engagement
mechanisms under review. In addition, the Directors
themselves undertake direct engagement with stakeholders,
where appropriate.
Further information on how the Board has taken stakeholder
views into account is included by way of specific examples of
decisions taken by the Board in our section 172 statement
on pages 74 to 75.
Our people
Why we engage
Our people are fundamental to Beazley’s long-term success
and are central to our strategy and culture; and are therefore
one of the five key pillars to Beazley’s strategy. We are proud
of our people-centric culture and are committed to nurturing a
culture where the best talent can thrive and deliver high
performance. We value honesty and transparency in our
interactions with our employees and contractors and, regularly
ask for their opinions, listen to what they say, and consider
their thoughts in decision-making.
Engaging with employees is crucial to our long-term success
as it fosters a sense of belonging and commitment, leading to
increased motivation and productivity. It helps retain top
talent, reduces turnover rates, and builds a strong,
experienced workforce. Additionally, it promotes effective
collaboration and a positive workplace culture, driving
innovation and problem-solving as well as aligning to our value
of doing the right thing.
How does Beazley engage
In addition to direct engagement by the Board, Beazley
employs a variety of methods to interact with the workforce.
The Board receives reporting on the outcomes of the
engagement activities set out below.
• Direct engagement by the Board: In accordance with the
Corporate Governance Code 2018, we have a dedicated
Independent Non-Executive Director, Fiona Muldoon, who
in addition to her role as plc Risk Committee Chair is
responsible for representing the employee voice to the
Board. Fiona has participated in two Executive coffee
sessions with groups of employees during the year, and
also attended our “NexCo” (see below) on two occasions.
More information on Fiona’s role is included in the
Corporate Governance report on page 90 and page 100.
Other Directors are also encouraged to engage with our
employees and take opportunities to join events during the
year. During 2024, the Chair met with teams across the
business and took part in townhalls with employees in our
offices in Chicago and New York. In May 2024, the Board
travelled to our New York office for its annual strategy
meeting, where they met with a variety of US leaders and
employees, both formally and informally.
• Employee surveys: Surveys are our most important tool for
gathering and listening to the views of our people. Annually
we run engagement and leadership effectiveness surveys,
providing employees with the chance to anonymously share
their opinions about Beazley and managers respectively.
Relevant employees are also encouraged to provide
feedback via the external biannual Lloyd’s culture survey.
The results are shared with the Executive Committee and
the Board, leadership teams, and the broader organisation.
We place emphasis on celebrating what we are doing well
and identifying areas for improvement and implementing
corrective actions.
• NexCo: The NexCo is an alternative Executive Committee of
high-potential employees from across the business which
runs in parallel to the usual Executive Committee meetings.
The NexCo receives Executive Committee papers and
discuss topics from the agenda. Representatives from the
NexCo attend our monthly Executive Committee meetings
and provide their input on the agenda items they have
discussed. Fiona Muldoon attends at least two NexCo
meetings annually in her capacity as the Independent Non-
Executive Director responsible for representing the
employee voice to the Board.
• Employee networks: We have eight employee networks
focused on raising awareness of different areas of our
inclusion and diversity strategy or areas of employee
interest. These networks also act as channels for feedback
from employees who may have specific concerns. The
networks are also consulted on relevant matters. This year
the Board took the opportunity to meet directly with the
leaders of our employee networks to discuss each
networks’ focus and key initiatives. You can find more
information on our employee networks in the Sustainability
section of our website.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
67
Stakeholder engagement continued
• Executive-led engagement: The Group Chief Executive
regularly engages with the workforce through emails and
podcasts, and by hosting in-person and virtual events.
In 2024 engagement included the following:
– Hosting all-employee sessions on our half-year and full-
year results as well as our annual session to explain our
approach to remuneration and bonuses. In 2024, this
session included key impacts on compensation from the
move to the IFRS 17 accounting standard.
– Townhalls with colleagues in Chicago and New York.
Other executives also hosted townhalls for employees
in their divisions or geographical regions.
– Attending the opening of our new office in West Hartford.
– Regular podcasts which update the workforce on key
topics impacting them and the organisation.
– How are we doing live?: Each year, we hold a series of
Company-wide events across multiple locations for all
employees, at which the Group Chief Executive and other
members of the Executive Committee speak to and hear
from our people about our vision, culture, values,
strategy and performance. This year, the Group Chief
Executive attended the events in London, New York and
Barcelona. The event includes interactive and social
activities, Q&As with the Executive Committee members,
and this year included volunteering opportunities.
• Other engagement: Where possible, we engage on other
topics to understand and gather input from employees.
This year we engaged with employees on the approach
to our social impact strategy. An employee survey was
conducted to understand employee views on our
community and charitable giving activities.
• Whistleblowing: There is a formal whistleblowing policy and
independent hotline in place for employees to raise in
confidence any specific concerns which cannot be raised
through usual channels. Any concerns raised through this
channel are investigated fully and reported to the Audit
Committee and Board.
What is important to our people?
Our 2024 engagement survey high-level results were shared
with the Executive Committee in December 2024, with team
level reports and action planning discussions happening in
early 2025. Participation was 81%, showing the importance
our people place on sharing their views. Colleagues continue
to be highly engaged, with an overall engagement score of
85%. Our employees have confidence in Beazley’s successful
future and believe there is inclusive treatment of colleagues
regardless of background. They value the opportunity to
engage and want action to be taken to improve areas
previously identified by the surveys. Culture is important to our
people, with it being described as one of Beazley’s greatest
strengths, alongside the friendly and considerate colleagues
they work with. In addition, surveys conducted in connection
with Beazley’s social impact strategy identified that
employees are motivated by opportunities to take part in
charitable fundraising and volunteering activities with Beazley.
The importance placed on sustainability activities by our
employees has also been observed by Fiona Muldoon
in her interactions.
Outcomes from engagement with our people in 2024
• Responding to feedback from the 2023 engagement
survey: The Board receives a report on the engagement
survey outcomes and key actions each year to ensure
employee feedback is acted upon. For example, a critical
area of feedback from the 2023 survey was the need to
support managers. During 2024, clearer expectations for
managers have been developed by creating a leadership
success profile. A people management toolkit was
developed which allowed managers to tailor their own
development programme. Following further polling of
managers on key areas where they wanted more support,
expert-led master classes on topics of interest were hosted.
Priorities for 2025 based on the outcomes of the 2024
surveys will be established following discussion with the
Board in early 2025.
• Employee networks: During 2024, feedback from our
employee networks has been instrumental in shaping the
employee experience in areas the networks are passionate
about. Feedback from the Families and Neurodiversity
networks led to the introduction of a coaching programme
for employees who were parents of neurodiverse children;
and feedback from the RACE and SHE networks led to the
development of FAQs on Beazley’s race and gender pay
gap reporting.
• Charitable Foundation: Feedback from employees has
helped shape the development of a Beazley Charitable
Foundation proposal, which was approved by the Board in
2024. Feedback highlighted that employees care about a
wide range of charitable causes and value opportunities
to engage with their local communities, which helps
contribute to a sense of purpose amongst employees.
For more information, please see the Sustainability report
from page 26.
• Culture: Feedback from Executive coffee sessions (including
those attended by Fiona Muldoon in her role of
understanding employee views) and from engagement
surveys expressed a concern around maintaining culture as
Beazley grows. As a result, a consistent initial induction
programme was developed for use across the group,
including information about Beazley’s history and culture,
introduced by the Group Chief Executive.
• Hybrid working: Some employees requested clarity on the
expectations around office attendance through feedback
channels. The Executive engaged with various forums
throughout the business to develop an approach which
would meet the needs of the business, safeguard culture,
and retain the flexibility which our people value. The Board
received reports on the approach taken and the roll out of
the hybrid approach has been discussed as part of the
Executive coffee sessions and other forums, with Fiona
Muldoon reporting to the Board on employee views.
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www.beazley.com
Clients and broker partners
Why we engage
Respecting and listening to the needs of our clients is a
stated key pillar of our strategy to enable Beazley to deliver
its purpose of helping our clients explore, create and build.
We strive for two-way dialogue with our clients and brokers to
help us develop products and insurance solutions to best
meet their needs. As Beazley has primarily an intermediated
business model, our broker partners play an important role in
helping us engage and connect with our insureds as well as
being a vital stakeholder in their own right.
The Board receives reports on key areas of client and broker
engagement via reporting from the Group Chief Executive,
Group Chief Underwriting Officer and other teams, which the
Board can take into account in its decision-making.
How does Beazley engage
• Engagement by the Group Chief Executive: Board level
engagement is led by the Group Chief Executive, who meets
with key broker partners and clients globally. He brings the
insight he receives to Board discussions and reporting.
In 2024, the Group Chief Executive held over 65 meetings
with broker partners. The Chair has also joined scheduled
engagements with broker partners; for example, during
2024 the Chair and Group Chief Executive met with
12 brokers in New York and Chicago when visiting our
US offices.
• Strategic engagement: The Group Chief Executive and
other Executive leaders actively seek feedback from our
broker partners on the markets in which we operate,
allowing us to understand local market dynamics and the
needs of clients which then inform the products and
services we offer. When developing new strategies,
feedback from our broker partners and clients is actively
sought, for example, in 2024, when reviewing our
sustainability strategy. This is then reflected in reporting
to the Board, to take into account in its decision-making.
• Day-to-day engagement and feedback: Coordinated
engagement with our broker partners takes place via our
dedicated Partner Engagement team. This global team
engages with our broker partners to ensure that we align
initiatives with our growth and distribution strategies and
underwriting appetite. Direct engagement with our clients
and broker partners is a fundamental part of how we do
business. Our underwriters engage with brokers and clients
to fully understand specific risks and requirements and our
claims teams engage to ensure responsiveness, fair claims
outcomes and excellent service, and share insights into the
risk environment.
• Beazley and industry events: We hold our own broker
engagement events and participate in key industry events,
ensuring we maintain a deep understanding of the industry,
while keeping abreast of key topics and maintaining
relationships. In 2024:
– We attended 121 conferences, including BIBA (a UK
insurance and broker conference), the CIAB (a US
meeting for commercial property and casualty brokers
and insurers), the Monte Carlo Rendez-Vous de
Septembre for Reinsurance and Insurance markets,
and RIMS, which is attended by risk managers across
all industries.
– We staged over 150 of our own events for brokers,
including nine product-led broker summits.
These events afforded us the opportunity to meet with
our brokers and key clients, present our products and
services, and discuss broker and client evolving needs,
and receive feedback.
• Thought leadership: We undertook our annual Risk &
Resilience research with 3,500 global business leaders
based in the UK, US, Canada, Singapore, France, Germany
and Spain, drawn from nine broad industry sectors. The
findings were augmented by qualitative interviews with
internal and external experts on specific risk topics.
Throughout 2024, we published “Spotlight On” reports,
blogs, videos, podcasts and webinars that helped to build
our visibility and credibility with brokers, clients and
stakeholders by demonstrating our depth of expertise in
helping firms build resilience in this era of accelerating risk.
The risk areas covered by the reports included geopolitical,
cyber & tech (including AI) and a range of boardroom risks,
and we published tailored regional versions of the reports in
France, Germany, Spain, Singapore/Asia and Canada. In
2024, we also undertook research with digital health
providers in the UK, US and Europe, and published a report
on the findings, highlighting how the risk environment for
these firms is changing post-COVID.
• Client engagement: We continue to invest in our ‘closer to
the client’ initiative, which is specifically focused on our
insureds and strategic client partnerships. This approach
creates an open dialogue with our clients to keep abreast of
their needs, how we can best respond in terms of product,
innovation, and sharing of knowledge. We continue to give
clients the opportunity to meet directly with our wider
Executive leadership team. We are also able to meet clients
and prospective clients at Risk Managers’ conferences,
such as the annual US RIMS and the biennial European
FERMA event. For example, in 2024 we met with 20
organisations at RIMS, and of the 85 meetings we held at
FERMA, 65 were with clients or prospective clients.
What is important to our clients and broker partners?
Our ultimate clients want their insurance policies to be
clear and fair. They want us to help them find efficient risk
solutions, and this is also a priority of our broker partners.
We partner with our clients and broker partners to offer risk
solutions, expertise and knowledge, in order to allow our
clients to focus on running their businesses.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
69
Stakeholder engagement continued
Outcomes from our engagement with clients and broker
partners during 2024
• In 2024, Beazley’s refreshed sustainability strategy was
approved by the Board, which included input gathered from
broker and client surveys (amongst other stakeholder
inputs). This feedback helped to develop a clear focus on
the issues most material to Beazley in terms of both
potential impacts to Beazley and impacts by Beazley
on others.
• Our engagement with US brokers and key clients during
2024 highlighted positive feedback on Beazley’s North
American strategy, including the establishment of Beazley’s
own US non-admitted insurance carrier.
• At FERMA, a meeting with a large Spanish client led to the
opportunity for Beazley Security to share up-to-the-minute
insights on the cyber environment at the client’s own
global security conference and demonstrate the depth
of expertise that Beazley has to offer in the event of a
ransomware attack.
• In 2024, we scored highly in broker surveys and
outperformed our peers in the market across underwriting,
pricing, service and claims. We are extremely proud that, in
2024, for the eighth year running, we were awarded the
Outstanding Service Quality Marque for claims service by
Gracechurch Consulting, and won the highly regarded
Gracechurch London Market Bench Strength Awards for the
fourth year running. We were named Specialty Insurer of the
Year at the British Insurance Awards and one of the top
Cyber insurance companies in the US by Insurance
Business America.
Our shareholders
Why we engage
The ongoing support of our shareholders is essential as we
continue to grow the business. It is vital that shareholders
understand and have confidence in not only our strategy and
ability to deliver it, but also in how we run our business –
helping us to become the highest performing sustainable
specialty insurer. Shareholder engagement helps align
business and shareholder interests.
At Beazley, we are committed to proactive engagement with
our current and potential investors, and we recognise the
differing needs of our shareholders, which range from
individuals to large institutions.
How does Beazley engage
Feedback and themes from our engagement activities are
shared with the wider Board through the Group Chief
Executive’s report, regular reports from the Head of Investor
Relations, and other reports where appropriate. Engagement
methods and activities which were reported to the Board
during 2024 included the following:
Executive engagement activities:
• Following interim and year-end results, the Executive
Directors and other senior management embark on a
roadshow to engage on a one-to-one basis with our large
institutional shareholders. The roadshow also includes
meetings with sales desks from our corporate brokers,
which provides additional valuable insight on key investor
questions that are being raised.
• Management participates in webcasts on the day of the
announcement of our half-year and full-year results, as well
as the Q1 and Q3 trading updates. These are publicly
available for the market to join and the sell side analysts
are given the opportunity to engage in a Q&A with the
management team.
• Since 2022, an additional annual capital markets session
has been conducted. In October 2024, we delivered a
presentation to investors with a focus on our Cyber Risks
division, specifically in respect of our continued evolution
of the management of systemic cyber risk, which this year
included further successful participation in the ILS market
as well as placing our first cyber ILW.
• In 2024, additional engagement by our Executive
Directors included:
·
Four Group Chief Executive fireside chats hosted
for institutional investors;
·
Four investor conferences attended by the Group
Chief Executive and/or Group Chief Financial Officer,
which provided an opportunity to meet with our
investors; and
·
Two US roadshows covering New York, Chicago and
Toronto, where our management met with investors
and potential investors.
·
A total of 68 meetings took place with investors in
2024, which offered the opportunity to engage with
over 250 investors through one-to-one meetings and
group meetings or calls.
• Shareholders are also able to contact the Head of Investor
Relations, Chair or Company Secretary to ask questions or
discuss any concerns, which are shared with the Board
through reporting.
Engagement by the Chair and Non-Executive Directors:
• The Annual General Meeting (AGM) provides a formal
opportunity for engagement by shareholders with the Board.
The 2024 AGM was attended by retail investors who were
able to raise questions and speak directly with the Chair
and other Directors during and after the meeting.
• Throughout 2023, the Chair met with a series of key investors
as part of his induction. The Chair remains available any time to
discuss any feedback with shareholders and has done so
during 2024, including corresponding with investors on topics
they have raised with him directly.
• Committee Chairs engage with shareholders on significant
matters related to their areas of responsibility, when
required. During late 2023 and early 2024, the Chair of the
Remuneration Committee sought feedback from
shareholders on a specific matter relating to the impact of
our transition to IFRS 17 on our incentive plans for 2023
and subsequent years.
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What is important to our shareholders?
Our shareholders remain interested in seeing Beazley grow
profitably and are keen to understand our systemic risks and
how the business is protected. We are mindful that growth
is carried out in a responsible and sustainable way to help
ensure the long-term success of the Company. The Board
is very much aligned with shareholders in these priorities.
Key focuses in 2024 included topics such as the
management of systemic cyber risk, our capital strategy
with a particular focus on methods of returning capital to
shareholders, and the drivers of divisional and multi-platform
performance within our diversified strategy.
Outcomes from engagement with our shareholders
in 2024
Examples of actions taken in response to dialogue with
shareholders during 2024 included the following:
Capital strategy:
During 2024, we sought feedback on preferred methods of
returning any surplus capital to shareholders. This was taken
into consideration when the Board made the decision to
launch a share buyback programme during 2024 in addition
to the ordinary dividend payment. The Board continues to
take feedback from shareholders into account. For more
information on how shareholder feedback is taken into
account, see the Section 172 decision regarding the 2024
share buyback on page 74.
Helping shareholders understand systemic cyber risk:
• During 2024, it became evident from feedback that
investors were interested in gaining a better understanding
of Beazley’s approach to the management of systemic cyber
risk. At the capital markets session in October, we provided
a detailed education session for investors regarding cyber
risk, including the opportunity that Beazley is able to
capitalise on, and our approach to actively managing these
exposures. The presentation from the session was released
by regulatory announcement and was made available on the
website for all shareholders to enable them to understand
our approach.
• When the decision was made to purchase an ILW and
additional Cyber Catastrophe bonds during 2024, the Board
considered the views of shareholders on this topic, which
had been gathered from its engagement activities described
above. For further information see the Section 172
statement on page 75.
Seeking shareholder views on incentive arrangements:
The Chair of the Remuneration Committee wrote to circa 40
investors in late 2023, to seek shareholder views in relation
to the impact of Beazley’s transition to IFRS 17 on our
incentive plans, including annual bonuses and Long-Term
Incentive Plans. The proposals set out in the letter were given
careful consideration by the Remuneration Committee to
identify a solution, which was driven by the principle of
fairness and ensuring that employees were not unduly
benefiting from or penalised by the change in accounting
standards. The engagement continued into 2024, including
meetings with shareholders and further correspondence
regarding incentive plans. The Remuneration Committee
considered the approach taken to be measured and
appropriate, and was pleased that the shareholders consulted
were supportive and understood the purpose of the proposals.
Further information was included in the Directors’
remuneration report on page 129 of the 2023 Annual Report.
Our regulators
Why we engage
As an insurance company, Beazley is subject to financial
services regulation across the markets in which it operates.
The Central Bank of Ireland is Beazley’s Group supervisor as
well as regulating Beazley Insurance dac in Ireland and its
branches. In the UK, the Prudential Regulation Authority and
Financial Conduct Authority are our prudential and conduct
regulators while Lloyd’s provides day-to-day oversight of
Managing Agents. The Connecticut Insurance Department
is our principal regulator in the US.
How does Beazley engage
• Our Compliance teams coordinate our interface with
regulators and help to manage those relationships across
our three main distribution platforms.
• All of our regulators operate to a cycle of meetings with key
members of the Executive leadership and Board, both at
Group level and in the legal entities, and with various
subject matter experts. Standing areas of focus in common
with all our regulators are the business plan, our long-term
strategy, capital and exposure management, and the
robustness of the control environment.
• Our regulators also carry out thematic and topic-specific
deep dives, periodic financial and other reviews, market-
wide stress testing and periodic information requests.
Data submissions and returns are another key feature
of our regulatory interactions.
• Annually, our Group supervisor brings together our principal
regulators to discuss the key risks to the Group and the
markets in which it operates. This results in a formal
request of the Group to perform actions or undergo targeted
risk assessments over the following year. Other regulators
also conduct annual assessments of our entities
governance and the management of our risk profile,
which result in supervision plans, feedback and action
plans in response.
What is important to our regulators?
Our regulators have certain overarching focus areas in
common, such as the financial soundness of our business
and ensuring the protection of policyholders. Underpinning this
is their interest in the robustness of our control environment,
our operational resilience in the face of cyber threat actors,
and the effectiveness of our risk management framework.
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Stakeholder engagement continued
Outcomes from engagement with regulators during 2024
• During 2024, our regulators focused on the maturity of the
governance framework to support the operation of the three
platforms. Acknowledging the work to build out the risk
management framework following a period of growth in
recent years, our regulators remain focused on the ability of
our assurance functions to maintain pace as we become a
more mature and complex business. Strengthening cyber
security for firms in the face of geopolitical turmoil is also
a top priority. Our regulators want to see a sophisticated,
coordinated and proactive communication strategy that
supports their supervision of the Group.
• The Board and its Risk Committee received reports on
regulatory priorities and regulatory engagements, including
outcomes and feedback from meetings, reviews, responses
and action plans. The Board and Risk Committee consider
this information in discussions and decision-making.
• Regulated subsidiary Boards and their Risk Committees
also received regular reports which focus on the activities
and engagement with their respective regulators.
Our communities
Why we engage
Beazley is committed to actively engaging with and supporting
the communities in which it operates. Community engagement
and charitable contribution remain core parts of our refreshed
sustainability strategy, which includes having a strategic
approach to philanthropy to build stronger, fairer communities.
How does Beazley engage
Through reporting received, the Board actively encourages,
supports, and monitors progress against our sustainability
strategy and our agreed ambitions, including as part of that
social impact and community engagement activities. A Non-
Executive Director from the Board and other Non-Executives
from key subsidiary boards attend our executive led
Responsible Business Steering Group on a quarterly basis,
to provide a strong link between the Board and the
Executive leadership on our sustainability strategy.
Social impact and giving back to our communities are
valued by our workforce as well as our local communities.
Engagement with our communities is led by our Social Impact
team, and driven by our workforce who participate in
volunteering activities in their local communities through our
“Make a Difference” programme and run initiatives to raise
funds for our global charity partner.
Outcomes during 2024
• Employees were offered the opportunity to volunteer their
time to support our local community partners as part of
our Make a Difference community volunteering campaign,
with over 5,000 volunteering hours recorded.
• Almost 100 global initiatives were organised ranging from
educating local young people about careers in insurance,
building homes, distributing meals for communities and
cleaning up local rivers and beaches in the US, UK, Europe
and Asia. Members of our Executive Committee, including
the Group Chief Executive, Group Chief Financial Officer and
Chief People and Sustainability Officer joined employees in
some of these events.
• Beazley provided financial grants for local communities.
• Over $350,000 was donated to our employee selected
charity partner.
• Beazley became a founding member of Humanity Insured,
a charity which aims to empower at-risk communities
to build climate resilience through insurance.
• The Board approved the establishment of a charitable
foundation for 2025 to help provide more structure
to charitable and community activities and provide
increased engagement with our communities and
other stakeholder groups.
For more information on our sustainability strategy, including
the outcomes from our 2024 objectives, please refer to the
Sustainability section of our website.
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Other stakeholder groups
The Board also recognises suppliers as an
important stakeholder.
Suppliers
We actively engage with our suppliers, who we categorise as
any person or organisation that provides goods and services
to Beazley, and recognise the important role they play in
helping us run our business and deliver strategic business
value. Engagement is underpinned by a desire to maintain and
foster equitable relationships so that both Beazley and our
suppliers benefit from our relationship. The Board has limited
direct engagement with our suppliers but delegates this
engagement and oversight to the Executive leadership team.
Supplier-related activity is managed by our Procurement team,
in line with Group Procurement Strategy and Framework, which
is overseen by the Board through its reporting. We want to
work with suppliers who are aligned with our values and can
partner with us to deliver desired outcomes. Prior to any new
engagement, we carry out thorough due diligence, including on
values and cultural alignment, service expectations and
outcomes, contractual terms, and business practices. We
expect our suppliers to adopt the same standards of ethical
business practice that we expect from ourselves, which
includes respecting human rights and preventing modern
slavery and human trafficking. Further information on the
steps taken by Beazley to eradicate modern slavery in its
supply chain are contained in Beazley’s Modern Slavery Act
statement, which is approved by the Board and is available on
our website.
We undertake a structured supplier management approach
with our strategic and critical providers to ensure both
performance, and practices, continue at a high standard.
This provides an opportunity for value focused engagement.
During 2024, we spent considerable time updating our
procurement and outsourcing policies to accommodate the
European Union’s Digital Operational Resilience Act, which
came into force in January 2025. This included engaging with
key suppliers. We have also continued to enable and support
business growth ambitions into the US and European office
locations, alongside ensuring that our suppliers are well
placed to support Beazley’s strategic projects to de-risk and
simplify the operations of the organisation.
We continue to encourage our suppliers to raise with us
directly any concerns they may have, either through
relationship managers or supported by our Group Procurement
function. We also make suppliers aware of Beazley’s
independent whistleblowing hotline. In further promoting
equitable supplier relationships, Beazley is a willing follower of
the Prompt Payment Code and publishes its average supplier
payment times twice a year.
The Board is kept informed of material supplier matters and
engagements through regular updates from the Chief
Operations Officer and other reports. The Board is also made
aware of any supply chain risks via the Risk Committee. The
Audit Committee received updates during 2024 regarding
Beazley’s relationships with other audit firms, following the
Financial Reporting Council’s guidance on the external audit.
More information is included within the Audit Committee
report on page 116.
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Section 172 statement
The Board of Directors confirm that, during the year ended 31 December 2024, they have discharged their duties to act in a
way that they believe promotes the long-term success of the Company for the benefit of its members as a whole, whilst having
regard to the matters set out in Section 172 of the Companies Act 2006. Further information is provided in this statement on
how these duties have been discharged.
The table below sets out where information can be found about the Board’s approach to each of the matters, including:
Duty to promote the success of the Company with regard to:
For further details see:
(a) the likely consequences of any decision in the long term
The Group’s purpose and strategy on pages 3 to 7
Principal decisions 1, 2 and 4
(b) the interests of the Company’s employees
Stakeholder engagement report (our people) pages 67 to 68
Principal decisions 2 and 3
(c) the need to foster the Company’s business relationships with
suppliers, customers and others
Stakeholder engagement report (clients and brokers and regulators)
pages 69 to 71
Customers and others (broker partners): Principal decision 2 and 4
Others (regulators): Principal decision 1
(d) the impact of the Company’s operations on the community and
the environment
Stakeholder engagement report (our communities) page 72
Sustainability report pages 26 to 31
TCFD statement from page 32 to 61
Principal decisions 2 and 3
(e) the desirability of the Company maintaining a reputation for high
standards of business conduct
The Company’s values: page 4
(f) the need to act fairly as between members of the Company
Stakeholder engagement report (our shareholders) pages 70 to 71
The Board has determined the Company’s key stakeholder
groups to be its employees, clients and broker partners,
shareholders, regulators, and our communities.
The approaches to engagement with these stakeholder groups
and the impact of such engagement on the outcomes of
certain key Board decisions are set out in the Stakeholder
engagement report. The views of these stakeholders are
considered by the Board when principal decisions are taken.
Information is provided, on the pages that follow, on the
principal decisions taken by the Board during the year and
how key stakeholders and other matters set out in Section
172 were considered by the Board in making these decisions.
The overriding duty to promote the success of the Company
for the benefit of the Company’s members is considered in all
decision-making, as described in all of the principal decisions.
Board decision-making in action
Principal decision 1: Share buyback programme
In March 2024, the Board approved a share buyback
programme to return up to an aggregate amount of $325m (or
approximately £255m) via open market purchases of the
Company’s ordinary shares on the London Stock Exchange
(“the Programme”). The Programme was enabled by the 2023
record $1,254.4m pre-tax profit and reflected the Board’s
confidence in the Company and its business model.
The Board considered various methods of returning excess
capital to shareholders and determined that a share buyback,
in addition to the payment of an ordinary dividend was the
most suitable and delivered value for shareholders. The Board
considered the level of reserves and the capital position,
future investment and growth opportunities and ability to
generate cash flows before approving the Programme.
The Board determined that the Programme was reasonable
given growth expectations at the time of approval and the
strength of the Company’s long-term capital position.
The Board considered the supportive view of shareholders for
the Programme, and following the launch, positive shareholder
feedback was also received.
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The Directors had regard to the interests of both shareholders
and regulatory and legal considerations in determining the
size of the Programme.
The Board’s approval of the Programme reflects its confidence
in the Company’s robust financial health and future prospects.
By opting for a share buyback, the Board aimed to deliver
value to shareholders, taking into account the Company’s
strong capital position, growth opportunities and positive
shareholder sentiment. The Programme was carefully sized
to balance shareholder and commercial interests with
regulatory and legal considerations.
Principal decision 2: Development of the
sustainability strategy
In March 2024, the Board approved the refreshed
sustainability strategy. The strategy review included extensive
engagement with a wide range of stakeholders, including
brokers, insured parties and employees. This engagement
process involved more than two hundred surveys, interviews
and workshops, ensuring that the strategy was comprehensive
and reflective of the diverse perspectives within the
stakeholder group.
The Board sought advice from industry experts to ensure
that the strategy was aligned with best practices and
industry standards.
During the development of the strategy, the Board
collaborated with the Responsible Business Steering Group.
A Non-Executive Director from the Board was actively involved,
as were Non-Executive Directors from several of Beazley’s key
regulated subsidiaries, and provided oversight and guidance.
This collaborative approach ensured that the strategy was
robust and well informed by the insights and expertise of
various stakeholders.
During the discussions and approval process, the Board
acknowledged the evolving and expanding disclosure and
reporting requirements from financial regulators, ensuring that
the strategy would support the Company in meeting these
regulatory expectations.
The approval of the new sustainability strategy is reflective
of the Company’s dedication to responsible business
practices. The strategy is expected to drive positive social
and environmental impact, aligning the Company’s operations
with industry-leading sustainability practices.
Principal decision 3: Formation of a charitable foundation
In December 2024, the Board approved the formation of a
charitable foundation. This decision was made after careful
consideration of various methods to develop the Company’s
charitable practices, including the formation of a registered
charity with the Charity Commission. Ultimately, the non-
registered charitable foundation was chosen as the preferred
option, as it would maximise the impact of the Company’s
charitable giving, with the support of the Charities
Aid Foundation.
Feedback from employees was sought through a social impact
survey, with over 400 responses being received. This
engagement with employees was crucial in determining the
formation of the foundation and ensuring that it resonated
with the Company’s workforce. The Board had regard for the
interests of employees when approving the formation of the
charitable foundation.
The Board discussion highlighted the importance of good
governance for charitable giving, volunteering and reporting.
The Board recognised that a well-structured foundation would
ensure transparency and accountability in the Company’s
philanthropic activities and ensure continued alignment with
the broader sustainability strategy and social impact
objectives.
Principal decision 4: The purchase of additional
Cyber catastrophe protections
In July 2024, the Board approved the purchase of an ILW to
cover a major US Cyber industry loss as well as the purchase
of additional PoleStar Cyber catastrophe bonds. The ILW
provides coverage based on the total insured loss experienced
by the industry, while the PoleStar bonds provide multi-year
indemnity cover.
The purchases were supported by the Underwriting and
Executive Committees, which presented the initiative to the
Board for approval, citing the opportunity to take a leading
position in building the alternative risk transfer market. This
was to facilitate the long term structural growth of the cyber
market as well as continuing to effectively manage Beazley’s
protection against a catastrophic cyber event. The Board
considered the existing reinsurance programmes which
protect the Cyber risks book and the benefits, risks and costs
of the proposed additional purchases. In addition, the Board
considered shareholder views in relation to systemic cyber
risk, concluding that additional protection would assist
investors in their understanding of Beazley’s expertise and
ability to prudently manage cyber risk appetite.
The approval of the purchases demonstrates the Board’s
commitment to the Company’s long-term strength and
positioning in the cyber market. This will also allow the
Company to foster long-term relationships with brokers and
insureds and drive the long-term success of the Company for
the benefit of its shareholders.
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Risk management and compliance
The risk management and
compliance functions support the
Group's activities and achievements
through effective risk oversight
and challenge.
Risk management oversight
and framework
The Beazley plc Board delegates direct oversight of the risk
management function and framework to its Risk Committee,
and the primary regulated subsidiary Boards and their
(Audit and) Risk Committees. The Beazley plc Board
delegates executive oversight of the risk management
function and framework to the Executive Committee,
which fulfils this responsibility primarily through its
Risk and Regulatory Committee.
The risk management framework establishes the approach
to identifying, measuring, mitigating, monitoring and reporting
on principal risks. The risk management framework supports
the Group strategy and objectives.
Beazley has adopted a “three lines of defence” model, in
which the risk management function is part of the second line
of defence. Ongoing communication and collaboration across
the three lines of defence ensures that the Group identifies
and manages risks effectively.
The Beazley plc Board approves the Group risk appetite
statements at least annually and receives updates on
monitoring against risk appetites throughout the year.
This includes an assessment of principal risks.
A suite of reports from the risk management function support
senior management and the Beazley plc Board in discharging
their oversight and decision-making responsibilities throughout
the year. The risk management function’s reports include
updates on risk appetite, risk profiles, stress and scenario
testing (including reverse stress testing) and analysis,
emerging and heightened risks, a report to the Remuneration
Committee, and the ORSA report.
Risk management
We pride ourselves on understanding the drivers of risk
across Beazley. Our risk management function both
supports and challenges management in effectively
managing these risks.
Throughout the year, we have continued to enhance,
roll out and embed elements of our risk management
framework. We have worked closely with colleagues across
the first and second lines of defence to support the
Group’s strategy. This has included delivery of a new
platform governance model, underwriting initiatives such
as our partnership with Ki, and maintaining oversight of
climate-related risks and our ongoing digitalisation journey.
The business operates a control environment which supports
mitigating risks to stay within risk appetite. The risk
management function reviews and challenges the control
environment through various risk management activities
(e.g. risk opinions, risk reviews etc). In addition, the risk
management function works with the capital modelling and
exposure management teams, particularly in relation to
validation of the internal model, preparing parts of the ORSA,
monitoring risk appetite and the business planning process.
The risk management plan considers, among other inputs, the
inherent and residual risk scores for the risks in the risk
registers. The risk management function also incorporates
results from internal audits and other assurance activities into
its risk assessment process. The internal audit function
considers the risk management framework in its audit
universe to derive a risk-based audit plan.
The Group’s approach to identifying, managing and mitigating
emerging risks includes inputs from across the business,
analysis of lessons learned following incidents and industry
thought leadership. The approach considers the potential
materiality and likelihood of impacts, which helps prioritise
emerging risks which the Group monitors or undertakes
focused work on. Key emerging risks in 2024 included
geopolitical and conflict escalation, Artificial Intelligence,
a systemic cyber event, political and social unrest, supply
chain risk and climate change. The Board carries out a robust
assessment of the Group’s emerging risks at least annually.
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Principal risks
Our principal risks are under continuous review with ongoing
risk assessments. Whilst our risk profile has remained broadly
stable in 2024, we continue to focus on operational and
regulatory risks, to ensure that our control environment keeps
pace with business change and growth initiatives.
The table below summarises the principal risks the Group
faces, and the control environment, governance and oversight
that mitigate these risks. Our approach to managing the risks
arising from climate change are set out within the TCFD
section of this report.
Risk Outlook
Increasing
Stable
Decreasing
Insurance
Risk of loss arising from uncertainties and deviations
of the occurrence, frequency, amount and timing of
insurance premium and claim liabilities relative to the
assumptions at the time of underwriting. This includes
risk from underwriting such as market cycle, catastrophe,
reinsurance and reserves.
• Market cycle: potential systematic mispricing of
medium- or long-tailed business that does not support
revenue to invest and cover future claims.
• Catastrophe: one or more large events caused by
nature (e.g. hurricane, windstorm, earthquake and/or
wildfire) or mankind (e.g. coordinated cyber attack,
global pandemic, losses linked to an economic crisis,
an act of terrorism or an act of war and/or a political
event) impacting a number of policies, and therefore
giving rise to multiple losses.
• Reinsurance arrangements: reinsurance may not be
available or purchases do not support the business
underwritten (e.g. mismatch).
• Reserving: reserves may not be sufficiently established
to reflect the ultimate paid losses.
Insurance risk is principally managed through pricing tools, analysis
of macro trends and claim frequency/severity and ensures exposure
is well diversified and not overly concentrated in any one area, or line
of business.
Our strategic approach to exposure management and a
comprehensive internal and external reinsurance programme help
to reduce volatility of profits in addition to managing net exposure
through the transfer of risk.
Our prudent and comprehensive approach to reserving ensures
adequate provisions are made for the payment of all valid claims.
High-calibre claims and underwriting professionals deliver expert
service and claims handling to insureds, ensuring good
customer outcomes.
Beazley carries out periodic analysis to identify significant areas
of concentration risk across our business and monitors solvency
regularly to ensure Beazley is adequately capitalised.
Beazley makes extensive use of modelling, including catastrophe
modelling, the use of our Solvency II model and stress and scenario
testing to ensure insurance risk is within our risk appetite.
The insurance risk outlook continues to be stable as the Group
manages the market cycle across all the lines of business.
Market
The risk of loss resulting from fluctuations in the level and
in the volatility of market prices of assets, liabilities and
financial instruments. Investment assets may be
impacted by adverse movements in financial markets,
interest rates, exchange rates or external market forces.
Beazley operates a conservative investment strategy, prioritising the
limitation of investment losses that could significantly impact our
financial results. We employ robust policies and tools to manage
market risk, ensuring alignment with regulatory requirements and
industry best practices. Interest rate and foreign exchange risks are
managed using natural hedges and financial instruments, minimising
potential volatility. The Investment Committee regularly reviews
market risk exposures to ensure that our risk management
capabilities remain agile and effective in responding to evolving
market dynamics.
Despite the global and political economic uncertainties, we maintain
a stable market risk outlook, driven by clear political outcomes
and steady growth in the US, where most of our asset exposures
are concentrated.
Credit
The risk of loss resulting from default in obligations due
or changes in the credit standing of either issuers of
securities, counterparties or any debtors which Beazley
is exposed to. Exposure to credit risk largely emanates
from the use of reinsurers, brokers, coverholders and our
investments, of which reinsurance asset is the largest
exposure for the Group.
Beazley maintains long-term partnerships with strategic reinsurance
partners to support the Company throughout the insurance cycle and
during potential catastrophic claim events. The Group uses a range
of traditional and alternative reinsurance mechanisms to diversify
reinsurance credit risk. All reinsurers must meet stringent internal
approval criteria, overseen by the Reinsurance Security Committee.
Credit risk from brokers and coverholders remains low.
The credit risk outlook therefore remains stable, as Beazley manages
reinsurance, broker and coverholder credit risks, maintaining low
levels of aged and bad debt.
Principal risks and summary descriptions
Mitigation and monitoring
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Risk management and compliance continued
Principal risks and summary descriptions
Mitigation and monitoring
Group
The contagion risk that an action or inaction of one part of
the Group adversely affect another part or parts. This also
includes a deterioration in culture which leads to
inappropriate behaviour, actions and/or decisions
including dilution of culture or negative impact on the
Group brand.
Beazley’s Group risk culture is grounded in principles of transparency,
accountability and awareness. An effective risk culture reflects a
mature risk management function, encourages prudent risk-taking, and
fosters awareness of existing and emerging risks. The Executive
Committee and the Beazley plc Board oversee Group risk, with regular
monitoring conducted by the risk management function and overseen
by the Risk Committee.
Our Group risk outlook remains stable, with the Executive Committee
continuously managing and improving our risk culture through ongoing
monitoring and enhancements.
Liquidity
Investments and/or other assets are not available or
adequate in order to settle financial obligations when they
fall due.
By actively managing its liquidity needs, Beazley maximises flexibility in
handling its financial assets and investment strategy. This proactive
approach ensures that clients and creditors are financially protected.
The Group regularly evaluates its liquidity position, under the oversight
of the Risk Committee.
Our liquidity risk outlook remains stable as we consistently maintain
more than adequate levels of liquidity and capital.
Regulatory and legal
Non-compliance with regulatory and legal requirements,
failing to operate in line with the relevant regulatory
framework in the territories where the Group operates.
This may lead to financial loss (fines, penalties),
sanctions, reputational damage, loss of confidence from
regulators, regulatory intervention, inability to underwrite
or pay claims.
Beazley maintains active ongoing dialogue with its principal regulators.
A suite of compliance controls are in place to support the nature, scale
and complexity of the business which are overseen by the Risk and
Regulatory Committee. The Group wants to have a trusting and
transparent relationship with regulators, ensuring coordinated
communication and the following of robust processes, policies and
procedures in the business. In addition, key staff, particularly those
who hold defined roles with regulatory requirements, are experienced
and maintain regular dialogue with regulators.
The Group is implementing a horizon scanning service to support in-
house activity to identify relevant regulatory and legal matters and
emerging policy so the business can consider their potential impacts
on the business.
Considering the needs of our clients in everything our business does is
of utmost importance to Beazley. We deliver good customer outcomes
to our clients throughout the product lifecycle. The Conduct Review
Group oversees this risk.
Beazley has a very low appetite for regulatory and legal risk, therefore
maintaining strong and open relationships with our regulators is of
paramount importance. The outlook for this risk is increasing as
throughout 2024 and into 2025, we have seen increased engagement
with our regulators as the regulatory environment becomes more
complex and the Group grows.
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Principal risks and summary descriptions
Mitigation and monitoring
Operational
Failures of people, processes and systems or the impact
of an external event on operations (e.g. a cyber-attack
having a detrimental impact on operations), including
transformation and change related risks.
At Beazley, we attract and nurture talented colleagues who champion
diversity of thought, fostering a culture of empowerment, collaboration
and innovation. This commitment creates an environment of employee
wellbeing, where high-calibre, motivated, loyal and productive
individuals are empowered to perform their duties competently.
We continue investing in technology and re-engineering processes
to support our operations, overseen by the Operations Committee.
Our business continuity, disaster recovery and incident response plans
ensure the stability of our processes and systems, enabling our team
to consistently deliver optimal outcomes for our clients.
We expect technology and cyber resilience to continue being key focus
areas. We are dedicated to collaborating with external agencies, and
maintaining robust controls over information security, data and
operational resilience. We regularly review incident response plans
and continue to invest in cyber security training for our employees.
While maintaining a low appetite for operational risk, we observed
an increased frequency of reported risk incidents during 2024,
coinciding with an increasingly complex operating environment.
The risk management function continues to work with first line
teams to ensure that controls and processes in place remain
appropriate as the operational landscape evolves.
Our risks and controls are formally monitored and reported through
a risk and control self-assessment process and the use of
quantifiable KRIs.
The outlook for this risk is increased as we continue to strengthen
operationally and realise the benefits of ongoing initiatives to
modernise our systems and processes.
Strategic
The risk of loss resulting from ineffective strategic
direction and implementation that leads to inadequate
profitability, insufficient capital, financial loss and/or
reputational damage.
Pervasive risks impacting multiple areas of the Group
(e.g. reputation and sustainability) occurring through
real or perceived action, or inaction, by a regulatory body,
market and/or third-party provider.
A negative change to Beazley’s reputation would have
a detrimental impact to the Group’s performance and
public perception.
Beazley consistently addresses key strategic opportunities and
challenges, striving to be the highest performing and most sustainable
specialist insurer. We ensure that we recognise, understand, discuss
and develop action plans for significant strategic priorities in a
timely manner, while maintaining operational effectiveness and
brand reputation.
We create an environment that attracts, retains and develops high-
performing talent with diverse perspectives, encouraging exploration,
creation and innovation. By investing in understanding the complexities
of the risks our clients face and deploying our expertise where it adds
value, we thrive. The Executive Committee and the Beazley plc Board
oversee these risks.
We maintain coverage above regulatory capital to meet our business
plan and strategic objectives in the short, medium and long term.
Beazley achieves efficient capital management by redistributing
surplus and liquid capital that exceeds regulatory requirements and
risk appetites across the Group.
Our commitment is to create a sustainable business for our people,
partners and planet through responsible business goals. We embed
sustainability principles and ambitions, focusing on reducing our
carbon footprint (refer to the TCFD report for more details on climate-
related risks and mitigations), contributing to our social environment,
and practising good governance. While we consider market
developments, we evaluate each on its individual merits,
weighing up both potential opportunities and risks.
As we consolidate and embed our achievements from 2024,
our strategic risk outlook remains stable.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
79
Risk management and compliance continued
Viability statement
The Board assesses the viability of the Group within the long-
term plan over a five-year period. A period of five years is
considered short enough to be reasonably assessable, given
the dynamic nature of the business that we underwrite as a
specialist insurer, with the need to adapt capital and solvency
in response to changing markets and emerging opportunities.
However, it is also long enough to reflect the Group’s risk
profile of a portfolio of diversified short-tailed and medium-
tailed insurance liabilities.
Assessment of principal risks over the period
The business planning process tests and demonstrates the
ongoing viability of the business. This includes a base view of
profit and growth so that the reinsurance requirements and
capital surplus can be projected. As a specialist insurer, we
manage several risks as listed above. However, the principal
risk that could undermine the business model is insurance
risk, and how this may interact with other principal risks,
including credit risk and operational risk. The Group seeks
insurance risk as its core business, and the Beazley plc Board
has set the largest risk appetite for insurance risk. Downside
risk is managed using a number of risk appetite KRIs. This
includes setting and monitoring against Board level risk
appetites for both natural and cyber catastrophe risk using
stochastic models at different probabilities, and most severely
for 1 in 250 year events.
The Group is subject to volatility in catastrophes, the market
cycle, reinsurance, reserving, and the impact of emerging risks
(e.g. social and economic inflation, climate change and
geopolitical risks).
The business plan sets out a view of these emerging risks
and how the business will respond to these trends. The
planning process also considers key risks: for example, trends
and underwriting mitigations against natural catastrophe risk,
cyber risk, and geopolitical risks are assessed in detail, and
the quantification of these risks is compared to the expected
profit and capital surplus. The macroeconomic environment,
including inflationary and recessionary factors, are of key
consideration within the business planning process.
Appropriate loadings from these key risks are included within
pricing, reserving, and capital.
The Group has continued to develop its analysis of climate
change. Climate change trends are allowed for in the business
plan, and key property peril loss trends have been
incorporated into pricing models. Future temperature scenario
quantification takes place for the largest peril of US Hurricane,
and the climate sensitive peril of US flood, with plans to
continue to extend this scenario analysis for additional perils
in order of materiality. For climate litigation, the claims
environment is monitored with the internal heatmap
and the greenwashing scenario is actively monitored.
These developments are described in more detail
within the TCFD pages 32 to 61.
The Risk Management Function provides a Risk Opinion of
the current year plan. Further assessment of key risk themes
is conducted within the Own Risk and Solvency Assessment
(ORSA) and presented to the Board. It summarises the
short and longer-term risks to the Group and the
capital implications.
Stress and scenario testing
A range of stresses, scenarios and modelled exposures are
reported by the business throughout the year. These help
to monitor aggregations across our key insurance risk
exposures, such as casualty, cyber and natural catastrophe,
as well as potential reserve deteriorations and investment risk
stresses. The five most material realistic disaster scenarios
relating to our casualty and cyber exposures are reviewed
and approved by the Beazley Plc Board on an annual basis.
The business planning process includes the testing of
scenarios that allow for a range of market conditions. Key
stress and scenario testing is further included within the
annual ORSA. These capture key risks including cyber
catastrophes, natural catastrophes and climate change, the
market cycle, macroeconomic uncertainty, geopolitical risk,
and operational shocks. The latest assessment concludes
that in these scenarios, the Group would be solvent and viable
following the use of mitigation actions.
We also consider several reverse stress tests, which identify
extreme scenarios which could trigger unviability (either
through loss of capital or a loss of stakeholder confidence)
and the possible mitigation actions. Based on our risk profile,
this has considered the following events:
• Natural Catastrophe – An above appetite natural
catastrophe year, driven by a clustering of multiple
significant US windstorms with severity heightened by
climate change trends.
• Cyber Catastrophe and Resilience – A globally systemic
ransomware or cloud down event, resulting in several weeks
of system downtime and associated business interruption
losses across global industries. Beazley’s internal systems
also face an operational resilience impact.
• Financial Crises and Specialty Risk – A large global financial
crises impacting investments greater than the 2007/8,
and with unprecedented impacts on many Specialty Risk
classes from new legal precedents and the consequences
of a severe recession.
• Combined Catastrophes – Combination of
catastrophic insurance risk losses, with features
of reinsurance exhaustion.
• Major Operational Incidents – A combination of major
operational risk incidents, including severe implications
from modelling and reporting errors.
Alongside the primary stated impacts of these events,
the reverse stress testing assessment considers resulting
implications to insurance revenue, reinsurance availability
and risk of default on recoveries, and operational impacts.
In these scenarios, the below mitigation options are available
to limit the impact to the Group’s solvency position and
maintain viability, while the Group’s financial and operational
controls reduce the likelihood of these scenarios taking place.
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Mitigation contingency options
In the unlikely event that solvency falls below the Solvency
Capital Ratio of above 170%, Beazley may consider accessing
additional capital from a number of sources. The Group keeps
a list of mitigation options available to improve its position in
the event of liquidity or capital distress. The financial and
corporate actions available to Beazley are monitored on an
ongoing basis.
The available mitigation options following an extreme
event include:
• underwriting action to exit certain lines, or reduce
planned growth;
• stopping or delaying infrastructure investment to reduce
expense costs;
• selling off business units to raise own funds and reduce
capital requirements;
• suspension of dividends or share buyback programmes;
• additional reinsurance purchases to reduce capital
requirements;
• posting of available unutilised Letter of Credit as Funds
at Lloyd’s and;
• accessing additional external capital via debt or equity markets.
Conclusion on viability
The Board has concluded, based on the business plan,
scenario and ORSA reporting, that there is a reasonable
expectation that the Group will be able to continue to operate
and meet its liabilities as they fall due over the five-year
period of assessment.
Regulatory compliance
To ensure that we conduct business in accordance with
all applicable laws and regulations, we operate under a
Group-wide compliance policy supported by an annual
Compliance Plan, and a governance framework for
decision-making. Our approach to compliance consists
of policies, processes and controls, and includes senior
management oversight, training, risk assessments,
second line assurance and reporting.
There is a top-down commitment of senior management
to ensure a good understanding of the need for regulatory
compliance across the Group. This is supported by training,
controls, policies, periodic risk assessments and second line
assurance work. Key areas of focus include the following
Culture, controls, training and oversight
A mandatory annual employee training programme covers
topics such as financial crime, underwriting due diligence,
conduct, and information security. We provide training to
employees upon joining Beazley and annually thereafter to
ensure that we continue to operate in a responsible manner
and in line with Group expectations.
Control validation testing for key regulatory risks provides
assurance on the performance of controls for regulatory risks
and enables us to identify areas for improvement. Through the
regular reporting of second line control validation activities,
we ensure that senior management maintains oversight of
regulatory risk, including conflicts of interest across the Group.
Conduct has been a core aspect of our business. We pride
ourselves on knowing our clients well, meeting their needs,
managing our business responsibly and ensuring we transact
only with reputable intermediaries, agents and suppliers.
In an ever-evolving landscape, emphasis is placed on the
importance of ensuring a robust approach to information
security and privacy controls designed to safeguard data and
the rights of data subjects. Regulatory bodies in the UK (e.g.
operational resiliency regulation) and EU (e.g. DORA regulation)
have sought to raise operational and cyber resiliency standards
so that firms keep pace with technological developments and
advances. Various activities continue to ensure full compliance
with evolving statutory and regulatory expectations. There were
no cases of a data breach that were material to our clients or
the Group notified to us during 2024.
Anti-financial crime controls
Given the Group operates as a global organisation, financial
crime is a key risk. The Group has no appetite for being used
as a vehicle for financial crime. As a responsible business, we
adhere to ethical practices and believe in doing the right thing.
We monitor sanctions developments closely and seek to
respond when changes occur. To ensure compliance with
applicable regimes, the Group embeds anti-financial crime
controls and procedures into its underwriting, claims,
payments, gifts and hospitality processes, and more widely
throughout the business.
Whistleblowing
In line with our values, we promote a culture that encourages
employees to speak up and escalate concerns. In support of
this, we operate a whistleblowing policy and an independent
hotline, managed by Safecall, that allows for anonymous
reporting of concerns without fear of reprisal, harassment,
retaliation or victimisation. We received training from Safecall
to ensure we appropriately handle any concerns raised
through the hotline. All concerns have been treated with the
utmost confidentiality and in accordance with all applicable
legal and regulatory requirements. The Beazley plc Board
received reports affirming the effectiveness and operation
of our whistleblowing procedures.
Beazley plc’s Audit Committee has overall responsibility for the
effectiveness of our whistleblowing policy and procedures, with
the Committee reviewing and approving the policy annually.
The Chair of the Committee is the Whistleblowing Champion.
Strategic report approval by the
Board of Directors
The Strategic Report set out on pages 1 to 81 is approved
by the Board of Directors.
Signed on behalf of the Board of Directors
Clive Bannister
Chair of the Board
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
81
Governance
83
Governance at a glance
85
Chair's introduction to governance
87
Board of Directors
90
Corporate governance report
109
Nomination Committee
116
Audit Committee
125
Risk Committee
131
Remuneration Committee
133
Letter from the Chair of our Remuneration Committee
135
Directors' remuneration report
158
Statement of Directors' responsibilities
159
Directors' report
165
Independent auditor's report
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Governance at a glance
Board composition and diversity*
Board composition
Chair
1
Executives
2
Independent Non-
Executives
8
*All data as at 31 December 2024.
Board gender balance
Men
55 %
Women
45 %
As at our reference date of 31
December 2024, we have met UK
Listing Rule 6.6.6R(9)(a) targets of:
• at least 40% of the Board Directors
being women; and
• at least one of the senior positions
on the Board being held by a woman:
our Group Chief Financial Officer is
a woman.
Targets were also met throughout
the year. There have been no changes
to the Board since the reference date of
31 December 2024, therefore the UK
Listing Rule targets continue to be met.
Board ethnic diversity
Asian
18 %
White
82 %
As at our reference date of 31
December 2024, we have met UK
Listing Rule 6.6.6R(9)(a) target of at
least one Board member being from an
ethnic minority background: two of our
Directors throughout 2024 were from
an ethnic minority background (Rajesh
Agrawal and Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger).
The numerical data required by UK
Listing Rule 6.6.6R(10) on both the
ethnic background and gender of the
Board and executive management as
at the reference date of 31 December
2024 is included on page 30, together
with an explanation of our approach to
collecting data.
Committee diversity
The Board also aims to ensure that each Committee is diverse, where possible. The Chairs of the Risk Committee and
Remuneration Committee are women. The diversity of each Committee as at 31 December 2024 is set out below:
Nomination Committee –
ethnic diversity
Asian
20 %
White
80 %
Audit Committee –
ethnic diversity
Asian
40 %
White
60 %
Nomination Committee –
gender diversity
Men
60 %
Women
40 %
Audit Committee –
gender diversity
Men
60 %
Women
40 %
Risk Committee –
ethnic diversity
Asian
14 %
White
86 %
Remuneration Committee –
ethnic diversity
Asian
50 %
White
50 %
Risk Committee –
gender diversity
Men
43 %
Women
57 %
Remuneration Committee –
gender diversity
Men
50 %
Women
50 %
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Governance at a glance continued
Non-Executive Director tenure
0-3 years
44 %
3-6 years
44 %
6-9 years
12 %
Director domicile
UK
6
US
2
Europe (excl. UK)
3
The Board is also mindful of geographic diversity and ensuring
the Board comprises individuals with global experience to
complement our three-platform strategy, focused on Lloyd's
Wholesale (London, Singapore and Miami), US and Europe.
Board changes in 2024:
• Carolyn Johnson was appointed as an Independent Non-
Executive Director on 1 March 2024.
• Pierre-Olivier Desaulle succeeded Christine LaSala as
Senior Independent Director when she stepped down from
the Board at the conclusion of the 2024 Annual General
Meeting (AGM).
• Barbara Plucnar Jensen was appointed as Group Chief
Financial Officer on 1 May 2024 and was appointed to the
Board on 21 May 2024.
• Sally Lake stepped down from the Board and as Group
Finance Director on 21 May 2024.
Key activities in 2024
Approval of the share buyback programme
Board activities: page 99
Section 172 statement (principal decision 1): page 74
Considered Board and senior leadership succession
Nomination Committee report: from page 109
Approval of sustainability strategy
Board activities: page 101
Section 172 statement (principal decision 2): page 75
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Chair's introduction to governance
"The Board and its Committees
consciously support executive
management in the
development, refinement and
successful execution of the
Company's strategy"
Clive Bannister
Chair
As Chair of Beazley, I am pleased to introduce this year’s
Corporate Governance report.
The governance report describes our governance
arrangements, the focus of the Board during 2024, and how
the Board provides effective leadership to ensure the long-
term success of Beazley. We believe in the importance of
good corporate governance and, accordingly report under the
UK Corporate Governance Code 2018 ("the Code"). The Board
is actively working to meet the requirements of the Corporate
Governance Code 2024 ("the 2024 Code") and plans to start
reporting compliance with the 2024 Code in the 2025 annual
report, with the exception of provision 29, where we aim to
achieve compliance by 2026.
In my statement on pages 6 to 7, I comment on Beazley’s
performance and how we have made significant progress in
2024 towards our vision of becoming the highest performing
sustainable specialty insurer. Despite a year marked by
continued geopolitical and economic uncertainty, our adaptive
and flexible approach to underwriting enabled us to perform
well and deliver strong results for our stakeholders.
Our governance framework is a key enabler, helping the Board
and its Committees consciously support executive
management in the development, refinement and successful
execution of the Company's strategy. The Board provides
independent critical oversight and valuable input to help
executive management execute the strategy.
I am pleased to confirm that the Company has applied all of
the principles and complied with all of the provisions of the
Code throughout the year. The Board remains highly engaged
in fulfilling its principal task of leading the Company and
overseeing the governance of the Group.
Board changes
The Board takes seriously its responsibility for effective
succession planning for Board and senior management
positions. We are pleased to have overseen three key Board
changes during the year.
We appointed Carolyn Johnson as an Independent Non-
Executive Director in March 2024. Carolyn has extensive US
insurance and leadership experience as well as UK listed
experience. Carolyn has also been appointed as the Chair of
our US subsidiary, Beazley Holdings Inc.
Pierre-Olivier Desaulle, who has served on the Board as a Non-
Executive Director since January 2021, succeeded Christine
LaSala as Senior Independent Director when she stepped
down following the 2024 Annual General Meeting in April.
Pierre-Olivier has extensive experience as an international
insurance executive, with a focus on products, distribution
and innovation.
Sally Lake stepped down as Group Finance Director during
2024 and Barbara Plucnar Jensen was appointed in May
2024 as the Group’s Chief Financial Officer. Barbara
previously served as Group Chief Financial Officer at Tryg A/S,
the largest non-life insurer in Scandinavia, and has over 25
years of experience in the financial services industry.
More information regarding appointments made during the
year and the work undertaken by the Nomination Committee
to identify the skills and experience required by the Board and
its Committees can be found in the Nomination Committee
report on pages 109 to 115.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
85
Chair's introduction to governance continued
Board performance
We have a strong Board comprising individuals of diverse
experience, background and skills. Successful succession
planning means that there is a good balance between new
and more established Directors. In 2024, in line with the
Code, we invited Independent Audit Limited (IAL) to
independently assess the performance of our Board. IAL
concluded that the Board operates effectively, and that each
Director contributes to the Board’s overall effectiveness. We
report further on the process and outcomes from the Board
and Committee performance evaluation on pages 106 to 108.
Stakeholder engagement
We engage with our stakeholders on a regular basis to
understand their perspectives and consider them within our
decision-making processes. We are committed to fostering
strong relationships with our key stakeholder groups, including
shareholders, people, clients, broker partners, regulators, and
the broader community. Please see pages 67 to 73 for more
information on stakeholder engagement, and how stakeholder
groups have been considered in key decisions taken by the
Board during the year.
Sustainability
The Board is proud to have been recognised during the year
by TIME magazine, which ranked Beazley 5th globally for
"Best Companies in Sustainable Growth". The award
recognised that Beazley demonstrated both outstanding
financial and environmental performance. The award is
testament to the dedication of our people and the Board's
commitment to delivering growth while integrating sustainable
environmental practices into the core of our business.
During the year, the Board approved a refreshed sustainability
strategy. This established a framework for decision-making
that balances the impacts on both Beazley and the
environment. The implementation of this strategy aims
to further integrate sustainable business practices
into our operations.
Culture and our people
At Beazley, our culture is defined by our actions. We are bold,
constantly striving for improvement, and committed to doing
the "right thing". Our values guide every aspect of our work,
from engaging with stakeholders to designing our workspaces,
and conducting ourselves as a responsible business.
Maintaining and enhancing our strong culture is essential.
Inclusion and diversity
The Board remains committed to promoting inclusion and
diversity in all its forms. We are pleased to meet the UK
Listing Rule requirements in relation to Board diversity. In line
with our Board diversity policy, the Board continues to ensure
an inclusive environment, aligned to the Company’s strategy.
Governance at a glance on pages 83 to 84 sets out our key
metrics on Board diversity. Progress made towards our
diversity ambitions and the diversity data required to be
disclosed by the UK Listing Rules, the Code, and the
Companies Act 2006, can be found on pages 30 to 31.
The Board was encouraged by the results from the 2024
employee engagement survey, noting that our inclusive
culture was ranked highly by employees. The Nomination
Committee report, from page 109, sets out further information
regarding the Board’s approach to ensure an inclusive and
diverse organisation.
Board activities during 2024
It was another busy year for the Board and a summary of our
key activities is set out on pages 98 to 101. A key activity
during the year was the development of our three–platform
governance model, specifically strengthening the
independence of our key regulated subsidiaries, which will
support the execution of the Company's strategy. During the
Board’s annual strategy day, we met in New York in person, to
discuss the Group's business strategy, Artificial Intelligence,
strategy and governance, technology and modernisation, and
sustainability. We received valuable insights from external
parties such as our bankers and brokers. We also had the
opportunity to meet with employees in our New York office.
Looking ahead
As ever, we welcome engagement with our stakeholders –
with shareholders via our AGM, other stakeholders via our
presentations throughout the year and via our website. All
Directors expect to attend this year’s AGM, which will again
provide an opportunity for shareholders to hear more about
the Company's performance and to ask key questions of the
Board. Where it is not possible for Directors to attend in
person, they will attend virtually.
I would like to recognise the hard work and commitment of all
of our colleagues during the year and thank them for their
efforts to ensure the success of the Company. I would also
like to thank members of the Board for their continued
support and commitment.
Clive Bannister
Chair
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www.beazley.com
Board of Directors
The Beazley Board comprises highly skilled professionals who bring a diverse range of skills, perspectives and corporate
experience to the boardroom, challenging management’s thinking and bringing rigour and discipline to balance entrepreneurial
enthusiasm. Their broad range of leadership experience makes the Board well placed to oversee the delivery of Beazley’s
strategic plans in line with its purpose, vision and values and maintain the long-term success of the Company.
On the Board, our two Executive Directors ensure the maintenance of a strong direct link between the business and the
Non-Executive Board members. The Non-Executive Directors each bring specific, in-depth areas of expertise to the Board.
Carolyn Johnson joined the Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director on 1 March 2024. Pierre-Olivier Desaulle, who has
served on the Board as a Non-Executive Director since January 2021, succeeded Christine LaSala as Senior Independent
Director, who stepped down from the Board following the 2024 AGM on 25 April 2024. On 21 May 2024, it was announced
that Barbara Plucnar Jensen had been appointed to the Board, replacing Sally Lake with immediate effect.
1. Clive Bannister
Chair and Independent
Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 8 February 2023. Appointed as Chair on
25 April 2023
Experience and contribution: Clive was previously Chief
Executive of Phoenix Group plc from 2011 until retiring
in March 2020, where he led the transformation of the
Group and its progression to the FTSE 100. Prior to
that Clive had a long and distinguished career at
HSBC Group, including leadership roles in private
banking and insurance. He has previously held several
non-executive directorships as well as his current
external chair roles. Clive brings considerable
leadership experience to the Board as well as
extensive strategic and commercial experience and
knowledge of the UK listing environment, capital
markets and investor relations.
Skills: significant strategy, transformation
experience, mergers and acquisitions, commerce,
banking and insurance, leadership and governance
Committee: NC (Chair)
Key external appointments: Chair of Rathbones
Group plc and the London Museum
2. Adrian Cox
Group Chief Executive Officer
Appointed: 6 December 2010*. Appointed as Chief
Executive Officer April 2021
Experience and contribution: Prior to his
appointment as Chief Executive in April 2021,
Adrian was Chief Underwriting Officer at Beazley
from January 2019. Adrian has vast leadership and
underwriting experience gained throughout his
career at Beazley, which he joined in 2001. He
began his career at Gen Re in 1993. Adrian has a
deep understanding of the Group’s strategy and
business across all platforms and distribution
channels, has considerable underwriting experience
and market knowledge and has built a strong and
experienced executive leadership team to deliver
Beazley's strategy. Adrian's strong leadership as
Group Chief Executive continues to contribute to
the sustainable growth and the long-term success
of Beazley.
Skills: insurance, management, international
business development, strategy, leadership,
people management, stakeholder management
and governance
Committees: EC, DC
Key external appointments: None
3. Barbara Plucnar Jensen
Group Chief Financial Officer
Appointed: 21 May 2024
Experience and contribution: Barbara joined Beazley
in May 2024 as the Group’s Chief Financial Officer.
She previously served as Group Chief Financial
Officer at Tryg A/S, the largest non-life insurer in
Scandinavia, from March 2019 to November 2023.
Prior to this, she served in various roles at ISS
Group and as Chief Financial Officer at ISS UK &
Ireland, as well as at Danske Bank, where she held
several management positions for 13 years.
Barbara has over 25 years of experience in the
financial services industry. Barbara's broad
experience across financial services in Europe
brings significant financial skills to the Board.
This is complemented by her strategic and
commercial expertise, which make Barbara
a valuable contributor both to the Board and
the executive leadership team.
Skills: corporate finance, strategy, finance change
and transformation, mergers and acquisitions,
investments, capital markets, investor relations,
leadership, sustainability, people management
and governance
Committees: EC, DC
Key external appointments: Director of Matas A/S
(Denmark) and Audit Committee Chair
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E
Executive Directors
N
Non-Executive Directors
NC
Nomination Committee
RC
Remuneration Committee
EC
Executive Committee
DC
Disclosure Committee
AC
Audit Committee
RIC Risk Committee
*Where the appointment date of a
Director pre-dates 13 April 2016
(being the date that Beazley pic
became the holding company of
Beazley Group) this appointment
date refers to his representation on
the Beazley Ireland Holdings pic
Board (formerly Beazley pic).
4. Rajesh Agrawal
Independent Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 1 August 2021
Experience and contribution: Raj currently serves as
the Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of
Arrow Electronics, Inc. Before his appointment at Arrow,
he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer at Western Union from 2014 until 2022 and a
member of the executive team responsible for leading
Western Union’s global finance organisation. Raj’s
considerable finance leadership experience brings
financial strength to the Board, and a commercial
viewpoint, as well as knowledge of the US market and
environment. During 2023, Raj was also appointed as
an independent Non-Executive Director on one of
Beazley’s US subsidiary Boards.
Skills: finance, financial reporting and planning,
strategy, operations, audit, international business
development and investor relations
Committees: AC, RC
Key external appointments: Senior Vice President and
Chief Financial Officer at Arrow Electronics, Inc
5. Pierre-Olivier Desaulle
Senior Independent
Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 1 January 2021
Experience and contribution: Pierre-Olivier served as
Chief Executive of Hiscox Europe until 2017 and has
held a number of other executive roles within the
(re)insurance industry including at Marsh. He began his
career in insurance with Marsh assisting with the
integration of a leading French broker. From February to
December 2024, Pierre-Olivier was a Non-Executive
Director at the InsurTech start-up, Pattern Insurance,
having previously held the position of Chief Insurance
Officer. In January 2025, he was appointed as Chair of
the Oversight Committee of Swan SAS. Pierre-Olivier
brings considerable insurance industry experience to the
Board, as well as strategy and leadership skills and first-
hand knowledge of the InsurTech market. He has been a
Non-Executive Director of Beazley Insurance dac since
2017 and has chaired the Beazley Insurance dac Board
since 2021. He was appointed the Senior Independent
Non-Executive Director on 25 April 2024 following the
2024 AGM.
Skills: insurance, reinsurance, strategy, operations and
distribution, change management, risk management,
mergers and acquisitions, information technology
Committees: RIC, NC
Key external appointments: Chair of the Oversight
Committee, Swan SAS
6. Nicola Hodson
Independent Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 10 April 2019
Experience and contribution: Nicola was appointed as
the Chair of IBM, for the UK and Ireland division in
January 2025, having previously held the role of Chief
Executive Officer. Prior to joining IBM, Nicola was Vice
President of Field Transformation, for Microsoft Global
Sales and Marketing and prior to this Chief Operating
Officer for Microsoft UK. Nicola was formerly a Non-
Executive Director at Ofgem, a Board member at the
UK Council for Child Internet Safety and at the Child
Exploitation and Online Protection Group. Nicola brings
varied and diverse skills to the Board through her
executive roles in the technological sector, with a
focus on transformation and technology. She is skilled
in engaging with various stakeholders and public
bodies. She also has extensive UK listed company
knowledge and experience to contribute through her
other Non-Executive role. Nicola demonstrates the
required skills, knowledge, and attributes to effectively
chair the Remuneration Committee.
Skills: strategy, leadership and change
management, business and digital transformation,
information technology, and sales and marketing,
stakeholder engagement, investor relations, cloud
and data analytics, cyber and information security
Committees: RIC, RC (Chair)
Key external appointments: Chair of IBM, UK and
Ireland (a private limited company),
Non-Executive Director of Drax Group plc and
Remuneration Committee Chair
7. Carolyn Johnson
Independent Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 1 March 2024
Experience and contribution: Carolyn has over 40 years
of experience in the insurance industry, with a particular
focus on the US market. In her last executive role,
Carolyn was Chief Transformation Officer at AIG, where
she successfully led an ambitious modernisation and
cost reduction programme. Carolyn is currently serving
as a Non-Executive Director of Legal & General Group
plc, where she is a member of its Audit, Risk and
Nominations and Corporate Governance Committees.
She also serves on the Board of Kuvare, a private
insurance holding and asset management company.
Carolyn brings deep leadership and transformational
management experience to the Board as well as
strengthening the Board's US insurance market
knowledge. Her existing non-executive directorship of
Legal & General also means she understands our
obligations as a listed insurer. Carolyn is also the Chair
of Beazley Holdings, Inc., Beazley Insurance Company,
Inc., and Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance, Inc.
Skills: transformation and change, leadership and
management, strategy, insurance (particularly US),
operations, mergers and acquisitions
Committees: RIC, NC
Key external appointments: Non-Executive Director
of Legal & General Group plc (and member of its
Data and Technology Committee), Non-Executive
Director of Kuvare Holdings
8. Fiona Muldoon
Independent Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 31 May 2022
Experience and contribution: Fiona has over 30
years’ experience in the insurance industry. Fiona
was the Chief Executive of FBD Holdings plc, a
listed general insurer in Ireland, from 2015 to
2020. Prior to that, Fiona was Director of Credit
Institutions and Insurance Supervision at the
Central Bank of Ireland, the Irish regulator. Fiona
spent 17 years of her career with XL Group in
various progressively senior finance and general
management positions. Fiona brings knowledge of
the global P&C insurance industry, regulatory
knowledge, and strong leadership skills to the
Board, through her executive career and non-
executive positions. Fiona's appointment to the
Board of Admiral Group plc brings further UK listed
company knowledge and experience to the Board.
Fiona demonstrates the required skills and
attributes to effectively chair the Risk Committee
and was appointed to this role during 2023. Fiona
was also appointed as Employee Voice of the
Board in November 2022.
Skills: insurance, strategy, stakeholder
management, regulatory knowledge, governance,
finance, capital management, risk management,
investor relations and leadership
Committees: AC, RIC (Chair)
Key external appointments: Independent Non-
Executive Director and Audit Committee Chair of
Admiral Group plc
9. John Reizenstein
Independent Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 10 April 2019
Experience and contribution: John has more than
30 years’ experience in financial services. He was
Chief Financial Officer of Direct Line Insurance
Group plc, until 2018 when he retired. Prior to that
he held senior positions in insurance and banking
at Co-operative Financial Services and in
investment banking at Goldman Sachs and UBS.
Through his previous role as the Chief Financial
Officer of a FTSE 100 company and his non-
executive directorships, John brings considerable
financial leadership, corporate governance and
capital markets experience to the Board and its
Audit Committee. Through recent and relevant
financial experience, Non-Executive Directorships,
and his knowledge of Beazley, he is able to
effectively chair the Audit Committee and challenge
management on financial reporting and internal
control matters. John is also a Non-Executive
Director of Beazley Furlonge Limited.
Skills: finance, strategy, leadership, investment,
capital management, risk management, and
mergers and acquisitions
Committees: AC (Chair), RIC, NC
Key external appointments: Chair of Investec Bank
plc and Chair of Farm Africa
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10. Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger
Independent Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 31 May 2022
Experience and contribution: Cecilia has more
than 30 years’ experience in banking, asset
management and insurance covering Europe,
Asia Pacific, and the Americas with a focus on
investment management and risk. Cecilia held
senior roles in risk, as Group Chief Risk Officer and
Group Chief investment Officer during her 17-year
career with Zurich Insurance Group. Prior to this,
Cecilia spent her career at ING Barings, ING Asset
Management and Credit Suisse Group in various
senior roles. Cecilia also brings insurance industry
experience to the Board, and considerable
risk management and investments insight
to Board discussions.
Skills: risk management, insurance investment
management, strategy, leadership and
management, capital and responsible
investment strategy
Committees: AC, NC, RIC, RC
Key external appointments: Member of the
Supervisory Board and Risk Committee Chair of NN
Group NV, Non-Executive Director and
investment Committee Chair of Riverstone
International Holding Ltd
11. Robert Stuchbery
Independent Non-Executive Director
Appointed: 11 August 2016
Experience and contribution: Robert served as the
president of international operations of The
Hanover Group until May 2016, when he retired.
Prior to this, he was Chief Executive Officer of
Chaucer until 2015. Before his appointment to the
Chaucer Board, Robert held numerous
management roles at the Company for over 25
years. Robert has previously served as a member
of the London Market Group, was Deputy Chairman
of the Lloyd’s Market Association Board and is
currently a Liveryman of The Worshipful Company
of Insurers. Robert brings extensive insurance
industry insight to the Board, particularly Lloyd’s
market knowledge, as well as leadership and
strategy skills. Robert has made significant
contributions to the Board since his appointment
in 2016 and continues to provide valuable
contributions to the wider Group. He is also
Chair of Beazley Furlonge Limited.
Skills: insurance, risk management,
distribution, operations and strategy,
deep Lloyd’s market knowledge
Committees: AC, RIC, RC, NC
Key external appointments: None
Skills matrix
As shown through the biographies on pages 87 to 89, the Board comprises individuals with a diverse skill set and experience.
The below matrix has identified the key skills of the Board which are brought to bear in the execution of the Company’s long-
term success and strategic decision-making. The skills matrix is regularly reviewed by the Nomination Committee with a view
to the business needs of the future and training areas are incorporated into a training plan for the year ahead as necessary.
89%
74%
82%
82%
68%
69%
83%
76%
69%
Strategy & M&A
Finance, Audit & Actuarial
Culture & People (1)
Risk Management & Compliance
Sustainability (includes Climate Change)
Underwriting & Reinsurance (2)
Capital
Corporate Governance & Investor Relations
Technology & Operational Resilience (3)
1 Culture & People includes HR and Reward.
2 Includes claims management, insurance/distribution in specific markets such as Lloyd's, the US and Europe.
3 Includes Cloud, Data, Information Security, Cyber Security.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
89
Corporate Governance Report
Statement of compliance
The Board is committed to high standards of corporate
governance and continues to be guided in its approach
through the application of the Financial Reporting Council’s
2018 UK Corporate Governance Code. The Code can be
viewed on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at
www.frc.org.uk.
For the year ended 31 December 2024, the Board confirms
that the Company has applied all the principles and complied
with the provisions set out in the Code throughout the year.
In accordance with Provision 10 of the Code, the Board and
Nomination Committee regularly review the independence of
each of the Directors. The Board takes into consideration the
Code provisions around length of tenure when considering any
Director’s independence. The Board has put Robert Stuchbery
forward for re-election at the Company's AGM on 22 April
2025. In August 2025, Robert Stuchbery will have served on
the Board for nine years. More detail on the Board’s and the
Nomination Committee’s decision-making around Robert
Stuchbery’s tenure and independence can be found in the
Nomination Committee report (page 112).
The governance report describes how the Board and its
Committees have applied the principles of the Code and
complied with its detailed provisions. The disclosures which
evidence the Board’s approach are included in the Corporate
Governance report, with cross-references used where
supporting information is outside of this report.
Board leadership and Company purpose
A
The role of the Board
The Board's role is to ensure the long-term
sustainable success of Beazley plc, for the benefit
of its members and with due regard to the
interests of other stakeholders.
An external valuation of the Board was carried out
during 2024 by Independent Audit Limited. The
review highlighted that overall the Board continues
to operate in an effective way and has a good
number of core strengths. Therefore, the Board
remains in a good position to promote the long-
term sustainable success of the Company and
generate value for shareholders and wider society.
Chair’s introduction to governance (pages
85 to 86); Governance framework (page
94); Role of the Board and the Board’s key
activities during 2024 (pages 95 to 101);
Section 172 statement (pages 74 to 75);
Board evaluation (pages 106 to 108);
Board biographies (pages 87 to 89)
B
Purpose, values,
strategy and culture
Beazley has clearly outlined its purpose, values, and
strategy. Beazley’s culture is defined by its brand
and values of being bold, striving for better and
doing the right thing. The Board maintains high
standards of governance and taking decisions which
take into consideration impacts on a diverse range
of stakeholders, including its workforce. The Board
considers culture throughout the year through
updates from the Chief People Officer and Head
of Sustainability and other methods to ensure
that culture remains aligned with Beazley’s values
and strategy.
Our strategy (pages 3 to 5); CEO statement
(pages 8 to 9); CUO report (pages 10 to
13); Sustainability strategy (pages 43 to
46); The Purpose, values, and culture
(pages 101 to 103); Investing in and
rewarding the workforce (page 103)
C
Resources and controls
The Board ensures that the necessary resources
are in place to support the business model
and organisation in meeting its objectives.
Performance is measured against these objectives
using Key Performance Indicators and other reporting.
The Board has established a Risk Committee and
Audit Committee, with both committees having a
remit over controls. Beazley operates a three lines
of defence model, allowing for a strong governance
framework of internal controls and managing risk.
Key Performance Indicators (page 2); Risk
management framework and controls –
Risk management and compliance report
(from page 76); Risk Committee report
(from page 125)
Audit Committee report (from page 116)
D
Shareholder and
stakeholder
engagement
Beazley’s approach to stakeholder engagement
and activities during the year, including activities
of the Directors and senior management and
information regarding the designated Non-
Executive Director responsible for engaging with
the workforce, is outlined in the Stakeholder
engagement report.
Stakeholder engagement report (pages 67
to 73); Shareholder engagement (page
102)
Application of UK Corporate Governance Code principles
Code principle
Application
Further information
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Board leadership and Company purpose
E
Workforce policies and
practices
There are a number of workforce policies and
practices available on Beazley’s website. The
whistleblowing policy sets out how any concerns
relating to wrongdoing, malpractice, or danger in
connection with Beazley should be reported. An
independent whistleblowing hotline allows the
workforce to report concerns anonymously.
Non-Financial and Sustainability
Information statement - employees (page
64); Stakeholder engagement report (our
people) (pages 67 to 68); Investing in and
rewarding the workforce (page 103)
Division of responsibilities
F
The role of the Chair
The Board comprises the Chair of the Board,
two Executive Directors and eight independent
Non-Executive Directors. The Chair was
independent on appointment. The Chair and
Group Chief Executive Officer are separate roles.
The external evaluation of the Board carried out
during 2024 included assessment of the Chair’s
performance, which is included in the Board
Evaluation report. The review indicated that the
Chair promotes a culture of openness and debate
and facilitates effective Board governance.
Governance framework (page 94)
Division of responsibilities (page 105)
Board evaluation (pages 106 to 108)
G
Board composition and
division of
responsibilities
The Board composition described above is
appropriate for the Company and includes
sufficient Non-Executive Directors to ensure that
no one individual or small group of individuals
dominates Board decision making. Clear divisions
of responsibilities have been set out.
Governance at a glance (pages 83 to 84)
Board biographies (pages 87 to 89)
Division of responsibilities (page 105)
H
Role of the Non-
Executive Directors
The Non-Executive Directors meet without the
presence of Executive Directors from time to time
throughout the year. One of the key remits of their
role is to hold to account the performance of
senior management and the Executive Directors.
The external board evaluation supported the
conclusion that the independent Non-Executive
Directors provide constructive challenge and
strategic guidance and hold management
to account.
The terms and conditions of appointment for all
the Non-Executive Directors set out the expected
time commitment and they agree that they have
sufficient time to provide what is expected of
them. The Nomination Committee keeps under
review all Directors’ appointments to ensure that
individuals are able to provide sufficient time and
dedication to fulfil their role as a Director of
Beazley plc.
Division of responsibilities (page 105);
Board activities throughout the year (page
98 to 101); Board evaluation (pages 106
to 108); Nomination Committee report
(pages 109 to 115)
Board biographies (pages 87 to 89)
Application of UK Corporate Governance Code principles
Code principle
Application
Further information
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
91
Corporate Governance Report continued
I
Ensuring the Board
functions effectively
and efficiently
The Chair ensures effective contribution from all
Directors by ensuring that clear, timely and
accurate information is received to enable them to
discharge their duties effectively. The Board and
individual Directors are supported by the Group
Company Secretary, to whom they have access at
all times. There is an agreed principle that
Directors may take independent professional
advice if necessary, at the Company’s expense,
assuming that the expense is reasonable. This is
in addition to the access which every Director has
to the Company Secretary. The Company Secretary
supports the Chair to ensure that the Board has
the necessary policies, processes, information,
time and the resources to function effectively
and efficiently.
Board evaluation (pages 106 to 108)
Composition, succession and evaluation
J
Succession planning for
the Board
The Nomination Committee is responsible for
recommending appointments to the Board and its
Committees and for ensuring a formal, rigorous
and transparent appointment procedure, which
also considers Board diversity. Membership is
made up of six Non-Executive Directors,
chaired by Clive Bannister.
Nomination Committee report
(pages 109 to 115)
K
Skills, experience and
knowledge of the Board
The Nomination Committee is responsible for
regular review of the Board’s structure, size, and
composition (including the skills, knowledge,
experience, and diversity) required compared to its
current and projected position in line with its
longer term strategy.
Carolyn Johnson was appointed as an independent
Non-Executive Director on 1 March 2024. An
independent external search consultancy, Russell
Reynolds, was engaged to support the process.
Board biographies and skills matrix
(pages 87 to 89)
Nomination Committee report
(pages 109 to 115)
L
Board evaluation
An annual review of the Board and its Committees’
performance is carried out. This is externally
facilitated every three years. An external evaluation
of the Board and its Committees was carried out
in 2024 by Independent Audit Limited.
Board evaluation (pages 106 to 108)
Application of UK Corporate Governance Code principles
Code principle
Application
Further information
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Audit, risk and internal control
M
Ensuring the
independence and
effectiveness of
the internal and
external audit
The Audit Committee comprises five independent
Non-Executive Directors. The Chair is not a
member. The Committee’s key responsibilities
include monitoring the effectiveness of the
external audit relationship and internal audit
function. The Audit Committee has responsibility
for reporting to the Board on audit matters and
on the systems of internal controls.
Audit Committee report
(pages 116 to 124)
Directors’ responsibility statement
(page 158)
N
Fair, balanced and
understandable
assessment
The Audit Committee consider whether the Annual
Report and Accounts taken as a whole is fair,
balanced and understandable, and that they
include the necessary information for shareholders
to assess the Group’s position, performance,
and strategy. The Board considers the
recommendations of the Audit Committee
around the fairness and balance of the
financial statements.
Audit Committee report
(pages 116 to 124)
Directors’ responsibility statement
(page 158)
O
Risk management and
internal controls
The Committee supports the Board of Directors in
overseeing the accuracy of financial reporting and
ensuring the system of internal financial control,
the audit process and the Company’s processes
for compliance with laws and
regulations and internal policies and procedures
are robust, effective, and responsive to ever-
changing environments. The Board performs a
robust assessment of the Company’s emerging
and principal risks throughout the year.
This assessment is carried out by the review
of the ORSA.
Audit Committee report (internal financial
controls) (page 124); Risk Committee
report (risk management and internal
controls framework including compliance
and operational controls) (pages 125 to
130); The Board's responsibility for Audit,
risk and internal controls (page 104); Risk
management report (including principal and
emerging risks) (pages 76 to 81)
Remuneration
P
Designing remuneration
policies
The Remuneration Committee comprises
four Independent Non-Executive Directors.
The Chair is not a member. The Committee’s
key responsibilities include oversight of
remuneration policies to support Beazley’s
strategy and promote the long-term success
of the Company for its stakeholders.
Remuneration Committee report
(pages 131 to 132)
Directors' remuneration report and the
Remuneration Committee Chair's letter
(from page 133)
Q
Executive remuneration
Shareholders approved the current Directors’
remuneration policy ("the policy") at the 2024
AGM. The Committee regularly reviews the Policy
and this is put to a shareholders vote every three
years. No Director is involved in any decisions
about their own remuneration.
Directors’ remuneration report (page 135)
R
Remuneration
outcomes and
independent judgement
The Remuneration Committee takes into account
the financial, strategic and individual performance
when setting remuneration outcomes and ensures
that targets are stretching. External remuneration
advisers provide advice to the Committee, and
they adhere to the Remuneration Consultants’
Group Code of Conduct and the Code.
Directors' remuneration report including
the Remuneration Committee Chair's letter
(from page 133)
Application of UK Corporate Governance Code principles
Code principle
Application
Further information
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
93
Corporate governance framework
Shareholders
The Board
Group Chief Executive
The Board's role is to ensure the long-term sustainable success of Beazley plc, for the benefit of its members and with due regard
to the interests of other stakeholders. The Board sets our strategy and maintains focus on the overall strategic direction of the
Group in addition to assessing and monitoring our culture to ensure that it remains aligned to our purpose, values and strategy.
The Board upholds the highest standards of corporate governance and provides rigorous challenge to management. The Board
has reserved certain areas of decision-making, which is set out in the matters reserved for the Board. The Board also delegates
matters to its Committees. All delegations to Committees (including the Executive Committee) are set out in the terms of
reference, which are approved by the Board.
The Board delegates day-to-
day running of the business
and the implementation of
strategy to the Group Chief
Executive, who is supported
by the Executive Committee.
Audit Committee
Risk Committee
Nomination
Committee
Remuneration
Committee
Executive
Committee
Assisting the Board of
Directors in discharging its
responsibilities for the
integrity of the Company’s
financial statements, the
financial reporting process,
the system of internal
financial controls and the
audit process, including
the effectiveness of the
internal Audit and the
external Auditor.
Providing oversight of the
Group's risk management
framework, oversight of risk
appetite, and monitoring
compliance with global laws
and regulations.
Evaluating the Board of
Directors, ensuring an
appropriate balance of skills,
experience, independence,
knowledge and diversity.
Considering and
recommending Board and
Committee candidates
and considering Board
succession and ongoing
Director training needs.
Determining the Company's
policy on the remuneration
of Executive Directors.
Ensuring remuneration
arrangements support the
strategic aims of the business
and enable the recruitment and
retention of senior executives
while complying with the
requirements of regulatory
bodies, taking into
consideration the Code
requirements and satisfying
the expectations of
shareholders and remaining
consistent with the
expectations of the wider
employee population.
Responsible for supporting
the Group Chief Executive
with:
• The management of all
operational activities of
the Group under the
powers delegated
by the Board.
• The development and
implementation of
strategy, including
business planning,
financial controls
and governance.
• Reviewing the risk
management framework
and management of risk.
• Oversight of performance
of the underwriting
divisions, investment
performance and
strategy, as well as
other key functions
and major projects.
• The Board receives
updates from the
Group Chief Executive
at each meeting.
Disclosure Committee
An Executive Director-led Committee, responsible for overseeing the implementation of the governance and procedures associated with the assessment,
control and disclosure of inside information in relation to the Company.
Members: Group Chief Executive Officer, Group Chief Financial Officer, Group Chief Risk Officer, Group Company Secretary.
Executive Committee members
As at 31 December 2024, the members were: Adrian Cox (ED), Barbara Plucnar Jensen (ED), Rob Anarfi, Liz Ashford, Paul Bantick, Troy Dehmann, Beth Diamond,
Bethany Greenwood, Fred Kleiterp, Lou Ann Layton, Alessandro Lezzi, Richard Montminy, Tim Turner.
For further details on the Executive Committee members and their roles, please see the Company's website.
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Board leadership and Company purpose
The Board has implemented a robust corporate governance
framework across the Group to uphold high standards and
facilitate effective decision-making, to support the execution
of our strategy and business plans. The Group’s corporate
governance framework includes Beazley plc, and its
subsidiaries, the Group Executive Committee and other
internal governance committees.
Board independence
The independence of the Board is integral to good
governance, and is important in providing constructive
challenge, strategic guidance, offering specialist advice and
holding management to account against agreed strategic and
operational objectives. The Chair regularly holds meetings with
the Non-Executive Directors without the presence of the
Executive Directors and management.
As at 31 December 2024, the Board consisted of eleven
Directors, including the Chair (who was independent on
appointment) and eight Independent Non-Executive Directors.
None of the Non-Executive Directors have served on the Board
for more than nine years. The Nomination Committee reviews
the independence of the Non-Executive Directors and reports
any concerns regarding independence to the Board. Based on
this assessment, the Board considers all the Non-Executive
Directors to be independent and free of any relationship which
could materially interfere with the exercise of their
independent judgement. In accordance with the Code, the
Board has recommended that all Directors should submit
themselves for election or re-election on an annual basis and
as such all Directors will stand for election or re-election at
the forthcoming AGM. Further information regarding these
activities is provided in the Nomination Committee report
on page 111.
The Board has appointed a Senior Independent Director who
will, if required, deputise for the Chair. It was announced in
April 2024 that at the conclusion of the 2024 Annual General
Meeting Pierre-Olivier Desaulle would succeed Christine
LaSala as Senior Independent Director. Pierre-Olivier’s
role is, in part, to act as a sounding board for the Chair and as
an intermediary for other Directors. He is available to speak
to shareholders particularly where they have concerns
regarding management or the Board as a whole.
The role of the Board and its Committees
In accordance with the Code, the role of the Board is to foster
the long-term sustainable success of the Company, create
value for shareholders, and contribute to broader society.
This is achieved by overseeing the implementation of the
Group's strategy and performance, while ensuring that the
Company's culture remains aligned with its stated purpose
and values. The Board ensures that the necessary resources
are in place to support the business model and for the
organisation to meet its objectives and measures
performance against these.
To help discharge its responsibilities, the Board has
established four key Committees. Those Committees are the
Audit, Risk, Nomination, and Remuneration Committees, and
details of their main responsibilities and activities in 2024
are set out in the Committee reports on pages 109 to 132.
The Committees work closely together where appropriate.
For example, both the Audit and Risk Committees have
responsibilities in regard to the internal controls framework
and the Chairs serve on both Committees to ensure an
aligned approach. In addition, the Nomination and
Remuneration Committees work closely on reviewing executive
performance and compensation. They annually hold a joint
meeting to ensure the appropriate linkage between
performance and remuneration out-turns.
The Board has also established the Disclosure Committee,
with responsibility for matters relating to the control and
disclosure of inside information. This Committee is led by the
Executive Directors and includes the Group Chief Risk Officer
and the Company Secretary. The Board evaluates the
membership of its individual Board Committees on at least an
annual basis, as well as when required during the year. The
Board Committees are governed by terms of reference which
detail the matters delegated to each Committee and their
authority to make decisions. The terms of reference for the
Board Committees can be found at www.beazley.com
The governance framework of the main Board and its
Committees is shown in the diagram on page 94.
Matters reserved for the Board
The Board has a schedule of matters reserved for its decision.
This is monitored by the Group Company Secretary and
reviewed by the Board on an annual basis. The matters
reserved are available on the Company's website:
www.beazley.com
Key matters reserved for the Board include:
• Management: including Board appointments and terms of
reference of the Board Committees, Executive Committee
and principal subsidiaries.
• Stakeholders: including ensuring effective engagement with
stakeholders using appropriate mechanisms.
• Strategy: including setting purpose, values and strategy,
culture, monitoring of strategy and objectives and long-term
commercial success, acquisitions and disposals over a
certain quantum, strategic alliances and joint ventures,
and capital management.
• Risk Management and Internal Controls: including setting
the Group's risk appetite, assessments of principal and
emerging risk (including climate-related risks), ultimate
oversight of risk management and controls, with input
from its Committees.
• Finance: including financial statements and dividends,
review of business plans, tax strategy, investment
strategy, and capital and revenue expenditure over
a certain quantum.
• Corporate Governance: including the overall corporate
governance arrangements, major changes to employee
share schemes, approval of principal policies, and Board
performance evaluation.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
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Corporate Governance Report continued
Board leadership and Company purpose
The Board also delegates significant authority to the Group
Chief Executive, Adrian Cox. The Group Chief Executive has
established the Executive Committee, the role of which is to
support him in executing the strategy and running the Group
under powers delegated by the Board. The Board reviews the
terms of reference of the Executive Committee annually. The
Executive Committee usually meets monthly and is
responsible for managing all operational activities of the
Group. The Executive Committee comprises individuals
representing Beazley’s underwriting divisions and key
functions, supporting the creation of a strong, well-diversified
business. The Executive Committee members and their roles
within Beazley are described on our website: www.beazley.com
The division of roles and responsibilities is set out
on page 105.
Key subsidiary Boards
At Beazley, we have a strong governance framework which
includes governance of the relationships between the Group
Board and the Boards of our key subsidiaries. These principal
subsidiaries align with the three distribution platforms, as
described in our business model and strategy on pages 3 to 5.
Three of the Beazley plc Independent Non-Executive Directors are
also the Chairs of the Group’s principal subsidiary Boards. Pierre-
Olivier Desaulle chairs the Beazley Insurance dac Board, Robert
Stuchbery chairs the Beazley Furlonge Limited Board and Carolyn
Johnson was appointed as Chair of the Board of our US holding
company, Beazley Holdings, Inc, with effect from 1 March 2024.
Carolyn is also the Chair of Beazley Insurance Company, Inc.,
which is an admitted insurance company and subsidiary of the US
holding company. The subsidiary governance framework sets out
the key principles of how each subsidiary is governed, and helps
ensure effective information flows and collaboration across the
Group. Having Beazley plc Directors chair the subsidiary Boards
provides a deeper understanding of the strategic objectives,
operational and legal and regulatory requirements of the
subsidiaries to take into account when developing Group strategy
and business plans.
The Board, together with the Boards of the principal
subsidiaries, keep the framework under review and ensure
it evolves so that it remains fit for purpose, supports
our strategy and meets business and regulatory needs.
Conflicts of interest
The Company’s Articles of Association allow the Board to
authorise potential conflicts of interest that may arise or take
such actions which may be necessary to manage conflicts of
interest. The Board has also approved a Group-wide conflicts
of interest policy which sets out how conflicts of those acting
as Directors of companies within the Beazley Group may be
managed, as well as management of other conflicts of
interest which may arise.
Directors are required to disclose potential conflicts of
interest and the register of Directors' interests and conflicts is
reviewed at every Board meeting.
Timely information for decision-making
To enable the Board to function effectively and support Directors
in discharging their responsibilities, timely access is given to all
relevant information. In the case of Board meetings, this consists
of a comprehensive set of papers, including regular business
progress reports and discussion documents regarding specific
matters. Directors have access to an electronic information
repository to support their activities. The terms and conditions of
appointment for all Non-Executive Directors set out the expected
time commitment and require agreement that they have sufficient
time to fulfil their responsibilities.
There is a continued focus on the quality of Board reporting to
promote better discussions and further assist decision-making
to ensure that high standards are maintained. Training on how
to write effective Board reports has been carried out by the
external provider of the Board portal platform and the
corporate governance team has also provided training to
relevant authors of Board and Committee reports. The Board
and Committees consider the quality of reporting and
feedback is provided to ensure continuous improvement.
Independent advice
There is an agreed principle that Directors may take
independent professional advice, at the Company’s expense.
This is in addition to the access which every Director has to
the Group Company Secretary. The Group Company Secretary
supports the Chair to ensure that the Board has the
necessary policies, processes, information, time and the
resources to function effectively and efficiently.
Board meetings and attendance
The full Board must meet at least five times each year in
accordance with its matters reserved and usually meets more
frequently as business needs require. In 2024, there were six
scheduled Board meetings. This included a scheduled joint
meeting of the Boards and Committees of Beazley plc and the
principal Group subsidiaries to consider updates on strategic
projects of relevance to entities across the Group as well as
various policy updates, risk, compliance and Internal Audit
assurance plans, and sustainability matters. The attendance
at these scheduled meetings is set out in the table below,
along with Committee meeting attendance.
During the year, there were five additional Board meetings not
included in the table on the next page. The meetings were held
to consider and approve topics where the timing fell outside of
the pre-planned schedule. In 2024, this included approval of:
two strategic transactions, the quarterly trading statements,
the Group's Solvency reporting and the Group’s Own Risk and
Solvency Assessment report. Four of these meetings were
attended by the whole Board except for one Director each
occasion. One of the meetings was not attended by three of the
Directors. Any Director who is unable to attend a meeting is
provided with the Board pack and is able to provide their views
or any questions to the Chair to raise at the meeting.
The Board also establishes Sub-Committees to approve or
consider a specific matter, usually where a further meeting is
required following feedback from the Board. All the Beazley plc
Directors also attend an annual strategy session.
The Committees also had additional meetings as required to
discuss specific matters, details of which are included in the
Committee reports.
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Board and Committee meeting attendance table
Board
Audit
Committee
Risk
Committee
Remuneration
Committee
Nomination
Committee
Director
No. of
meetings1
No.
attended2
No. of
meetings
No.
attended
No. of
meetings
No.
attended
No. of
meetings
No.
attended
No. of
meetings
No.
attended
Rajesh Agrawal3
6
6
9
8
—
—
4
4
—
—
Clive Bannister (Chair)
6
6
—
—
—
—
—
—
4
4
Adrian Cox (CEO)
6
6
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
Pierre-Olivier Desaulle
6
6
—
—
5
5
—
—
4
4
Nicola Hodson
6
6
—
—
5
5
4
4
–
–
Carolyn Johnson4
6
6
—
—
3
3
—
—
2
2
Sally Lake (Group Finance
Director) 5
1
1
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
Christine LaSala 6
1
1
—
—
—
—
2
2
1
1
Fiona Muldoon
6
6
9
9
5
5
—
—
—
—
Barbara Plucnar Jensen (CFO)7
5
5
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
A John Reizenstein8
6
6
9
9
5
5
—
—
4
3
Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger
6
6
9
9
5
5
4
4
4
4
Robert Stuchbery9
6
6
9
9
5
5
4
4
2
2
1 Number of meetings: There were five additional Board meetings, three additional Risk Committee meetings, and two additional Nomination Committee
meetings during the year. The purpose of these meetings is explained above for the Board and in the Committee reports. There was near full attendance
at these meetings.
2 Where a Director joined or stood down from the Board or Board Committee during the year, only the number of meetings following appointment or before standing
down are shown.
3 Rajesh Agrawal was unable to attend one Audit Committee meeting due to an unavoidable scheduling conflict.
4 Carolyn Johnson was appointed to the Board on 1 March 2024 and was able to attend all scheduled meetings during the year. She was appointed as a member
of the Risk and Nomination Committees on 6 August 2024.
5 Sally Lake stepped down from the Board on 21 May 2024.
6 Christine LaSala stepped down from the Board at the conclusion of the AGM held on 25 April 2024.
7 Barbara Plucnar Jensen was appointed to the Board on 21 May 2024.
8 John Reizenstein was unable to attend one Nomination Committee meeting due to travel issues.
9 Robert Stuchbery was appointed to the Nomination Committee on 6 August 2024.
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
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Corporate Governance Report continued
Board leadership and Company purpose continued
Key activities of the Board during 2024
Our vision to be the highest performing sustainable specialty
insurer is underpinned by our values and culture of being bold,
striving for better and doing the right thing. These values
enable us the freedom and confidence to question the status
quo, dare to be different and explore bold possibilities to
create innovative outcomes for our stakeholders, consistently
strive for the best and act with integrity in a straightforward
way. Our vision, values and culture generate value for our
shareholders by ensuring we create the right environment
within Beazley to deliver consistent performance underpinned
by strong underwriting discipline, which in turn leads to the
long-term sustainable growth of Beazley for the benefit of our
shareholders and other stakeholders. For more information,
see the business model description on pages 4 to 5.
The Board ensures that there is a robust governance
framework, with two-way communication between the Board
and management. Effective governance, with matters
discussed by relevant committees both at a board and
executive level, aids the decision making of the Board and
ensures that the Board can effectively agree and oversee
the strategy.
The Board maintains a comprehensive agenda plan which is
designed to ensure that the Board uses its time effectively
and focuses on both strategic priorities and monitoring of the
performance of the Group, as well as meeting its legal and
regulatory responsibilities. The agenda plan allows flexibility
for inclusion of matters as they evolve. Each agenda is agreed
by the Chair, in conjunction with the Group Chief Executive and
Group Company Secretary.
Meetings are structured to ensure that there is sufficient time
for consideration and debate on matters.
Each scheduled meeting will typically include the following:
• Written reports from the Group Chief Executive, Group Chief
Financial Officer, Group Chief Underwriting Officer and Group
Chief Risk Officer to cover the activities and performance of
the business against strategy and business plans.
• Updates from the Chairs of the Board’s Committees on
their activities and discussions, and matters for
recommendation to the Board.
• Written reports from the Chairs of the principal subsidiaries
on matters related to the subsidiaries and their respective
platform.
• Regular updates on the Group’s key performance indicator
dashboard, operational projects, culture and people,
sustainability, investor relations and corporate governance,
which are part of the annual agenda cycle.
In addition to standing agenda items, the Board conducts
deep dives on specific areas of the business and on
innovation and growth.
The Board also has an annual strategy session, which in
2024 took place in person at Beazley's New York office over
two days.
During the year, the Board has spent time on the following
key areas.
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Strategy & Purpose
Strategic deep dive schedule
The Board includes a strategic deep dive or invites external experts to discuss topics
regularly throughout the year. In 2024 these included:
• strategic partnerships to help develop new capabilities within underwriting;
• Insurance Linked Securities as a source of alternative risk transfer;
• update on Beazley’s European strategy and roadmap;
• strategic projects and opportunities focus session; and
• ‘Insurtechs’ market (external speaker).
C, S
Mar, May,
Sep, Nov
Investment strategy
Approved a comprehensive review and refresh of the Group’s investment strategy,
ensuring it remained aligned with Group and sustainability strategy.
S, En, Co
Aug
Sustainability strategy
For more information, see the
section 172 statement (principal
decision 2) (page 75)
Approved the refreshed sustainability strategy and roadmap and reviewed its alignment
and integration with overall Group strategy. The refined strategy includes a focus on
sustainability topics where a real difference can be made, including Beazley’s social
impact activities, while aligning the business with net-zero goals. A wide range of
stakeholders, both internal and external, were engaged as part of the work to refine the
sustainability strategy.
C, S, E, R, En
Mar
Board strategy offsite
The Board held its annual strategy session in May 2024 over two days in Beazley’s
New York office. The Board reviewed progress against Beazley’s strategic priorities
and assessed the effectiveness of the strategy to ensure the long-term success of
Beazley for the benefit of its shareholders and wider stakeholders. There was focus
on the North American platform, with presentations from internal experts and external
stakeholders including key broker partners.
Other topics included the following:
• Review of Beazley’s strategy, including thinking about new capabilities that support
Beazley’s strategic direction in 2024 and discussion on growth plans. This included
exploring partnerships and inorganic versus organic growth.
• Emerging risks review, including the definition of emerging risk, the timeframe and process
of managing emerging risks, and a detailed assessment of Beazley’s emerging risks.
• A deep dive on AI
C, S, E, Co, En
May
Purchase of Industry Loss Warranty
(ILW) and cyber catastrophe bond
For more information, see the
section 172 statement (principal
decision 4) (page 75) and the
stakeholder engagement report
(shareholders) (pages 70 to 71)
Considered and approved the purchase of an ILW and a cyber catastrophe bond to
mitigate cyber catastrophe exposure, including consideration of the benefits, risks and
impacts of the proposal on capital and the Internal Model outputs.
Jul
Group strategy
Building on the strategy offsite, the Board reviewed and approved revised strategic
initiatives designed to support Beazley in fulfilling its strategic vision to be "the highest
performing sustainable specialty insurer", including considering both organic and
inorganic strategic growth opportunities.
Aug, Sep, Dec
Changes to the Group’s governance
framework
Considered proposed changes to the governance framework covering the Company and
its subsidiaries, to ensure effective governance of the three platforms and associated
legal entities in a global product focused business model (as explained in our Strategic
report on page 4). The Board also approved a Scheme of Delegation, which defined
decision-making at each key level of the organisation.
C, S, R
Aug, Dec
Financial
2024 share buyback
For more information, see the
section 172 statement (principal
decision 1) (page 74) and the
stakeholder engagement report
(shareholders) (pages 70 to 71)
The Board approved the announcement of a $325m share buyback programme as part
of capital strategy of returning surplus capital to shareholders where it cannot be
profitably deployed. The Board also approved the announcement of a performance
update in February, providing the market with an indication of the amount of the
capital return taking into consideration a risk opinion in relation to the proposed
share buyback programme.
S, R
Feb, Mar
Financial reporting including the 2023
Annual Report, quarterly trading
statements and the 2024 interim results
Reviewed and approved the 2023 Annual Report, the 2024 interim results and quarterly
trading updates, following recommendations from the Audit Committee.
C, S, E
Mar, Apr, Aug,
Nov
Interim dividend
Approved the 2024 interim dividend payment to shareholders, in line with the
dividend strategy.
S
Mar
Approved the 2025 Group business
plan
Considered and approved the 2025 Group business plan, including changes in risk
appetites linked to the business plan and risk management’s view of the plan.
C, S, E, R
Sep, Dec
Activity
Outcomes
Link to
stakeholders
Timeline
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
99
Key to stakeholders
C – Clients and/or brokers
S – Shareholders
E – Employees
R – Regulators
Co – Communities
En – Environment
Corporate Governance Report continued
Board leadership and Company purpose continued
Risk Management
Assessed and reviewed the
effectiveness of financial, risk
management and internal controls
For more information, see the Risk
management report (from page 76),
the Audit Committee report (from
page 116), and the Risk Committee
report (from page 125)
The Board received regular updates from its Audit and Risk Committees regarding
Beazley’s systems of risk management and internal controls, including enhancements
being made to the control environment, and the annual assessment of the effectiveness
of the risk management and internal controls system. The Board received updates from
the Chief Risk Officer throughout the year, on risk matters requiring the Board’s
attention, providing an overall view of the risks facing the Group and steps taken to
mitigate those risks. Risk opinions were also provided on key Board decisions.
C, S, E, R, En
Throughout
the year
Cyber Resilience strategy
Approved the Cyber Resilience strategy for 2024 to 2026 in March. The Board also
received regular updates from the Group Chief Operating Officer and Chief Information
Security Officer on cyber security maturity and operational resilience throughout the year,
including plans to ensure that Beazley is building and maturing appropriate defensive
capability into its cyber security framework.
C, S, E, R
Mar, Aug, Dec
Emerging, strategic and principal
risks
For more information, see the Risk
management report (from page 76)
Analysed the potential impact of emerging, strategic and principal risks. Conducted a
detailed assessment of the emerging risks facing the Group.
C, S, E, R, En
Mar, May
ORSA and ORSA policy
Reviewed the outputs from the 2024 ORSA process, including the material risks and
outcomes from the stress testing scenarios applied, and approved the Beazley plc
ORSA for 2024. The Board also annually reviews and approves any changes to the
ORSA policy.
S, R
Jun, Nov
Risk management framework
including risk appetite, risk
appetite statements and risk
governance framework
For more information, see the Risk
management report (from page 76)
Approved the 2024 risk appetite statements and approved the overall risk appetite.
Reviewed and approved risk governance framework.
C, S, E, R
Aug, Nov, Dec
CrowdStrike announcement
Received an update on and discussed the impact of the global CrowdStrike IT event,
which represented the first highly publicised global Cyber catastrophe. Given the
unprecedented nature of this event, the Board approved the release of an
announcement to the market confirming that the event was not expected to change
Beazley’s undiscounted combined ratio guidance of low 80s for the full year. While the
impact was not expected to be material, and an announcement would not normally be
made, the Board believed it was appropriate to update the market given Beazley's
position as a leading global Cyber insurer.
C, S
Jul
Culture & People
Appointment of a new Non-Executive
Director and the Group Chief
Financial Officer
For more information, see the
Nomination Committee report (pages
110 to 111)
Approved the appointment of Carolyn Johnson as a Non-Executive Director and Barbara
Plucnar Jensen as Group Chief Financial Officer and an Executive Director.
C, S, E, R, Co,
En
Feb, Mar, May
Employee engagement
For more information, see the
Stakeholder engagement report
(people) (pages 67 to 68)
In addition to updates from the Chief People & Sustainability Officer regarding people
and culture topics, the Board discussed key themes arising from the employee
engagement survey undertaken in 2023 and assessed the outcomes from the work
undertaken to address the feedback. The Board also discussed bi-annual updates from
Fiona Muldoon on the views and feedback from employees, which she had gathered
through attending various events that were arranged for this purpose.
E
Mar, May, Dec
Board and Executive
succession planning
For more information, see the
Nomination Committee report
(from page 109)
Reviewed and discussed Board succession plans, including the renewal of appointments
of Non-Executive Directors coming to the end of their terms.
C, S, E, Co, En
Dec
Board and Committee evaluations
For more information, see the Board
evaluation report (pages 106 to 108)
Reviewed and discussed the suggested priorities and actions, based on the results of
the Board and Committee evaluation undertaken in 2024.
C, S, E, Co, En
Dec
Activity
Outcomes
Link to
stakeholders
Timeline
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Sustainability
Sustainability reporting and activities
For more information, see the
Sustainability report (pages 26 to
31) and TCFD statement (from page
32)
The Board approved sustainability reporting and received regular updates on
sustainability activities, including progress against the agreed strategy. Matters
considered included:
• approval of the sustainability reporting and TCFD disclosures contained within the
Annual Report and Accounts 2023;
• approval of the Responsible Business Report 2023, which was published on the
Company’s website;
• approval of the Modern Slavery Act statement;
• updates on the development of the net-zero transition plan; and
• updates on progress in respect to climate-related risks and opportunities and
progress in relation to the disclosures required by the TCFD, and reducing the
number of areas against which Beazley is required to explain rather than comply
with the disclosures.
Updates on the progress towards meeting the objectives set out in the sustainability
strategy approved in March, and development of further sustainability key performance
indicators to track progress.
C, S, E, R, Co,
En
Mar, May, Aug
Responsible investment policy
Approved the revised responsible investment policy, which had been updated to enhance
transparency in support our UN Principles for Responsible Investment submission and to
provide greater clarity on the integration of Beazley's sustainability strategy into
investment practices and decision-making processes.
C, S, E, Co, En
Aug
Charitable foundation
For more information, see the
Sustainability report (from page 26)
and section 172 statement
(principal decision 3) (page 75) and
the stakeholder engagement report
(communities) (page 72)
The Board approved the formation of a charitable foundation to enhance the long-term
impact and governance of the Company’s charitable and social impact activities.
C, E, Co, En
Dec
Activity
Outcomes
Link to
stakeholders
Timeline
Purpose, values and culture
Our purpose sets out why we exist and how we support our
stakeholders. Our culture is founded upon our values – being
bold, striving for better and doing the right thing. They guide
how our people work together, treat our clients and
stakeholders, and act together as a responsible business,
creating a positive and friendly culture, which our people are
proud of. These three values are the articulation of how
our culture is experienced and lived on a day-to-day basis.
The Board and Executive Committee regularly focus on culture
and view it as a critical component of maintaining an inclusive
environment that attracts, engages and retains talented
people with diverse backgrounds and experiences at all levels.
Our culture is very important to us and we believe that it sets
us apart from our competitors.
More information on our purpose, values and culture and
how they help us deliver our strategy is set out in the
Strategic report.
Monitoring and assessing our culture
The Board and senior leadership understand the importance
of setting the tone from the top and ensuring our culture
aligns with the Group’s purpose, values and strategy,
and is embedded throughout the organisation.
The Board regularly reviews and assesses our culture through
various mechanisms, including:
• regular reports from the Culture & People team on our
annual engagement surveys (which include cultural metrics
and industry benchmarks), inclusion and diversity, and
employee engagement activities;
• attendance at employee events and meeting with groups of
employees – for example, during 2024 the Board met with
the chairs of our employee networks and regularly met with
groups of employees following their Board meetings;
• regular meetings with senior leadership;
• a Non-Executive Director with responsibility for Employee
Voice (appointed in line with the Code requirements) –
who meets with groups of employees throughout the year
to capture feedback and any concerns;
• Internal Audit reports, which periodically review aspects
of our culture; and
• whistleblowing reports.
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Corporate Governance Report continued
Board leadership and Company purpose continued
Nurturing our culture
The Board recognises the importance of assessing our culture
and ensuring it remains aligned with Beazley’s purpose,
values and strategy as the business evolves. In 2023, the
Board engaged an independent third party to conduct an
assessment of our culture to provide us with more formal,
detailed and independent insight. The survey found a strong
sense of shared culture at Beazley, which the Board and
leadership are committed to maintaining as Beazley grows
and evolves. The Board has ensured that the focus areas
highlighted by the independent review have been embedded
within business as usual activities to help maintain
Beazley’s culture.
In early 2024, the Board reviewed the results of the 2023
employee engagement survey, noting the improvements
compared with the 2022 survey. The Board pays close
attention to participation rates, which show our people are
confident to share their thoughts with leadership; overall
favourability scores, which assess how satisfied employees
are with their holistic experience at Beazley; and the
engagement score, which is a measure of whether employees
are willing to "go above and beyond" for the business. The
Board examines themes arising from narrative questions and
challenges management’s proposed actions to enhance the
employee experience and ensure that feedback is addressed.
Their monitoring helps ensure that Beazley’s culture remains
valued by our people and other stakeholders and continues to
be a key differentiator. The Board keeps the mechanisms for
monitoring culture, including the reporting it receives from
various sources across the business, under review. The key
results of the 2023 engagement survey are included in the
Key Performance Indicators section as prior year comparatives
on page 2.
During 2024, the Board has been exploring ways to enhance
the cultural data and metrics it receives, allowing for a more
holistic view of organisational culture. This will allow the Board
to monitor and assess culture more effectively and ensure its
embedding across the organisation.
Shareholder and stakeholder engagement
The Board is committed to understanding the views of the
Company’s key stakeholders and has continued to ensure
effective engagement with its stakeholders to ensure that
their interests are taken into account in its decision-making.
Further information on how the Board has discharged its
duties under section 172 of the Companies Act 2006, and
how it has engaged with stakeholders and the outcomes
of these activities, is included in the Strategic report from
page 1.
Shareholder engagement
Communication with shareholders remains important and the
Board spends a significant amount of time during the year
considering shareholder perspectives and considering how the
business can continue to create long-term sustainable growth.
The Senior Independent Director has specific responsibility to
be available to investors who have any issues or concerns,
and in cases where contact with the Chair, Group Chief
Executive and Group Chief Financial Officer has either failed to
resolve their concerns, or where such contact is inappropriate.
No such concerns were raised in 2024.
The Executive Directors, supported by the Head of Investor
Relations, have regular dialogue with our existing and
potential institutional investors, fund managers and analysts.
The views shared are communicated to the Board at its
meetings through the Group Chief Executive’s report and
regular updates from the Head of Investor Relations.
All shareholders are invited to attend the Company’s Annual
General Meeting in person, where the Chair, Group Chief
Executive, Group Chief Financial Officer and other Non-
Executive Directors are available to answer shareholders’
questions. Shareholders also have an opportunity to meet
with Directors after the formal business of the meeting has
been concluded. Details of proxy voting by shareholders,
including votes withheld, are made available on request and
are placed on the Company’s website following the meeting.
The Board engaged with a number of shareholders who voted
against resolutions in relation to the disapplication of pre-
emption rights over shares at the 2023 Annual General
Meeting. The resolutions proposed at the meeting had
followed the provisions of the Pre-Emption Group’s 2022
Statement of Principles for the disapplication of pre-emption
rights. The feedback was taken into account and, at the 2024
Annual General Meeting, the Board reverted to seeking the
previous levels of authority for the general disapplication of
pre-emption rights and sought no authority to disapply pre-
emption rights in connection with an acquisition or specified
capital investment. The authorities were subsequently passed
at the 2024 Annual General Meeting.
Further information on our approach to shareholder
engagement and the outcomes of that engagement during
2024 is provided in the Stakeholder engagement report on
pages 70 to 71.
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Workforce engagement
The Board exercises a combination of formal and informal
workforce engagement methods, which include the
appointment of a dedicated Non-Executive Director, Fiona
Muldoon, who is responsible for gathering the views of the
workforce (the Employee Voice) and reporting this information
to the Board, in accordance with the Code. Details of
employee engagement mechanisms and the activities
undertaken by Fiona Muldoon are included in the Stakeholder
engagement report on page 67.
Investing in and rewarding the workforce
In addition to salary and discretionary bonus, we offer a
generous global package of benefits that provide choice and
flexibility as well as stability and security to help our people no
matter what stage of their life journey they are at. These
include flexible religious holidays, six full months of parental
leave no matter how an individual comes to parenthood,
sabbatical leave, a £100 (or equivalent) monthly lifestyle
allowance, paid for commuter benefits, free lunch, plus the
standard offerings such as medical insurance and retirement/
pension contributions. We know that the small things also
matter to our people. For example, we have healthy snacks
available in every office for everyone to enjoy and match
funding/volunteer leave (within specified limits) for those
who want to make a difference.
Each year, there is an all employee session where the Group
Chief Executive and the Chief People & Sustainability Officer
explain how both executive and employee remuneration is
determined and the policy and process relating to
remuneration, including setting bonuses of employees.
Bonuses are based on performance of the Company and
individual performance.
From a career development and learning perspective, we offer
a variety of tools and programmes that enable people to reach
their full potential and build their careers. We offer core global
programmes to support our employees wherever they are
on their career journey, from early careers to leadership
development. This is underpinned by our policies
and processes.
In 2024, we launched an early careers programme in the
UK, with our early careers academy providing entry level
development opportunities for university graduates and school
leavers in the UK. This follows the success of our US
underwriting graduate programme, which has been running
for eight years.
In 2024, we also launched our new leadership success profile
and a people management toolkit, which offers a flexible
learning curriculum managers can tailor to their own
development needs. We also bring a focus on feedback,
whether that is via our annual engagement survey or during
the appraisal process, to ensure we continue to invest in our
people in the right way.
Our employees have access to a wide range of tools, including
online self-learning courses, access to coaching and
mentoring opportunities both internally and externally, and
professional qualifications. We focus on feedback, whether
that is via our annual engagement survey or during the
appraisal process, to ensure we continue to invest in our
people in the right way. In 2025, we will be launching a
"future skills academy", which aims to enhance the digital and
business capabilities of our people, ensuring they are
equipped with the necessary skills to thrive in a rapidly
evolving business environment.
Workforce policies and practices
The Board and the Executive Committee have ultimate
responsibility for overseeing the Company’s compliance with
the Beazley code of conduct and upkeep of whistleblowing
procedures and other employee policies and ensuring they are
in line with strategy and culture. The workforce is able to raise
concerns through the whistleblowing procedures, set out in
the whistleblowing policy. The whistleblowing policy is
approved annually by the Audit Committee, and both the Audit
Committee and the Board receive whistleblowing updates, in
the form of reports on an annual basis. More information on
this policy and our policies in relation to our workforce is
included in the non-financial and sustainability information
statement from page 62.
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Corporate Governance Report continued
The Board's responsibility for Audit, Risk and Internal Control
EY were first appointed as the External Auditor for the 2019
accounting year. The respective responsibilities of the
Directors and the External Auditor in connection with the
accounts are explained in the Statement of Directors’
responsibilities on page 158 and the Independent auditor’s
report on page 165.
The Board is responsible for the Group’s system of risk
management and internal control and for reviewing its
effectiveness. However, such a system can only provide
reasonable, not absolute, assurance against material
misstatement or loss. The system is designed to manage,
rather than eliminate, the risk of failure to achieve business
objectives within the risk appetite set by the Board. The Board
confirms that it has ensured that a review of the effectiveness
of the Group's system of risk management and internal
controls has been carried out, in accordance with the
provisions of the Code. This included all material control
systems, including its financial, operational and compliance
controls. The Board delegates oversight of these controls and
their effectiveness to the Audit Committee and Risk
Committee, as set out in their terms of reference. The Audit
Committee has overseen work to enhance internal controls
in relation to financial and non-financial information and
reporting during the year, in preparedness for the enhanced
provisions around oversight of risk management and internal
controls systems within the 2024 Code. More information on
work undertaken as well as the process to review internal
financial controls is included in the Audit Committee report on
page 116. The Audit Committee also receives regular reports
from Internal Audit which help inform its view of the control
environment, and whether controls are operating effectively,
details of which are also included in the Audit Committee
report. The Risk Committee is responsible for oversight of
the overall risk management system and of compliance and
operational controls, and more information is included
in the Risk Committee report from page 125.
The Risk Committee receives regular reports from the
Risk Management and Second Line Assurance teams,
which includes control validation activity carried out, and
provides a review of the robustness of control systems.
Reports throughout the year from both of these Committees
to the Board help inform the view over the effectiveness of
these systems and any enhancements or actions required.
The Board, with the support of its Risk Committee, has also
performed an assessment of the principal and emerging risks
facing the Group, in line with the risk management framework.
Further detail is included in the risk management report on
page 76.
The Board agrees the overall risk appetite for the Group.
Throughout the year, the Board has monitored performance
against risk appetite in accordance with the risk management
framework, which is itself reviewed and approved by the Board
annually. Key components of the risk management framework
include ongoing assessment and validation of controls,
and taking steps to ensure that controls remain effective.
Ongoing oversight of risk is undertaken via the Executive Risk
and Regulatory Committee, which meets each month and
considers Key Risk Indicators (KRIs) and reviews of specific
risk areas. The Board delegates oversight of risk management
and compliance matters to the Risk Committee. There is
ongoing reporting of risk matters to the Risk Committee and
Board, as appropriate, from the Group Chief Risk Officer and
members of the Risk function. The Board also receives
specific assessments of risk in the form of risk opinions
to support key decision-making. During the year, the Board
received risk opinions to support several important decisions.
This included risk opinions in relation to enhancements to the
Group governance framework to ensure effective division of
responsibilities between Beazley plc and the Group Executive
Committee and the regulated subsidiary Boards within the
three platforms; execution of strategic projects and
transactions such as the Cyber Industry Loss Warranty and
the cyber catastrophe bond sponsorship, and key capital
decisions such as the 2024 buyback programme. Risk
opinions include a review of all key risks, including strategic,
operational, credit, capital, insurance, liquidity, reputation,
legal and regulatory risks associated with the project or
decision to be taken. Annually, the Board receives a risk
opinion on the business plan for the forthcoming year.
This year's risk assessment focused on whether the plan
was logical, realistic and achievable, as well as any risks
to the plan and how they would be mitigated, which helped
inform the Board's assessment and approval of the 2025
business plan.
Further information is provided in the Risk management and
compliance report from page 76 and the Risk Committee
report from page 125.
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Division of responsibilities
Roles and responsibilities
The roles and responsibilities of the Chair and Group Chief Executive are separate, with each having clearly defined
responsibilities. They maintain a close working relationship to ensure the integrity of the Board’s decision-making process and
the successful delivery of the Group’s strategy. The Chair and Non-Executive Directors regularly meet without the presence of
the Executive Directors and other senior leadership. The Executive Committee meet informally weekly and meet formally monthly
to oversee the management of the Group and implementation of strategy. Any significant issues or updates are communicated
to the Board in a timely manner outside of Board meetings either via electronic communications or the Board portal. The Board
have access to the Group Company Secretary for advice in relation to Board and corporate governance matters.
Non-Executive Directors
Chair
Senior Independent Director
Non-Executive Directors
The Chair is responsible for:
• Effective and objective leadership and
governance of the Board, ensuring that the
Board discharges its duties effectively and the
Board remains effective with the right
composition and mix of skills.
• Overseeing the Group’s overall strategy,
as approved by the Board, in alignment with
purpose, values and culture and ensuring
an inclusive culture by establishing the right
"tone from the top".
• Works effectively with the Group Chief Executive
and Group Company Secretary to ensure the
right topics are on the Board agenda, that
information is disseminated in a timely manner
and supports effective and constructive
challenge and debate during discussions
and decision-making.
• Managing constructive dialogue between Non-
Executive Directors and the Executive Directors
and senior leadership and ensuring effective
relationships between them.
• Ensuring effective communication between
shareholders, executive management, the Board
and other stakeholder groups and that
stakeholder views are considered appropriately
in Board discussions and decision-making.
In addition to the responsibilities of the
Non-Executive Directors, the Senior
Independent Director:
• Supports the Chair and is ready to deputise
for the Chair.
• Acts as an alternative contact for shareholders
and other stakeholder groups.
• Leads the evaluation of the Chair’s performance
including seeking feedback from Executive and
Non-Executive Directors.
• Acts as a sounding board for the Non-Executive
Directors.
Non-Executive Directors must:
• Uphold high standards of integrity and corporate
governance and support an inclusive culture by
setting the right "tone from the top".
• Allow sufficient time to meet their Board
responsibilities and provide constructive
challenge, strategic guidance, offer specialist
advice and hold management to account.
• Attest on appointment that they are able to
allocate sufficient time to discharge their duties
effectively and continue to keep this under
review if their responsibilities with Beazley or
externally change. The Nomination Committee is
also responsible for monitoring the commitments
of the Non-Executive Directors.
• Engage with internal and external stakeholders
as appropriate.
• Serve on Committees of the Board.
Group Chief Executive
The Group Chief Executive is responsible for:
• Proposing and delivering the strategy agreed by the Board.
• Running the Company's business on a day-to-day basis, making and implementing operational decisions.
• Maintaining a strong direct link between the business and the Non-Executive Directors.
• Building an effective relationship with the Chair and maintaining an ongoing dialogue on key strategic issues.
• Together with the Chief Financial Officer, leading shareholder engagement activities, responding to feedback from investors, and reporting to the Board on
outcomes from this engagement.
• Representing Beazley externally to all external stakeholder groups.
• Setting the tone from the top to maintain an inclusive culture and ensuring the Group operates in line with its values.
Group Company Secretary
The Group Company Secretary is responsible for:
• Supporting the Chair, the Board and its Committees and advises them on all corporate governance matters.
• Ensuring accurate, timely, and clear information flows to the Boards and its Committees and between senior management and Non-Executive Directors
in support of effective decision-making.
• Ensuring that the Board has the policies, processes, information, time and resources to function effectively and efficiently and support the Chair in
undertaking Board performance evaluations.
• Beazley's compliance with the UK Listing Rules, Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules, statutory compliance and the reporting under the UK
Corporate Governance Code.
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Board evaluation
Board and Committee performance evaluation
The Board monitors and continually improves its effectiveness
through its annual evaluation of the performance of the Board
and its Committees. The evaluation is designed to assess
how the Board and its Committees are operating and whether
the Chair and Directors are making effective contributions
individually and collectively. Feedback from the evaluation is
used to formulate action plans for improvement and identify
where the composition of the Board and Committees could
be enhanced.
In accordance with the Code, Board evaluations are carried
out on a three-year cycle, with an externally facilitated
independent performance evaluation carried out every three
years, and internally led evaluations taking place in other
years. The Nomination Committee is responsible for ensuring
that a rigorous evaluation is carried out. The external and
internal evaluation processes are undertaken for Beazley plc
and other principal Group subsidiaries.
Beazley’s overall approach to Board evaluation
External reviews (every three years)
Internal reviews (other years)
An independent external evaluation firm is
appointed who works with the Chair, Senior
Independent Director and Company Secretary to
define the objectives and scope of the evaluation.
The external evaluation is the beginning of the
three-year cycle and ensures a rigorous approach.
The scope may build on Beazley’s experience
from previous evaluations, whilst also enabling
the evaluator to use their own experience and
independence to provide insight. The findings and
agreed actions from the evaluation are reviewed
and monitored by the Board and, as part of the
ongoing cycle, the themes and recommendations
may be built upon in the subsequent internally
led Board performance evaluations.
The Company follows the Corporate Governance
Institute’s (CGI) Principles of Good Practice for
listed companies using external board reviewers
and selects reviewers who comply with the CGI’s
Code of Practice for reviewers.
The internal reviews are facilitated internally by the Group Company
Secretary, with support from the Chair and Nomination Committee.
The process is reviewed and considered each year in which an internal
review is undertaken. However, in the prior two years, it involved interviews
with Directors individually to obtain their views on the effectiveness of the
Board and each Committee.
Directors are encouraged to share their views openly, and questions
are asked of each Director to determine overall Board and Committee
effectiveness and obtain feedback on opportunities for
continued improvement.
The Chair also conducts separate meetings with each Director to solicit
their feedback on Board dynamics, review their individual performance
and determine any steps to be taken. The Senior Independent Director
conducts a review of the Chair. A Directors’ knowledge and skills self-
assessment exercise complements the evaluation process to identify any
areas for individual or collective Board training for the following year.
The findings from this work are presented to the Nomination Committee
and the Board, and an action plan is created to address specific findings.
Progress against these actions is monitored by the Board throughout
the year.
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2024 Board evaluation
In accordance with the three-year cycle and the Code, the
Nomination Committee initiated a search for an external
and independent Board evaluator in 2024.
Selection of Board evaluator
To carry out an independent evaluation, the Nomination
Committee appointed Independent Audit Limited (‘IAL’)
following a Request for Proposal (RFP) process, which is
described in the Nomination Committee report on page 112.
IAL has no connection with the Beazley Group or individual
Directors. IAL is a specialist board review consultancy,
which has independent accreditation and complies with the
Corporate Governance Institute’s ("CGI") Code of Practice for
reviewers. IAL has not previously carried out Board evaluations
for the Company and has no other connection with the
Company or any of its Directors.
Scope of the evaluation
The scope of the 2024 Board evaluation included Beazley plc
and two of its principal subsidiaries: Beazley Furlonge Limited
and Beazley Insurance dac. The evaluation included
consideration of engagement, information flows and decision-
making between the entities and the Directors on those
Boards. This report focuses on the scope, process, and
outcomes of the Beazley plc evaluation.
The evaluation included the Board and its Committees and
covered topics such as: effective oversight of strategy and
strategic focus, relationships, culture, people, inclusion and
diversity, skills and knowledge, impact, risk management, and
overall governance effectiveness. The detailed scope was
discussed via meetings with the Chair, Senior Independent
Director and Group Company Secretary.
Process
The evaluation took place through September to November
2024. The Group Company Secretary provided IAL with the
necessary support and access to information, Directors
and other Board stakeholders. The Senior Independent
Director acted as the Board member to whom IAL could
escalate any issues.
The process undertaken by IAL for Beazley plc included
individual interviews with each Director and with other key
internal Board stakeholders such as the Group Chief Risk
Officer, other Executive Committee members and the Group
Company Secretary. IAL observed one full meeting of the
Board and each its Committees (with the exception of the
Remuneration Committee), and also reviewed Board papers
and other governance materials as part of the evaluation.
Outcomes
A comprehensive report on the Board evaluation was prepared
by IAL. The report included a detailed analysis of its
observations. The review highlighted that overall the Board
continues to operate in an effective way and has a good
number of core strengths. The areas for improvement
identified were concentrated on two key areas, based on
which an action plan with three key priorities has been
developed. The report noted that the Board consisted of a
diverse group of individuals who were diligent and engaged,
bringing different perspectives and experiences, able to
challenge management's thinking. There were no findings
which would necessitate a change to the Board's composition.
The Board remains satisfied that it has the necessary mix of
skills, knowledge, expertise and diversity (as explained further
in the Nomination Committee report). IAL also provided some
qualitative benchmarking compared with other organisations.
IAL attended the Board meeting in December 2024 to present
the results of the evaluation, and there was an opportunity for
the Board to discuss these directly with IAL. An action plan
has been developed based on the key recommendations. The
table below provides a summary of the actions, which were
agreed by the Nomination Committee on behalf of the Board in
February 2025. The evaluation of the Board Committees was
included within the external Board evaluation. The Committees
will be included in the actions below, as appropriate.
The Company has followed the CGI’s Principles of Good
Practice for listed companies using external board reviewers,
and in line with the guidance on the disclosure of the
evaluation process in the Annual Report, IAL has reviewed
these disclosures.
Individual Director performance
Individual Director performance and contribution is assessed
annually through one-to-one discussions between the Chair
and each Director. The sessions include reflection on
contributions during the year, strengths, and personal
development areas. This is supported by the self-evaluation of
knowledge and skills completed by the Directors each year.
The 2024 evaluation concluded that each Director is operating
effectively and contributing positively to the effective operation
of the Board and its Committees. Several areas to support the
Directors’ individual or collective performance were identified
and training plans have been developed. More information is
included in the Nomination Committee report on Board
knowledge and training plans on page 112.
Chair performance
The IAL review sought feedback from all Directors on the
Chair. The review concluded that the Chair has an
approachable style, while bringing challenge and rigour, has
developed strong relationships based on trust and openness,
and that the Chair is contributing strongly to Board governance
and the effective operation of the Board. The Senior
Independent Director has ongoing dialogue with the Chair on
his performance with respect to the Board’s effectiveness.
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Corporate Governance Report continued
Board evaluation continued
Actions from the 2024 external Board performance evaluation (to be addressed during 2025)
Priorities
Actions agreed
Enhance positioning of strategic oversight and debate
• Undertaking a review, including seeking input from the Board members, on
reporting, agendas and the level of information received by the Board from
functional areas across the organisation, with the aim of reducing the level of
focus on operational detail.
• Development of a formal Board charter.
More time together
• Development of a schedule of additional Non-Executive Director only meetings.
Improvements to Board papers
• Development of a programme of workshops with report authors to share specific
feedback from the Board evaluation to ensure continued enhancement of Board
reporting to meet the needs of the Board and the organisation.
• Conducting a review of reporting templates for potential enhancements to aid
effective reporting by authors.
Progress made on actions from the 2023 internal Board performance evaluation
The following table sets out the progress made on the recommendations from the internally facilitated Board evaluation
conducted in 2023.
Recommendations and priorities
Actions agreed
Progress and outcomes during 2024
Building and enhancing relationships
Due to expected changes to the Board
and Executive leadership during 2024, a
priority was to ensure that relationships
were built and enhanced to ensure
ongoing effectiveness.
In addition, the Board highlighted a need
to enhance engagement with other
senior leaders and with those in all
regions in which Beazley operates.
Actions considered by the Board for
2024 included the following:
• Ensuring effective induction
processes for the new Board and
Executive Committee members.
• Increased opportunities for
Executive exposure to the Board
on relevant topics.
• Increased social activities
between the Board
and Executives.
• Board meetings to be held
at locations where Beazley
operates outside of London
at least annually.
• Deep dives on regions in which
Beazley operates to be facilitated.
Outcomes included the following:
• Induction processes were reviewed and
feedback from the new Directors sought.
• The Board has held regular informal
sessions with the executives and other
members of the workforce after its
meetings in London.
• The Board held its strategy session and
May Board meeting from the Beazley New
York office, which included engagement
with executives and the wider workforce in
the US and New York. The Board strategy
session is scheduled to take place in
Europe in 2025.
• Deep dives on specific jurisdictions were
carried out with both the US and Europe
covered in 2024.
Long-term planning and strategy
Notwithstanding enhancements made
around business planning during 2023,
this remained a priority for 2024.
A further priority was to gain more
insight into the competitive landscape.
The Board agreed to set specific
objectives and to use strategy
sessions and deep dives to ensure
understanding and oversight of the
long-term plans and of the
competitive landscape.
Outcomes included:
• Deep dive sessions and external and
internal speakers have been facilitated
throughout the year to provide the
Board members with a deeper
understanding of the long-term
plans and competitive landscape.
Supporting business change
There was a substantial amount of
change both in terms of critical
milestones in Beazley’s three-platform
strategy and with changes to leadership
for the Board to support during 2024.
Actions considered by the Board for
2024 included the following:
• Ensuring the right topics are on
the Board agenda and that deep
dive and training plans reflect the
changing environment.
• Ensuring that the Board
composition remains appropriate
to support the changing business.
Progress and outcomes included
the following:
• Agendas have been refreshed, although
noting that further work is required based
on the outcomes of the 2024 evaluation.
• Board composition following the
appointment of Carolyn Johnson and
Barbara Plucnar Jensen has been reviewed
and remains appropriate.
Board reporting
Notwithstanding the high quality of
reporting and enhancements made in
this area over the past two years, there
was an opportunity for further
enhancement of specific reports.
Specific feedback and knowledge
will be shared by the Board on
suggested enhancements. Regular
training on Board report writing to
continue to be provided in 2024.
Progress made:
• Reporting templates were enhanced during
2024 and a training session was held for
report authors, which included
presentations from the Group Chief
Financial Officer and Group Company
Secretary on the importance of effective
reporting for the Board.
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Nomination Committee
Composition, succession and evaluation
“2024 saw changes at both the Board and
Executive level; specifically welcoming
Carolyn Johnson and Barbara Plucnar
Jensen respectively. We are committed to
ensuring that the Board has the right skills,
knowledge and experience to operate
effectively and promote the long-term
success of Beazley.”
Role of the Committee
The Nomination Committee provides dedicated focus on the
leadership needs of Beazley. This includes reviewing and
monitoring Board and Committee composition and their
effectiveness and succession planning for: the Board, senior
executives and the senior management pipeline; and
delivering effective inclusion and diversity initiatives.
The Committee's role is to ensure the Board, its Committees
and the Executive leadership team, as well as those in the
talent pipeline, have the right skills, capabilities and
diversity of thought to effectively oversee and implement the
Company's strategy and ensure Beazley's long-term success.
This report sets out the responsibilities of the Committee and
the vital work it has undertaken during the year in relation to
those responsibilities. It explains how Beazley has applied
the principles and complied with the provisions within
Section 3 of the Code in relation to composition,
succession and evaluation.
During 2024, the Committee oversaw the appointment and
induction of a new Independent Non-Executive Director and
Chair of our US holding company, Carolyn Johnson, who joined
the Board on 1 March 2024. In addition, the Committee
oversaw the appointment and induction of our new Group
Chief Financial Officer, Barbara Plucnar Jensen, who joined
Beazley on 1 May and was appointed to the Board on 21 May
2024. The Committee also oversaw the appointment of Pierre-
Olivier Desaulle as Senior Independent Director with effect
from 25 April 2024. On 1 October 2024, Beazley announced
the appointment of Paul Bantick (Beazley's prior Group Head
of Cyber) as our new Group Chief Underwriting Officer,
highlighting the importance of having credible executive
leadership succession plans in place.
Responsibilities of the Committee
The full responsibilities of the Nomination Committee are set
out in its terms of reference. These are reviewed by the
Committee and submitted to the Board for approval on an
annual basis. The terms of reference are available on the
Company’s website. The Committee’s main responsibilities
are as follows:
Board composition, succession, and evaluation
• Regularly review the structure, size and composition of the
Board and its Committees in response to changing
business needs and the external environment.
• Consider succession planning for Executive and Non-
Executive Directors and ensure the Board will continue
to have the right balance of competencies, skills,
knowledge and diversity, considering the risks and
opportunities facing Beazley.
• Ensure Non-Executive Directors possess the skills and
knowledge required through training and development
to ensure effective Board performance; and to ensure
that the Board’s performance is reviewed annually.
• Conduct search and selection processes for Board and
Executive Director roles, and review any other key
leadership roles.
• Recommend, if appropriate, all Directors for election
or re-election by shareholders under the annual re-election
provisions of the Code, having due regard to their
performance and their ability to continue to contribute
to the overall long-term success of the Board.
Leadership succession and talent pipeline
• Review succession planning for senior leadership, including
development plans for internal talent, to ensure Beazley’s
long-term success.
Inclusion and diversity
• Review the Group’s and the Board’s diversity policy and link
to company strategy and ensure inclusion and diversity
perspectives are considered across all areas of Board and
Committee composition, succession planning and
development of the talent pipeline. Monitor progress
against Beazley’s inclusion and diversity ambitions to drive
progress and meet ambitions to be an inclusive
organisation, where all of our people can thrive.
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Nomination Committee continued
Committee membership and meetings
Composition of and attendance at Nomination Committee
meetings by Committee members is shown in the table on
page 97. In 2024, there were four scheduled meetings and
two additional meetings. The additional meetings related to
the appointment of Barbara Plucnar Jensen. The Nomination
Committee is chaired by Clive Bannister. The biographical
details of the Committee members can be found on pages 87
to 89. The gender and ethnic diversity of the Committee is
shown on page 83. The key activities of the Committee during
2024 are set out below. Only members of the Committee have
the right to attend meetings; however, other individuals, such
as the Group Chief Executive, Chief People and Sustainability
officer, representatives from other Boards or Committees, and
external advisers, may be invited to attend for all or part of
any meeting where this is beneficial to assist the Committee
with fulfilling its responsibilities. The Group Company
Secretary is secretary to the Committee.
Key Committee activities
Activities
More information
Board composition,
succession and evaluation
• Finalised the search for a new Chief Financial Officer to succeed the previous Group
Finance Director, Sally Lake, and recommended the appointment of Barbara Plucnar
Jensen to the Board.
• Recommended the appointment of Carolyn Johnson as an independent Director of
Beazley plc, who would also chair Beazley’s US holding company, Beazley Holdings
Inc. Carolyn was also appointed as Chair of the Beazley Insurance Company, Inc.,
the Group’s primary US admitted insurance company.
• Concluded the search for the appointment of a new Senior Independent
Director to succeed Christine LaSala and recommended the appointment of Pierre-
Olivier Desaulle.
• Recommended the renewal of appointments of Non-Executive Directors, including
considering the extension of Robert Stuchbery’s appointment as a Director of
Beazley plc and as the Chair of Beazley Furlonge Limited, one of Beazley's key
operating subsidiaries. Considered why this was appropriate, including
consideration of whether Robert Stuchbery remained independent in approach, given
this would result in Robert’s appointment to the Beazley plc Board extending beyond
nine years.
• Recommended changes to the composition of Board Committees, including the
appointment of Carolyn Johnson to the Nomination and Risk Committees and Robert
Stuchbery to the Risk Committee.
• Reviewed Beazley plc and subsidiary Board renewals and appointments, including
succession plans, and reflected on effectiveness of succession planning activities.
• Reviewed the knowledge, skills and training assessment for the Beazley plc and
principal subsidiary Boards and confirmed that the Boards continued to have the
right mix of skills and experience.
• Reviewed the plans for and outcomes of the 2024 performance evaluation for the
Beazley plc Board, Committees, and key regulated subsidiary Boards and Committees.
Determined that the 2024 evaluation should be externally led, in accordance with the
Code requirement to conduct an external evaluation every three years.
• Recommended the establishment of Nomination and Remuneration Committees
for two principal regulated subsidiaries to enable them to better oversee the local
regulatory and business requirements.
Board evaluation (pages 106 to 108).
More information on Board and
Committee changes is included
in this report.
Leadership succession
and talent pipeline
• Reviewed Executive performance and succession planning, including a review of the
diversity of the senior leadership talent pipeline.
• Received updates and approved key senior internal appointments, including the
appointment of Paul Bantick as the new Group Chief Underwriting Officer following
the retirement of the incumbent, Bob Quane.
More information on succession planning
and the process for appointing new
Directors is included in this report.
Inclusion and diversity
• Reviewed diversity commitments and progress against public ambitions set by
Beazley plc, as well as those required by the UK Listing Rules and public reviews.
• Reviewed policies including inclusion and diversity policies for the Board and the Group.
• Reviewed sections of the annual report and accounts, including diversity disclosures
required by UK Listing Rules 6.6.6R(9) and (10).
• Inclusion and diversity considerations also underpinned other activities, including
Board recruitment and composition and succession planning discussions.
More information on Inclusion and
Diversity is included below and in the
Sustainability report (pages 26 to 31).
For UK Listing Rules disclosures, see
Governance at a glance (page 83).
Board composition, succession and evaluation
Board and Committee composition and succession
during 2024
Considerable time was spent by the Committee in early 2024
on finalising Board and Committee composition, following the
searches commenced in 2023. The Committee has focused
on embedding these Board changes and ensuring an effective
induction process for the new Directors, as well as an orderly
hand over of the Group Finance Director’s responsibilities.
The composition of the Board and succession plans take into
account the required balance of skills, knowledge, experience
and diversity, in accordance with the principles of the Code,
and with the overall goal of ensuring the ability to develop and
implement strategy for the long-term success of Beazley.
The Committee has focused on ensuring that the composition
of the Beazley plc Board and the Boards of its principal
subsidiaries is appropriate, aligned to broader strategy
and ensures effective governance oversight of the Group.
The Committee reviews Board succession plans at least
annually, taking into account the overall knowledge and skills
of the Board and any gaps, the tenure of the existing
Directors, and the medium and long-term strategic objectives
of the Group.
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During 2024, the Committee recommended that two of its
principal regulated subsidiaries establish independent
Nomination and Remuneration Committees, which would
oversee Board and Committee composition and succession
planning for their respective boards to better meet local
regulatory and business requirements. While the subsidiary
Committees were being established, the Committee continued
to provide oversight of key regulatory appointments for the
subsidiaries and make recommendations to the subsidiary
Boards. The group Nomination Committee will continue to
provide oversight of key principles of governance and to elect
the Chair of those subsidiaries who are usually also appointed
to the Beazley plc Board.
Board and Committee changes
As previously noted, several changes were made during the
year which have strengthened the Board and Committee
composition and supported the overall governance
effectiveness of the Group. These included:
• The appointment of Carolyn Johnson as an independent
non-executive director with effect from 1 March 2024. The
search for this role was commenced in 2023 following
consideration of the Group’s governance structure. It was
determined that the principal subsidiary Board of each of
the Group’s three platforms (Lloyd’s Wholesale, North
America and Europe) should be chaired by an independent
Non-Executive Director of Beazley plc. For the North
American platform, this led to an external search for an
additional independent Non-Executive Director.
• The appointment of Barbara Plucnar Jensen as Group Chief
Financial Officer, who joined the Board on 21 May 2024.
• The appointment of Pierre-Olivier Desaulle as Senior
Independent Director at the conclusion of the Company’s
2024 Annual General Meeting on 25 April 2024.
• The appointment of Carolyn Johnson as a member of the
Nomination and Risk Committees and Robert Stuchbery
as a member of the Nomination Committee with effect
from 6 August 2024.
Selection of a new Senior Independent Director
Christine LaSala, who served on the Board for eight years and
was the Senior Independent Director, expressed her intention to
not seek re-election at the 2024 AGM. Following this decision, the
Committee discussed and reviewed the process for the selection
of the next Senior Independent Director. The Committee approved
the role specification, which set out the role's responsibilities and
required skills and attributes. The Committee were satisfied that
an internal candidate could be identified. Following a process
led by the Chair and previous Senior Independent Director,
the appointment of Pierre-Olivier Desaulle as Senior Independent
Director was announced on 11 April 2024 to take effect after the
2024 Annual General Meeting.
Information regarding the recruitment of a Chief Financial
Officer and independent Non-Executive Director
The Committee is responsible for oversight of search and
selection processes for Board and Executive Director roles and
for recommending appointments to the Board. The Committee
ensures that a formal, rigorous and transparent procedure is
followed. When searching for new Board directors, a clear process
is conducted with oversight from the Committee at each stage.
A sub-group is usually selected to provide more detailed oversight,
as required. Key stages include identifying a clear need for the
role followed by an assessment of the skills, knowledge and
experience required; appointment of an appropriate external
search consultancy; and ensuring that inclusion and diversity
considerations are understood and that a diverse candidate long-
list is sought. A key part of the selection process is a multi-stage
interview process with the opportunity for candidates to meet a
wide range of people from Beazley and ensuring candidates are
assessed fairly against the search criteria. Once a preferred
candidate has been identified, the Nomination Committee
consider the assessment and make a final recommendation
to the Board.
In relation to the appointment of Carolyn Johnson in March 2024,
the Committee oversaw the process, which was led by the Senior
Independent Director with support from a sub-group of the
Committee. In accordance with provision 20 of the Code, an
external search consultancy, Russell Reynolds, was engaged to
support the process. Russell Reynolds has no other connection
with the Company and its individual Directors. A detailed
description of each stage of the process undertaken to select
Carolyn Johnson was included within the Corporate Governance
Report of the 2023 annual report, on pages 102 to 103.
The Committee also oversaw the process to recruit Barbara
Plucnar Jensen, which was led by the Group Chief Executive.
Spencer Stuart were engaged to support the process.
Spencer Stuart has no other connection with the Company and
its individual Directors. More information regarding the search for
and selection of a new Chief Financial Officer was included on
page 102 of the 2023 report. Beazley’s 2023 annual report is
available on our website: www.beazley.com.
Board tenure, renewal of Non-Executive Director
appointments, and review of time commitments
The Committee reviewed the profile of Board tenure of the
Non-Executive Directors with a view to the future requirements
of Beazley, the length of service of the Board as a whole and
succession plans for key Board roles.
The Committee recommended that all Directors be subject to re-
appointment at the AGM in 2025. As part of this, the Committee
also considered and recommended:
• The appointment of Fiona Muldoon and Cecilia Reyes-
Leuzinger for a second three-year term.
• That Robert Stuchbery be re-appointed to serve until the
2026 Annual General Meeting. Robert Stuchbery has served
on the Board since August 2016 and his full nine-year term
will expire in August 2025.
• That Pierre-Olivier Desaulle, Nicola Hodson, and Rajesh
Agrawal be reappointed until the 2026 AGM and their
appointments be considered on a rolling 12-month basis.
Expected time commitments are set out in the terms and
conditions of appointment for all the Non-Executive Directors
and each Director confirms that they have sufficient time to
fulfil their responsibilities. The Nomination Committee
continues to monitor the time commitment of all Directors to
ensure that Directors are able to provide a sufficient level of
time and dedication to the role. The significant benefits of
having Non-Executives who are serving Executives in other
firms has been balanced against their availability.
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Nomination Committee continued
In particular, the Committee considers Nicola Hodson’s time
commitments and her other executive and non-executive roles.
Nicola was (at the time the re-appointment decision was made)
the Chief Executive of IBM UK and Europe, which is an unlisted
private limited subsidiary company and division of IBM, and a non-
executive director of Drax plc, where she also chairs the
remuneration committee and is a member of their audit
committee. Since January 2025, Nicola has become the Chair
of IBM UK and Europe and is no longer the Chief Executive.
The Nomination Committee and Board remain satisfied that
Nicola has sufficient time to undertake her role and is able to
balance her responsibilities well. The Committee keeps the
situation under review to ensure that Nicola is able to commit
the time and dedication required as a Non-Executive Director
of Beazley plc; as we do for all Directors.
In June 2024, the Committee considered Barbara Plucnar
Jensen's appointment to the Board of Matas A/S as an
independent Non-Executive Director and as Chair of their
Audit Committee. The appointment was announced by Beazley
on 19 June 2024 in accordance with the UK Listing Rules.
Barbara had disclosed this potential appointment during the
selection process. The Committee considered the time
commitments of the role in both the short-term and long-term.
The Committee considered the timing of key meetings of
Matas A/S, which were not expected to conflict with
Barbara's onboarding and induction process during 2024
or with Beazley's key reporting deliverables, given their
different reporting cycles. The Committee were satisfied that
Barbara would have sufficient time to effectively carry out both
roles. The Committee also noted the value that external
directorships may provide for executive directors and
the broadening of skills and knowledge provided by
such opportunities.
The Committee also monitors and evaluates the independence
of all Non-Executive Directors and undertakes an annual review
of their other interests. The Board, on the Committee's
recommendation is satisfied that each Non-Executive Director
serving remains independent and has sufficient time to
discharge their responsibilities to the Company.
In relation to the extension of Robert Stuchbery’s appointment
term beyond nine years, the Committee considered whether
Robert Stuchbery would remain independent and noted that
he had continued to provide due challenge to management
during his tenure, which was not expected to change. The
extension would benefit both the Beazley plc board and the
board of one of its principal subsidiaries, Beazley Furlonge
Limited, which Robert chairs. This will allow more time for
recent changes to the Beazley Furlonge board to be
embedded, and the search for a successor and an orderly
succession to take place. In addition, retaining the knowledge
and experience of Robert on the Beazley plc board would be
beneficial to the Board and the Group as a whole.
The Committee therefore approved the extension of
his appointment and confirmed that they expected him
to remain as an independent Non-Executive Director.
Board and Committee performance evaluation
The Board carries out a formal and rigorous annual evaluation
of its performance and of the performance of its Committees,
the Chair and individual Directors, with 2024 being an
independent evaluation. The Committee has a role in
overseeing the Board and Committee evaluation process for
Beazley, and in making recommendations to the Board to
enhance performance.
The Committee reviewed and approved the plans for the 2024
Board performance evaluation for the Board, its Committees
and for two of the principal regulated subsidiary Boards and
their Committees (Beazley Insurance dac and Beazley
Furlonge Limited). In 2024, in line with the usual review cycle,
an independent external review was conducted. The
Committee oversaw the process. More information is included
in the Board Evaluation report on page 106 and delegated the
selection of an appropriate firm to carry out the review to the
Chair, Senior Independent Director and the Group Company
Secretary. Following a comprehensive RFP process,
Independent Audit were selected. The Committee received a
report from Independent Audit on the outcomes of the external
evaluation for all Boards and Committees and discussed
common themes and key areas of focus for 2025.
The Committee’s effectiveness was reviewed, as part of the
annual Board evaluation process, whereby a representative
from Independent Audit observed one of the meetings.
The Board were satisfied based on the evaluation outcomes
that the Committee is effective in fulfilling its role.
More information on the Board evaluation process and the
2024 review is provided from page 106.
Board knowledge and skills assessment and board training
The Board and Committee recognise the importance of a
diverse composition with a broad mix of skills and experience.
The Committee is responsible for ensuring that the Board
and its Committees have the range of skills, experience,
and knowledge necessary to discharge their roles and
responsibilities and to support the executive leadership team
in the execution of the Company’s strategy. To carry out its
responsibilities, the Committee ensures that all Directors
carry out an annual self-assessment of their knowledge
against a wide range of skills and competencies. For each
area in the assessment, the Directors assess whether they
have considerable knowledge, a base level of knowledge
necessary to contribute to discussions, or no knowledge.
The Committee receives a report on the self-assessments
completed, including information for each Director, to enable
them to assess whether Directors and the Board collectively
have the right mix of skills and experience. The Chair also
considers this information in the performance evaluations
of the Directors, together with other relevant information
and feedback, to assess whether each Director continues
to contribute effectively.
The self-assessment helps identify any areas where training
would be useful to develop knowledge and skills either for
Directors individually or for the Board as a whole, and a
training plan for each year is developed. The training plan also
includes topics suggested by senior leadership and other
stakeholders across the Group. The balance of skills and
experience on the Board is also a core part of Director
succession planning.
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Board training
Based on the training plan developed and reviewed by the
Nomination Committee, training sessions are provided
covering a wide range of topics with the aim of continually
refreshing the Directors’ skills and knowledge and ensuring
that they can contribute to Board discussions effectively.
Topics can range from industry specific topics, information
related to strategic matters, economic and political updates,
as well as changes to regulations impacting the Group.
Training is regularly reviewed to ensure it meets best practice
and the plan is flexible with topics updated during the year,
as required to meet the changing needs of the business.
For some skills, which are dynamic and changing, the
Directors’ knowledge is augmented by external experts who
ensure the Board has the right, up to date, expertise to
challenge effectively. Directors of our subsidiary boards are
invited to participate in relevant training sessions, offering
further opportunity for engagement between Beazley plc and
subsidiary Board Directors. As part of its process during
2024, the Committee agreed the training plan for 2025.
Topics will include climate risk; the European Union’s
Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive; emerging AI
trends, risks and legislation; financial crime; corporate
governance reform; information security and cyber security;
and tax. In addition, a number of optional additional training
sessions will be provided digitally.
Director induction process
Beazley provides a comprehensive formal and tailored
induction for new Directors. Directors are asked to complete a
skills and knowledge assessment and a tailored initial training
plan is developed. Induction plans include meetings with
senior leadership and other stakeholders across the
business, and any key external stakeholders such as
regulators, auditors and shareholders. The plans ensure that
Directors are appraised of all areas of the business and also
obtain an insight into Beazley’s culture. This is supplemented
with follow-up sessions on areas of interest or where further
development is required. The induction is structured into six
core competencies including: business strategy and business
model, how we do business, market knowledge, risk
management, governance and controls, and global regulatory
frameworks and requirements. Directors are asked to provide
feedback on the process that it can be continually refreshed
and the Committee keeps the overall process under review.
The information provided below provides information about
the induction of the two new Directors who joined the Board
in 2024.
Carolyn Johnson’s induction
We welcomed Carolyn to the Board of Beazley plc on
1 March 2024. Her other appointments include:
• Chair of Beazley Holdings Inc, and its regulated admitted US
insurance subsidiary, Beazley Insurance Company Inc.,
• member of the Beazley plc Nomination Committee and
Risk Committee
Carolyn attended detailed sessions in relation to the six core
competency areas, meeting with a wide range of senior
leaders across the Group. This included meetings with the
Executive Committee members and other senior management
in relation to topics such as reinsurance, capital, investments,
actuarial, change, commercial management, social impact,
and conduct. Carolyn was also provided with information
regarding the Board and its committees, their operation
and the Group governance framework by the Group
Company Secretary.
Carolyn also received specific focused sessions in relation
to past strategic initiatives related to the North American
platform, US regulatory structure and trading licences,
and North American management governance structures,
given her directorships of US subsidiaries. Carolyn has
travelled to some of US offices during 2024, to meet with
colleagues there.
Barbara Plucnar Jensen’s induction
For Executive Directors the process is more in-depth and
includes a formal 360 degree review after six months in role.
The Committee ensured that Barbara received a
comprehensive induction and hand over from the previous
Group Finance Director, Sally Lake. In addition to an induction
plan covering the core competency areas, Barbara’s induction
included meeting the Beazley plc Board, detailed sessions
regarding key areas of responsibility, and meeting with key
external stakeholders such as our shareholders, regulators,
auditors, and other key advisers. Barbara has also travelled to
several Beazley offices during 2024 and participated in a live
question and answer session with the Group Chief Executive,
which was available to all staff to join remotely.
Leadership succession planning and talent pipeline
Throughout 2024, the Committee carried out its key
responsibilities of ensuring that plans are in place for the
succession of Executive Directors and critical wider senior
management positions and ensuring the continued strong
Executive talent pipeline within the Group. This work aligns
with the people pillar of Beazley’s strategy to attract and
nurture talented colleagues.
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Nomination Committee continued
The Committee reviews succession plans for the Executive
Committee members annually and their individual performance
against objectives. The succession plans for other senior
roles (such as key Executive Committee direct reports) and
regulatory roles are also reviewed annually. The reporting
includes information about potential successors for each role
in the short, medium, longer term and emergency cover,
including whether roles could be filled internally or externally.
The reporting assists with proactively planning for future roles
to progress our internal talent. The 'talent pipeline review'
also covers cross team succession opportunities. During
2024, the Committee provided input into succession plans,
including recommending that key criteria for progression to the
Group Chief Executive role be developed, which could be used
to benchmark candidates and to ensure the development of
talent. The succession plans are linked to the inclusion and
diversity strategy and policy, as the Committee considers the
diversity of our wider leadership groups in terms of gender and
ethnic diversity during the year, with those wider leadership
groups comprised of individuals who are most likely to be
included in the succession plans reviewed by the Committee.
During 2024, the Committee also received updates on the
appointment of a new Group Chief Underwriting Officer and a
new Group Head of Cyber Risks, which are both executive
leadership positions. This was following the decision by the
previous Chief Underwriting Officer, Bob Quane, to retire. The
search was led by the Group Chief Executive and the previous
Head of Cyber Risks was identified as the suitable candidate
to become the successor.
Equally, the new Head of Cyber Risks, Alessandro Lezzi, had
been identified from the succession planning process as a
potential successor and was appointed from within the Cyber
Risks leadership team following an internal recruitment
process. In addition to identifying individuals who may be
successors for leadership roles in the short to medium-term,
there are programmes to highlight and develop future talent
throughout the organisation. The diversity of cohorts for such
programmes is taken into account, to ensure that a diverse
range of talented individuals are included and provided with
development opportunities. The 'NexCo', which is described
in the Stakeholder Engagement report on page 67, is an
example of one of these programmes. The Committee will
continue to review succession plans for senior Executives,
including programmes in place to identify and develop
internal capability for future opportunities in line with
Beazley’s people strategy.
Inclusion and diversity
Inclusion and diversity policies and relationship to strategy
The Board firmly believes that having an inclusive and diverse
workplace is a key element of ensuring Beazley’s long-term
success. Our inclusion and diversity strategy is an integral
pillar of our refreshed Sustainability strategy, which was
approved by the Board during 2024. Sustainability, which
means managing our business responsibly and includes our
approach to inclusion and diversity, is a pillar of our Group
strategy, and aligns with our vision of being the highest
performing sustain specialty insurer. We need to attract,
engage and nurture a diverse, high-performing workforce in
order to develop and implement the business strategy. A
diverse workforce helps champion diversity of thought,
enabling us be more creative and innovative by bringing
different perspectives, and leads to better outcomes for both
Beazley and its stakeholders.
Beazley’s inclusion and diversity policy is reviewed annually by
the Committee. This includes consideration of whether the
policies remain effective in helping Beazley to pursue its
objectives in this area, as required by the Code. The Board
has also adopted its own inclusion and diversity policy which
is aligned to that of the Group. Both policies are available on
the Company’s website. These policies evidence commitment
from the Board for our inclusion and diversity initiatives and
help underpin our inclusive culture; they ultimately contribute
to the effective delivery of our strategy and therefore the long-
term success of Beazley by helping us attract and retain high-
performing talented people.
The Group’s inclusion and diversity policy sets out our
commitment to recruit, retain and develop people with diverse
backgrounds and experiences to thrive at all levels of our
business, in a truly inclusive environment that has zero
tolerance for discrimination or harassment and fully supports
and celebrates differences. These differences could include
but are not limited to age, disability, gender, gender
reassignment, marital status, race, nationality or ethnic origin,
religious beliefs, sexuality, or socio-economic background.
The Board's inclusion and diversity policy sets out the
commitment of the Board to use its position and influence to
create a truly inclusive environment and confirms the Board's
view that diversity is central to our long term success by
contributing to enhanced risk management and improved
business performance, bringing about richness of challenge,
debate, and innovation.
The Board continues to meet the UK Listing Rule required
targets around gender and race as confirmed on our
governance at a glance section on page 83. In addition, as
set out in the Board's inclusion and diversity policy, the Board
commits to continue to meet guidelines and regulations for
gender or racial diversity set out in the Parker Review and the
FTSE Women Leaders review. While accepting there will be
natural fluctuations in balance due to the size of the Board,
the Board also aims to consider and reflect the Company’s
public targets regarding gender and race and ethnicity in its
own composition.
The Board's inclusion and diversity policy also applies to the
Board's key Committees. The Committee considers diversity
when appointing Directors to Board Committees. The diversity
of each Committee is shown in 'governance at a glance' on
page 83. By implementing a Board inclusion and diversity
policy, the Board demonstrates its commitment to our
inclusion and diversity strategy at the highest levels
of the organisation.
The external Board evaluation undertaken during 2024 noted
that the Board consisted of a diverse group of individuals that
brought different perspectives and experience. There was no
feedback raised as part of the Board evaluation regarding
the composition of the Board or its Committees, and the
Committee is satisfied that the Board is meeting the diversity
guidelines and regulations applicable to the Company, as
reflected in the Board Inclusion and Diversity policy.
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Approach to diversity and setting goals
Beazley and the Committee use governmental census data to
set evidence-based diversity goals to reflect the communities
we operate in.
However, decisions relating to performance, hiring and
promotion at Beazley continue to be based on individual
merit and performance.
The Committee has ambitions for gender diversity and ethnic
diversity for senior leadership, which have been monitored by
the Committee during the year. We monitor groups which
represent those most likely to progress to senior positions
in the organisation, including the Executive Committee, and
those leading strategic projects. This helps ensure a diverse
pipeline for senior management. The committee kept gender
diversity under review during the year, and women represented
45% of senior leadership roles at the end of 2024, which
aligns with our inclusion and diversity policy of maintaining
gender balance across the company.
The Committee also considered its ambitions around race,
which had also been met in 2023. The Committee agreed that
these should be based on updated government census data
in the UK and the US, resulting in new goals to be met by
March 2028. These ambitions are also aligned with the
Parker Review recommendations. This will ensure we
continue to reflect the communities we operate in and serve.
The Committee will continue to track progress against these
inclusion and diversity initiatives. The Committee was
satisfied that we continue to select the best talent, based
on objective criteria and that our ambitions do not become
quotas or result in roles held specifically for those from
minority groups.
During 2024 we continued to use a different group of leaders
for our diversity initiatives. The group currently used, and
against which our ambitions aligned with the FTSE Women
Leaders Review and the Parker Review are measured, is
based on those from which succession for the Executive
Committee and other senior positions could likely be sourced.
They are individuals who make up the Company's strategy and
performance group and those who receive long-term incentive
plans as part of their remuneration. This group is more
reflective of the individuals who have the biggest influence
and responsibility for strategy, and are those who are leading
or directly contributing to strategic projects.
The Sustainability report on page 26 contains more
information regarding our diversity ambitions in relation to
gender and race, with our progress towards them over time
included in the sustainability key performance indicators
on page 29.
The Committee ensures that the applicant pool for the senior
hires which it oversees reflect the diversity of talent available.
The Committee monitors the workforce's diversity through
reporting on progress towards our goals and also through
succession planning activities for the Executive Committee.
The Committee tracks progress by ensuring that senior
leadership have relevant elements related to inclusion and
diversity in their own objectives which is reviewed as part of
the Committee’s activities in assessing the performance of
senior leadership.
The Committee will continue to review, assess, and challenge
succession planning to ensure there is a diverse pipeline of
talent within Beazley, that senior leadership truly reflects the
diverse make-up of our workforce and communities, and that
there is no intrinsic barriers to progression for any colleague
regardless of background. Our Sustainability report provides
further information on our inclusion and diversity activities,
including our strategy, objectives, and outcomes against
our ambitions.
Diversity data
The numerical diversity data required to be disclosed under
UK regulations applicable to the Company can be found
in the table on page 30 within the Sustainability Report.
This table includes:
• The numerical diversity data for the Board and executive
management in terms of gender and ethnic background,
as required by UK Listing Rule 6.6.6R(10) in the format
required by the UK Listing Rules.
• The gender balance of those in senior management and
their direct reports, as required by and defined by the Code.
• The diversity data for senior managers, as defined by the
Companies Act 2006, and for all employees.
• The reference date for the data required by UK Listing Rules
6.6.6R(9)(a) and (10), the Code and the Companies Act
2006 is 31 December 2024. The reference date of 31
December was also used for the purposes of reporting this
data in 2023.
• In accordance with UK Listing Rule 6.6.6R(11) the approach
to collecting this data is described in the notes to the table.
We disclose this data both to meet the requirements and for
comparison with other organisations. As described in the
Sustainability and Nomination Committee reports, internally
we set goals based on a defined leadership population for our
own monitoring purposes and our progress against these
objectives is also disclosed in the same table. The reference
date for this data is 1 April 2024.
In addition, page 83 provides an overview of diversity at Board
level, including the gender and ethnic diversity disclosures
required by UK Listing Rule 6.6.6R(9)(a).
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Audit Committee
Audit, risk and internal control
Dear shareholder
I am pleased to present the Audit Committee report, which
provides shareholders with insight into the activities of the
Audit Committee during 2024. We continue to focus on our
key responsibilities of ensuring the integrity of the Annual
Report and financial statements, assessing the independence
and effectiveness of the External Auditor, and overseeing the
internal financial control framework of the Company.
In 2024, we welcomed a new Group Chief Financial Officer,
and the Committee ensured a smooth hand over of
responsibilities from the previous Group Finance Director.
The Committee engaged regularly with both individuals
during 2024 to ensure that the Committee members had
the necessary information to enable them to advise,
challenge and make decisions. This also ensured that the
right topics were presented to the Committee. In this regard,
the Committee also regularly engages with other Executives,
the Group Company Secretary, External Auditor, Head of
Internal Audit, and individuals preparing and presenting
reports to the Committee.
Oversight of reporting
The Committee plays a significant role in the oversight of
financial and non-financial reporting and regulatory reporting,
including ensuring the integrity of the Annual Report and
Accounts and that they are fair, balanced and understandable.
In the previous year, the Committee had overseen the
implementation of IFRS 17, with the 2023 Annual Report and
Accounts representing the first annual accounts prepared
under the new accounting standard for insurance contracts.
The Committee was informed by the Financial Reporting
Council (FRC) that Beazley's Annual Report for 2023 had been
included in the FRC’s sample of reports for its thematic review
"IFRS 17 disclosures". The Committee was pleased that
the FRC thematic review raised no questions or queries.
The Group remains committed to ensuring that its disclosures
are of the highest quality and comply with all relevant
reporting standards.
The Committee has continued to oversee the embeddedness
of IFRS 17 controls and processes within our financial
accounting and reporting framework during 2024.
Further information about the thematic review is included
in the main report on page 118.
UK Corporate Governance Code changes
The Committee oversaw the required reporting changes
resulting from the 2024 Code and supporting guidance, which
was published in January 2024. The Committee has spent
time overseeing Beazley's response to the 2024 Code and
has been focused on the impact of Provision 29, which
introduces enhanced reporting around the risk management
and control environment including a new declaration of
effectiveness over material controls, and will be effective from
1 January 2026.
The Committee has also overseen actions taken to ensure
compliance with the "Audit Committees and the External
Audit: Minimum Standard", which has now been incorporated
by reference into the 2024 Code. The Committee reviewed the
key non-audit engagements that we have with assurance
firms, including the timeline of committed schemes of work,
and is pleased to report that we are operating in accordance
with the Standard. Many of the requirements of the Standard
relate to any external audit tender process, and the
Committee will ensure they meet these responsibilities when
we approach the next audit tender.
Continued focus on sustainability reporting
In support of Beazley’s commitment to doing the right thing
and being a sustainable business, the Committee continued
to oversee further enhancement of Beazley’s reporting of
climate and sustainability matters in accordance with the
TCFD, and the reporting requirements under the Companies
(Strategic Report) (Climate-related Financial Disclosure)
Regulations 2022.
Looking forward
In 2025, the Committee’s priorities will include oversight
of further planned enhancements to the internal control
environment and the reporting provided to the Audit and Risk
Committees to support the Board to provide a declaration
of the effectiveness of its material controls at the balance
sheet date in 2026, in compliance with the 2024 Code.
The Committee will also be focused on enhancements
to sustainability reporting as we further develop our approach
in accordance with the TCFD. The Committee will also be kept
updated, as required, on the Group’s reporting obligations
in relation to the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting
Directive (CSRD), which is applicable to its Irish
incorporated subsidiaries.
John Reizenstein
Audit Committee Chair
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Responsibilities of the Committee
The Committee's key responsibilities are set out in full in the
terms of reference which are available on the Company’s
website at www.beazley.com/investor-relations/corporate-
governance. The terms of reference are reviewed annually.
In 2024, updates were made to reflect any disclosures
required under the Corporate Sustainability
Reporting Directive.
The Committee’s responsibilities are in four key areas:
Financial and narrative reporting
• Monitoring the integrity of the Company’s financial
statements and non-financial disclosures in the
Annual Report and ensuring the Annual Report is fair,
balanced and understandable.
• Overseeing disclosures in relation to climate-related
reporting; such as the TCFD.
• Overseeing other reporting such as the Solvency and
Financial Condition Report.
External audit
• Reviewing and overseeing the relationship with the External
Auditor, including its performance and the effectiveness
of the audit process, independence, objectivity, and the
policy on and level of non-audit services.
• Reviewing non-audit relationships with audit firms to ensure
a fair choice of suitable external auditors and for potential
impact on future audit tenders.
Internal audit
• Monitoring and reviewing the effectiveness and objectivity
of the Group’s Internal Audit function.
Internal financial controls
• Together with the Risk Committee, reviewing and monitoring
the effectiveness of the systems of internal control,
with a focus on controls over financial and non-financial
information and climate-related information.
• Reviewing whistleblowing arrangements in place for the
workforce to raise concerns.
Committee membership and meetings
The Audit Committee comprises five Independent Non-
Executive Directors and is chaired by John Reizenstein. Rajesh
Agrawal, Fiona Muldoon, Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger and Robert
Stuchbery are the other members. There were no changes
to the Committee membership during the year.
The Nomination Committee reviews the knowledge, skills and
experience of the Directors annually and this helps ensure
that the Audit Committee membership continues to meet the
requirements of the Code. The Board and the Committee
are satisfied that John Reizenstein (as the Chair of the
Committee) and Rajesh Agrawal (as the Chief Financial Officer
of Arrow Electronics, Inc) have "recent and relevant financial
experience" and fulfil this Code requirement. The Committee
as a whole has competence relevant to the sector, as
required by the Code, and all of the members are Independent
Non-Executive Directors. The details of each member’s
relevant experience, including their financial and/or sector
experience, are given in their biographies on pages 87 to 89.
The gender and ethnic diversity of the Committee is shown
in "Governance at a glance" on page 83.
Committee meetings
Attendance at Audit Committee meetings by Committee
members is shown in the table on page 97.
The Audit Committee is required to meet at least quarterly,
with meetings scheduled at appropriate intervals in the
reporting and audit cycles in accordance with the forward-
looking agenda planner. Additional meetings are held as
required. During 2024, there were a total of 10 scheduled
meetings, which included a joint meeting of the Audit
Committees of Beazley plc and other regulated Group entities
to consider policies, the Internal Audit plans for the
forthcoming year and other matters relevant across entities.
Whilst every effort is made to consider prior commitments
when scheduling the Committee meetings, it was not possible
to do so on two occasions in 2024. For this reason, Robert
Stuchbery was unable to attend the 13 May 2024 meeting
and Rajesh Agrawal was unable to attend the 19 September
2024 meeting. Both Robert and Rajesh had full access to the
Committee packs prior to the meetings and were able to raise
any prior observations for discussion at the meetings.
Only members of the Committee had the right to attend
meetings; however, invitations are routinely extended to the
Beazley plc Chair, the Senior Independent Director, the Group
Chief Executive, the Group Chief Financial Officer, the Group
Chief Risk Officer, the Group Chief Underwriting Officer, the
Head of Internal Audit, and participants from the External
Audit firm. The Chairs of the Audit Committees of the Group’s
regulated subsidiaries also attended Audit Committee
meetings during the year as and when appropriate. The Group
Company Secretary acted as secretary to the Committee.
The Head of Internal Audit and representatives from the
External Auditor periodically met in private with the Committee
to discuss matters relating to their respective remits and
issues arising from their work. The Committee also met in
private with the Group Actuary. In addition, the Chair of the
Audit Committee had regular contact with the External Auditor
and Internal Audit throughout the year and members of the
Committee met individually with regulators when required.
The Committee Chair also meets regularly with the Group
Chief Financial Officer, other senior finance managers and
the Group Company Secretary to ensure the work of the
Committee is focused on the right topics and the
Committee is receiving valuable information.
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Audit Committee continued
Committee performance evaluation
An external review of Committee effectiveness was conducted
during the year as part of the external Board evaluation
process. More information regarding the external review of
the Board and its Committees can be found from page 106.
The review confirmed that the Committee was functioning
effectively in its role and that the Chair contributed positively
to the effective running of the Committee and oversight of the
Committee’s responsibilities by striking the right balance of
challenge and support of management. The review, which was
conducted during September and October, noted that the new
Group Chief Financial Officer, who joined the Company in May
2024, was already making progress in a number of areas
and this was evidence of a smooth and orderly transition.
No specific actions from the review were noted for
the Committee.
Key focus areas and activities in 2024/25
The key priorities and focus of the Audit Committee during
2024 were as follows :
Financial and narrative reporting
Annual Report 2023 and the FRC's thematic review
of IFRS 17 disclosures
As noted in the Audit Committee Chair's letter, the Committee
was informed by the FRC that Beazley's Annual Report for
2023 had been included in the FRC’s sample of reports
for its thematic review "IFRS 17 disclosures".
The FRC raised no questions or queries as a result of its
review and did not enter into substantive correspondence with
the Company. Readers should note that the FRC’s review was
based solely on the 2023 Annual Report and that the review
is not intended to provide assurance over that report. It is not
the FRC’s role to verify the information provided, but to
consider compliance with reporting requirements. The FRC’s
letters are written on the basis that the FRC (including its
officers, employees and agents) accepts no liability for
reliance on it by the Company or any third party, including but
not limited to investors and shareholders.
Annual Report and financial reporting 2024
One of the Committee’s principal responsibilities is to review
and report to the Board on the clarity and accuracy of the
Group’s financial statements, including the Annual Report
and Accounts. The Annual Report and Accounts provide
shareholders with information necessary to enable an
assessment of Beazley’s position, performance, business
model and strategy. The information provided below relates
to the 2024 Annual Report and Accounts.
The Committee reviewed the Annual Report and Accounts
for the year ended 31 December 2024, and subsequently
recommended it to the Board for approval. When conducting
its review, the Committee considered whether, taken as a
whole, the Annual Report and Accounts was fair, balanced and
understandable. Taking account of reports provided by the
various Group assurance functions, the Committee also
considered the key risks around the financial results
underpinning the full-year reporting process. The 2024 full-
year results announcement and Annual Report were ultimately
recommended to the Board for approval.
An important part of the review of financial reporting was to
consider and agree the significant financial estimates and
judgements in relation to the 2024 financial statements.
The Committee received reports on these judgements for the
full and half-year reports and, after seeking the views of the
External Auditor, (Ernst & Young LLP (EY)), determined that
they were appropriate. The table on pages 120 to 121 sets
out the key accounting estimates and judgements for 2024
and how these were addressed. Management presents views
on key accounting issues and judgements throughout the
year, as part of the regular external financial reporting
including the announcement of half-year and full-year results.
The Committee also assesses the appropriateness and
presentation of any Alternate Performance Measures (APMs)
used in financial reporting, and reviewed the change in
reported APMs that occurred in the year.
During the year and at year end, the Committee continued to
focus on the Group’s close and estimation processes, and the
related controls carried out by the business and specifically
the finance team. The Audit Committee remained committed
to ensuring that there were robust controls and oversight over
the close process. The Committee continued to receive
periodic reporting from both the finance and actuarial
functions on Beazley's estimation process, and the related
controls, in respect of claims reserves, the risk adjustment for
non-financial risk and other key financial statement captions.
Based on reports received and reviewed during the last 12
months, the Audit Committee remains satisfied that the
estimation and control processes deployed by the Group
are appropriate.
The Committee also reviewed the half-year results
announcements and quarterly trading statements.
Going concern and viability
Assessing the viability and going concern statements is a key
annual activity of the Committee. During key reporting periods,
management provides evidence to the Committee to support
the basis of preparation adopted in the financial statements
and any statements around the future viability of the Group.
For the 2024 Annual Report, the Committee reviewed detailed
projections of future cash flows, profit forecasts and capital
requirements under various scenarios, including scenarios
stressed in terms of claims frequency and liquidity.
The Committee also considered the appropriateness of
management’s viability statement and the period over which
this analysis is performed. The Committee was satisfied
by the level of analysis presented during the year and the
related approach taken and statements made in the
Group’s key external reporting. The Viability Statement
is on pages 80 to 81.
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Fair, balanced and understandable assessment
It is required that the Group’s financial statements are fair,
balanced and understandable. The Audit Committee applied
the same due diligence approach adopted in previous years to
assess this requirement under the Code. The Annual Report is
prepared following a well-documented internal process that is
performed in parallel with the processes undertaken by the
External Auditor. As well as the controls underpinning the data
contained in the Annual Report, the process includes
comprehensive review by senior management during the
drafting process, with a particular focus on narrative
statements. The Audit Committee has reviewed
management’s assessment during the formal Annual Report
governance process. Following its review, the Audit Committee
satisfied itself that the 2024 Annual Report was fair, balanced
and understandable, and provided the information necessary
for shareholders and other stakeholders to assess the
Company’s position and performance, business model and
strategy, and advised the Board accordingly.
Disclosure of risk incident
The Committee has provided continuous oversight and review
of internal controls in light of a risk incident which was
uncovered during 2024 in relation to activities of an individual
underwriter. The Committee remains committed to an ongoing
focus on controls enhancements in light of the incident.
The Committee has also reviewed and considered
statements made in the Annual Report and Accounts
in relation to the incident.
Sustainability reporting
The quality of sustainability reporting as contained in the
Sustainability and TCFD sections of the Annual Report
remained a key area of focus for the Committee during the
year. The Committee was kept informed of key developments
in reporting standards and climate change metrics and
progress made with the embedding of the sustainability
strategy within the Group.
The Committee received updates from EY on its findings
and future considerations following its review of TCFD
reporting, which is performed by its specialist sustainability
reporting team.
The Committee reviewed the reporting plan for 2024, which
focused on the delivery of the TCFD reporting cycle but also
considered other emerging sustainability related disclosures
such as CSRD. During the year, the External Auditor provided
information to the Committee with regard to the standard of
TCFD disclosure reporting. During 2024, the External Auditor
performed an assurance review of TCFD reporting data at the
end of the half-year period, and provided an update regarding
the outcomes to the Committee. This included consideration
of enhancements to reporting that could be made.
UK Corporate Governance Code 2024
The 2024 Code came into effect for financial periods
beginning on or after 1 January 2025, with the exception of
the changes under Provision 29, which will come into effect
for reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2026.
Provision 29 introduces the requirement for boards to make a
declaration in the Annual Report regarding the effectiveness of
material controls at the balance sheet date, and to describe
any material controls which have not operated effectively and
the action taken, or proposed to be taken to address
any issues.
Further information on the Committee’s activities to ensure
adequate reporting against the 2024 Code is included in the
relevant sections below:
• Audit Committees and the External Audit: Minimum
Standard (page 122)
• Internal Controls (including financial controls) (page 124)
Solvency II reporting
The Committee is responsible for oversight of other external
reporting such as the Company’s Solvency II reporting.
During the year, the Committee reviewed and approved the
Group’s 2023 Solvency and Financial Condition report and
Regular Supervisory Report summary as well as approving
the Solvency II policy for the Group.
External environment
The Committee kept under review impacts on the financial
performance of the business from the external environment
such as the following:
• Inflation: the Committee continued to obtain assurance
from management on the effectiveness of the process for
monitoring reserve loadings for recession and excess
economic and social inflation in response to the changing
economic and inflationary environment.
• Cyber underwriting: the Committee received updates on
ransomware trends and the impact of major Global IT
outages and their impact on liabilities.
• Geopolitical uncertainty: the Committee received updates to
ensure that the adequacy of loss estimates in relation to
classes with exposure to areas of geopolitical uncertainty
remained appropriate.
• Climate change and natural catastrophes: the Committee
received updates on the impacts of natural catastrophes
(such as Hurricanes Helene and Milton) and climate change
on liabilities.
Monitoring forthcoming regulatory changes
In relation to its activities, the Committee kept under review
several areas of potential corporate governance and
reporting reform in both the UK and other jurisdictions
where Beazley operates.
The Committee received updates on:
• the 2024 Code, as described above;
• the requirements of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting
Directive, as they apply to its Irish regulated subsidiaries
with effect from 1 January 2025, and will apply to the
Beazley plc Group in future;
• new accounting standards and amendments, in particular
the introduction of IFRS 18, which comes into effect
on 1 January 2027; and
• monitoring of key reporting and regulatory updates,
including updates on accounting standards, changes
in tax legislation and changes in regulatory requirements.
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Audit Committee continued
Key financial judgements and estimates for the year ended 31 December 2024
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – level of aggregation
The Group’s policy is to apply the IFRS 17 General Measurement
Model when measuring its insurance contract liabilities. Under this
model, contracts are aggregated into portfolios based on shared
risk and management characteristics, then into groups based
on the profitability of the underlying contracts both on initial
recognition and subsequently. Further details are included
in Note 2 to the financial statements.
The Committee reviewed management’s basis for aggregating contracts into portfolios and
groups and was satisfied that this approach was reasonable and in compliance with the
requirements of the IFRS 17 General Measurement Model.
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – amortisation of the contractual service margin (CSM)
Judgement is applied by management in determining the amount of
CSM that should be released into the profit or loss in each period.
This process is carried out by identifying the coverage units in the
group of contracts, allocating the CSM to coverage units, and then
assessing at each reporting date the amount of CSM to be
amortised and recognised as profit. Refer to Note 2 to the financial
statements for further information.
The Audit Committee received information on management’s basis for determining the
amount of CSM to be released into the profit or loss in each period. Members were satisfied
that the judgements applied were appropriate and the output was reasonable.
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – expense allocation
Under IFRS 17, the Group is required to include both acquisition
and administrative expenses where they are directly attributable to
the insurance contract. Judgement is required in determining the
appropriate proportion of expenses to be included within the
insurance result and reflected on the face of the statement of profit
or loss. Refer to Note 2 for further details.
Information was presented to the Audit Committee on the judgements applied in determining
which costs were "directly attributable" and could therefore be included in the "insurance
service expense" line. Overall, the Committee was comfortable that the judgements applied
were appropriate.
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – future cash flows
Groups of insurance contracts are measured by estimating the
amount, timing and probability of future cash flows. Estimates are
formed by applying assumptions about past events, current
conditions and forecasts of future conditions. These have been
outlined in Note 2 to the financial statements.
The assumptions applied by management in estimating future cash flows arising from groups
of insurance contracts were reviewed by the Audit Committee. Overall, members were
satisfied that the inputs applied were appropriate.
In addition, information was presented to the Audit Committee on emerging uncertainty and
risk in the reserve environment which might impact future cash flows. Discussions focused
on uncertainty around geopolitical developments, inflation, macroeconomic uncertainty and
climate change. Accordingly, the potential that these factors might result in increased
volatility, as well as greater estimation challenges in respect of insurance claims, remained a
key consideration for 2024.
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – discount rates
The Group applies discount rates to expected future cash flows in
measuring insurance contract liabilities. Management has applied
judgement in determining that the "bottom-up" technique should be
used in calculating these rates.
This method relies on various estimates – it takes risk-free rates
which are derived using government yield curves and adjusts for an
illiquidity premium which reflects the characteristics of the Group’s
asset portfolio. Further details are included in Note 2 to the
financial statements.
The Audit Committee received information on management’s basis for applying the "bottom-
up" estimation technique. In addition, management presented to the Committee an overview
of the calculation methodology and the final rates applied in determining the IFRS 17 result
for the year ended 31 December 2024. The Committee was satisfied that both the underlying
process and final output were reasonable.
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – risk adjustment
IFRS 17 requires that a risk adjustment for non-financial risk is
considered in the measurement of insurance contract liabilities.
The Group has applied judgement in determining that the Cost
of Capital (CoC) approach should be applied in calculating this
risk adjustment.
Estimation of the risk adjustment for non-financial risk is based
on various inputs and assumptions, particularly relating to the
underwriting risk element of the Solvency II Internal Model which
captures all material exposure elements for the Group.
Further details are included in Note 2 to the financial statements.
The Committee has reviewed management’s rationale for selecting the CoC approach in
calculating the risk adjustment for non-financial risk and deemed this to be reasonable.
The Audit Committee received regular reports throughout the year from the Group Chief
Actuary and the External Audit team. Towards the end of the year, the Group Chief Actuary
reported on the results of the third-quarter reserving review exercise which provided an
indication of the reserve confidence level. The Committee also received a detailed paper in
support of the level of margin held within technical reserves in the Group’s statement of
financial position as at 31 December 2024. As in prior years, the Committee considered the
report of the External Auditor following its re-projection of reserves using its own
methodologies. Overall, the Committee was satisfied that there were no errors or
inconsistencies that were material in the context of the financial statements.
Valuation of level 3 financial assets
The Board is responsible for setting the Group’s investment
strategy, defining the risk appetite and overseeing the internal
and outsourced providers via the Group Chief Investment Officer.
The Committee has oversight of the assumptions and techniques
used to value the Group’s investment portfolio. The valuation
of our hard to value "level 3" investments is a key source of
estimation uncertainty. Further details are included in Note 17
to the financial statements.
The Committee noted that the overall investment strategy was broadly unchanged from prior
periods. The Committee received updates from the Group Chief Financial Officer and reviewed
reports that confirm that the investment portfolio was in line with the 2024 Board-approved
risk appetite, that carrying values of the portfolio as at 31 December 2024 were appropriate
and that the valuation methodologies applied to each hierarchy level were consistent with the
accounting policies. Committee members were invited to and periodically attended the
Investment Committee.
No misstatements that were material in the context of the financial statements as a whole
were identified and the Audit Committee was satisfied with the approach employed by
management in valuing the financial assets at fair value on the balance sheet at 31
December 2024. Further details on the valuation of financial assets are given in Note 17.
Area of focus
How addressed by the Committee
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Other financial reporting issues
The Committee considered a number of other areas of judgement
as part of their review of the Group’s financial statements, which,
whilst less material, still warranted review by the Committee:
Disclosures – The Committee reviewed the format and content of the Group’s financial
statements, including disclosures relating to key or new financial reporting areas such as the
share buyback programme.
Taxation – The Board and Committee received regular updates from the Group Head of Tax
with regard to taxation matters.
Reporting requirements – The Committee received updates on new accounting standards
and amendments, in particular the introduction of IFRS 18, which comes into effect
on 1 January 2027.
Area of focus
How addressed by the Committee
External audit
A key area of oversight for the Committee is the management
of the external audit process and relationship with the Group’s
External Auditor, EY, on behalf of the Board. EY was
reappointed as the External Auditor at the 2024 AGM.
During the year and up to the date of this report, the
Committee considered reports from EY and management
related to the half-year results, the audit of the 2023 and
2024 Annual Report and Accounts and the 2024 Solvency II
related reporting. EY also shared insights and feedback with
the Committee and management in relation to the audit and
UK audit and corporate governance reforms.
Following the approval of the 2023 Annual Report and
Accounts in early 2024, the process for 2024 began with
consideration of the observations from the 2023 audit and the
matters included in the letter to management, which set out
suggested improvements to controls and processes to further
enhance the integrity of the financial reporting process. The
Committee received assurance from management regarding
progress made on these recommendations and agreed
timeframes for completion of the required actions.
The Committee reviewed and discussed EY’s audit planning
report for 2024, including work in relation to the half-year
results and the year-end audit. The Committee noted that the
EY audit plan and scoping was consistent with previous audits
and continued to align with the Group’s increased size and
complexity. The key areas of audit focus are set out in the
auditor's report on page 165.
The External Auditor provided a review of the Group’s half-year
report in August 2024. The report included information
regarding EY’s review procedures over key balances and
disclosures. The report also contained details of EY’s non-
audit services, being its actuarial review of Beazley’s reserving
position and valuation of the (re)insurance contract assets
and liabilities.
The Committee reviewed EY’s findings from their interim audit
work ahead of year end, which was predominantly focused on
testing of controls over processes from which financial
information is derived.
Moving into year end and early 2025, the Audit Committee was
focused on the review of the 2024 Annual Report and Accounts,
and the reporting provided by EY in relation to its audit findings.
The Committee regularly meets with EY without management
present to facilitate open and transparent discussion, and the
Audit Committee Chair and Committee members meet the lead
audit partner outside of Committee meetings on a regular basis.
Assessing the effectiveness of the External Auditor
The Committee ensured that high standards of quality and
effectiveness in the external audit process were maintained
throughout the year.
Audit quality and effectiveness were assessed on an ongoing
basis, with a focus on strong audit governance and the
quality, experience, and appropriate skillsets of the team.
This included the provision of technical and industry
knowledge and the independence, objectivity and level of
professional scepticism exercised by the External Auditor.
The Committee’s activities in assessing the effectiveness
of the external audit included the following:
• Reviewing the quality and scope of the audit planning and
its responsiveness to changes in the business and
identified risk.
• Considering an assessment and review of the audit team,
where feedback from various stakeholders is collated
and analysed.
• Reviewing the results of the annual survey on the
effectiveness of the external audit process conducted by
management. Feedback was requested in the form of a
questionnaire circulated to Non-Executive Directors and
management across the Group, including in the US, Ireland
and Singapore. In line with the previous year, the survey
focused on five areas: Audit Quality, Forward Looking &
Insightful; Efficiency & Audit Delivery; "No surprises";
Service Quality; and Audit Team Engagement.
A comparison of prior year scoring against for these
areas had also been provided.
• The overall results of the survey were positive, concluding
the external audit process to be effective. In particular,
the quality of the senior audit team and its working
relationships with the Board and management were praised.
The survey also highlighted areas proposed to enhance the
overall process, such as finessing the IFRS 17 audit
process as IFRS 17 moves into business as usual and
ensuring closer alignment between management and EY
around key deadlines.
After taking all the above into account, the Committee
concluded that the External Auditor and the external audit
process were effective.
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Audit Committee continued
Non-audit services and independence of the External Auditor
The objective of maintaining the non-audit services policy is
to ensure the independence and objectivity of the External
Auditor is not impaired. The policy supports the Audit
Committee’s responsibility to monitor and review the
objectivity and independence of the External Auditor.
The independence of the External Auditor is of the
utmost importance in safeguarding the integrity of the
external audit process.
The non-audit services policy is reviewed annually by the
Committee. Some activities are prohibited from being
performed by the External Auditor under the policy. The policy
requires consideration and pre-approval for other material
services, which are permitted under the policy. Permissible
non-audit services are all closely related to the audit and/or
required by law or regulation.
The Committee reviewed the terms of any proposed
engagements to ensure they had been robustly justified.
The Committee received a report from the External Auditor
setting out all non-audit services undertaken, to enable it to
monitor the types of services being provided and fees incurred
for that work. None of the non-audit services provided are
considered by the Audit Committee to affect the External
Auditor’s independence or objectivity.
The Committee received an overview from EY of the policies
and procedures in place to safeguard auditor objectivity and
independence. These include annual confirmation by all EY
professionals of compliance with independence policies and
procedures and wider processes and systems to monitor
potential threats to auditor independence throughout the year.
The Committee received the yearly confirmation of EY's
independence, verifying that no partners or staff on the audit
team held any financial interests in the Beazley Group and
that their ethics and independence policies are aligned with
the requirements of the FRC’s ethical standard.
Having considered the following factors, the Committee
concluded that EY was independent from the Group
throughout the year and to the date of its audit report:
• non-audit services provided by EY complied with the
Group’s non-audit policy and the requirements of the
FRC’s ethical standard;
• EY had complied with the FRC’s requirements around
rotation of the audit partner and senior members of the
audit team;
• the Group has not employed members of the EY audit team
or any EY partners during the year; and
• EY has confirmed compliance of its staff and partners with
EY’s internal policies and processes around independence,
and no partners or staff on the audit team held financial
interests in the Group.
Auditor tenure and audit partner
EY were appointed as the Group’s auditor in 2019 following a
comprehensive tender process, and the 2024 year-end audit
marks EY’s sixth consecutive year end as the Group’s auditor.
During 2024, EY rotated the lead audit partner in line with
the requirements of FRC's ethical standard. The new audit
partner, Robert Bruce, shadowed the 2023 year-end audit
and the Committee has welcomed the fresh perspectives
he has brought.
Audit Committees and the External Audit: Minimum Standard
The FRC's Audit Committees and the External Audit: Minimum
Standard ("the Standard") has been incorporated by reference
within the 2024 Code, which is effective for financial reporting
years commencing from 1 January 2025. The aim of the
Standard is to introduce minimum standards for audit
committees in relation to external audit and help meet the
FRC’s objective of creating a more resilient audit market
through greater competition and choice.
The Standard places greater emphasis on best practice for
the audit tender process, including the management of non-
audit relationships with other audit firms. This is to ensure
there is a fair choice of suitable external auditors at the time
of the tender.
In accordance with the Standard, the Committee has reviewed
additional reporting provided to enable it to formally track and
monitor ongoing contracts for non-audit services undertaken
by other audit firms. This will help the Committee with its
responsibilities under the Standard to consider the potential
impact on audit firms ability to tender and ensure the
Committee can effectively monitor these activities and comply
with this part of the Standard. During 2024, the Committee
reviewed information provided on the current non-audit
engagements which the main assurance firms have with
Beazley. This included a high level view of the audit tender
timeline versus existing non-audit services contracts. A longer
planning period has been adopted prior to the commencement
of the next tender process. Enhanced processes to monitor
relationships with other audit firms have been established.
The Committee was satisfied that Beazley was compliant with
the Standard ahead of the implementation date.
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Audit fees and reappointment
The Committee reviewed and agreed EY’s audit fee for the
2024 year end. For 2024, fees for audit and audit related
services were $9.9m (2023: $11.2m). Fees for non-audit and
assurance services for the year were $1.1m (2023: $0.9m)
and included work related to the accounts and regulatory
reporting of the syndicates managed by Beazley, which are
commonly carried out by the External Auditor. The audit fees
for 2024 were lower than 2023, as the fees in relation to the
implementation of IFRS 17 reporting were no longer included,
although some incremental fees were included due to
continued complexity arising from the implementation of IFRS
17, and additional audit fees for Beazley Excess and Surplus
Insurance Inc, a regulated subsidiary established in the US
in 2023.
The Group has complied with the UK Competition & Markets
Authority’s Statutory Audit Services for Large Companies
Market Investigation (Mandatory Use of Competitive Tender
Processes and Audit Committee Responsibilities) Order 2014
throughout the year. The external audit contract will be put out
to tender at least every 10 years and will be conducted no
later than 2029. There are no contractual obligations which
restrict the Group’s choice of auditor.
Given the assessments described above regarding EY’s
continued effectiveness and independence, and that EY has
indicated its willingness to be reappointed as the Group’s
auditor, the Audit Committee has recommended to the
Board that EY be reappointed for the financial year ending
31 December 2025.
Internal audit
During 2024, the Group’s Internal Audit function reported
directly, and was accountable, to the Committee. The Head
of Internal Audit had direct access to the Committee Chair
throughout the year.
In 2024, a new Head of Internal Audit was appointed from
within the organisation. The Committee regularly meets with
the Head of Internal Audit and has dedicated time throughout
2024 to ensure a smooth transition to the new incumbent and
to ensure a strong relationship between the Committee and
the Head of Internal Audit, based on transparency, trust and
mutual respect.
Internal Audit plays an important role in providing an
independent view to management, the Committee and the
Board on Beazley’s risk management, internal controls and
governance. The Internal Audit Charter sets out its purpose,
responsibility and authority, and is reviewed by the Committee
on an annual basis. Internal Audit’s purpose is to enhance
and protect Beazley’s organisational value by providing risk-
based and objective assurance, advice and insight.
Regular reporting
The Committee receives all final audit reports and at its
meetings the Committee reviews reports from Internal Audit,
covering an overview of the work undertaken and audits
completed in that period. The report describes actions arising
from completed audits and the tracking and completion
of actions from previous audits. The Head of Internal
Audit highlights any concerns or overdue audit actions
to the Committee.
Internal Audit plan and universe
A key document reviewed by the Committee is the Internal
Audit plan and risk-based audit universe, which is discussed
with the Committee annually. A consolidated assurance plan
is also developed through coordination with other assurance
functions to ensure that all assurance related work is aligned
and focused on the key priorities. The Committee questions
any topics that it thinks are missing and ensures that there
are enough resources to complete the plan. External providers
are sometimes used to enhance delivery, where specific skills
and expertise are required.
The Committee reviewed the areas to be included in the 2025
Internal Audit plan which are based on an assessment of
strategic risk areas and group change activities and also
reflect feedback from stakeholders. The plan has been divided
into two parts, the primary plan showing key deliverables for
2025, and the secondary plan which would be reassessed
based on resources available and any other changing
circumstances. During the review of the 2025 plan, the
Committee challenged areas such as how capacity was
managed within the Internal Audit team, and the methodology
which would be used by Internal Audit to provide independent
assurance of risk culture.
Internal Audit effectiveness
The Committee reviewed the effectiveness of the function
and remained satisfied that the Internal Audit function had
sufficient resources during the year to undertake its duties.
The effectiveness of Internal Audit was monitored by the
Audit Committee, through agreeing plans and performance
monitoring. External Quality Assessment reviews are
undertaken every five years (unless it is agreed by the
Committee that a review is required earlier).
External Quality Assessment (EQA)
During 2024, the Internal Audit function was subject to an
EQA conducted by an external provider, whose appointment
was approved by the Committee Chair. The results and
recommendations arising from the assessment were
presented to and discussed by the Committee. The outcome
of the assessment was positive, with the team recognised as
being "market-leading" due to the focus of the Internal Audit
team on continuous improvement and on meeting the
external Internal Audit standards in the context of Beazley’s
risks and operations. There were some forward-looking
recommendations raised, in particular with regard to
succession planning, future skills and data analytics.
Internal Audit worked with the Committee Chair to develop
an action plan to address the recommendations raised.
The Committee was satisfied that the Internal Audit function
remains effective.
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Audit Committee continued
Internal controls (including financial controls)
The Board is responsible for the Group’s risk management
and systems of internal control and is required by the Code,
to review their effectiveness. As part of this process, the Audit
Committee was responsible for monitoring and reviewing the
effectiveness of internal financial controls throughout 2024,
as well as overseeing the enhancements required in relation
to the 2024 Code over financial and non-financial reporting,
operational and compliance controls.
The Committee supports the Board with its review of the
effectiveness of the Company’s risk management and internal
controls, which is required by the Code to be reported on in
the Annual Report. The ongoing monitoring activities and the
annual review are described below.
2024 Code implementation
During 2024, the Committee received, reviewed and provided
feedback on detailed information and updates regarding the
ongoing work in connection with the identification of material
controls and the processes to be implemented to enable the
evaluation of the effectiveness of material controls. The
Committee approved a scoping framework which set out the
approach to ascertain the processes and controls in scope for
the Board’s annual effectiveness statement. The framework
considers both financial and non-financial reporting, and
operational and compliance controls. In November 2024, the
Committee received an in-depth report from EY which
addressed new risk management and control requirements to
meet the requirements of the 2024 Code, including Provision
29, and discussed opportunities for enhancements of the
process for monitoring, reviewing and assessing the
effectiveness of controls.
Reporting Control Framework
The Committee continued to oversee the ongoing
implementation of enhancements to the Group’s internal
controls, in line with the Reporting Control Framework,
which included receiving updates on the key milestones
in connection with the implementation of the enhanced
framework and recommending the Reporting Control
Framework policy for approval to the Board. The purpose of
the Reporting Control Framework is to set out the principles
and processes required to provide management and Non-
Executive Directors with objective assurance that the internal
controls environment over financial reporting is effective.
The framework will also support the Board’s ability to assess
the effectiveness of these controls on an annual basis in line
with the 2024 Code in the UK and the Model Audit Rule
reporting requirements in the US. In relation to the half-year
results, the Committee considered progress made on the
implementation of the Financial Control Framework and
additional information on control safeguard enhancements
implemented by the Group with the support of the Financial
Controls function.
Reviewing the effectiveness of the risk management and
internal control systems
To review the effectiveness of the risk management and
internal control systems, each year, the Committee considers
an annual report from Internal Audit at its first Committee
meeting, which provides analysis of the delivery of the prior
year audit plan; significant findings and overdue actions; the
control maturity framework (for control design, control
operation and risk management and compliance); risk
management framework; risk management culture; control
environment; and whistleblowing. This report provides
additional information in helping the Committee consider the
effectiveness of the risk management and internal control
systems during the year.
The review includes an assessment of the Control Maturity
Grading framework, which enables Internal Audit to formulate
a strategic view on the maturity of the Group’s control
environment and the trajectory in further enhancing the
control environment. The Committee reviewed the Internal
Audit report in respect of the 2024 financial year in early
2025, noting the conclusions.
In addition, the Committee receives a report from the Financial
Controls function regarding its assessment of the internal
control environment over financial reporting and progress
towards the level of maturity targeted by the Board and
Audit Committee.
The Audit Committee receives the report prior to reviewing the
final Annual Report and financial statements. This enables the
Committee to request further information to support its
assessment of the effectiveness of internal financial controls,
in particular those over the financial reporting process,
if required.
The Committee continues to keep the design and operation of
the group's controls framework under review, including any
identified opportunities for continued improvement in the
control environment.
The Committee has reported on its review of the effectiveness
of the risk management and internal control systems to the
Board, to provide the Board with assurance over the control
environment. The Committee has confirmed compliance with
the obligations under the current Code to carry out an annual
review of effectiveness, as delegated to the Committee
by the Board.
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Risk Committee
Dear shareholder
I am pleased to present the Risk Committee report for the
year ended 31 December 2024. We have supported the
Board in overseeing the Company’s internal control and risk
management systems. This includes the effectiveness of the
Group's risk management framework as well as the material
operational and compliance controls.
I was delighted to welcome Carolyn Johnson as a member
of the Committee on 6 August 2024.
Highlights and key topics during 2024
In carrying out its duties and assisting the Board in its
oversight of risk, the focus of the Committee has been
on the following:
Oversight of risk management in a complex environment
Beazley operates across different business lines and
products, and needs to navigate diverse regulatory
expectations in many different places. The environment is
becoming increasingly complex for multi-national businesses,
which increases the legal and regulatory risk. This is
particularly noticeable in relation to cross-border licensing
requirements, divergent sanctions regimes, and major
regulatory policies such as the Financial Conduct Authority's
Consumer Duty and the EU Digital Operational Resilience
Act (DORA).
We are also actively monitoring emerging regulation in AI
(such as across US states and the EU AI Act) which we will
need to be compliant with. This emerging regulation also
creates risks for our clients and we underwrite that.
To monitor the regulatory and external landscape, the
Committee seeks assurance through external reviews,
benchmarking and second and third line monitoring of the
Group's compliance with regulatory requirements. There is
also regular consultation with internal and external subject
matter experts.
2024 has seen geopolitical risks continue to rise, with
ongoing state-based conflict, political tensions globally, as
well as being a year in which there were a number of
important elections. There have also been a number of natural
catastrophe events, including an active hurricane season in
the US and severe weather and flooding in Europe.
The Committee keeps under review such risks from the
macroeconomic and geopolitical environment, and their
potential impacts on Beazley. The Committee oversees regular
engagement with and reporting from the Group Chief Risk
Officer and his team in order to ensure risks, whether external
or internal, are effectively monitored and remain within risk
appetite. Appropriate action is taken in the event they are not.
The Committee supports the Board in satisfying itself of the
appropriateness and effectiveness of Beazley’s risk
management and internal control systems. The Committee
also annually reviews the Group’s ORSA, which is designed
to evaluate the Group's risk management and solvency
positions, both current and future, under various
stress scenarios.
Operational resilience
A key focus of the Committee in 2024 has been monitoring
the evolution of external cyber threats and information security
risks as well as ensuring that Beazley is building and maturing
appropriate defensive capability into its cyber security
framework. A clear understanding of our critical business
services, and regular testing to ensure they can withstand
disruptive events, is foundational to our approach to
operational resilience. The Committee stays abreast of
the latest global trends in cyber threats and regulatory
developments, and has also this year spent time
overseeing the implementation of DORA.
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Risk Committee continued
Oversight of material strategic projects
The Committee has delegated responsibility from the Board
for the successful implementation of Beazley’s multi-year
programme to simplify and de-risk the business, which aims to
provide further digitalisation and scalability across the Group.
Key milestones have been met during 2024, and the
Committee continues to monitor implementation risks and
operational risks associated with new and enhanced
technological systems and updated operational processes,
including the risk that efficiency benefits are not realised.
The Group is continuing to evolve its corporate governance
framework and arrangements to better align to its business
model across its three platforms. The aim is to reflect a global
underwriting-led business model while ensuring a successful
intersection with Beazley’s three strategic platforms (North
America, Europe and Lloyd’s Wholesale) and its principal
regulated subsidiaries.
Looking ahead
In 2025, we will continue to focus on the risk management
and control framework, and realising productivity gains and
de-risking benefits from operational changes and strategic
programmes as they are embedded.
We expect risks from the geopolitical and macroeconomic
environments, and from global climate change, including
extreme weather events, to continue in 2025. The Company
has navigated this uncertainty and the associated volatility
well to date, but believes that these risks will continue to
manifest and will continue to need careful monitoring.
The Committee will continue to monitor the Group's capital
and liquidity needs driven by organic growth, market volatility,
claims uncertainty, global political shifts, macroeconomic
risks and global climate change, and will continue to
determine appropriate risk appetites accordingly.
Fiona Muldoon
Risk Committee Chair
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Responsibilities of the Committee
The Committee’s principal role is to support the Board
of Directors in overseeing the Group’s risk management
framework and processes for monitoring compliance with
laws and regulations.
The responsibilities of the Risk Committee are set out in its
terms of reference, which are reviewed by the Committee and
submitted to the Board for approval on an annual basis. The
terms of reference are available on the Company’s website.
The Committee’s key responsibilities include the following:
Internal control and risk management systems
• Reviewing the Company’s internal control and risk
management systems, to ensure they are effective.
• Effective oversight of risk management, including the risk
management framework, risk strategy, material risk events,
risk appetite, emerging risks and the Internal Model.
Compliance and assurance
• Ensuring effective compliance and regulatory oversight
including regulator engagements, anti-bribery and corruption
controls, and providing assurance around Group-wide
strategic projects.
Committee membership and meetings
The Committee comprises seven Independent Non-Executive
Directors and is chaired by Fiona Muldoon. Pierre-Olivier
Desaulle, Nicola Hodson, John Reizenstein, Cecilia Reyes
Leuzinger, Robert Stuchbery and Carolyn Johnson are the
other members. Carolyn Johnson was appointed to the
Committee on 6 August 2024.
The gender and ethnic diversity of the Committee is shown
in "Governance at a glance" on page 83.
Committee meetings
The attendance of the members at Risk Committee meetings
is provided in the table on page 97.
The Risk Committee is required to meet at least quarterly,
with meetings scheduled at appropriate intervals in the
reporting cycles. During 2024, the Committee met eight
times, which included the joint meeting of the Beazley plc Risk
Committee and those of its key regulated subsidiaries to
review the risk management framework and the assurance
function plans for 2025. There were also three additional
meetings during 2024 to discuss specific projects or matters
which required oversight from the Risk Committee.
Only the members of the Committee have the right to attend
meetings; however, invitations are routinely extended to the
Beazley plc Chair, Group Chief Risk Officer, Group Chief
Executive, Group Chief Financial Officer, Head of Internal
Audit and the External Auditor. The Group Company Secretary
acted as secretary to the Committee. The Chair of the
Committee meets with the Group Chief Risk Officer, Senior
Risk Managers and the Group Company Secretary regularly
during the year to ensure the work of the Committee is
focused on the right topics and the Committee is receiving
relevant and accurate information.
The work of the Committee is also supported by the work of
the Risk Committees of the Group’s principal subsidiaries and
by the Executive Risk and Regulatory Committee. The Chairs
of the subsidiary Risk Committees attend the Beazley plc Risk
Committee at least annually and the Chairs are in regular
communication to ensure a consistent approach to risk
management oversight across the Group. The joint meeting
of the Risk Committees, where all members are invited, also
helps with cohesiveness of approach to risk management
across the Group. Two-way dialogue and reporting between
the Group and principal subsidiary Risk Committees has been
enhanced through 2024.
Committee performance evaluation
The review of Committee effectiveness takes place annually
as part of the Board evaluation process. The 2024 review was
undertaken externally by Independent Audit and determined
that the Committee is operating effectively. The review
concluded that there is good consensus among the members
on the key risks facing the Group. The approach to risk
management oversight is maturing in line with Beazley’s
growth. For more information on the Board evaluation and its
outcomes, please refer to pages 106 to 108.
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Risk Committee continued
Areas of focus during 2024
Strategic project risks
The Board has delegated key oversight
responsibility to the Committee over the risks
to the execution and assurance over key
strategic projects.
The Committee provided challenge and support around key deliverables for 2024 in relation to key strategic
projects, to help drive progress towards full implementation and support key decisions. It also received post-
implementation reviews for projects or key deliverables within projects which had completed during the year. It
received reports throughout the year from those with first line responsibility for the projects, as well as second line
assurance reporting. This approach helped ensure effective oversight and management of risks associated with
the implementation of these projects.
Risk management framework and risk appetite
The Committee plays a key role in the
oversight and management of risk throughout
the Group. A key responsibility is to review the
risk management framework and to monitor
risk appetite.
The Committee continued to oversee the embedding of the risk management framework and updates to it, the
links between business strategy, risk strategy and risk appetite, and the new risk taxonomy. For further
information on the risk management framework, see the Risk management report from page 50. This included
consideration of the Risk team resourcing and expertise as included in the annual risk plans. The Committee’s
focus was on the key risks surfaced in line with the risk management framework, which include but are not limited
to: cyber underwriting risk, climate change, market conditions, geopolitical risk, execution risk around Beazley’s
strategic projects, and data management.
The Committee also annually reviews the Group’s risk appetite statements and associated KRIs, which include
quantitative and qualitative measures and are used to monitor whether the Group remains within its articulated
risk appetite. The Committee monitors the KRIs through reporting received at its quarterly meetings.
The Committee also reviewed the enhancements to KRIs and risk appetite statements for 2025, including five
newly proposed KRIs for Beazley plc. The Committee provided feedback on the suggested changes, before
recommending the 2025 statements and KRIs to the Board for approval. The Committee also reviews similar
information for the principal platforms, to ensure alignment of risk appetite and that the overall risk appetite
of the Group is appropriately articulated and monitored.
Regulatory oversight and engagement
Legal and regulatory risk is a principal risk in
a complex regulatory landscape, and is
heightened as the Group remains on a growth
trajectory, carrying out business and operating
in multiple territories.
The Committee has strong oversight of all regulatory engagement matters with its regulators. Regulatory
engagement in 2024 focused on cyber security, operational risk, Beazley’s control environment and the
Group’s governance structure. Beazley is committed to ensuring regular and transparent dialogue with
all its key regulators.
Cyber risk and operational resilience
Cyber risks continue to evolve due to the
commercialisation of cyber crime, which leads
to a potential increase in the frequency and
severity of incidents impacting underwriting
and Beazley’s operational risks.
Given the importance of Cyber Risk business to the Group, this line of business contributes significantly to the
potential reputational risk of the Group. It is important therefore for the Group to be cyber-resilient. A combination
of a large cyber outage of critical infrastructure impacting both the Group and its clients at the same time presents
a remote but high-impact risk scenario, which is included in the Group’s risk scenarios and monitored by
the Committee.
During 2024, the Committee received a detailed report from an external expert on global trends in cyber threats,
focusing on state actors, criminal activity based in Russia, criminal activity in the West, and discussed how these
impacted Beazley’s business model. Beazley is well-engaged with industry and governmental groups as part of the
Beazley Cyber Council, of which the National Cyber Security Centre and other former UK and US security officials
are members. The Committee continues to focus on understanding the latest developments in the behaviour of
criminal cyber groups, the technology which is transforming cyber (both attack and defence), and the regulatory
developments which are likely to impact this space.
In addition, the Committee reviewed the approach to managing risks to Beazley from external cyber threats,
including the maturity of cyber and information security controls. These topics were also discussed as part of the
Committee’s review of the implementation of the requirements of the Digital Operational Resilience Act, which are
applicable to the Group’s Irish regulated entity from January 2025. The five pillars of the regulation, on which the
Committee received information, include Information Communication Technologies (ICT) risk management, ICT
incident management, digital operational resilience testing, third-party risks and information sharing. This and
other reporting enabled the Committee to understand the Group’s information security and other related controls,
assess their effectiveness, and contribute to plans to further enhance controls.
Climate risk
Beazley faces material risk due to climate
change, which includes both physical risk,
such as extreme weather, and litigation risk
arising from the potential reputational and
legal risk associated with failing to adequately
implement our sustainability strategy.
These risks are both considered to be
evolving and are therefore under the
Committee’s remit for oversight.
The Committee received reports during 2024 on Beazley’s management of physical, litigation and transition risk in
the context of climate risk, as well as development opportunities with new and existing products. Beazley physical
climate risk approach is guided by climate risk research and materiality assessment and the Committee continues
to oversee development of how the Company approaches managing physical climate risk. This includes claims and
underwriting analysis of associated risks, climate risk trends incorporated into pricing, third-party catastrophe
modelling, scenario analysis, focus on reputation risk and Beazley’s Sustainability policy.
At a Committee meeting attended by members of the Risk Committees of Beazley’s principal subsidiaries, the
Committee members received a detailed session on climate risk, including how Beazley manages the risks and
develops the opportunities related to climate risk.
Additional information on Beazley’s approach to climate change can be found in the Task Force on Climate-related
Financial Disclosures on page 32.
Area of focus
How addressed by the Committee
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Risk management and internal controls systems
Reviewing the effectiveness of risk
management and internal control systems as
part of the risk management framework, in
accordance with the Code. See page 77 for
further information.
The Board is responsible for the Group’s risk management and system of internal controls and reviewing their
effectiveness. However, the Committee provides input into this assessment. The Committee monitors and
assesses the risk management systems and internal controls throughout the year through review of the risk
management framework and regular risk management and second line assurance reporting. This includes regularly
assessing key controls, including compliance and operational controls, for operational effectiveness. Reports
include commentary on the status of the control environment and risk incidents, and any issues arising out of risk
reviews are reported to the Committee.
The Committee oversees Beazley’s incident management framework and the various incidents reported during the
year. For example, an incident in relation to activities of an individual underwriter received additional Committee
scrutiny and regular reporting during the year. The Committee oversaw a root cause analysis from the incident and
has identified areas to further enhance processes and controls. The Group will continue to carry out its medium-
term plans to de-risk and simplify the business; including evolving current infrastructure and automating processes
to support a more robust internal control framework. The Committee has reviewed legacy areas of concern to
ensure that there is adequate management attention and oversight in place while more permanent solutions
from strategic projects are delivered.
For details of how this informs the Board’s view of whether the risk management and internal controls systems are
effective, please see page 77.
The Internal Audit function separately reports independently to the Audit Committee on the design and operating
effectiveness of the system of internal controls covering the integrity of the Group’s financial statements and
reports, compliance with laws and regulations, corporate policies and the effective management of risks faced by
the Group in executing its strategic and tactical operating plans. For more information, see the Audit Committee
report from page 116.
Area of focus
How addressed by the Committee
Other Committee activities during 2024
Internal control and risk management systems
• Group CRO report: The Committee received a report from
the Group CRO at each scheduled meeting, which
highlighted key information in line with the CRO’s
responsibilities and areas of particular impact on the Group.
• Risk incidents: The Committee received regular reporting on
risk incidents to monitor their severity and frequency.
Thematic reviews were undertaken to identify any common
root causes of incidents and to identify areas for
strengthening of the internal control environment,
which were reported to the Committee.
• Risk appetite: The Committee monitored the Group's actual
risk profile against risk appetite throughout 2024 and can
confirm that Beazley plc has largely been operating within
risk appetite.
• Risk assessment: Through the risk management report,
the Committee has reviewed the Group’s risk profile to
assess its coverage of the universe of risk and ensure
that major underlying risks are visible to the Board and
are being monitored.
• Stress and scenario testing: The Committee received the
results of the reverse stress testing exercise and ORSA
scenario analysis, with the former exploring conditions
necessary to render the Group unviable. The Committee has
provided assurance to the Board that this work has been
performed with the appropriate level of depth and expertise.
The work covered key scenarios include operational loss,
cyber catastrophe and resilience, a geopolitical risk
scenario following an economic downturn, an AI risk
scenario, Specialty Risks and severe recession, and a
combined catastrophe and natural catastrophe event.
The reverse stress tests carried out in 2024 concluded that
the Group is sufficiently capitalised to sustain extreme and
plausible events as well as extreme shocks, and the control
environment is robust and unlikely to fail in such a way as
to cause unviability to the Group. Further information is
included in the viability statement from page 80.
• Heightened risk: A risk is considered heightened if the
likelihood or the impact of occurrence is higher than usual.
The Committee considered the heightened risk report twice
during 2024. Management continues to be proactive in
ensuring processes and capabilities continue to be fit for
purpose and are scalable for the future.
• Internal Model: The Committee and the Risk Committees of
the subsidiary Boards spent significant effort during 2024 in
the oversight of the Group’s Internal Model. This work has
included oversight of a standing report on Internal Model
output, and a validation report of model changes featuring
both internal and independent validation and themed
reviews – for example, on the approach used to aggregate
risk in individual entities which consolidate up to the Group
level. These assessments have supported the Boards’
approval and use of the Internal Model.
• ORSA: The Committee received ORSA reports and reviewed
them before recommending them to the Board. The Annual
ORSA report was reviewed and recommended to the Board
in June 2024.
• Capital: The Committee noted that scenarios across Cyber
underwriting and geopolitical risk have the most significant
impact on solvency. However, there were several
contingency options in place to mitigate this risk.
• Deep dives/assurance assessments/risk reviews: During
2024, the Committee received focused risk assessments
and assurance on key risks. These included financial
climate risk, culture, operational resilience, and strategic
project risk opinions.
• Risk function resources and plan: The Committee oversaw
and monitored the resourcing plan for the Risk and Second
Line Assurance functions and reviewed their effectiveness.
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Risk Committee continued
• Principal and emerging risks assessment: The Committee
specifically considered areas of key risk to the business
and emerging risk via reporting and through the ORSA. The
process for identifying and managing emerging risks is set
out in the risk management framework and they are
identified through internal and external lenses. The
Committee members also took part in an exercise to
identify key emerging risks during the year. The principal
and emerging risks to the business are described in the
Risk and management and compliance report on page 76.
• Annual reporting disclosures: The Committee reviewed
the key risk disclosures for inclusion in the Annual Report
and Accounts.
Compliance and assurance
• Regulatory engagement: The Committee received regular
updates on relationships with key Group regulators and
oversight of regulatory requests as well as providing
oversight of responses to regulators.
• Laws and regulations: The Committee reviewed changes
in the regulatory environment applicable to Beazley through
compliance reporting. These included the Individual
Accountability Regime, Senior Executive Accountability
Regime, Outsourcing, DORA, CSRD, Conduct Standards,
Consumer Duty, and Product Oversight and Governance.
• Annual compliance plans: The Committee monitored the
implementation of the 2024 compliance monitoring plan
and reviewed and approved the annual compliance plan
for 2025.
• Money laundering officer reporting: The Committee reviewed
updates from the money laundering reporting officer on the
adequacy and effectiveness of the Company’s anti-money
laundering systems and controls.
• Financial crime: The Committee reviewed and approved the
Group financial crime policies inclusive of anti-bribery and
corruption and anti-fraud to ensure the Group has
appropriate procedures in place to prevent bribery and
corruption. The Committee also received and reviewed the
annual financial crime risk assessment report. Political,
Aviation and Marine Hull remain the classes of business
with the most consistent exposure to territories subject
to sanctions, money laundering and bribery and
corruption risk.
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Remuneration Committee
Responsibilities of the Committee
The Board has delegated responsibility to the Remuneration
Committee for oversight of remuneration polices to support
our strategy and promote the long-term success of Beazley for
our stakeholders. The Committee’s role is to ensure that the
remuneration policy is designed to retain and incentivise our
talented people to deliver our strategy. The Committee
ensures that remuneration is fair, culturally aligned with our
values, promotes effective risk management and, for senior
leadership, is aligned to the long-term success of Beazley and
to shareholder interests.
The full responsibilities of the Committee are set out in its terms
of reference, which are available on the Company’s website.
The Committee’s main responsibilities are to:
• Set the remuneration policy for the Group and present
the policy for approval by shareholders at the AGM every
three years.
• Recommend and where appropriate approve targets for
performance related pay schemes and seek shareholder
approval for any changes to existing or new long-term
incentive arrangements.
• Recommend and approve the remuneration of the Chair of
the Company.
• Recommend the remuneration of the Group Chief Executive,
the other Executive Directors, the direct reports to the
Group Chief Executive, the Group Company Secretary, and
such other members of the executive management as it is
designated to consider. Setting executive remuneration
includes taking into account workforce remuneration and
related policies, and the alignment of incentives and
rewards with culture. No Director or manager shall be
involved in any decisions as to his or her own remuneration.
• Recommending the remuneration policy for all employees
including for key functions and other staff whose
professional activities have a material impact on the Group.
• Review of the design of all share incentive plans for
approval by the Board, and where relevant, shareholders.
• Appoint and review the performance of Remuneration
Committee consultants, currently Deloitte LLP.
Committee meetings and attendance
Composition of and attendance at Remuneration Committee
meetings by Committee members is shown in the table on
page 97. Christine LaSala stepped down from the Board and
all Committees on 25 April 2024. The biographical details of
the Committee members can be found on pages 87 to 89.
The gender and ethnic diversity of the Committee is shown
on page 30.
In 2024, there were four scheduled meetings. The activities of
the Committee during 2024 are set out below. Only members
of the Committee have the right to attend meetings; however,
other individuals, such as the Chair, Chief People Officer and
Head of Sustainability, representatives from other Boards or
Committees, and external advisers, may be invited to attend
for all or part of any meeting where this is beneficial to assist
the Committee with fulfilling its responsibilities. The Group
Company Secretary is the secretary to the Committee.
Board and Committee performance evaluation
The Committee’s effectiveness was reviewed during the year,
as part of the annual board evaluation process, conducted by
Independent Audit, the independent company selected to carry
out the evaluation. This included observing one of the
Committee's meetings. The Board were satisfied based on the
outcomes of the evaluation, that the Committee remains
effective in fulfilling its responsibilities.
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Remuneration Committee continued
Key Committee activities during 2024 and early 2025
Activities
More information
Remuneration
policy
• Commenced preparatory work to consider the timeline and deliverables
with regards to the review of remuneration policy being undertaken in 2025
in advance of the 2026 AGM, where the remuneration policy will be
presented to shareholders for approval. Continued to oversee the current
remuneration policy.
Directors' remuneration report
(page 135)
Remuneration of Chair,
Executives and other
senior management
• Approved the remuneration arrangements and bonus awards of the
Executive Directors and the Executive leadership team considering
individual performance.
• Approved the compensation and bonus of the Group Chief Executive
Officer, including considering an above inflation increase to salary.
• Ensured incentives continued to be appropriate to align the interests of
Executives and senior management of the Company and shareholders.
• Considered and approved the salary and bonus awards for 2024 for
heads of control functions, material risk takers, and the Group
Company Secretary.
Directors' remuneration report
(page 135)
Remuneration
of the workforce
• Satisfied itself that the current remuneration structure is appropriate to
attract and retain talent.
• Approved specific matters to support the retention of key employees.
• Considered the aggregate remuneration approach for the wider workforce
and ensured that the approach to Executive and workforce remuneration
and bonuses was explained to the workforce by the Group Chief Executive
and Group Chief People & Sustainability Officer in an all-employee session.
Directors' remuneration report
(page 135)
Share plans
• Approved the grant of share awards under the Group’s deferred,
and LTIP plans.
• Continued to review and receive updates on the further controls introduced
to calculate Net Asset Value per share growth for LTIP vesting.
• Considered the removal of the risk-free rate of return from performance
targets. The Committee decided to re-visit the topic once an IFRS 17
forecasting tool was available to support the further modelling
of scenarios.
• Reviewed and recommended the refresh of the US SAYE share plan
rules, ahead of the rules being presented to the 2025 AGM for approval
from shareholders.
• Approved the matching ratio applicable to the 2025 launch of Beazley's
Share Incentive Plan.
Directors' remuneration report
(page 135)
Governance
• Approved the Beazley Gender and Race pay gap report, including approving
the inclusion of Race pay gap data for the first time.
• Reviewed the remuneration landscape for FTSE 250 and FTSE 100
companies and guidance from proxy agencies and investors.
• Approved the UK Staff Underwriting Plan rules.
• Reviewed and approved the Directors’ Remuneration report.
Our gender pay gap report is
available on the Company’s website
132
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Letter from the Chair
of our Remuneration Committee
Dear shareholder
On behalf of The Board, it is my pleasure to present
Beazley’s directors’ remuneration report for the year
ended 31 December 2024.
Beazley's performance in 2024
I am pleased to report that our company has achieved
outstanding results in the past fiscal year. The Group returned
exceptional profits of $1,423.5m and delivered a Return
on Equity (ROE) of 26.6%. Insurance written premiums
increased to $6,164.1m and we realised a discounted
combined ratio figure of 74.8%.
Our underwriting focuses on long-term outperformance by
actively managing markets, diversifying products and
geography, and carefully selecting risks. We emphasise
innovation and meeting commercial needs for brokers and
clients. Our agile business model achieves strong results
consistently, adapting to changing market conditions
through diversification.
Incentive out-turns
Incentive out-turns for 2024 reflect Beazley’s exceptional
annual and long-term results. The ROE performance for 2024
of 26.6% was at the top end of the range. Taking into account
the Company’s significant financial achievements, strategic
progress and the outstanding individual performance of the
executive directors, the Committee agreed that they would
be eligible for a maximum bonus out-turn of 300% of salary.
However, although some progress was made to continue
to improve the robustness of our governance and risk
frameworks during 2024, the progress fell short of our
ambitions. Therefore, the Committee considered it appropriate
to apply a negative risk adjustment of 5.0% to the Group
CEO’s bonus and 2.5% for remaining Executive Directors.
Further details are provided on page 144.
Beazley has a track record of strong financial performance.
The record levels of profitability delivered in the last two years
have resulted in net assets per share growth per annum
of 21.3% over five years and 31.6% over three years.
This sustained performance exceeds the maximum targets
for the respective LTIP awards and therefore the second
tranche of the 2020 LTIP and the first tranche of the 2022
LTIP will both vest at 100% of maximum.
As discussed last year the transition to accounting standard
IFRS 17 had a significant impact on Beazley’s financial
reporting. In line with the disclosure made last year, the
Committee has adjusted both the bonus and LTIP in order to
ensure that participants do not unduly benefit nor are unduly
penalised by the transition to IFRS 17. Further details are
provided on page 140.
The Committee is satisfied that the incentives have
operated as intended in respect of 2024 and that out-turns
are appropriately aligned with company and individual
performance. Therefore, we did not make any
further adjustments.
Group CFO transition
As disclosed last year Sally Lake stepped down as Group
Finance Director on 21 May 2024. Further details of her
departure terms, which were in line with the remuneration
policy, are set out on page 149.
Barbara Plucnar Jensen joined Beazley as Group Chief
Financial Officer on 1 May 2024 and was appointed to the
Board from 21 May 2024. Her remuneration arrangements
have been set in line with the remuneration policy and her
pension and incentive opportunities have been aligned with
Sally’s. Further details are set out on page 149.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
133
Letter from the Chair of our Remuneration Committee continued
Group CEO's salary
As part of our normal year-end cycle, the Remuneration
Committee reviews executive packages to ensure that our
senior team are appropriately remunerated. We have an
exceptional team, as demonstrated by our sustained
performance, and it is in our shareholders’ interests that our
remuneration arrangements allow us to recruit, retain and
motivate individuals of sufficient calibre to successfully deliver
Beazley’s long-term strategy.
Following this review, we identified that our Group CEO’s
salary is no longer commensurate with the size and scale of
Beazley nor an accurate reflection of his contribution to
Beazley. Therefore, the Committee has made a step change
to his salary for 2025. In making this decision the Committee
has taken into account the following:
• Individual performance. Adrian Cox was appointed Group
CEO in April 2021 having been an Executive Director at
Beazley since 2011. He is an experienced FTSE 100 CEO
with an exceptional track record which would make him
attractive to rival insurance companies globally.
• Increased scale. Under Adrian’s leadership our market
capitalisation has reached record levels of up to £5.7bn,
which has resulted in Beazley firmly establishing itself as a
constituent of the FTSE 100.
• Increased international footprint. Beazley's ambitious
strategy has led to an expanded international presence,
driven by its entry into new markets, increasing the
opportunities for Beazley as a leading specialty insurer,
navigation of diverse regulatory environment and
management of a global workforce. This expansion not only
adds to the responsibilities of the Group CEO, but also
positions Beazley in competition with other jurisdictions,
including the US, when it comes to secure top talent. While
we do not aim to match US compensation levels, we
acknowledge the need to appropriately reward our Group
CEO for his valuable contributions.
• Strong company performance. The recent exceptional
performance is reflected in the Company’s share price and
our returns to shareholders. Beazley has delivered Total
Shareholder Return (TSR) of more than 150% since Adrian’s
appointment, considerably above the returns of our closest
sector peers and the FTSE 100, whose TSR over the same
period is less than 50%.
• Market data. The Group CEO’s salary is currently positioned
very conservatively for a company of our size. Despite
Beazley being towards the top end of our comparator groups
in terms of size, the Group CEO’s salary is below the lower
quartile of our UK-listed comparator groups (made up of
companies in the FTSE 50-150). Although Beazley is larger
than both of our closest UK-listed peers and has
significantly outperformed them since Adrian’s appointment,
their CEOs’ salaries are positioned at a significant premium.
Although not a primary reference point, recognising the
different pay and governance expectations in the US, we are
also mindful that the Group CEO’s salary is below the lower
quartile of our US insurance peer group.
Taking into account Adrian’s exceptional performance and his
development into an established FTSE 100 Group CEO, the
expanding complexities of his role, and his positioning against the
market, the Committee has decided to increase his salary from
£650,000 to £800,000, effective 1 March 2025. The Committee
has a track record of approaching remuneration decisions in a
responsible way and we are not simply looking to “match the
median”. Adrian’s salary will remain below the median of our
three comparator groups and also behind our closest sector
peers. We consider this appropriate positioning, recognising that
we have a robust pay for performance culture and a significant
portion of the Group CEO’s remuneration is variable and is only
paid for exceeding stretching targets.
The Committee gave careful consideration to the concept of
phasing this salary increase, as preferred by some shareholders.
Although we recognise that phasing salary increases can be a
useful tool, particularly in the context of a promotion or to allow an
Executive to develop in their role, the Committee decided that it
would not be appropriate in this case, acknowledging that Adrian
is already an experienced and high performing Group CEO. We
believe that he should be remunerated accordingly to ensure his
retention and ongoing commitment to Beazley. During our review,
the Committee was also mindful that Adrian’s salary was
increased above the workforce rate in 2023. At the time Beazley
had just entered the FTSE 100 and a step change was necessary
to recognise the transformative changes the Group had
undergone at that point. The Committee was pleased that the
vast majority of shareholders were supportive of this approach as
demonstrated by the 2022 Remuneration Report receiving a vote
of more than 91%. The previous increase had the desired effect
of retaining and motivating Adrian, resulting in Beazley continuing
to deliver record levels of performance as seen in the last two
years. We strongly believe that a further step change to the Group
CEO’s salary is warranted to recognise Beazley’s continued
expansion and the other context set out above. Supporting
analysis including benchmarking data is provided after this letter.
Remuneration policy implementation for 2025
The Committee considers that the current implementation of
the policy continues to be appropriately aligned with the
delivery of Beazley’s long-term strategic priorities and in the
best interests of shareholders. Therefore, we are not making
any material changes to the remuneration framework for
2024. Barbara Plucnar Jensen will receive a salary increase of
2.5% which is below the rate for the wider workforce.
Remuneration policy review
Our policy is due for renewal at the 2026 AGM in accordance
with the normal three-year cycle. The Committee will take this
opportunity to undertake a detailed review of the policy during
2025 to ensure that it continues to support our long-term
strategy. I look forward to discussing the policy and any
changes with our major shareholders during the year.
2025 AGM
At the forthcoming AGM there will be an advisory vote in
respect of the directors’ remuneration report. I look forward to
your continued support of remuneration at Beazley.
Nicola Hodson
Remuneration Committee Chair
134
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Directors’ remuneration report
Remuneration in brief
Remuneration policy
The main aim of Beazley’s remuneration policy is to ensure that management and staff are remunerated fairly and in such a
manner as to facilitate the recruitment, retention and motivation of suitably qualified personnel. The Committee considers that
the policy supports our strategy and promotes the long-term success of Beazley.
The following table summarises how the Committee addressed the factors set out in the UK Corporate Governance Code when
determining the remuneration policy:
Factor
Details
Clarity
Remuneration arrangements should be
transparent and promote effective
engagement with shareholders
and the workforce.
At Beazley performance-related remuneration is an essential motivation to management
and staff and is structured to ensure that Executives’ interests are aligned with those
of our shareholders.
We operate a bonus structure that is based on Group profitability and long term performance.
A key principle is that the Committee exercises its judgement in determining individual bonus
awards. In recent years we have expanded our disclosure to provide shareholders with further
clarity on the way in which we determine awards.
Simplicity
Remuneration structures should avoid
complexity and their rationale and operation
should be easy to understand.
In determining our remuneration framework the Committee was mindful of avoiding complexity
and making arrangements easy to understand for both participants and our shareholders.
As part of last year's Policy review we simplified our approach to bonus deferral so that one-
third of any bonus is deferred into shares for three years and we also simplified the LTIP
performance period.
Risk
Remuneration arrangements should ensure
reputational and other risks from excessive
rewards, and behavioural risks that can arise
from target-based incentive plans, are
identified and mitigated.
We believe reward at Beazley is appropriately balanced in light of risk considerations.
The Committee receives an annual report from the Chief Risk Officer to ensure that our
wider remuneration policy is consistent with, and promotes, effective risk management.
Our framework has a number of features which align remuneration out-turns with risk, including
a five year time horizon on the LTIP, deferral of bonus into shares and personal shareholding
requirements which extend post departure. Further details of the link between risk and
remuneration are set out on page 148.
Predictability
The range of possible values of rewards to
individual directors and any other limits or
discretions should be identified and
explained at the time of approving the policy.
Stated in the 2022 Directors Remuneration Report are four illustrations of the application of
our remuneration policy including the key elements of remuneration: base salary, pension,
benefits and incentives. Payments at Beazley are directly aligned to the Group’s performance
and the graph and table set out on page 145 demonstrates how historic annual bonus out-
turns have reflected ROE performance.
Proportionality
The link between individual awards, the
delivery of strategy and the long-term
performance of the company should
be clear. Outcomes should not reward
poor performance.
Individual remuneration reflects Group objectives but is dependent on the profitability of the
Group and is appropriately balanced against risk considerations. Potential rewards are market-
competitive and the Committee is comfortable that the range of potential out-turns are
appropriate and reasonable.
Alignment to culture
Incentive schemes should drive behaviours
consistent with company purpose, values
and strategy.
The Remuneration Committee considers that the structure of remuneration packages supports
meritocracy, which is an important part of Beazley’s culture. All employees at Beazley are
eligible to participate in a defined contribution pension plan and a bonus plan. Bonuses are
funded by a pool approach which reflects our commitment to encourage teamwork at every
level, which is one of our key cultural strengths.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
135
Directors’ remuneration report continued
Performance in 2024
2024 was an exceptional year for Beazley. The Group achieved profit before tax of $1,423.5m (prior to the IFRS 17 adjustment
(see page 140)) and an impressive 74.8% combined ratio and strong investment results. Insurance written premiums were up
by 10.0% to $6,164.1m (2023: $5,601.4m).
Profit before tax ($) ¹
191
1,254
1,424
191
95
Pre-tax profit/(loss)
Transition adjustment
2022
2023
2024
0
150
300
450
600
750
900
1,050
1,200
1,350
1,500
1 The PBT figures stated above are on an IFRS 4 basis for 2022 and on an
IFRS 17 basis for 2023 and 2024 (including a transitional adjustment as
explained on page 140).
Return on equity (%) ¹
7
30
27
5
3
Post-tax ROE
Transition adjustment
2022
2023
2024
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
1 The ROE figures stated above are on an IFRS 4 basis for 2022 and on an
IFRS 17 basis for 2023 and 2024 (including a transitional adjustment as
explained on page 140).
Net assets per share (c) ¹
278.0
331.2
367.4
560.9
699.9
20.9
20.4
19.3
24.9
31.5
Tangible
Intangible
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
500
550
600
650
700
750
800
1 The net assets per share figures stated above are on an IFRS 4 basis for
2020 to 2022 and on an IFRS 17 basis for 2023 and 2024 (excluding the
adjustment as explained on page 140).
Share Price (p)
595.50
485.30
783.1
Share price at grant
Vesting price 783.1p
2020
award
2022
award
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
136
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Outcomes for 2024 and implementation for 2025
Overview of Policy and implementation for 2024
Overview of implementation for 2025
Base Salary
Salaries are set at a level to appropriately recognise responsibilities and to be
broadly market competitive. Salary increases generally reflect our standard
approach to all-employee salary increases across the Group.
Salaries for 2024 were as follows:
• A P Cox
£650,000
• B Plucnar Jensen
£470,000
• S M Lake
£452,100
As explained in the Letter from the Chair of the Remuneration Committee
A P Cox's salary has been increased by 23.1%. B Plucnar Jensen's salary
has been increased by 2.5%, below the rate of the wider workforce.
Salaries for 2025 are as follows:
• A P Cox
£800,000
• B Plucnar Jensen
£481,800
Benefits
Benefits include private medical insurance, lifestyle allowance and company car or
monthly car allowance.
No change to approach.
Pension
Pension allowance of up to 12.5% of salary, in-line with the rate available to the wider
UK workforce.
No change to approach.
Annual Bonus
Discretionary annual bonus determined by reference to both financial and individual
performance. The maximum bonus opportunity for Executive Directors in 2024 was
300% of salary.
Adjusted ROE for the year was 27% and adjusted profit before tax was $1,518.5m.
Both figures have been amended to take into account the transition to IFRS 17 as
explained on page 140. Bonus outcomes for 2024 were:
• A P Cox: 95% of maximum1
• B Plucnar Jensen: 97% of maximum1
• S M Lake: 81% of maximum1
33% of the award will be deferred into shares for three years. Further details are set
out on page 145.
The former GFD’s annual bonus opportunity was time pro-rated following her
departure. The new Group CFO’s annual bonus opportunity was pro-rated to reflect her
joining date.
1
The Committee has applied a risk adjustment of 5% to the Group CEO's 2024
bonus and 2.5% for the Group CFO and GFD. Further details are provided
on page 144.
No change to approach.
Long-term Incentive Plan (LTIP)
For awards made prior to 2023, 50% is subject to NAVps performance over three
years and 50% over five years. The first tranche is subject to a further two year
holding period taking the total time frame for the entire award to five years.
Awards vesting in respect of 2024:
• The first tranche of the 2022 LTIP award vested at 100% of maximum following
three year NAVps performance of 31.6% p.a.
• The second tranche of the 2020 LTIP award vested at 100% of maximum following
five year NAVps performance of 21.3% p.a.
For awards made from 2023, the performance period was simplified so that
performance for the entire award is measured over three years. A further two year
holding period remains taking the total time frame for the entire award to five years.
A portion of the LTIP is subject to measures linked to our sustainability priorities.
Further details of the LTIP structure and the performance targets are set out on pages
146 to 147.
Awards granted during the year
In 2024 Executive Directors received the following grant levels subject to NAVps and
sustainability performance conditions:
• A P Cox: 300% of salary
• B Plucnar Jensen: 250% of salary
S M Lake was not eligible for a 2024 LTIP award.
No change to approach.
In 2025, Executive Directors will receive the following grant levels subject
to NAVps and sustainability performance conditions:
• A P Cox: 300% of salary
• B Plucnar Jensen: 250% of salary
Shareholding Guidelines
Executive Directors are expected to build up and maintain a shareholding of 300% of
salary for the Group CEO and 200% of salary for the Group CFO. As at 31 December
2024 A P Cox had exceeded the guideline. B Plucnar Jensen was appointed during the
year and has made progress towards the guideline.
Executives are expected to maintain 100% of their shareholding requirement for two
years post-departure. S M Lake has met the guideline.
No change to approach.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
137
Directors’ remuneration report continued
Annual remuneration report
This part of the report, the annual remuneration report, sets out the remuneration out-turns for 2024 (and how these relate to
our performance in the year) and details of the operation of our policy for 2025.
The symbol ▪ by a heading indicates that the information in that section has been audited.
Single total figure of remuneration ▪
The tables below set out the single figure of total remuneration for Executive Directors and Non-Executive Directors for the
financial years ending 31 December 2024 and 31 December 2023.
Executive Directors
£
Fixed pay
Pay for performance
Salary
Benefits
Pension
Total fixed
pay
Total annual
bonus1
Long term
incentives
(LTI)2
Total
variable pay
Total
remuneration
Adrian P Cox
2024
650,000
12,275
81,250
743,525 1,852,500
1,232,208
3,084,708
3,828,233
2023
625,000
12,061
78,125
715,186 1,875,000
1,253,462
3,128,462
3,843,648
Barbara Plucnar
2024
313,333
98,500
27,417
439,250
916,500
n/a
916,500
1,355,750
Jensen3,5
2023
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
Sally M Lake4
2024
275,897
2,756
31,609
310,262
667,241
749,740
1,416,981
1,727,243
2023
434,700
3,161
48,779
486,640 1,173,690
595,208
1,768,898
2,255,538
1
A portion of the 2023 and 2024 bonus awards shown in the table above is deferred into shares for three years. Details of the deferral in respect of 2024 awards
can be found on page 145.
2
The LTI figures for 2024 have been calculated using the average share price in the last three months of 2024 of 783.1p. The share prices at the time LTI awards
were granted were 595.5p for the 2020 award and 485.3p for the 2022 award. The 2024 LTI figures therefore include share appreciation of £414,460 for Adrian
P Cox and £240,454 for Sally M Lake. See page 136 for further details. For 2023, the LTI figures have been restated to reflect the share price at the date of
vesting of 645.6p. The Committee did not exercise any discretion in relation to share price changes.
3
Barbara Plucnar Jensen was appointed to the Board as Group Chief Financial Officer on 21 May 2024. Figures above reflect payments made since this date.
4
Sally M Lake stepped down from her role as Group Finance Director effective 21 May 2024 and left Beazley on 9 August 2024. Figures above reflect payments
up until 9 August 2024.
5
Barbara Plucnar Jensen is receiving a relocation allowance which has been included in the benefits section. Details can be found on page 149.
Non-Executive Directors
2024
2024
Subsidiary
Board fees
2024 Total
fees
2023 Total
Fees1,2
Clive C R Bannister
325,000
0
325,000
289,583
Rajesh K Agrawal
105,000
8,788
113,788
84,088
Pierre-Olivier Desaulle3
102,712
22,983
125,695
89,962
Nicola Hodson
121,000
0
121,000
94,100
Christine LaSala6
34,569
2,839
37,408
175,063
Robert A Stuchbery4
120,000
58,618
178,618
123,773
A John Reizenstein
121,000
33,089
154,089
118,100
Fiona M Muldoon
136,000
0
136,000
93,627
Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger
120,000
0
120,000
90,200
Carolyn Johnson5
75,833
119,991
195,824
0
1
Other than for the Beazley plc Board Chair, total fees include Chairs and members of Beazley plc Committees, the role of Senior Independent Director and
Employee Voice, as well as fees, where relevant, for members of the subsidiary boards Beazley Furlonge Limited, Beazley Insurance dac, Beazley Insurance
Company, Inc., Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance, Inc. and the Chair of the Beazley Furlonge Limited Risk Committee.
2
For Christine LaSala and Pierre-Olivier Desaulle the total 2023 fees have not changed but the representation has been amended in order to be consistent with
2024. Fees are paid in multiple currencies – 2023 fees have been restated using 2024 FX rate of GBP 1 : USD 1.27 and GBP 1 : EUR 1.22.
3
Pierre-Olivier Desaulle was appointed as Senior Independent Director effective 26 April 2024. 2024 fees shown reflect this increased responsibility.
4
Robert A Stuchbery was appointed as a member of the Beazley plc Nomination Committee from 6 August 2024.
5
Carolyn Johnson was appointed a member of the Beazley plc Board from 1 March 2024, and was appointed as a member of the Risk and Nomination
Committees as of 6 August 2024.
6
Christine LaSala stepp1ed down from the Beazley plc Board at the 2024 AGM.
138
Beazley | Annual report 2024
www.beazley.com
Annual remuneration report
Salary
The Committee reviews salaries annually taking into consideration any changes in role and responsibilities, development
of the individual in the role and levels in comparable positions in similar financial service companies. It also considers the
performance of the Group and the individual as well as the average salary increase for employees across the whole Group.
Salary reviews take place annually, with new salaries effective from 1 March.
For 2025, the Group CEO received a salary increase of 23.1% as explained in the Letter from the Chair of the Remuneration
Committee. The Group CFO received a salary increase of 2.5% which is below the average salary increase across the Group.
The base salaries for the Executive Directors in 2024 and 2025 are as set out below:
2024
base salary
2025
base salary
Increase
£
£
%
Adrian P Cox
650,000
800,000
23.1
Barbara Plucnar Jensen
470,000
481,800
2.5
Sally M Lake
452,100
–
–
Benefits
Benefits include private medical insurance for the Director and their immediate family, income protection insurance, death in
service benefit at four times annual salary, lifestyle allowance, season ticket and the provision of either a company car or a
monthly car allowance.
Pension
Executive Directors receive a pension allowance of 12.5% of salary, in-line with the rate available to the majority of the
UK workforce.
Prior to 31 March 2006 the Company provided pension entitlements to Directors that are defined benefit in nature, based on
its legacy policy under the Beazley Furlonge Limited Final Salary Pension Scheme. Future service accruals ceased on 31 March
2006. Only base salary is pensionable, subject to an earnings cap. The normal retirement age for pension calculation purposes
is 60 years. A spouse’s pension is the equivalent of two-thirds of the member’s pension (before any commutation) payable on
the member’s death after retirement.
Details of the defined benefit entitlements of those who served as Directors during the year are as follows:
Accrued benefit
at 31
December
2024
Increase in
accrued
benefit
excluding
inflation (A)
Increase in
accrued
benefit
including
inflation
Transfer value of
(A) less directors
contribution
Transfer value
of accrued
benefits at 31
December
2024
Increase in
transfer value
less directors'
contribution
Normal retirement
date
£
£
£
£
£
£
Adrian P Cox
17,254
0
823
0
281,630
(24,218)
12 Mar 2031
Under the Beazley Furlonge Limited Final Salary Pension Scheme, on early retirement the Director receives a pension which is
reduced to reflect early payment in accordance with the rules of the scheme.
No other pension provisions are made.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
139
Directors’ remuneration report continued
Impact of IFRS 17 on incentives
As disclosed in detail last year, the implementation of IFRS 17
has brought significant changes in the financial reporting
landscape for insurance companies, including Beazley. One of
the major impacts of the transition to IFRS 17 is a change in
the timing of profit recognition. Beazley’s incentive plans, the
annual bonus and Long Term Incentive Plan (LTIP), both use
performance measures linked to the Company’s profit
performance and therefore are materially impacted by the
change in profit recognition.
During 2023 the Remuneration Committee gave this issue
careful consideration and in identifying a solution were guided
by the principle of fairness and ensuring that participants
are not unduly benefited nor penalised by the change.
The underlying premise of the Committee’s approach is
to recognise profits broadly when they would have originally
been recognised under the accounting standards that were
in effect when the targets were set. The Committee considers
this approach to be measured and appropriate, and were
pleased to find that all shareholders consulted with during
2023 were supportive.
Annual bonus
As discussed on page 173 in the 2023 Annual Report IFRS 17
brings in the concept of discounting insurance liabilities. As a
result, profits of c.$381.5m that would otherwise have been
recognised in future years under the prior IFRS 4 accounting
rules were accelerated to 2022 under IFRS 17. As a result
of this change, there will be a reduction to profit over 2023,
2024 and 2025 due to the unwinding of this position. As
disclosed last year the Committee agreed that accelerated
profits would be apportioned over the three respective years
so that participants are not adversely impacted.
For 2024, transitional profit of c.$95m, has been recognised
in the PBT figure used for bonus purposes. The bonus
framework otherwise operates in broadly the normal way, with
the adjustment used to determine the size of the bonus pool
and individual awards.
In-line with Beazley’s collegiate approach to reward, this
change will apply to all relevant employees including Executive
Directors. Awards for Executive Directors will continue to be
subject to the limits of the shareholder-approved remuneration
policy including the maximum cap of 300% of salary.
Details of the 2024 annual bonus awards are set out
on page 144.
LTIP
The primary measure for LTIP awards is growth in net asset
value per share (NAVps). As detailed in the 2023
Remuneration Report, the transition to IFRS 17 has led to an
increase in equity as at 31 December 2022 of c.$381.5m and
a corresponding increase to NAVps of c.57.4c. Without an
adjustment this amount would unduly benefit inflight LTIP
awards and lead to a higher vesting outcome. The Committee
agreed to strip out the increased NAVps and spread it over the
period that it would have been broadly recognised, mirroring
the approach for the bonus. For LTIP awards vesting in respect
of performance to 31 December 2024, this results in a
reduction in NAVps of 14.4c.
The Committee is comfortable that the adjustments are
reasonable to ensure that participants are only rewarded for
NAVps growth at the time it would have arisen under the
accounting standards in place when the targets were set.
Details of the vesting of the second tranche of the 2020
LTIP and the first tranche of the 2022 LTIP can be found
on page 146.
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Annual bonus structure
The annual bonus plan is a discretionary plan in which all
employees are eligible to participate. The annual bonus
is funded by a bonus pool. The pool is calculated as a
percentage of profit subject to a minimum group ROE.
The size of the pool as a percentage of profit increases
for higher levels of ROE. This ensures that outcomes are
strongly aligned with shareholders’ interests.
The operation of an annual bonus pool approach reflects
Beazley’s commitment to encourage teamwork at every level,
which, culturally, is one of its key strengths. A broad senior
management team, beyond Executive Directors, participate in
the bonus pool, reinforcing the Company’s collegiate culture.
Once the annual bonus pool has been calculated the
Committee determines individual allocations taking into
consideration corporate/strategic achievements and individual
achievements. The bonus is discretionary and, rather than
adopting a prescriptive formulaic framework, the Committee
considers wider factors in its deliberations at the end of the
year: for example quality of profit and risk considerations.
In determining awards, the Committee will not necessarily
award the bonus pool in aggregate (i.e. the sum of the bonus
awards may be less than the bonus pool).
The approach to the calculation of bonuses is aligned to
shareholders’ interests and ensures that bonuses are
affordable, while the ROE targets increase the performance
gearing. The Committee reviews the bonus pool framework
each year to ensure it remains appropriate, taking into
account the prevailing environment, interest rates and
expected investment returns, headcount and any other
relevant factors.
Annual bonus out-turn for 2024
The process for determining 2024 bonuses is described
below, including full details of the ROE targets underpinning
our bonus approach along with the guideline levels which
are used by the Committee in its determination for each
Executive Director.
Annual bonus pool calculation for 2024
At the beginning of the financial year, the risk-free return (RFR) was set at 4% taking into account the yield on US treasuries
of two to five year maturities. This resulted in the following ROE hurdles and guideline bonus awards:
ROE performance hurdles
Threshold
Maximum
ROE performance
4.0 %
7.0 %
14.0 %
21.5 %
29.0 %
Guideline/illustrative bonus award as % of maximum
0%
12.5%
37.5%
75%
100%
2024 ROE hurdles and guideline bonus awards
Guideline/illustrative bonus award as % of maximum
4.0%
7.0%
14.0%
21.5%
29.0%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
These percentages are indicative only and based on broad
corporate results. Within the pool framework bonus out-turns
may be higher or lower taking into account corporate
achievements and individual performance (see next page).
ROE for 2024, adjusted to include the transitional impact of
IFRS 17 as explained on page 140 was 27%. This adjustment
had no impact on bonus outcomes for 2024 as the
unadjusted ROE exceeded the maximum target.
When considering the annual bonus pool outcome, the
Committee takes into account the outcome of the Group’s
ROE/profit. The framework is used by the Committee as a
broad guideline rather than being formulaic and applies to a
broader group of Executives than Board Directors. A key
principle of the process is that the Committee exercises its
judgement in determining individual awards taking into
account the corporate/strategic objectives, individual’s
contribution and performance. In particular, there may be a
diverse spread of returns earned across the various divisions
within the business which will be reflected in bonus out-turns
achieved. The table therefore provides full retrospective
disclosure of all the Group financial targets and corporate/
strategic performance which the Committee considers when
determining the annual bonuses.
When determining annual bonuses an assessment against the
expectation for each element is made with reference to the
following grading system:
Expectation achieved or exceeded
Reasonable outcome against expectation
Expectation not met
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Assessment of achievements for 2024
In determining annual bonuses for 2024, the Committee took into account a range of (i) financial, (ii) strategic and (iii) individual
elements as set out below.
(i) Financial performance
Element
Achievement
Combined ratio (discounted)
75%
Insurance written premiums growth
Increased by 10%
Expense management
Excluding remuneration, actual expenses were materially maintained
at that budgeted for the year
Profit before tax
$1,423.5m profit before tax (excluding IFRS 17 adjustment)
Net assets per share growth
NAVps growth of 25%
Investment performance (portfolio return)
5.2% portfolio return
(ii) Strategic performance
Element
Expectation
Achievement
Responsible
business
Create and publish our climate risk strategy for
underwriting, setting out how we will further
develop our approach to climate-risk related.
The climate risk strategy for underwriting has been updated in
2024. The updated strategy created a structured climate risk
approach, covering developing robust risk assessment,
embedding climate risk into underwriting, stakeholder
engagement, governance and regulatory compliance, and
training and education. In 2025, the climate risk strategy for
underwriting will be combined with the climate risk strategy for
investment to create a climate risk strategy that covers both
underwriting and investment.
Launch our new charity and community
programmes for the business, as enshrined
within our social impact strategy.
The Board approved the proposal at the end of 2024 to
launch and create the Beazley foundation. We are aiming for
this to launch in Q1/Q2 2025.
Clearly define how our insurance products can
support the transition to net zero, to
demonstrate how Beazley can support our
insureds in the transition to net zero.
We undertook an initial appraisal of the transition related risks
and opportunities for the business. The outcome of this
analysis identified where we have products which already
support the transition, as well as potential product
development ideas for the future.
Ensure the reporting processes are in place
to facilitate future CSRD reporting, with a key
focus on onboarding appropriate tooling,
developing controls and processes,
and finalising data collection methods.
CSRD reporting preparation for potential BIDAC / BSIL
reporting. A reporting provider has been onboarded, and a dry
run report is being prepared for pre-assurance. The SteerCo
overseeing the project is chaired by the Group CFO.
Medium term plan
Deliver final phase of medium term
business plan.
Deliverables for 2024 achieved and have been presented and
approved by the plc board.
Wholesale
platforms
Increase profitable growth across Wholesale
platforms in London, Asia Pac and Miami.
Our Wholesale platform grew 4%.
North American
growth
Achieve profitable growth in the US and Canada.
Our North American platform grew 19%.
European growth
Achieve profitable growth in Europe.
Our European platform grew 10%.
Governance
Implement new governance model
structure platform.
Completed three platform governance.
Culture and
people
Sustain high levels of employee engagement
and inclusivity within the business.
Employee engagement decreased by 1% to 85% compared to
2023. We remain on track to meet our 2028 diversity goals.
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(iii) Individual performance
While a number of the specific individual objectives of the Executive Directors are considered commercially sensitive, the
following provides details of Executive Director achievements which the Committee took into account.
Adrian Cox
(Group Chief
Executive Officer)
Deliver 2024 underwriting
business plan, IFRS17 budget
and provide leadership for the
modernisation programme.
• Premium growth of 10%.
• Discounted combined ratio for 2024 of 75%.
• Several modernisation deliveries landed in 2024 with benefits.
accruing in year and significant additional benefits planned on being
realised in 2025 and 2026.
Execute on medium term plan and
development into the business strategy.
• Embedded in three year strategy and socialised with the plc board
in December.
Develop a new cyber systemic scenario
and compare/contrast at least one of
our current ones to the other peer
insurers & models in the market.
• The Beazley, Munich Re and AJG new scenario is published and in the
market. We have done comparisons to various Beazley and other
scenarios, including 3rd party modellers (cybercube). In addition it
was used as an alternative view of risk when setting risk appetites
for 2025 and updating our probabilistic model.
Establish a new three year sustainability
strategy which aligns with the group
vision and mission with clear objectives
and milestones.
• Presented and approved by the plc board in March 2024.
Deliver Board and management
governance refresh across boards,
executive and sub-committees.
• Although some progress has been made to improve the robustness
of our governance and risk frameworks during 2024, the progress
fell short of our ambitions.
Successfully recruit and onboard the
new Group CFO.
• Group CFO has been integrated into Beazley and the wider
executive committee.
Executive
Objectives
Achievement
Barbara Plucnar
Jensen (Group
Chief Financial
Officer)
Complete the organisational design for
Finance, improve efficiency, and ensure the
right roles are filled with the best talent.
• New management team structure in place. Successfully enabled
process improvements that drive collaboration across finance and
lead to much smoother and higher quality results.
Strengthen the Equity story including
smooth reporting to the markets
(process and products), strengthened
interaction with analysts and Investors
with a clear plan for 2025.
• Proactively engaged with shareholders and sell side analysts
with feedback obtained on the equity story and approach
to communications with a view to strengthening these areas
on an ongoing basis.
• Proactive communication was demonstrated by the managing of the
CrowdStrike event including a timely update to the market on the
impact. Additionally, the annual capital markets session focussed
on systemic cyber education which was a notable topic during market
feedback sessions.
Improve process around
financial reporting.
• Ongoing financial reporting process improvements progressed using
Workiva and Alteryx. Good progress made towards the general ledger
migration to Workday, targeting Q2 2025.
Entity structure – align the Finance
function to the three-platform model.
• CFO’s in place for all three platforms with work underway on a central
support function to support delivery of platform requirements.
Expense management – improved
process enables the organisation
to better manage expenses.
• Several expenses initiatives in place including change funding model
and procure to pay, further enhancements will continue with delivery
of modernisation and target operating model.
Forecasting – improve current
forecasting including:
• Improve short term planning and align
to mid and long-term plans.
• Enhance the interaction with LOBs
including better reporting, tracking
and phasing.
• Multi year integrated planning framework continues to role out with
the successful launch of annual planning technology. Mid term plan
development successful in 2024.
• Enhance reporting from both the MI suite for premiums and GAAP
analytics from the planning framework have been implemented in
2024. Clear links between business planning and GAAP reporting
have been enhanced.
Co-chair the Modernisation committee
with COO – focus on benefit tracker,
accountability with relevant owners
and inclusion in Forecast and
Midterm planning.
• The mechanisms for benefits tracking, measurement and realisation
are now well embedded.
• Benefits realisation is owned within the relevant teams and is built
into current forecasts and budgets.
• Future benefits are being incorporated into medium term plans.
Executive
Objectives
Achievement
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Executive
Objectives
Achievement
Sally Lake
(Group Finance
Director)
Ensure the timely and accurate
production of the 2023 year-end
metrics, KPIs, R&A and other reporting
deliverables in compliance with IFRS
17 standards.
• Delivered 2023 annual report, first under IFRS 17.
• Created new KPIs to manage IFRS 17 result.
• Accurate communication of IFRS 17 impacts and results.
Complete IFRS 17 implementation,
ensure the capabilities to support
analysis and forecasting are in place.
• Implementation of IFRS 17 budgeting and forecasting into strategic
architecture remained outstanding at point of departure.
Develop a new organisational and
governance model for the finance
function that aligns with the group
strategy and prepares for the
transition to the new Group CFO
at the group level.
• All Board positions handed over.
• Group CFO to continue work on team structure.
Complete the modernisation benefits
assessment and ensure finance
team's contribution to the 2024
annual modernisation plan includes
relevant, quantifiable KPIs that enable
effective monitoring and evaluation
at the steering group and
executive levels.
• Modernisation benefits and monitoring have been clearly defined with
KPIs and OKRs are shared with the Steering Group and Executive
Committee.
Annual bonus awards outcomes for 2024
Taking into account the financial, strategic and individual performance set out above, the Committee determined that Executive
Directors would receive the following bonuses for 2024.
In its assessment of the overall bonus out-turns in the year, the Remuneration Committee considered performance against risk
objectives. Whilst some progress was made against these objectives in 2024, it was concluded that further work was required
to continue to improve the robustness of our risk and governance frameworks. As a result, and to demonstrate the importance
of our risk environment and continued improvement, the Committee considered it appropriate to apply a downwards adjustment
of 5% for Group CEO’s bonus and 2.5% for remaining Executive Directors.
% of maximum
% of salary
Bonus value
Adrian P Cox
95%
285%
£1,852,500
Barbara Plucnar Jensen1
97%
292%
£916,5002
Sally M Lake (former GFD)1
81%
242%
£667,2412
1
Barbara Plucnar Jensen was appointed to the Board as Group Chief Financial Officer on 21 May 2024. Her annual bonus opportunity was time pro-rated to
reflect her joining date. Sally M Lake stepped down from her role as Group Finance Director effective 21 May 2024. Her annual bonus opportunity was time
pro-rated following her departure on 9 August 2024.
2
Bonus value has been adjusted to take into account pro-ration for period of time worked during the year.
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The following graph and table illustrates the way in which bonuses over time reflect profit and ROE performance.
Post-tax ROE
Average Executive Director bonus as a
percentage of maximum¹
Average Executive Director bonus vs ROE performance
-5%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
0%
25%
50%
75%
100%
1
The maximum bonus opportunity for Executive Directors was reduced from 400% to 300% of salary from 2023.
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
20231
20241
Pre-tax profit/ (loss)
$284m
$293m
$168m
$76m $268m ($50m) $369m $191m $1,445m $1,518m
Post-tax ROE
19%
18%
9%
5%
15%
(3%)
16%
7%
35%
27%
Average Executive
Director bonus as a
percentage of salary
c.291%
c.272%
c.150%
c.73%
c.212%
c.0%
c.300%
c.150%
c.288%
c. 277%
1
The 2023 and 2024 profit and ROE figures have been calculated on an IFRS 17 basis including the transitional adjustment as explained on page 140.
Bonus deferral
A portion of the bonus will generally be deferred into shares for three years. From 2023 the deferral rate has been set at 33%
of the bonus. Deferred shares are generally subject to continued employment.
A portion of bonus may also be deferred under the investment in underwriting plan, and this capital can be lost if underwriting
performance is poor (see investment in underwriting section on page 148 for further details).
The following table sets out the deferred bonus awards made during 2024 in respect of the bonus for 2023:
Individual
Type of interest
Basis on which
award is made
Number of shares
awarded
Face value of
shares (£)1
% vesting at
threshold
Adrian P Cox
Deferred shares
Deferred bonus
95,387
£618,750
n/a
Sally M Lake
Deferred shares
Deferred bonus
59,709
£387,318
n/a
1
The face value of shares awarded was calculated using the three day average share price prior to grant, which was 648.67p.
Annual bonus approach for 2025
The annual bonus for 2025 will continue to operate within a broadly similar framework as in previous years, with awards dependent
on a profit pool and minimum level of ROE performance and taking into account individual performance and achievements.
As explained on page 140, the Committee’s intention is that ROE for 2025 will be adjusted to include the transitional impact
of IFRS 17. The overall bonus pool (in which Executive Directors as well as other senior employees participate) will be
calculated based on this adjusted figure.
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Annual remuneration report continued
Long term incentive plan (LTIP)
Under the LTIP Executive Directors, senior management and selected underwriters receive awards of shares subject to the
achievement of stretching performance conditions.
LTIP structure for awards granted prior to 2023
For awards granted prior to 2023 vesting is based on growth in net asset value per share (NAVps), one of Beazley’s key
performance indicators. NAVps performance is assessed equally over a three year and five year period. In accordance with the
UK Corporate Governance Code the first tranche of LTIP awards is subject to a further two year holding period, taking the total
time frame for the entire award to five years.
The NAVps performance conditions for all outstanding awards are as follows:
NAVps performance
% of award
vesting
NAVps growth < risk-free rate +7.5% p.a.
0%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +7.5% p.a.
10%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +10% p.a.
25%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +15% p.a.
100%
Growth in NAVps is calculated taking into account any payment of dividends by the Company. In line with our reporting to
shareholders, NAVps is denominated in US dollars.
LTIP out-turns in respect of 2024
The LTIP awards shown in the single total figure of remuneration for 2024 include:
• the second tranche of awards granted on 11 February 2020. These will vest at 100%, based on the achievement of the
NAVps growth performance condition over the five years ended 31 December 2024; and
• the first tranche of awards granted on 15 February 2022. These will vest at 100%, based on the achievement of the NAVps
growth performance condition over the three years ended 31 December 2024.
The following table summarises the actual NAVps growth (including the transitional impact of IFRS 17 as explained on page
140) achieved over the two performance periods and the resultant vesting levels:
LTIP award
Performance period
NAVps growth
% of award vesting
Second tranche of the 2020 awards
Five years ended 31
December 2024
21.3% p.a.
100%
First tranche of the 2022 awards
Three years ended 31
December 2024
31.6% p.a.
100%
The results were independently calculated by Deloitte LLP. The Committee is comfortable that Executives have not unduly
benefited from windfall gains in respect of their LTIP awards. In particular the Committee noted that the 2020 awards were
granted prior to the fall in share price resulting from the outbreak of COVID-19.
LTIP structure for awards granted from 2023
The LTIP is an important tool in the remuneration framework for incentivising participants and aligning their interests with those
of our shareholders. As explained last year, as part of the 2024 Remuneration Policy renewal the Committee made a number of
refinements to improve the effectiveness of the LTIP structure and to reflect evolving market practice.
The key features of the plan for awards granted from 2024 are as follows:
• Performance is measured after three years.
• Awards are subject to a further two year holding period taking the total time frame to five years.
• Vesting is based on growth in net asset value per share (NAVps) and the delivery of our sustainability priorities.
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LTIP awards granted in 2024
During 2024, LTIP awards with a face value equal to 300% of salary for the Group CEO and 250% of salary for the Group
CFO were granted. These awards are subject to NAVps (250% of salary and 200% of salary respectively) and sustainability
performance (50% of salary) as set out below:
Individual
Type of interest
Basis on which award
is made
Number of
shares
awarded
Face value of
shares (£)1
% vesting at
threshold
Performance period
end
Adrian P Cox
Nil cost option (LTIP)
300% of salary 300,615
£1,950,000
10%
31/12/2026
Barbara Plucnar
Jensen
Nil cost option (LTIP)
250% of salary 178,075
£1,175,000
10%
31/12/2026
1
The face value of shares awarded was calculated using the three day average share price prior to grant, which was 648.67p for the award granted to Adrian P
Cox, and 659.83p for the award granted to Barbara Plucnar Jensen.
NAVps performance
% of award vesting
NAVps growth < risk-free rate +7.5%
0%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +7.5%
10%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +10%
25%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +15%
100%
Sustainability target
Weighting
(of sustainability
element)
Threshold
(10% of max)
Max
Reduce carbon emissions (Scope 1 & 2) relative to 2022 baseline
One third
20%
30%
Maintain gender balance representation at Board and Senior Manager level
One third
45%
45%
Increase People of Colour representation at a group level
One third
30%
32%
LTIP awards to be granted in 2025
LTIP awards for 2025 will be operated on a similar basis as the 2024 awards. The Group CEO will be granted an LTIP award
with a face value equal to 300% of salary, whilst the Group CFO will be granted an LTIP award with a face value equal to 250%
of salary. 2025 LTIP awards will be subject to the NAVps and sustainability performance conditions set out below.
NAVps performance
% of award vesting
NAVps growth < risk-free rate +7.5%
0%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +7.5%
10%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +10%
25%
NAVps growth = risk-free rate +15%
100%
Sustainability target
Weighting
(of sustainability
element)
Threshold
(10% of max)
Max
Achieve 2027 transition plan trajectory relating to Scope 1 & 2 emissions
(tCO2e)1
One third
786
730
Maintain gender balance representation at Board and Senior Leadership level
One third
45%
45%
Ensure that the make-up of our workforce reflects the communities we are
based in
One third
30%
32%
1
See pages 57 and 58 for further details.
We understand that we and the business world are on a complex journey. Whilst we believe that the above metrics are the most
appropriate metrics for the LTIP at this time, we acknowledge that our sustainability strategy will evolve over time, and we
intend to employ alternative metrics in the future where appropriate and relevant given our priorities.
Dilution
The share plans permit 10% of the Company’s issued share capital to be issued pursuant to awards under the LTIP, SAYE and
option plan in a 10-year period. The Company adheres to a dilution limit of 5% in a 10 year period for executive schemes.
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Investment in underwriting
Traditionally, Lloyd’s underwriters contributed their personal
capital to syndicates in which they worked. With the move
to corporate provision of capital, individual membership of
Lloyd’s has declined significantly. The Committee feels that
having personal capital at risk in the syndicate is an important
part of the remuneration policy and provides a healthy
counterbalance to incentivisation through bonuses and long
term incentive awards. The Company has operated the
Beazley staff underwriting plan for this purpose since 2004
and Executive Directors and other selected staff are invited
to participate through bonus deferral with an element
of their cash incentives ‘at risk’ as capital commitments.
These capital commitments can be lost in full if underwriting
performance is poor.
The Group funds the capital for the plan. The individual capital
commitment is then funded through individual’s bonus
deferral. The aim is for individuals to fund their capital within
three years.
To date over 420 employees of the Group have committed to
put at risk £15.5m of bonuses to the underwriting results of
syndicate 623. Of the total at risk, £15.3m has already been
deferred from the bonuses awarded.
The following Executive Directors participated in syndicate 623 through Beazley Staff Underwriting Limited:
Total bonuses deferred
£
2023 year of accounting
underwriting capacity
2024 year of accounting
underwriting capacity
2025 year of accounting
underwriting capacity
Adrian P Cox
188,400
400,000
400,000
500,000
Sally M Lake
105,000
250,000
0
0
Barbara Plucnar Jensen
53,000
0
0
200,000
All Executive Directors have fully funded their capital requirement.
Malus and clawback
Recovery provisions (malus and clawback) have applied to incentives for a number of years. Further detail on the recovery
provisions, including the circumstances and timeframe for which they can be applied are set out in the remuneration policy.
Risk and reward at Beazley
The Committee regularly reviews developing remuneration governance in the context of Solvency II remuneration guidance, other
corporate governance developments and institutional shareholders’ guidance. The Chief Risk Officer reports annually to the
Remuneration Committee on risk and remuneration as part of the regular agenda. The Committee believes the Group is
adopting an approach which is consistent with, and takes account of, the risk profile of the Group.
We believe reward at Beazley is appropriately balanced in light of risk considerations, particularly taking into account the
following features:
Features aligned with risk considerations
Share deferral
33% of the bonus is normally deferred into shares for three years. These deferred shares, together with
shares awarded under the LTIP, mean that a significant portion of total remuneration is delivered in the
form of shares deferred for a period of years.
LTIP holding period
Until 2023, LTIP awards vested over a five year period. From 2023 LTIP awards vest over a three-year
period. Any awards which have a performance period of less than five years are subject to an additional
holding period, following the date on which the award vests, up to the fifth year of the award.
Shareholding requirements
Executive Directors are expected to build up and maintain a shareholding of 300% of salary for the Group
CEO and 200% of salary for the Group CFO. Executive Directors are also expected to maintain a
shareholding post-departure.
Investment in underwriting
Management and underwriters may defer part of their bonuses into the Beazley staff underwriting plan,
providing alignment with capital providers. Capital commitments can be lost if underwriting performance
is poor.
Underwriters remuneration
aligned with profit received
Under the profit related bonus plan payments are aligned with the timing of profits achieved on the account.
For long tail accounts this may be in excess of six years. If the account deteriorates then payouts are
‘clawed back’ through adjustments to future payments. Since 2012 profit related pay plans may be at risk
of forfeiture or reduction if, in the opinion of the Remuneration Committee, there has been a serious
regulatory breach by the underwriter concerned, including in relation to the Group’s policy on conduct risk.
Malus and clawback provisions
Malus and clawback provisions apply to all incentives that Executive Directors participate in.
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Leaving arrangements for Sally Lake
Sally M Lake stepped down from the Board and her role as Group Finance Director on 21 May 2024. As disclosed last year
Sally was treated as a ‘good leaver’ for the purposes of her incentives. She remained eligible for a pro-rated annual bonus in
respect of 2024 and her outstanding LTIP and deferred bonus awards will subsist to their normal release/vesting date subject
to time and performance pro-rating where applicable. Sally M Lake is subject to our post-employment shareholding guidelines
for a period of two years.
Joining arrangements for Barbara Plucnar Jensen
Barbara Plucnar Jensen joined Beazley on 1 May 2024 as Group Chief Financial Officer and was appointed to the Board from 21
May 2024. Barbara’s joining arrangements were set in line with the Directors’ Remuneration Policy. Her salary was set at
£470,000 and she is eligible for typical benefits including pension allowance of 12.5% of salary, in-line with the rate available
to the wider UK workforce. Barbara’s incentives opportunities have been set in line with her predecessor and she will be eligible
for a maximum annual bonus of 300% of salary and a normal LTIP award of 250% of salary. Additionally, in line with the
Remuneration Policy, Beazley will pay reasonable costs to support Barbara’s relocation to the UK for a maximum period of two
years. She will receive a gross allowance of up to £150,000 per annum which will be paid in monthly instalments over the
course of this two year period.
Service contracts and payments for loss of office
No loss of office payments have been made in the year.
There is no unexpired term as each of the Executive Directors’ contracts is on a rolling basis.
Non-Executive Directors’ fees
Clive C R Bannister took up the role of Chair of the Board following the AGM on 25 April 2023. Clive C R Bannister's fee as
Chair of the Board was set at £325,000 until 2026, however this has been reviewed one year earlier to ensure the fees remain
competitive and do not fall out of line with market rates.
The fees of Non-Executive Directors are determined by the Board and are reviewed annually. When setting fee levels,
consideration is given to levels in comparable companies for comparable services and also to the time commitment and
responsibilities of the individual Non-Executive Director. No Non-Executive Director is involved in the determination of their fees.
Details of the Non-Executive Directors’ fees payable for the plc Board responsibilities are set out below (the fee for the Chair of
the Board is inclusive of subsidiary fees):
2025 fee
2024 fee
Chair of Board fee
£333,100
£325,000
Basic fee
£77,900
£76,000
Senior Independent Director fee
£17,400
£17,000
Chair of Audit Committee
£30,800
£30,000
Chair of Risk Committee
£30,800
£30,000
Chair of Remuneration Committee fee
£30,800
£30,000
Membership fee for Non-Executive Directors on the Audit Committee
£15,400
£15,000
Membership fee for Non-Executive Directors on the Risk Committee
£15,400
£15,000
Membership fee for Non-Executive Directors on the Remuneration Committee
£14,400
£14,000
Fee for designated Non-Executive Director representing employee voice
£15,400
£15,000
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Annual remuneration report continued
Beazley operates across Lloyd’s, Europe and the US markets through a variety of legal entities and structures. Non-Executive
Directors, in addition to the plc Board, typically sit on either one of our key subsidiary Boards, namely Beazley Furlonge Ltd,
our managing agency at Lloyd’s, or Beazley Insurance dac, our Irish insurance company. Non-Executive Directors may receive
additional fees for sitting on subsidiary Boards. As a result of developments in regulation, the degree of autonomy in the
operation of each Board has increased in recent years, with a consequent increase in time commitment and scope of the role.
No Non-Executive Director participates in the Group’s incentive arrangements or pension plan.
Non-Executive Directors are appointed for fixed terms, normally for three years, and may be reappointed for future terms.
Non-Executive Directors are typically appointed through a selection process that assesses whether the candidate brings the
desired competencies and skills to the Group. The Board has identified several key competencies for Non-Executive Directors
to complement the existing skill-set of the Executive Directors. These competencies may include:
• insurance sector expertise;
• asset management skills;
• public company and corporate governance experience;
• risk management skills;
• finance skills; and
• IT and operations skills.
Non-Executive Directors’ service contracts
Details of the Non-Executive Directors’ terms of appointment are set out below:
Commencement of employment
AGM expiry year
Clive C R Bannister
8 Feb 2023
2026
Christine LaSala
1 Jul 2016
20244
Robert A Stuchbery
11 Aug 2016
20251
A John Reizenstein
10 Apr 2019
20252
Nicola Hodson
10 Apr 2019
20252
Rajesh K Agrawal
1 Aug 2021
2027
Pierre-Olivier Desaulle
1 Jan 2021
20252
Fiona M Muldoon
31 May 2022
20253
Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger
31 May 2022
20253
Carolyn Johnson
1 Mar 2024
2027
1 At the 2025 AGM it will be proposed to shareholders to extend to 2026 AGM.
2 At the 2025 AGM it will be proposed to shareholders to extend to 2026 AGM, subject to annual renewal thereafter.
3 At the 2025 AGM it will be proposed to shareholders to extend to 2028 AGM.
4 At the 2024 AGM Christine LaSala stepped down from the plc Board.
The standard approach for Non-Executive Director appointments is that the appointment expires at the AGM following the end
of a three year term, notwithstanding the fact that each Non-Executive Director is subject to annual re-election at each AGM.
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Approach to remuneration for employees other than directors
The Committee also has oversight of remuneration arrangements elsewhere in the Group. The following tables set out the
additional incentive arrangements for other staff within the organisation.
Other incentive arrangements at Beazley (not applicable to Executive Directors):
Element
Objective
Summary
Profit related pay plan
To align underwriters’ reward with the
profitability of their account.
Profit on the relevant underwriting account as
measured at three years and later.
Support bonus plan
To align staff bonuses with individual
performance and achievement of objectives.
Participation is limited to staff members not on the
executive or in receipt of profit related pay bonus.
The support bonus pool may be enhanced by a
contribution from the enterprise bonus pool.
Retention shares
To retain key staff.
Used in certain circumstances. Full vesting
dependent on continued employment over six years.
Underwriter bonus plan – profit related pay plan
Underwriters participate in a profit related pay plan based upon the profitability of their underwriting account. Executive Directors
do not participate in this plan.
The objective of the plan is to align the interests of the Group and the individual through aligning an underwriter’s reward
to the long term profitability of their portfolio. Underwriters who have significant influence over a portfolio may be offered
awards under the plan. There is no automatic eligibility. Profit related pay is awarded irrespective of the results of the Group.
Awards are capped.
This bonus is awarded as cash and is based upon a fixed proportion of profit achieved on the relevant underwriting account as
measured at three years and later. Any movements in prior years are reflected in future year payments as the account develops
after three years. For long-tail accounts, the class is still relatively immature at the three-year stage and therefore payments will
be modest. Underwriters may receive further payouts in years four, five and six (and even later) as the account matures.
Therefore each year they could be receiving payouts in relation to multiple underwriting years.
If the account deteriorates as it develops any payouts are ‘clawed back’ through reductions in future profit related pay bonuses.
From 2012 onwards any new profit related pay plans may be at risk of forfeiture or reduction if, in the opinion of the
Remuneration Committee, there has been a serious regulatory breach by the underwriter concerned, including in relation to the
Group’s policy on conduct risk. The Remuneration Committee also have oversight for all material risk takers who participate in
the profit related pay plan.
The fixed proportion is calculated based upon profit targets which are set through the business planning process and reviewed
by a Committee formed of Executive Committee members and functional specialists including the Group actuary. Underwriting
risk is taken into account when setting profit targets.
In addition to profit related pay, underwriters are also eligible to receive a discretionary bonus, based upon performance, from
the enterprise bonus pool. A proportion of this bonus may be paid in deferred shares, which vest after three years subject to
continued employment.
Support bonus plan
Employees who are not members of the Executive and who do not participate in the underwriters’ profit related pay plan
participate in a discretionary bonus pool. This pool provides employees with a discretionary award of an annual performance
bonus that reflects overall individual performance including meeting annual objectives.
A proportion of this award may also be dependent on the Group’s ROE and therefore allocated from the enterprise bonus pool.
A proportion of this bonus may be paid in deferred shares, which vest after three years subject to continued employment.
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Directors’ remuneration report continued
Annual remuneration report continued
UK SAYE
The Company operates an HMRC-approved SAYE scheme for the benefit of UK-based employees. The scheme offers a three-
year savings contract period with options being offered at a 20% discount to the share price on grant. Monthly contributions are
made through a payroll deduction on behalf of participating employees. The UK SAYE scheme has been extended to eligible
employees in Singapore, Ireland, Canada, France, Germany and Spain. The Irish SAYE scheme has been approved by the Irish
Revenue. However due to changes in Irish regulations in 2021 it was no longer possible to offer an Irish tax approved SAYE
plan. Instead, eligible Irish employees were invited to participate in the international SAYE plan offering on a non-tax approved
basis. The updated SAYE plan rules were approved at the 2022 AGM.
US SAYE
The Beazley plc savings-related share option plan for US employees permits all eligible US-based employees to purchase shares
of Beazley plc at a discount of up to 15% to the shares’ fair market value. Participants may exercise options after a two-year
period. The plan is compliant with the terms of section 423 of the US Internal Revenue Code and is similar to the SAYE scheme
operated for UK-based Beazley employees.
UK SIP
The Company operates an HMRC-approved SIP scheme for the benefit of UK-based employees. The scheme enables employees
to make contributions from salary over a ten-month period. Monthly contributions are made through a payroll deduction on
behalf of participating employees. At the end of the ten-month period employee contributions are used to buy Beazley plc
shares, and employees will receive a free matching share for every Beazley plc share they buy. Continuing to hold shares in the
scheme for five years offers significant tax benefits, including exemptions from Income Tax and National Insurance.
International SIP
The Company operates an International SIP scheme for the benefit of International-based employees. The scheme enables
employees to make contributions from salary over a ten-month period. Monthly contributions are made through a payroll
deduction on behalf of participating employees. At the end of the ten-month period employee contributions are used to buy
Beazley plc shares, and employees will receive a free matching share for every Beazley plc share they buy.
Retention shares
The retention plan may be used for recruitment or retention purposes. Any awards vest at 25% per annum over years three to
six. In line with policy, existing Executive Directors do not participate in this plan and no Executive Directors have subsisting
legacy awards outstanding.
Annual percentage change in remuneration of Directors and employees
Executive Directors
All employees
Adrian P Cox1
Sally M Lake
Barbara Plucnar
Jensen
2023-2024
Salary
4.9
4.0
4.0
–
Benefits
9.9
3.7
9.3
–
Bonus
9.0
-1.2
-6.1
–
2022 -2023
Salary
7.6
19.0
5.0
–
Benefits
16.4
5.6
6.2
–
Bonus
167.1
138.0
89.0
–
2021 -2022
Salary
4.5
3.5
3.5
–
Benefits
11.3
8.8
5.8
–
Bonus
-3.5
-45.4
-46.9
–
2020 -2021
Salary
3.2
23.2
11.4
–
Benefits
11.1
22.1
9.5
–
Bonus
119.3
n/a
n/a
–
2019 -2020
Salary
3.5
2.6
2.9
–
Benefits
-12.8
-7.2
15.4
–
Bonus
-30.5
-100
-100
–
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Non-Executive Directors
Clive C R
Bannister²
Christine
LaSala3,10
Robert A
Stuchbery4,8
A John
Reizenstein9
Nicola
Hodson
Pierre-Olivier
Desaulle11
Rajesh K
Agrawal5
Cecilia
Reyes
Leuzinger6
Fiona M
Muldoon7,8
Carolyn
Johnson12
2023
-2024
Salary
–
3.1
37.9
32.6
28.6
45.8
26.4
33.0
31.1
–
Benefits
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
Bonus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
2022
-2023
Salary
-
-62.5
5.7
10.3
2.2
2.0
13.8
13.9
30.9
–
Benefits
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
–
Bonus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
–
2021
-2022
Salary
–
31.7
8.0
5.9
8.0
14.1
12.2
–
–
–
Benefits
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
–
Bonus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
–
2020
-2021
Salary
–
8.7
3.5
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Benefits
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
–
Bonus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
–
2019
-2020
Salary
–
40.0
16.6
2.5
2.5
–
–
–
–
–
Benefits
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
–
Bonus
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
–
Note: Salary and bonus are compared against all employees of the Group. Benefits and pension are compared against all UK employees, reflecting the Group’s
policy that benefits are provided by reference to local market levels.
During the period shown above a number of the Non-Executive Directors have joined additional Board Committees and taken on interim responsibilities and therefore
received additional fees. Therefore, for these Non-Executive Directors, the year-on-year comparisons reflect their additional responsibilities and corresponding fees.
1
Adrian received a salary increase above the wider workforce with effect from 1 January 2023 to bring in line with comparator groups.
2
Clive C R Bannister was appointed a member of the Beazley plc Board from 8 February 2023 and Chair of the Beazley plc Board and Nomination Committee upon
conclusion of the AGM 2023.
3
Christine LaSala acted as interim Chair of the Beazley plc Board and Chair of the Nomination Committee from 24 October 2022 until 30 April 2023, returning to
Senior Independent Director and member of the Remuneration Committee from 1 May 2023. Christine LaSala also stepped down from the Beazley Furlonge
Limited Board on 18 December 2023.
4
Robert A Stuchbery acted as interim Senior Independent Director from 24 October 2022 until 30 April 2023, and stepped down as the Beazley plc Risk Chair on
28 September 2023. Robert A Stuchbery was appointed Chair of the Beazley Furlonge Limited Board on 18 December 2023.
5
Rajesh K Agrawal joined as a Non-Executive Director of the Remuneration Committee with effect from 26 April 2022 and a Non-Executive Director of the Beazley
Insurance Company, Inc Board with effect 5 September 2023.
6
Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger joined as a Non-Executive Director of the Beazley plc Board, Audit & Risk Committee and Remuneration Committee with effect from
31 May 2022.
7
Fiona M Muldoon joined as a Non-Executive Director of the Beazley plc Board and Audit & Risk Committee with effect from 31 May 2022, and became
Chair of the Risk Committee on 29 September 2023.
8
With effect from 24 October 2022 Robert A Stuchbery stepped down as employee voice of the Beazley plc Board and Fiona M Muldoon took on the role.
9
John A Reizenstein stepped down as Beazley Furlonge Limited Audit Chair with effect from 28 October 2024.
10 Christine LaSala stepped down from the Beazley plc Board at the 2024 AGM.
11 Pierre-Olivier Desaulle took on the role of Senior Independent Director, effective 25 April 2024.
12 Carolyn Johnson joined the Beazley plc Board on 1 March 2024.
Statement of Directors’ shareholdings and share interests
For the year ending 31 December 2024, the Group CEO had a shareholding requirement of 300% of salary and exceeded this
shareholding guideline. Both Sally M Lake and Barbara Plucnar Jensen have a shareholding requirement of 200% of salary. At
departure from Beazley Sally M Lake had met the shareholding guideline. Barbara Plucnar Jensen is yet to meet the guideline
as she was appointed during the year (see chart below).
Shareholding versus holding requirement
1426%
245%
Actual holding
Holding requirement
A Cox
S Lake
B Plucnar
Jensen
0%
300%
600%
900%
1200%
1500%
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
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Directors’ remuneration report continued
Annual remuneration report continued
The table below shows the total number of Directors’ interests in shares as at 31 December 2024 or date of cessation
as a director. As at 4 March 2025, there have been no changes.
Name
Number of
shares owned
(including by
connected
persons)
Conditional
shares not
subject to
performance
conditions
(deferred shares
and retention
shares)
Nil cost options
subject to
performance
conditions (LTIP
awards)
Options over
shares subject
to savings
contracts (SAYE)
Unexercised nil
cost options
Options
exercised in the
year
Adrian P Cox
1,183,790
216,826
1,160,129
0
148,105
55,865
Barbara Plucnar Jensen
0
0
178,075
0
0
0
Sally M Lake
141,568
157,499
346,853
0
82,385
24,872
Clive C R Bannister
138,000
0
0
0
0
0
Rajesh K Agrawal
23,000
0
0
0
0
0
Pierre-Olivier Desaulle
27,464
0
0
0
0
0
Nicola Hodson
1,824
0
0
0
0
0
Christine LaSala
53,085
0
0
0
0
0
A John Reizenstein
21,251
0
0
0
0
0
Robert A Stuchbery
97,578
0
0
0
0
0
Fiona M Muldoon
10,000
0
0
0
0
0
Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger
26,086
0
0
0
0
0
Carolyn Johnson
0
0
0
0
0
0
Group CEO Pay versus performance
The following graph sets out Beazley’s 10 year total shareholder return performance to 31 December 2024, compared with the
FTSE All Share and FTSE 350 Non-Life Insurance indices. These indices were chosen as comparators as they comprise
companies listed on the same exchange and, in the case of the Non-Life Insurance index, the same sector as Beazley.
Value of £100 invested on 31 December 2014
Total shareholder return performance
Beazley
FTSE All Share
FTSE 350 Non-Life Insurance
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
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Year
Group CEO single figure
of total remuneration
Annual variable award
(% of maximum
opportunity)
Long term incentives
vesting (% of maximum
opportunity)
2015
£3,711,647
73%
100%
2016
£3,715,146
70%
100%
2017
£3,140,145
38%
98%
2018
£1,524,600
19%
41%
2019
£2,157,018
57%
37%
2020
£631,890
–
6.6%
2021 (D A Horton)1
£145,896
–
–
2021 (A P Cox as Group CEO)
£2,100,534
75%
17.8%
2022
£1,507,155
38%
17.5%
2023
£3,843,647
100%
100%
2024
£3,828,233
95%
100%
1
D A Horton stepped down as CEO on 31 March 2021 and was succeeded by A P Cox. The figures for A P Cox relate to the whole of 2021, including the portion
of the year when he was Chief Underwriting Officer.
Pay ratio data
The following table provides pay ratio data in respect of the Group CEO’s total remuneration compared to the 25th, median and
75th percentile UK employees.
Financial year
Method
25th percentile pay ratio
Median pay ratio
75th percentile pay ratio
2024
Option A
54:1
31:1
20:1
2023
Option A
48:1
29:1
19:1
2022
Option A
28:1
16:1
11:1
2021
Option A
39:1
21:1
14:1
2020
Option A
13:1
7:1
5:1
2019
Option A
42:1
25:1
15:1
The employees used for the purposes of the table above were identified on a full-time equivalent basis as at 31 December
2024. Option A was chosen as it is considered to be the most accurate way of identifying the relevant employees. This captures
all relevant pay and benefits and aligns to how the single figure table is calculated.
The following table provides salary and total remuneration information in respect of the employees at each quartile for 2024.
Element of pay
25th percentile employee
Median employee
75th percentile employee
Salary
£47,800
£77,300
£114,400
Total remuneration
£71,142
£121,884
£191,653
Note: Salary and bonus are compared against all employees of the UK Group.
The pay ratios for 2024 have increased in-line with the Group's exceptional performance and are comparable with 2023.
This is driven by strong underwriting, record incentive out-turns, significant share price growth and an upturn in
investment performance.
In-line with our pay-for-performance culture a significant portion of the Group CEO’s remuneration is variable and dependent on
performance. Therefore there is a direct correlation between Company performance, the Group CEO’s single figure and the pay
ratios. The Committee is comfortable that the pay ratios for 2024 align to the pay and progression policies for employees and,
that the link between individual awards, the delivery of strategy and the long-term performance of the Company through our
incentive schemes drive behaviours consistent with company purpose, values and strategy and appropriately motivate
and reward.
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
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Annual remuneration report continued
Relative importance of spend on pay
The following table shows the relative spend on pay compared to distributions to shareholders:
Overall expenditure on pay
Shareholder distributions
(dividends in respect of the
year)
2024
$558.0m
$201m
2023
$449.3m
$118m
Directors’ share plan interests ▪
Details of share plan interests of those Directors who served during the period are as follows:
Outstanding
options at 1 Jan
2024
Options
granted Options exercised
Lapsed
unvested
Outstanding
options at 31
Dec 2024
Adrian P Cox
Deferred bonus:
121,439
95,387
0
0
216,826
LTIP (see notes):
915,379
300,615
55,865
0
1,160,129
SAYE:
0
0
0
0
0
Barbara Plucnar Jensen
Deferred bonus:
0
0
0
0
0
LTIP (see notes):
0
178,075
0
0
178,075
SAYE:
0
0
0
0
0
Sally M Lake
Deferred bonus:
97,790
59,709
0
0
157,499
LTIP (see notes):
524,871
0
18,622
159,396
346,853
SAYE:
6,250
0
6,250
0
0
Notes to share plan interests table
Deferred bonus
Deferred bonus awards are made in the form of conditional shares that normally vest three years after the date
of award.
LTIP awards
Performance conditions: all awards are subject to NAVps performance. For awards granted prior to 2023, 50% is
measured over a three year period and 50% is measured over a five year period. For awards granted from 2023,
100% is measured over a three year period. NAVps < RFR+7.5% p.a. equates to 0% vesting, NAVps = RFR+7.5%
p.a. equates to 10% vesting, NAVps = RFR+10% p.a. equates to 25% vesting, NAVps = or > RFR+15% p.a. equates
to 100% vesting, with straight-line pro-rated vesting between these points. Awards granted from 2023 are also
subject to sustainability targets.
LTIP 2017 – 3/5 year
Awards were made on 8 February 2017 at a mid-market share price of 434.33p.
Awards expire in February 2027.
LTIP 2018 – 3/5 year
Awards were made on 13 February 2018 at a mid-market share price of 553.33p.
Awards expire in February 2028.
LTIP 2019 – 3/5 year
Awards were made on 12 February 2019 at a mid-market share price of 510.16p.
Awards expire in February 2029.
LTIP 2020 – 3/5 year
Awards were made on 11 February 2020 at a mid-market share price of 595.5p.
Awards expire in February 2030.
LTIP 2021 – 3/5 year
Awards were made on 10 February 2021 at a mid-market share price of 367.0p.
Awards expire in February 2031.
LTIP 2022 – 3/5 year
Awards were made on 15 February 2022 at a mid-market share price of 485.3p.
Awards expire in February 2032.
LTIP 2023 – 3 year
Awards were made on 19 May 2023 at a mid-market share price of 609.67p.
Awards expire in May 2033.
LTIP 2024 – 3 year
Awards were made on 12 March 2024 at a mid-market share price of 648.67p.
Awards expire in March 2034.
Share prices
The market price of Beazley ordinary shares at 31 December 2024 (the last trading day of the year) was 816.5p and the range
during the year was 503.0p to 840.0p.
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Remuneration Committee
The Committee consists of only Non-Executive Directors and during the year the members were; Nicola Hodson, Christine
LaSala, Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger, Rajesh K Agrawal and Robert A Stuchbery. Christine LaSala stepped down from the Board
effective 25 April 2024. The Board views each of the Committee members as independent.
The Committee considers the individual remuneration packages of the Group CEO, Executive Directors and Executive Committee
members. It also has oversight of the salary and bonus awards of individuals outside the Executive Committee who either
directly report to Executive Committee members or who have basic salaries over £200,000, as well as the overall bonus pool
and total incentives paid by the Group. The terms of reference of the Committee are available on the Company’s website. The
Committee met six times during the year. Further information on the key activities of the Committee for 2024 can be found
within the Board Governance section on page 132.
During the year the Committee was advised by remuneration consultants from Deloitte LLP. Total fees in relation to Executive
remuneration consulting were £127,000. Deloitte LLP also provided advice in relation to share schemes, tax, internal audit and
compliance support.
Deloitte LLP was appointed by the Committee. Deloitte LLP is a member of the remuneration consultants’ Group and as such
voluntarily operates under a code of conduct in relation to Executive remuneration consulting in the UK. The Committee agrees
each year the protocols under which Deloitte LLP provides advice, to support independence. The Committee is satisfied that the
advice received from Deloitte LLP has been objective and independent.
Input was also received by the Committee during the year from the Group CEO, Chief People Officer & Head of ESG, Company
Secretary and Chief Risk Officer. However, no individual plays a part in the determination of their own remuneration.
Engagement with the workforce
As part of the regular cycle, the Committee is informed of pay and employment conditions of wider employees in the Group and
takes these into account when determining the remuneration for Executive Directors.
Statement of shareholder voting
The voting outcomes for the 2022 remuneration policy and 2023 annual remuneration report were as follows:
Votes for
% for
Votes against
% against
Total votes cast
Votes withheld
(abstentions)
2022 Remuneration Policy
475,662,878
95.26%
23,682,695
4.74%
499,345,573
10,187,696
2023 Annual Remuneration Report
491,842,606
98.18%
9,093,854
1.82%
500,936,460
46,732
Annual general meeting
At the forthcoming AGM to be held on 22 April 2025, a binding resolution will be proposed to approve the Directors’
remuneration policy and an advisory resolution will be proposed to approve this annual remuneration report.
I am keen to encourage an ongoing dialogue with shareholders. Accordingly, if you would like to discuss any matter arising from
this report or remuneration issues generally, please email Christine Oldridge at corporategovernance@beazley.com.
By order of the Board
Nicola Hodson
Remuneration Committee Chair
3 March 2025
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
157
Statement of Directors’ responsibilities
in respect of the annual report and financial statements
The Directors are responsible for preparing the annual
report and the Group financial statements in accordance
with applicable UK law and regulations.
Company law requires the Directors to prepare financial
statements for each financial year. Under that law the
Directors have elected to prepare the Group and parent
company financial statements in accordance with UK adopted
International Accounting Standards and the requirements of
the Companies Act 2006.
Under the Financial Conduct Authority’s Disclosure Guidance
and Transparency Rules, Group financial statements are
required to be prepared in accordance with UK adopted IFRSs
and the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.
Under company law the Directors must not approve the Group
financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a
true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Group and the
Company and of the profit or loss of the Group and the
Company for that period.
In preparing these financial statements the Directors are
required to:
• select suitable accounting policies in accordance with IAS 8
Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and
Errors and then apply them consistently;
• make judgements and accounting estimates that are
reasonable and prudent;
• present information, including accounting policies, in a
manner that provides relevant, reliable, comparable and
understandable information;
• provide additional disclosures when compliance with the
specific requirements in IFRSs is insufficient to enable
users to understand the impact of particular transactions,
other events and conditions on the Group’s financial
position and financial performance;
• in respect of the Group financial statements, state
whether UK adopted IFRSs and the requirements of the
Companies Act 2006 have been followed, subject to
any material departures disclosed and explained in the
financial statements;
• in respect of the parent company financial statements,
state whether IFRSs in conformity with the Companies Act
have been followed, subject to any material departures
disclosed and explained in the financial statements; and
• prepare the financial statements on the going concern
basis unless it is appropriate to presume that the Company
and the Group will not continue in business.
The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate
accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the
Company’s and Group’s transactions and disclose with
reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the
Company and the Group and enable them to ensure that the
Company and the Group financial statements comply with
Section 403 of the Companies Act 2006. They are
responsible for such internal control as they determine is
necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements
that are free from material misstatement, whether due to
fraud or error, and have general responsibility for taking such
steps as are reasonably open to them to safeguard the
assets of the Group and to prevent and detect fraud and
other irregularities.
Under applicable law and regulations, the Directors are also
responsible for preparing a Strategic report, Directors’ report,
Directors’ remuneration report and Corporate Governance
statement that complies with that law and those regulations.
The Directors are responsible for the maintenance and
integrity of the corporate and financial information included on
the Company’s website. Legislation in the UK governing the
preparation and dissemination of financial statements may
differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
Disclosure of information to auditor
Each of the Directors in office at the date of approval of this
Directors’ report confirms that, so far as they are aware, there
is no relevant audit information of which the Company’s
Auditor is unaware; and each Director has taken all the steps
that he or she ought to have taken as a Director to make
himself or herself aware of any relevant audit information
and to establish that the Company’s Auditor is aware
of that information.
Responsibility statement of the Directors in respect of
the annual financial report
Each of the Directors, whose details can be found on pages
87 to 89, to the best of their knowledge confirm:
• that the consolidated financial statements, prepared in
accordance with UK adopted IFRSs and the requirements
of the Companies Act 2006 give a true and fair view of the
assets, liabilities, financial position and profit of the parent
company and undertakings included in the consolidation
taken as a whole;
• that the management report includes a fair review of the
development and performance of the business and the
position of the Company and undertakings included in the
consolidation, taken as a whole, together with a description
of the principal risks and uncertainties that they face; and
• that they consider the Annual Report and Accounts, taken
as a whole, is fair, balanced and understandable and
provides the information necessary for shareholders to
assess the Group’s position and performance, business
model and strategy.
C Bannister
B Plucnar Jensen
Chair
Chief Financial Officer
3 March 2025
158
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www.beazley.com
Directors’ report
In accordance with section 415 of the Companies Act
2006 (the Act) the Directors present their report for the
year ended 31 December 2024.
Other sections of the Annual Report and Accounts are
incorporated by reference into this report. As permitted by the
Act, some matters required to be included in the Directors’
Report have been included in the Strategic report on pages 1
to 81, as the Board considers them to be of strategic
importance. These sections are included in the table at the
end of this report on page 164.
In addition, the Corporate Governance report is incorporated
by reference into this Directors' report.
Management report
The Directors’ report, together with the Strategic report on
pages 1 to 81, and the governance report on pages 82 to
108, serves as the management report for the purpose of
Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rule 4.1.8R.
Principal activity
Beazley plc (registered number 09763575) is the ultimate
holding company for the Beazley Group, a global specialist
risk insurance and reinsurance business. Beazley has
established three distinct distribution platforms: Lloyd’s
Wholesale, Europe, and North America. In the UK, Beazley
Furlonge Limited acts as the managing agent of seven
syndicates at Lloyd’s. In the US, Beazley offers insurance
through its three wholly owned insurance carriers: Beazley
Insurance Company, Inc., Beazley Excess and Surplus
Insurance, Inc., and Beazley America Insurance Company, Inc.
Additionally, Beazley Insurance dac operates as a European
insurance company incorporated in Ireland and provides some
of the Group's reinsurance. The Company's subsidiaries are
listed in Note 30 (page 251) and the Company has no
overseas branches.
Directors’ responsibilities
The statement of Directors’ responsibilities in respect
of the annual report and financial statements is set out
on page 158.
Results and dividends
The consolidated profit before taxation for the year ended 31
December 2024 amounted to $1,423.5m (2023:
$1,254.4m). The Directors have approved an interim dividend
of 25.0p (2023: 14.2p) payable in May 2025.
Annual General Meeting
The 2025 Annual General Meeting of the Company will be
held on 22 April 2025 at 14:30. The notice of the AGM
details the business to be put to shareholders.
Going concern and viability statement
The Financial review from page 17 contains details of the
financial position of the Group, its prospects, its cash flows
and its borrowing facilities.
After reviewing the Group’s current and forecast solvency
and liquidity positions, the Directors have a reasonable
expectation that the Group has adequate resources to
continue in operational existence over a period of 12 months
from the date of this report. For this reason, the Board
considers it appropriate for the Group to continue to adopt
the going concern basis in preparing its accounts.
Further information on the Board's assessment of the
Group as a going concern, as required by UK LR 6.6.6R(3)
is contained in Note 1d to the financial statements
on page 185.
In accordance with the Code, the Directors have assessed the
viability of the Group. The viability statement, which supports
the going concern basis mentioned above, is included in the
Risk management report on pages 80 to 81. The viability
statement also includes the Company's assessment of its
prospects, as required by LR 6.6.6R(3).
Information to be disclosed under UK Listing Rule 6.6.1R
Location
Information on interest
capitalised
Note 25 (page 223)
Details of long-term
incentive schemes
Directors' Remuneration
Report (page 135)
In both cases cross references to relevant disclosures are set
out in the tables at the end of this report on page 164.
In addition, as required to be disclosed by UK Listing Rule
6.6.1R, the trustees of the Employee Benefit Trust have
waived its rights to receive dividends on the shares it holds
for Beazley's employees. This applied to all dividends paid
during the period under review.
Research and development
In the ordinary course of business, the Group develops new
products and services in each of its business divisions and
develops IT solutions to support business requirements.
Auditor
EY has indicated its willingness to continue in office.
Resolutions to reappoint EY as auditor of the Company
and authorise the Audit Committee to determine their
remuneration will be proposed at the 2025 AGM.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
159
Directors’ report continued
Directors
The Directors of the Company who served during 2024 and/or
to the date of this report were as follows:
Adrian Cox
Group Chief Executive
Anthony (John)
Reizenstein
Independent Non-Executive Director
Barbara Plucnar Jensen
Group Chief Financial Officer
(appointed 21/05/2024)
Carolyn Johnson
Independent Non-Executive Director
(appointed 01/03/2024)
Cecilia Reyes Leuzinger Independent Non-Executive Director
Christine LaSala
Independent Non-Executive Director
(resigned 25/04/2024)
Clive Bannister
Non-Executive Director Chair
Fiona Muldoon
Independent Non-Executive Director
Nicola Hodson
Independent Non-Executive Director
Pierre-Olivier Desaulle
Senior Independent Non-Executive
Director
Rajesh Agrawal
Independent Non-Executive Director
Robert Stuchbery
Independent Non-Executive Director
Sally Lake
Group Finance Director (resigned
21/05/2024)
The Chair was independent on appointment.
The Board is complying with the provision on annual re-
election of all Directors in accordance with the Code. The
appointment and replacement of Directors is governed by the
Company’s Articles of Association (the 'Articles'), the Code,
the Act and related legislation. Directors may be appointed by
ordinary resolution of the Company or by the Directors. Each
Director shall retire and be eligible for election or re-election
at each annual general meeting. Directors appointed may be
appointed to hold any employment or executive office with the
Company. Directors may be removed from office by special
resolution of the Company. The Articles may be amended by a
special resolution of the shareholders. Subject to the Articles,
the Act and any directions given by special resolution, the
business of the Company will be managed by the Board which
may exercise all the powers of the Company.
Directors’ interests
The Directors’ interests in shares of the Company, for those
Directors in office at the end of the year, including any
interests of a connected person (as defined in the Disclosure,
Guidance and Transparency Rules of the UK’s Financial
Conduct Authority), can be found in the Directors’
remuneration report on page 135. Details of Directors’
service contracts are given in the Directors’ remuneration
report. The Directors’ biographies are set out in the 'Board
of Directors' section of the annual report on pages 87 to 89.
Directors’ indemnities
The Company maintains Directors and Officers Liability
insurance which gives cover for legal action taken against its
Directors, subject to its terms. The Company has also granted
indemnities to each of its Directors to the extent permitted by
law in respect of costs of defending claims against them and
third-party liabilities. A copy of the indemnity is available for
inspection at the Company’s registered office during normal
business hours. These provisions, deemed to be ‘qualifying
third-party indemnity provisions’ pursuant to section 234 of
the Act, were in force during the year ended 31 December
2024 for the benefit of the then Directors of the Company
and remain in force as at the date of this report for the
current Directors of the Company. Indemnities have also been
granted to Directors of five of the Company’s wholly owned
subsidiaries. These indemnities are also deemed to be
'qualifying third-party indemnity provisions.' There is also
Directors and Officers Liability insurance in place which
covers directors on all direct and indirect subsidiaries of the
Beazley Group.
Conflicts of interest
The Board has established procedures for the management of
potential and actual conflicts of interest of the Directors in
accordance with the Act and the Articles. All Directors are
responsible for notifying the Group Company Secretary and
declaring at each Board meeting any new actual or potential
conflicts of interest. The Directors are also responsible for
declaring any existing conflicts of interest which are relevant
to transactions to be discussed at the Board meeting. None
of the Directors had any significant contract with the Company
or with any Group undertaking during the year.
Substantial shareholdings
As at 31 December 2024, the Board had been notified of the
following shareholdings of 3% or more of the Company’s
issued ordinary share capital, in accordance with Disclosure
Guidance and Transparency Rule (DTR) 5. The information
provided below was correct at the date of notification.
The Company has only disclosed those interests of which it
has been notified. It should be noted that these holdings are
likely to have changed since being notified to the Company.
However, notification of any change is not required until the
next applicable threshold is crossed.
Number of
ordinary shares
%
Wellington Management
34,357,006
5.1
BlackRock
33,587,793
5.0
MFS Investment Management
26,529,103
5.0
Fidelity Management & Research
31,366,159
4.8
Invesco
16,181,198
3.0
The Company has not been notified of any changes to these
shareholdings between 1 January 2025 and 3 March 2025.
Note: All percentages are calculated at the date of
notification. All interests disclosed to the Company in
accordance with DTR 5 can be found in the news and alerts
section of our corporate website: www.beazley.com
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www.beazley.com
Share capital
As at 31 December 2024, the Company’s issued share
capital comprised 639,002,140 ordinary shares of 5 pence
each, representing 100% of the total issued share capital.
Details of the movement in ordinary share capital during the
year can be found in Note 21 on page 218. The Company
also has two deferred shares of £1 in issue. The rights
attached to the shares are set out in the Company's Articles.
Holders of the ordinary shares are entitled to attend and
speak at general meetings of the Company and to appoint
one or more proxies or, if the holder of the shares is a
corporation, one or more corporate representatives. On a
show of hands every holder of ordinary shares shall have one
vote, as shall proxies. On a poll, every holder of ordinary
shares present in person or by proxy shall have one vote for
every share held. There are no restrictions on the transfer of
shares in the Company other than as set out in the Articles
and certain restrictions which may from time to time be
imposed by law and regulations.
The Directors were granted authority at the 2024 AGM to allot
shares in the Company up to a maximum aggregate nominal
amount of £11,209,040 (representing approximately one
third of the Company's issued ordinary share capital) as well
as an additional authority to allot relevant equity securities
up to an aggregate nominal amount of £22,418,081
(representing approximately two thirds of the Company's
issued ordinary share capital) in connection with a fully
pre-emptive offer.
At the 2024 AGM, a special resolution was also passed
to permit the Directors to allot shares for cash on a non
pre-emptive basis up to an aggregate nominal amount
of £1,681,356.
These authorities will apply until the conclusion of the 2025
AGM or the close of business on 25 July 2025, whichever is
sooner. At this year's AGM shareholders will be asked to
renew the authority to allot relevant securities.
Authority to purchase own shares
At the AGM on 25 April 2024 shareholders approved an
authority, which will expire on 25 July 2025 or, if earlier,
at the conclusion of the 2025 AGM, for the Company to
repurchase up to a maximum of 67,254,244 ordinary shares
(representing approximately 10% of the Company’s issued
ordinary share capital at that time).
On 30 September 2024 the share repurchase programme
(the Programme) announced originally on 8 March 2024
was completed. In total 37,263,583 ordinary shares of
5 pence were repurchased via open market purchases on
the London Stock Exchange for an aggregate consideration
of c.$325 million (c.£255 million), excluding stamp duty
and expenses. This represents c.6% of the called up share
capital at the date of the announcement of the completion
of the Programme.
The Board continues to regard the ability to repurchase
issued shares in suitable circumstances as an important part
of the financial management of the Company. The rationale
for the 2024 Programme is included in the section 172
statement (principle decision 1) on page 74. A resolution will
also be proposed at the 2025 AGM to renew the authority for
the Company to purchase its own share capital up to the
specified limits for a further year. As noted in the Chair's
Statement on page 6, the Company intends to use the
authority this year to commence a further share repurchase
programme in 2025. More detail about this proposal will be
given in an announcement to the market.
Employee Benefit Trust
The Company has an Employee Benefit Trust (EBT). Details of
the shares purchased by the EBT with the financial assistance
of the Company during the year and held by the EBT as at 31
December 2024 are set out in Note 22. During the year shares
have been released from the EBT in respect of shares schemes
for employees. The trustee of the EBT does not vote using the
shares it holds on behalf of employees at the AGM and waives
its right to dividends on the shares.
Significant agreements – change of control
Details of an agreement to which the Company is party that
alters on change of control of the Company following a
takeover bid are as follows.
In 2023, we renewed the $450m multi-currency standby letter
of credit and revolving credit facility. Key terms remain
unchanged. The agreement, which is between the Company,
other members of the Group and various banks, provides that
if any person or groups of persons acting in concert gains
control of the Company or another Group obligor, then: (a) the
banks are thereafter not obliged to participate in any new
revolving advances or issue any letter of credit; and (b) the
facility agent may:
(i) require the Group obligors to repay outstanding
revolving advances made to them together with
accrued interest; and
(ii) ensure that the liabilities under letters of credit are
reduced to zero or otherwise secured by providing cash
collateral in an amount equal to the maximum actual and
contingent liabilities under such letters of credit.
Furthermore, the facility agreement includes a covenant that
no Group obligor (other than a wholly owned subsidiary) will,
without prior consent of the banks, amalgamate, merge
(within the meaning of generally accepted accounting
principles in the UK), consolidate or combine by scheme of
arrangement or otherwise with any other corporation or
person. If this covenant should be breached without prior
consent, then the facility agent may: (a) require the Group
obligors to repay outstanding revolving advances made to
them together with accrued interest; (b) ensure that the
liabilities under letters of credit are reduced to zero or
otherwise secured by providing cash collateral in an amount
equal to the maximum actual and contingent liabilities under
such letters of credit; (c) declare that any unutilised portion of
the facility is cancelled; and (d) give a notice of non-extension
to Lloyd’s in respect of any letter of credit.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
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Directors’ report continued
Corporate, social and environmental responsibility and
charitable donations
The Company’s corporate, social and environmental activities
are set out in the statement of the Chair on page 6, the
Sustainability report on pages 26 to 31, and in the TCFD
statement from pages 32 to 61. During 2024, Beazley
donated $845k to charities and in December 2024, the
Board approved the formation of a non-registered charitable
foundation to enhance the long-term impact and governance
of the Company’s charitable works.
Employee engagement
We are committed to employee involvement across the
business. We place great emphasis on open and regular
communication, to ensure employees are well informed
of Beazley’s performance and strategy.
Active employee engagement has always been a priority and
remains important due to our activity-based working policies
which allow colleagues to work flexibly and as many of our
teams are based across different locations. As described in
the Stakeholder engagement report, during the second half of
the year, all employees were invited to participate in surveys
on the business and its leadership. The key findings from
these surveys and actions to address these findings are
discussed by the Board. Insight gained through various
employee networks and via the day-today engagement of
senior management with the workforce was also shared with
the Board. In addition, employee views have been obtained
by the Non-Executive Director nominated by the Board, Fiona
Muldoon. Information on our employee engagement activities
and how feedback has informed decisions can be found in the
Stakeholder engagement report on pages 67 to 68.
Employees are able to share financially in Beazley’s success.
Annual bonus payments may be awarded and relate to the
performance of the Company, as well as an individual’s own
performance. Some of the bonus payment may be deferred
into shares. The Company operates a Save-As-You-Earn
scheme and in 2024 launched a Share Investment Plan to
support share ownership amongst employees and provide a
mechanism for all employees to share in Beazley's success.
A long-term incentive plan is offered to senior employees.
Inclusion & diversity and equal opportunity
Information concerning inclusion and diversity, including
statistics on the number of women in senior leadership
roles, can be found in the Sustainability report on
pages 26 to 31 and in the Nomination Committee report
on pages 109 to 115.
Beazley aims to attract and nurture talented colleagues who
champion diversity of thought. We are committed to providing
equal opportunities irrespective of factors including but not
limited to age, disability, gender, gender reassignment,
sexuality, race, nationality or ethnic origin, religious beliefs,
or socio-economic background. Having a diverse workforce
leads to a more dynamic, innovative, and responsive
organisation in touch with the changing world and
marketplace. All applications for employment are objectively
assessed on the basis of the skills and aptitudes of the
applicant in light of the requirements of the role.
It is the policy of the Group that full and fair consideration is
given to all job applications from disabled people, including
explicitly stating that we will make reasonable adjustments
to selection processes for candidates that indicate that,
owing to a disability, our arrangements might otherwise
disadvantage them. The policy also requires that the training,
career development and promotion of disabled persons
should, so far as possible, be identical to that of other
employees. In the event an employee becomes disabled,
every effort is made to ensure that their employment with the
Group continues, and that appropriate support is arranged.
Political donations and political expenditure
It is the policy of the Beazley Group that no political
donations are made by and on behalf of the Company
and its subsidiaries. In line with the policy, no political
expenditure was incurred by the Company and its subsidiaries
during the year.
Financial instruments
Derivatives are used to manage the Group’s capital position,
details of these derivatives are contained in Note 18 to the
financial statements. Disclosure with respect to financial risk
is included in the Risk management and compliance report
from page 76 and in Note 29 to the financial statements.
Carbon emissions
The following data is set out to demonstrate compliance
with the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR)
requirements set out by HM UK Government in the
Companies Act 2006 (Strategic report and Directors’ report)
Regulations 2013 and the Companies (Directors’ report) and
Limited Liability Partnerships (Energy and Carbon report)
Regulations 2018.
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Methodology
The scope of this reporting differs from the carbon emissions
reported in the metrics section of the TCFD report, in that it
only covers UK-based operations. Global comparisons for
overall energy consumption are also provided for reference.
Data has been collated from a number of sources. For all
travel including car hire, hotels, rail, air and taxi use data has
been provided from our booking agent partners, or through
invoices on our accountancy system. Energy data and
company car details have been sourced from utility bills
and lease agreements, respectively.
Company cars
There were six company cars used across 2024 of which four
are current at the end of 2024. All four cars are electric.
Electricity for utilities
The scope of reporting for SECR covers Beazley’s UK
operations in London and Birmingham. Global reporting
covers: Dublin (Ireland), Hamburg (Germany), Munich
(Germany), Paris (France), Barcelona (Spain), Zurich
(Switzerland), Singapore, Atlanta (US), Boston (US), Chicago
(US), Dallas (US), Denver (US), Farmington (US), Houston
(US), Los Angeles (US), Miami (US), New York (US),
Philadelphia (US), San Francisco (US), West Hartford (US),
Vancouver (Canada), Toronto (Canada), Montreal (Canada).
Beazley’s offices for its US subsidiaries, Beazley Security LLC
(Lewisville) and BHI Digital, LLC (Miami), are excluded.
Exclusions
Energy consumption from business travel, with the exception
of company cars and hire cars, has not been included as
Beazley does not operate the transport in question.
Energy report
Beazley has a total of 2,618.86 FTE staff (including
contractors) as at 1 January 2025, of which are considered
in scope for the global energy consumption reported in the
tables below. Within the UK, Beazley has 1,397.86 FTE
(including contractors). This is equivalent of 53.38% of
our global workforce.
Company cars
The total estimated kWh equivalent for fuel consumption
in 2024 is 16,067.60 kWh.
Energy for heating, cooling and small power
There was no direct gas use within Beazley operations in
2024, with landlords providing heating to our offices.
Energy consumption kWh
Electricity
2024
2023
UK
694,509.1
771,062.7
Europe
185,024.9
176,516.4
US
1,496,061.5
1,480,816.0
Rest of World
161,753.9
128,016.4
Total
2,537,349.4
2,556,411.5
We were able to procure energy from certified renewable
sources for the following locations in 2024:
Office location
Energy consumption kWh
London
621,555.9
Birmingham
72,953.2
Barcelona
59,481.0
Munich
21,475.9
Car hire
The energy use from UK car hire was estimated to be 442.43
kWh. Globally energy use from car hire was estimated to be
50,326.40 kWh.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
163
Directors’ report continued
Overall energy consumption
Within the scope of the SECR, total energy consumption
within the UK was 694,509.08kWh. This equates to 496.84
kWh/ FTE in 2024, down from 631.80 kWh/ FTE in 2023.
This reduction is due to lower energy consumption in our two
office locations, as well as an increase in FTE numbers.
For carbon emissions associated with Beazley's operations in
the UK, please see the metrics section of the TCFD report for
Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions.
Target for 2025
Beazley published its transition plan in Q4 2024, and is
currently in the process of setting more immediate targets
for reduced GHG emissions.
Matters disclosed in the Strategic report
The Directors consider the following matters of strategic importance and have chosen to disclose these in the Strategic report
to the accounts as permitted by section 414C (11) of the Companies Act 2006:
Future business developments
Group Chief Executive's statement (pages 8-9)
Group Chief Underwriting Officer's report (page 10-13)
Employee engagement
Stakeholder engagement report (pages 67-73)
How the Directors have had regard to the need to foster business
relationships with suppliers, customers and others, and the impact
of this regard on decision-making
Stakeholder engagement report (pages 67-73)
Section 172 statement (page 74-75)
Directors' service contracts
Directors' Remuneration Report (pages 135-157)
Matters disclosed elsewhere within the annual report
The following matters are disclosed in the notes to the financial statements:
Financial risk management objectives and policies including credit risk, liquidity risk
Note 29 (pages 237-250)
Details of hedge accounting and derivative financial instruments
Note 2 (page 192)
Recent developments and post balance sheet events
Note 33 (page 254)
B Plucnar Jensen
Group Chief Financial Officer
22 Bishopsgate
London
EC2N 4BQ
3 March 2025
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Independent auditor’s report
to the members of Beazley plc
Opinion
In our opinion:
• Beazley plc’s Group financial statements and parent company financial statements (the “financial statements”) give a true
and fair view of the state of the Group’s and of the parent company’s affairs as at 31 December 2024 and of the Group’s
profit for the year then ended;
• the Group financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with UK adopted international
accounting standards;
• the parent company financial statements have been prepared in accordance with UK adopted international accounting
standards as applied in accordance with section 408 of the Companies Act of 2006; and
• the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.
We have audited the financial statements of Beazley plc (the ‘parent company’) and its subsidiaries (the ‘Group’) for the year
ended 31 December 2024 which comprise:
Group
Parent company
Consolidated statement of profit or loss for the year
ended 31 December 2024
Company statement of financial position as at 31 December 2024
Consolidated statement of comprehensive income for the
year ended 31 December 2024
Company statement of changes in equity for the year ended
31 December 2024
Consolidated statement of changes in equity for the year
ended 31 December 2024
Company statement of cash flows for the year ended
31 December 2024
Consolidated statement of financial position as at 31
December 2024
Related notes 1 to 9 to the financial statements, including material
accounting policy information
Consolidated statement of cash flows for the year ended
31 December 2024
Related notes 1 to 33 to the financial statements,
including material accounting policy information
The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and UK adopted international
accounting standards and as regards the parent company financial statements, as applied in accordance with section 408 of
the Companies Act 2006.
Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our
responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial
statements section of our report. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a
basis for our opinion.
Independence
We are independent of the Group and parent in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the
financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard as applied to listed public interest entities, and we have
fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements.
The non-audit services prohibited by the FRC’s Ethical Standard were not provided to the Group or the parent company and we
remain independent of the Group and the parent company in conducting the audit.
Conclusions relating to going concern
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the Directors’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the
preparation of the financial statements is appropriate. Our evaluation of the Directors’ assessment of the Group and parent
company’s ability to continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting involved evaluating the reasonableness of the
Group’s going concern assessment. Beazley’s going concern assessment period used was 12 months from the date the
financial statements were authorised for issue. We verified that the Board approved the forecasts used in management’s
analysis and determined whether management’s going concern period was appropriate. We independently stressed the
assumptions used by Beazley to develop their forecast, which included liquidity projections and reviewed the clerical accuracy of
Beazley’s base case, as well as assessed the accuracy of management’s historic forecasts to actual performance.
Furthermore, management assessed the Group’s solvency and liquidity position if a natural catastrophe or cyber catastrophe
occurred, including potential mitigation actions that management could take. We evaluated the reasonableness and timeliness
of these mitigating actions that management could put in place.
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Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that,
individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the Group and parent company’s ability to continue as a going concern
for a period of twelve months from the date the financial statements are authorised for issue.
In relation to the Group and parent company’s reporting on how they have applied the UK Corporate Governance Code, we have
nothing material to add or draw attention to in relation to the Directors’ statement in the financial statements about whether the
Directors considered it appropriate to adopt the going concern basis of accounting.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the Directors with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections
of this report. However, because not all future events or conditions can be predicted, this statement is not a guarantee as to
the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern.
Overview of our audit approach
Audit scope
• We performed an audit of the complete financial information of two components (Syndicate 2623 and
Beazley Insurance Company Inc. including Beazley Newco Captive Company Inc) and audit procedures on
specific balances for a further seven components (Beazley Services USA Inc, Beazley Furlonge Limited,
Beazley Management Limited, Beazley plc, Syndicate 3623, Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance Inc.,
Beazley Insurance Designated Activity Company)
• We performed centralised procedures over IFRS 17 related accounts, investment related accounts, cash,
impairment of goodwill and other indefinite life intangibles, payroll, borrowings, and taxation.
• The components where we performed full or specific audit procedures accounted for 100% of Profit before
tax, 100% of Insurance Revenue and 99% of Total assets.
Key Audit
Matters
• Revenue recognition (Contractual Service Margin (CSM) release and experience adjustments)
• Valuation of (re)insurance contract assets/liabilities
Materiality
• Overall Group materiality of $54m (2023: $27m) which represents 5% of pre-tax profits on a 3-year
average. (2023: 5% of pre-tax profits on a 5-year average adjusted for Covid-19 losses in 2020 and the
gain on sale of the Beazley Benefit business in 2021).
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An overview of the scope of the parent company and Group audits
Tailoring the scope
In the current year our audit scoping has been updated to reflect the new requirements of ISA (UK) 600 (Revised). We have
followed a risk-based approach when developing our audit approach to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence on which to
base our audit opinion. We performed risk assessment procedures, with input from our component auditors, to identify and
assess risks of material misstatement of the Group financial statements and identified significant accounts and disclosures.
When identifying components at which audit work needed to be performed to respond to the identified risks of material
misstatement of the Group financial statements, we considered our understanding of the Group and its business environment,
the applicable financial framework, the Group’s system of internal control at the entity level, the existence of centralised
processes, applications and any relevant internal audit results.
In assessing the risk of material misstatement to the Group financial statements, and to ensure we had adequate quantitative
coverage of significant accounts in the financial statements, of the 36 legal entities within the Group, we selected nine
components covering entities within UK, Ireland and US, which represent the principal business units within the Group.
We determined that centralised audit procedures could be performed in the following audit areas:
Key audit area on which procedures were centrally performed
Component subject to central procedures
IFRS 17 Accounts:
1. Insurance contract assets
2. Insurance contract liabilities
3. Insurance revenue
4. Insurance service expenses
5. Reinsurance contract assets
6. Reinsurance contract liabilities
7. Allocation of reinsurance premiums
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers
All
Investments, and Investment income
All
Cash
All
Payroll
All
Financial liabilities
All
Taxation
All
We then identified two components as individually relevant to the Group due to conditions underlying the identified significant
risks, areas of higher assessed risk of material misstatement of the Group financial statements being associated and financial
size of the component relative to the Group.
For those individually relevant components, we identified the significant accounts where audit work needed to be performed
at these components by applying professional judgement, having considered the Group significant accounts on which
centralised procedures will be performed, the reasons for identifying the financial reporting component as an individually
relevant component and the size of the component’s account balance relative to the Group significant financial statement
account balance.
We then considered whether the remaining Group significant account balances not yet subject to audit procedures,
in aggregate, could give rise to a risk of material misstatement of the Group financial statements. We selected seven
components of the Group to include in our audit scope to address these risks.
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Having identified the components for which work will be performed, we determined the scope to assign to each component.
Of the nine components selected, we designed and performed audit procedures over the entire financial information of two
components (“full scope components”). For the remaining seven components, we designed and performed audit procedures
over specific significant financial statement account balances or disclosures of the financial information of the component
(“specific scope components”). Details of the nine reporting components are set out below:
Component
Auditor
Syndicate 2623
EY Component Team (UK)
Beazley Insurance Company Inc., including Beazley Newco
Captive Company Inc
EY Component Team (New York)
Beazley plc
EY Primary Team
Syndicate 3623
EY Component Team (UK)
Beazley Insurance Designated Activity Company (BIDAC)
EY Component Team (Ireland)
Beazley Services USA Inc.
EY Component Team (New York)
Beazley Furlonge Limited
EY Primary Team
Beazley Management Limited
EY Primary Team & EY Component Team (New York)
Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance
EY Component Team (New York)
Changes from the prior year
In the prior year we identified the fully-aligned Syndicates (Syndicates 2623, 3622 and 3623) as one full scope component.
For the 2024 audit, we changed our approach to treat Syndicate 2623 as a full scope component and Syndicate 3623
as a specific scope component. Syndicate 3622 was deemed out of scope on the basis of size and risk.
In addition to this, we engaged EY Ireland to perform specific scope procedures over BIDAC.
Involvement with component teams
In establishing our overall approach to the Group audit, we determined the type of work that needed to be undertaken at each
of the components by us, as the Group audit engagement team, or by component auditors operating under our instruction.
The Group audit team continued to follow a programme of planned visits that has been designed to ensure that the Senior
Statutory Auditor visits each component teams to manage the component teams and reinforce our commitment to audit
quality. During the current year’s audit cycle, visits were undertaken by the primary audit team to the component teams
in the following locations:
• EY US Component team as based in New York
• EY UK Component team as based in London
• EY Ireland Component team as based in Dublin
These visits involved discussing the audit approach with the component teams and any issues arising from their work, meeting
with local management, attending planning and closing meetings and reviewing relevant audit working papers on risk areas.
The Group audit team interacted regularly with the component teams where appropriate during various stages of the audit,
reviewed relevant working papers and were responsible for the scope and direction of the audit process. Where relevant,
the section on key audit matters details the level of involvement we had with component auditors to enable us to determine
that sufficient audit evidence had been obtained as a basis for our opinion on the Group as a whole.
This, together with the additional procedures performed at Group level, gave us appropriate evidence for our opinion on the
Group financial statements.
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Climate change
Stakeholders are increasingly interested in how climate change will impact the Group. The Group has determined that the most
significant future impacts from climate change on their operations will be from underwriting, investments and operations. These
are explained on pages 32 to 61 in the required Task Force On Climate Related Financial Disclosures. They have also explained
their climate commitments in the Net Zero Transition plan published in Q4 of 2024. All of these disclosures form part of the
“Other information,” rather than the audited financial statements. Our procedures on these unaudited disclosures therefore
consisted solely of considering whether they are materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge
obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appear to be materially misstated, in line with our responsibilities on
“Other information”.
In planning and performing our audit we assessed the potential impacts of climate change on the Group’s business and any
consequential material impact on its financial statements.
The Group has explained in the Statement of accounting policies how climate change has been reflected in the financial
statements. Key judgements and estimates relating to climate change are included in note 2a. In notes 29 to the financial
statements supplementary sensitivity disclosures of the impact of frequency and severity of natural catastrophes have
been provided.
Our audit effort in considering the impact of climate change on the financial statements was focused on evaluating
management’s assessment of the impact of climate risk, physical and transition, their climate commitments, and the key
judgements and estimates disclosed in note 2a and whether these have been appropriately reflected. As part of this evaluation,
we performed our own risk assessment, supported by our climate change internal specialists, to determine the risks of material
misstatement in the financial statements from climate change which needed to be considered in our audit.
We also challenged the Directors’ considerations of climate change risks in their assessment of going concern and viability and
associated disclosures. Where considerations of climate change were relevant to our assessment of going concern, these are
described above.
Based on our work we have not identified the impact of climate change on the financial statements to be a key audit matter or
to impact a key audit matter.
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Key audit matters
Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professional judgment, were of most significance in our audit of the financial
statements of the current period and include the most significant assessed risks of material misstatement (whether or not due
to fraud) that we identified. These matters included those which had the greatest effect on: the overall audit strategy, the
allocation of resources in the audit; and directing the efforts of the engagement team. These matters were addressed in the
context of our audit of the financial statements as a whole, and in our opinion thereon, and we do not provide a separate
opinion on these matters.
Risk
Our response to the risk
Key observations
communicated to the Audit
Committee
Revenue recognition (Contractual
Service Margin (‘CSM’)) release
($807.3m, PY comparative
$691.4m) and experience
adjustments ($366.5m, PY
comparative $503.7m)
Refer to the Audit and Risk
Committee Reports (page 120);
Accounting policies (page 191) and
Note 4 of the Consolidated
Financial Statements (page 198).
At initial recognition, the CSM
relates to the unearned profit
under (re)insurance contracts
issued. As services are provided
under the terms of these
(re)insurance contracts, the CSM is
released to the Consolidated
statement of profit or loss,
reflecting the profit relating to
services performed in the period.
There is a high degree of
complexity and estimation involved
in deriving the release patterns.
Experience adjustments within
revenue represent the difference
between the estimate of future
cashflows and actual cashflows
which reflects a write-up/down of
estimates to known quantities
once cash is received. This
balance is susceptible to a higher
degree of judgment and uncertainty
as a result of having to allocate
the experience adjustments to
revenue or to the CSM.
We engaged our actuaries as part of our audit team and
performed the following procedures:
• Performed walkthroughs of the IFRS 17 model including the
determination of the CSM release and experience adjustment.
We tested the design effectiveness of key controls.
• We compared the appropriateness of Beazley's methodology
for the release of the CSM to profit or loss to the
requirements of IFRS 17. We identified unusual release
patterns and challenged management on these to understand
the appropriateness of the release patterns selected.
• We recalculated the experience adjustment and compared
this to the amount recognised in the consolidated statement
of profit or loss.
• We tested all out-of-model adjustments posted by
management and compared to supporting documentation.
• The measurement of the experience adjustment depends on
complete and accurate data to be used in the IFRS 17
Calculation Engine, the most significant data source being
ultimate premium. With support from our EY actuarial team,
we performed independent re-projections of ultimate premium
per underwriting year for the 2024 and prior underwriting
years, applying our own assumptions and comparing these to
the Group’s booked ultimate premium on a class of business
basis. Where there were significant variances, we challenged
management’s assumptions used for bias and consistency in
approach from prior year.
• For a sample of policy estimates in respect of the 2024
underwriting year, we corroborated the estimated premium for
polices such as binders and inward reinsurance to supporting
evidence such as signed slips. Additionally, to corroborate
estimates, including for coverholder business, where similar
policies and binders have been written previously, we
performed back testing of historical estimated premium
income compared to actual premium signed.
Based on our
procedures performed
we are satisfied that
revenue has been
recognised in-line with
the requirements of the
standard.
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Valuation of (re)insurance contract assets and liabilities (Insurance Contract Assets: $20.2m, PY comparative $101.5m);
Insurance Contract Liabilities: $8,814.3m, PY comparative $7,992.2m; Reinsurance Contract Assets: $2,666.6m, PY
comparative $2,426.7m; Reinsurance Contract Liabilities: $297.1m, PY comparative $333.5m)
Refer to the Audit and Risk Committee Reports (page 120); Accounting policies (pages 186 to 191) and Note 27 of the
Consolidated Financial Statements (pages 225 to 235).
One of the most significant financial statement risk areas from both a business and an audit perspective is the valuation of
the insurance and reinsurance contract assets and liabilities held by the Group. These accounts contain the present value for
future cash flows and risk adjustment for non-financial risk which builds up the Contractual Service Margin ("CSM"). This
involves highly complex calculations and data inputs that are susceptible to a higher degree of estimation i.e., estimated
premium income. These balances are inherently uncertain and subjective by nature and therefore are more susceptible to
fraud or error than other financial statement balances.
We have split the risk relating to the valuation of insurance liabilities into the following component parts:
• Actuarial Assumptions used and the method of calculation of the (re)insurance contract assets/liabilities.
• Data used in the calculation of the (re)insurance contract assets/liabilities.
Actuarial Assumptions used and
the method of the calculation of
the (re)insurance contract assets
and liabilities
The actuarial assumptions used to
develop the (re)insurance contract
assets / liabilities involve a
significant degree of judgement
and estimation uncertainty.
The most significant
assumptions being:
• Discount Rates;
• Risk Adjustment; and
• Gross and Reinsurance Initial
Expected Loss Ratios (‘IELRs’)
and Ultimate Loss Ratios
(‘ULRs’).
To obtain sufficient audit evidence to conclude on the
appropriateness of the actuarial assumptions used in the
calculation of the (re)insurance contract assets and liabilities,
with support from our actuaries as part of the audit team,
we performed the following procedures:
• Obtained an understanding of the calculation performed
by the IFRS 17 model, using data from underlying source
systems e.g., policy administration and claims systems
and tested the design effectiveness of key controls.
Discount rates:
• Compared the approach to calculating the illiquidity premium
for consistency across periods; whilst comparing against
industry benchmarks.
• Compared the changes in yield curves against our
expectations which consists of comparison to the movement
in the risk free rates.
Risk Adjustment:
• Read the latest internal model validation reports and
considered the effects of model changes.
• To validate key components of the Group’s Solvency II internal
capital model, which are key input into the risk adjustment
calculation, we compared the model outputs against industry
benchmarks.
• Tested the application of the methodology used to calculate
the risk adjustment and compared the consistency of the
methodology across periods.
Gross and Reinsurance Initial Expected Loss Ratios (‘IELRs’) and
Ultimate Loss Ratios (‘ULRs’):
• Assessed the reserving methodology on a gross and net of
reinsurance basis. This also involved comparing the group’s
reserving methodology with industry practice.
• Performed independent re-projections of ULRs and IELRs by
applying our own assumptions, across all attritional classes
of business and comparing these to management’s results.
Assessed whether the assumptions, applied to key areas
of uncertainty were appropriate based on our knowledge
of the Group, industry practice and regulatory and financial
reporting requirements.
• Benchmarked catastrophe and large losses and assumptions
used in inherently uncertain classes against other comparable
industry participants.
Based on our
procedures performed
we are satisfied that
the assumptions used
in the valuations of the
insurance and
reinsurance contract
assets and liabilities
are reasonable.
Risk
Our response to the risk
Key observations
communicated to the Audit
Committee
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Independent auditor’s report continued
Risk
Our response to the risk
Key observations
communicated to the Audit
Committee
Data used in the calculation of
the (re)insurance contract assets
and liabilities
The valuation of (re)insurance
contract assets and liabilities
depends on complete and accurate
data to be used in the IFRS 17
Calculation Engine. This data is
often highly subjective and subject
to a higher degree of estimation
uncertainty and includes:
• Estimated Premium Income
(‘EPI’) source data;
• Claims paid and outstanding
source data; and
• Reinsurance data.
To obtain sufficient audit evidence to conclude on the
appropriateness of data used in the calculation of the
(re)insurance contract assets and liabilities, we performed the
following procedures:
• Obtained an understanding of the process and tested the
design and operating effectiveness of key controls over
management’s source data collection, extraction, and
validation process.
• For a sample of policy estimates in respect of the youngest
underwriting year, we corroborated the estimated premium
to supporting evidence such as signed slips. Additionally,
to corroborate estimates, we performed back testing of
historical estimated premium income compared to actual
premium signed.
• We compared a sample of paid and outstanding claims,
used in determining management’s loss ratios, to underlying
supporting evidence. For paid claims this included
authorisation requests and bank statements.
• Compared material data which are input into the model
to source information.
• For a sample of outstanding claims, we held discussions with
claims handlers to further understand the background of the
claims and assess the reasonableness of the assumptions
made in setting the reserve. We also obtained supporting
evidence, where relevant, including third-party reports to
corroborate the year end balances.
• Tested the completeness and accuracy of the claims,
reinsurance data and premium data used within the reserving
process by reconciling the data used in the actuarial
projections to the underlying policy administration,
reinsurance, and finance systems.
Based on our
procedures performed
we are satisfied that
the data used in the
valuations of the
insurance and
reinsurance contract
assets and liabilities
are reasonable.
In the prior year, our auditor’s report included a key audit matter in relation to Transition to IFRS 17 and Valuation of level 3
investments. In the current year, we have removed these as Beazley is no longer transitioning to IFRS 17, and we do not
consider valuation of Level 3 investments to be an area that has a relative allocation of audit effort significant enough to be
considered a Key Audit Matter.
Our application of materiality
We apply the concept of materiality in planning and performing the audit, in evaluating the effect of identified misstatements
on the audit and in forming our audit opinion.
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Materiality
The magnitude of an omission or misstatement that, individually or in the aggregate, could reasonably be expected to influence
the economic decisions of the users of the financial statements. Materiality provides a basis for determining the nature and extent
of our audit procedures.
We determined materiality for the Group to be $54 million (2023: $27 million), which is 5% (2023: 5%) of pre-tax profits on a 3-
year average (2023: 5-year average adjusted for Covid-19 losses of $34 million and gain on sale of the Beazley Benefits
business of $54.4 million). This materiality basis is in line with our approach taken in the prior year, albeit we have chosen to
use a three-year average as opposed to a five-year average. This is because there are now three years of reported pre-tax profits
on a consistent IFRS 17 basis. We consider that adjusted pre-tax profits is the most relevant performance measure used by
investors, regulators and other stakeholders when assessing the Group. Given the nature of risks underwritten by Beazley, we
believe the use of a three-year average profit is appropriate as the profitability of the Group is expected to fluctuate from period
to period. We did not identify any events which require an adjustment to normalise the pre-tax profits on a 3-year average.
Where we normalise operating results, we are careful that the level of normalised results is set at such a level that it is
reasonable to expect that the entity’s profit will reach that level in the short-term.
During the course of our audit, we reassessed initial materiality and updated for the actual pre-tax profit for 2024 in our
calculation of the 3-year average.
We determined materiality for the Parent Company to be $14.0 million (2023: $15.2 million), which is 1% (2023: 1%) of equity.
The Parent company primarily holds the investment in Group entities and, therefore, net assets is considered to be the key
focus for users of the financial statements.
Performance materiality
The application of materiality at the individual account or balance level. It is set at an amount to reduce to an appropriately low
level the probability that the aggregate of uncorrected and undetected misstatements exceeds materiality.
On the basis of our risk assessments, together with our assessment of the Group’s overall control environment, our judgement
was that performance materiality was 50% (2023: 50%) of our planning materiality, namely $27 million (2023: $13.5 million).
We have set performance materiality at this percentage as our understanding of the entity and past experience with the audit
indicate a higher risk of misstatements.
Audit work was undertaken at component locations for the purpose of responding to the assessed risks of material
misstatement of the Group financial statements. The performance materiality set for each component is based on the relative
scale and risk of the component to the Group as a whole and our assessment of the risk of misstatement at that component.
In the current year, the range of performance materiality allocated to components was between $5 million to $27 million
(2023: $4.2 million to $12.2 million).
Reporting threshold
An amount below which identified misstatements are considered as being clearly trivial.
We agreed with the Audit Committee that we would report to them all uncorrected audit differences in excess of $2.7m
(2023: $1.25m), which is set at 5% of planning materiality, as well as differences below that threshold that, in our view,
warranted reporting on qualitative grounds.
We evaluate any uncorrected misstatements against both the quantitative measures of materiality discussed above and
in light of other relevant qualitative considerations in forming our opinion.
Other information
The other information comprises the information included in the annual report set out on pages 1 to 264 other than the
financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The Directors are responsible for the other information contained within
the annual report.
Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly
stated in this report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.
Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially
inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit or otherwise appears to be
materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to
determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we
have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of the other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
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Independent auditor’s report continued
Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006
In our opinion, the part of the Directors’ remuneration report to be audited has been properly prepared in accordance with the
Companies Act 2006.
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:
• the information given in the strategic report and the Directors’ report for the financial year for which the financial statements
are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and
• the strategic report and the Directors’ report have been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements.
Matters on which we are required to report by exception
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the Group and the parent company and its environment obtained in the
course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the strategic report or the Directors’ report.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 requires us to report
to you if, in our opinion:
• adequate accounting records have not been kept by the parent company, or returns adequate for our audit have not been
received from branches not visited by us; or
• the parent company financial statements and the part of the Directors’ Remuneration Report to be audited are not in
agreement with the accounting records and returns; or
• certain disclosures of Directors’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or
• we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.
Corporate Governance Statement
We have reviewed the Directors’ statement in relation to going concern, longer-term viability and that part of the Corporate
Governance Statement relating to the Group and company’s compliance with the provisions of the UK Corporate Governance
Code specified for our review by the UK Listing Rules.
Based on the work undertaken as part of our audit, we have concluded that each of the following elements of the Corporate
Governance Statement is materially consistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained during the audit:
• Directors’ statement with regards to the appropriateness of adopting the going concern basis of accounting and any material
uncertainties identified set out on page 159;
• Directors’ explanation as to its assessment of the Company’s prospects, the period this assessment covers and why the
period is appropriate set out on pages 80 to 81;
• Director’s statement on whether it has a reasonable expectation that the Group will be able to continue in operation and
meets its liabilities set out on pages 80 to 81;
• Directors’ statement on fair, balanced and understandable set out on page 119;
• Board’s confirmation that it has carried out a robust assessment of the emerging and principal risks set out on pages
77 to 79;
• The section of the annual report that describes the review of effectiveness of risk management and internal control systems
set out on page 124; and;
• The section describing the work of the audit committee set out on pages 116 to 124.
Responsibilities of Directors
As explained more fully in the Directors’ responsibilities statement set out on page 158, the Directors are responsible for the
preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control
as the Directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material
misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
In preparing the financial statements, the Directors are responsible for assessing the Group and parent company’s ability to
continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of
accounting unless the Directors either intend to liquidate the Group or the parent company or to cease operations, or have no
realistic alternative but to do so.
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Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material
misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance
is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a
material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or
in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these
financial statements.
Explanation as to what extent the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our
responsibilities, outlined above, to detect irregularities, including fraud. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement due
to fraud is higher than the risk of not detecting one resulting from error, as fraud may involve deliberate concealment by, for
example, forgery or intentional misrepresentations, or through collusion. The extent to which our procedures are capable of
detecting irregularities, including fraud is detailed below.
However, the primary responsibility for the prevention and detection of fraud rests with both those charged with governance of
the company and management.
• We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory frameworks that are applicable to the Group and determined that
the most significant are permissions and supervisory requirements of the Central Bank of Ireland (‘CBI’), the Corporation of
Lloyd’s, the Prudential Regulation Authority (‘PRA’) and the Financial Conduct Authority (‘FCA’)), the State of Connecticut
Insurance Department.
• We understood how the Group is complying with those frameworks by making enquiries of management, internal audit and
those responsible for legal and compliance matters. We also reviewed correspondence between the Group and regulatory
bodies, reviewed minutes of the Executive Committee, Risk Committee and attended the Audit Committees and gained
an understanding of the Group’s approach to governance demonstrated by The Board’s approval of the Group’s
governance framework.
• We assessed the susceptibility of the Group’s financial statements to material misstatement, including how fraud might
occur by considering the controls that the Group has established to address risks identified by the entity, or that otherwise
seek to prevent, deter or detect fraud. We also considered areas of significant judgement, including complex transactions,
performance targets, external pressures and the impact these have on the control environment and their potential to
influence management to manage earnings or influence the perceptions of investors and stakeholders. Where this risk was
considered to be higher, within Revenue recognition (CSM release and experience adjustments), and valuation of
(re)insurance contract assets/liabilities, we performed audit procedures to address the identified fraud risk as detailed in the
respective key audit matters above. We made enquiries with management in person and via the use of video conferencing
and performed analytical review procedures to assess for unusual movements throughout the year. Our procedures to
address the risk identified also incorporated unpredictability into the nature, timing and/or extent of our testing; challenging
assumptions, significant judgements and estimates made by management. Additionally, we tested year-end manual journals
to provide reasonable assurance that the financial statements were free from fraud or error.
• Based on this understanding we designed our audit procedures to identify non-compliance with such laws and regulations.
Our procedures involved making enquiry of those charged with governance and senior management for their awareness of any
non-compliance of laws or regulations; inquiring about the policies that have been established to prevent non-compliance with
laws and regulations by officers and employees both at a Group and component level; inquiring about the Group’s methods of
enforcing and monitoring compliance with such policies; inspecting significant correspondence with the CBI, the Corporation
of Lloyd’s, the FCA and the PRA, and the State of Connecticut Insurance Department; involvement of relevant specialists,
including forensics specialists and inquiring about the appointment of external advisers, including legal counsel.
• The Group operates in the insurance industry which is a highly regulated environment. As such the Senior Statutory Auditor
considered the experience and expertise of the engagement team to ensure that the team had the appropriate competence
and capabilities, which included the use of specialists where appropriate. The procedures over identification of any instances
of non-compliances with laws and regulations are conducted centrally for the Group. However, we instructed our audit
component teams that, should they be made aware of such instances of non-compliance, they are required to communicate
them to the EY Primary Team.
A further description of our responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements is located on the Financial Reporting
Council’s website at https://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
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Independent auditor’s report continued
Other matters we are required to address
• Following the recommendation from the Audit Committee, we were appointed by the Company on 23 May 2019 to audit the
financial statements for the year ending 31 December 2019 and subsequent financial periods.
• The period of total uninterrupted engagement including previous renewals and reappointments is six years, covering the years
ending 31 December 2019 to 31 December 2024.
• The audit opinion is consistent with the additional report to the Audit Committee.
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the Company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies
Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Company’s members those matters we are
required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not
accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the Company and the Company’s members as a body, for our audit work,
for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Robert Bruce (Senior statutory auditor)
for and on behalf of Ernst & Young LLP, Statutory Auditor
London
3 March 2025
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Financial
statements
178
Consolidated statement of profit or loss
179
Consolidated statement of comprehensive income
180
Consolidated statement of changes in equity
181
Consolidated statement of financial position
182
Consolidated statement of cash flows
183
Notes to the financial statements
255
Company financial statements
262
Alternative performance measures
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177
Consolidated statement of profit or loss
for the year ended 31 December 2024
2024
2023
Note
$m
$m
Insurance revenue
4
5,678.1 5,442.4
Insurance service expenses
5
(3,933.0) (3,592.6)
Allocation of reinsurance premium
6
(764.9) (1,127.3)
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims
6
255.8
528.5
Insurance service result
1,236.0 1,251.0
Net investment income
7
574.4
480.2
Net finance expense from insurance contracts issued
7
(89.1)
(169.3)
Net finance income from reinsurance contracts held
7
33.2
15.9
Net insurance and financial result
1,754.5 1,577.8
Other income
8
106.0
78.5
Operating expenses
9
(388.6)
(365.8)
Foreign exchange (losses)/gains
(9.1)
4.5
Results from operating activities
1,462.8 1,295.0
Finance costs
11
(39.3)
(40.6)
Profit before tax
1,423.5 1,254.4
Tax expense
12
(293.2)
(227.6)
Profit after tax for the year
1,130.3 1,026.8
Earnings per share (cents per share):
Basic
13
175.1
154.7
Diluted
13
170.4
151.4
Earnings per share (pence per share):
Basic
13
137.0
124.8
Diluted
13
133.3
122.1
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Consolidated statement of comprehensive income
for the year ended 31 December 2024
2024
2023
Note
$m
$m
Profit after tax for the year
1,130.3
1,026.8
Items that will never be reclassified to profit or loss:
Loss on remeasurement of retirement benefit obligations
16
(0.6)
(0.1)
Tax (expense)/credit on defined benefit obligation
(0.2)
0.7
Items that may be reclassified subsequently to profit or loss:
Foreign exchange translation gains
1.2
5.7
Total other comprehensive income
0.4
6.3
Total comprehensive income recognised
1,130.7
1,033.1
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179
Consolidated statement of changes in equity
for the year ended 31 December 2024
Share
capital
Share
premium
Foreign
currency
translation
reserve
Other
reserves
Retained
earnings
Total
Note
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Balance as at 01 January 2023
46.6
9.7 (109.8)
(7.6) 3,015.1 2,954.0
Total comprehensive income
—
—
5.7
—
1,027.4
1,033.1
Dividend paid
14
—
—
—
—
(107.7)
(107.7)
Issue of shares
21
0.1
0.9
—
—
—
1.0
Equity settled share-based payments
22
—
—
—
36.2
—
36.2
Acquisition of own shares held in trust
22
—
—
—
(33.6)
—
(33.6)
Tax on share option vestings
22
—
—
—
0.7
(1.6)
(0.9)
Transfer of shares to employees
22
—
—
—
(8.5)
8.5
—
Balance at 31 December 2023
46.7
10.6
(104.1)
(12.8)
3,941.7
3,882.1
Total comprehensive income
—
—
1.2
—
1,129.5
1,130.7
Dividend paid
14
—
—
—
—
(120.5)
(120.5)
Share buyback1
21
(2.4)
—
—
2.4 (330.0) (330.0)
Issue of shares
21
0.3
7.3
—
—
—
7.6
Equity settled share-based payments
22
—
—
—
40.5
—
40.5
Acquisition of own shares held in trust
22
—
—
—
(14.0)
—
(14.0)
Tax on share option vestings2
22
—
—
—
7.1
3.3
10.4
Transfer of shares to employees
22
—
—
—
(11.4)
11.4
—
Balance at 31 December 2024
44.6
17.9
(102.9)
11.8
4,635.4
4,606.8
1 Refer to Note 21 for further details of the share buyback and to Note 22 for the value of the capital redemption reserve as at 31 December 2024.
2 The aggregate amount of tax recognised directly through equity is a credit of $10.4m (2023: expense of 0.9m), comprised of $7.1m of deferred tax credit (2023:
0.9m deferred tax expense) and $3.3m of current tax credit (2023: nil).
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Consolidated statement of financial position
as at 31 December 2024
31 December
2024
31 December
2023
Note
$m
$m
Intangible assets
15
198.0
165.3
Plant and equipment
28.9
15.9
Right-of-use assets
26
49.8
59.4
Deferred tax asset
24
191.8
46.9
Retirement benefit asset
16
4.0
4.5
Insurance contract assets
27
20.2
101.5
Reinsurance contract assets
27
2,666.6
2,426.7
Financial assets at fair value
17 10,610.6
9,665.5
Other assets
19
681.4
354.2
Current tax asset
85.6
13.2
Cash and cash equivalents
20
882.1
812.3
Total assets
15,419.0 13,665.4
Share capital
21
44.6
46.7
Share premium
17.9
10.6
Foreign currency translation reserve
(102.9)
(104.1)
Other reserves
22
11.8
(12.8)
Retained earnings
4,635.4
3,941.7
Total equity
4,606.8
3,882.1
Deferred tax liability
24
387.2
202.2
Financial liabilities
17
576.0
554.6
Lease liabilities
26
66.9
76.6
Insurance contract liabilities
27
8,814.3
7,992.2
Reinsurance contract liabilities
27
297.1
333.5
Current tax liability
27.9
13.7
Other liabilities
28
642.8
610.5
Total liabilities
10,812.2
9,783.3
Total equity and liabilities
15,419.0 13,665.4
The financial statements were authorised for issue by the Board of Directors on 3 March 2025 and were signed on its behalf
by:
C Bannister
Chair
B Plucnar Jensen
Group Chief Financial Officer
3 March 2025
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181
Consolidated statement of cash flows
for the year ended 31 December 2024
2024
2023
Note
$m
$m
Cash flows from operating activities:
Profit before tax
1,423.5
1,254.4
Adjustments for non-cash items:
Interest and dividends receivable on financial assets
7
(313.2)
(215.3)
Finance costs payable
11
39.3
40.6
Net fair value gains on financial assets
7
(227.3)
(325.2)
Other non-cash items1
99.2
45.7
Changes in operational assets and liabilities:
Increase in net insurance and reinsurance contract liabilities
27
627.1
545.9
Increase in other liabilities
28
32.3
86.5
Increase in other assets
19
(327.2)
(150.0)
Purchases of investments
(8,598.9) (7,115.9)
Proceeds from sale of investments
7,870.0
6,129.8
Repayment of syndicate loans
17
7.7
—
Interest and dividends received on financial assets
7
303.6
207.4
Tax paid
(301.2)
(110.7)
Net cash inflows from operating activities
634.9
393.2
Cash flows from investing activities:
Purchase of plant and equipment
(17.8)
(4.3)
Expenditure on software development and other intangible assets
15
(45.0)
(50.9)
Net cash outflows from investing activities
(62.8)
(55.2)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Acquisition of own shares in trust
22
(14.0)
(33.6)
Principal paid on lease liabilities
26
(11.8)
(8.9)
Interest paid on lease liabilities
11
(2.9)
(3.1)
Share buyback
21
(330.0)
—
Other finance costs paid
11
(36.4)
(37.5)
Dividend paid
14
(120.5)
(107.7)
Net cash inflows from financing activities
(515.6)
(190.8)
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents
56.5
147.2
Opening cash and cash equivalents
812.3
652.5
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents
13.3
12.6
Closing cash and cash equivalents
20
882.1
812.3
1 Other non-cash items includes amounts relating to depreciation, amortisation and foreign exchange differences.
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Notes to the financial
statements
184 1 General information
186 2 Statement of accounting policies
194 3 Segmental reporting
198 4 Insurance revenue
198 5 Insurance service expenses
198 6 Net expenses from reinsurance contracts held
199 7 Net financial result
200 8 Other income
201 9 Operating expenses
202 10 Auditor's remuneration
202 11 Finance costs
203 12 Tax expense
204 13 Earnings per share
204 14 Dividends per share
205 15 Intangible assets
208 16 Retirement benefit asset
210 17 Financial assets and liabilities
217 18 Derivative financial instruments
217 19 Other assets
219 20 Cash and cash equivalents
218 21 Share capital
219 22 Other reserves
220 23 Equity compensation plans
222 24 Deferred tax
223 25 Subordinated liabilities
224 26 Leases
225 27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts
236 28 Other liabilities
237 29 Risk and sensitivity analysis
251 30 Subsidiary undertakings
253 31 Related party transactions
254 32 Contingencies
254 33 Subsequent events
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183
Notes to the financial statements
1 General information
1a Nature of operations
Beazley plc (registered number 09763575) is a public company incorporated in England and Wales. The Company’s registered
address is 22 Bishopsgate, London, EC2N 4BQ, United Kingdom. The principal activity of the Company and its subsidiaries
("the Group") is to participate as a specialist insurer which transacts primarily in commercial lines of business through its
subsidiaries and Lloyd’s syndicates. The Group's consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024
comprise the parent company, its subsidiaries and the Group’s interest in associates. For the separate parent company
financial statements, refer to page 255.
1b Basis of preparation
The Group’s consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with UK adopted International Accounting
Standards (IAS) and the requirements of Companies Act 2006. These are prepared on the historical cost basis, with the
exception of financial assets and derivative financial instruments which are stated at their fair value, and the defined benefit
pension asset which is measured at the fair value of plan assets less the present value of the defined benefit pension
obligation. All amounts are presented in US dollars and millions unless stated otherwise.
1c Amendments to existing standards
In the current year, the Group has applied several amendments to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) issued by
the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and endorsed by the UK Endorsement Board (UKEB) that are mandatorily
effective for accounting periods beginning on or after 01 January 2024. None of these amendments have had a material impact
on the Group on adoption:
• Amendment to IAS 1 – Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current and Non-current Liabilities with Covenants.
• Amendments to IFRS 16 – Lease Liability in a Sale and Leaseback.
• Amendments to IAS 7 and IFRS 7 – Disclosures: Supplier Finance Arrangements.
The IASB has issued the following new standards which are not yet effective at the reporting date. Once endorsed by the UKEB,
these will be applied from their effective date of 01 January 2027:
• IFRS 18 – Presentation and Disclosure in Financial Statements. The Group is currently working to assess the impact of the
new standard; however, this is expected to be material to the presentation of the financial statements and notes.
• IFRS 19 – Subsidiaries without Public Accountability: Disclosures. As the Group’s equity instruments are publicly traded, it is
not eligible to elect to apply IFRS 19. No impact is therefore expected.
In addition, the following minor amendments to existing standards have been issued but are not yet effective at the reporting
date. None of these are expected to materially impact the Group on their adoption:
• Amendment to IAS 21 – Lack of Exchangeability (endorsed, effective date 01 January 2025).
• Amendments to IFRS 9 and IFRS 7 – Classification and Measurement of Financial Instruments (not yet endorsed, effective
date 01 January 2026).
• Annual Improvements to IFRS Accounting Standards – Volume 11 (not yet endorsed, effective date 01 January 2026).
• Amendments to IFRS 10 and IAS 28 – Sale or Contribution of Assets between an Investor and its Associate or Joint Venture
(not yet endorsed, effective date postponed indefinitely).
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1 General information continued
1d Going concern
The consolidated financial statements of Beazley plc have been prepared on a going concern basis. In adopting the going
concern basis, the Board has reviewed the Group’s current and forecast solvency and liquidity positions for the 12 months from
the date that the financial statements are authorised for issue. The Group’s business activities, together with the factors likely
to affect its future development, performance and position, are set out in the strategic report contained in this Annual Report
and Accounts. In addition, the risk report and financial review includes the Group’s risk management objectives and the Group’s
objectives, policies and processes for managing its capital.
In assessing the Group’s going concern position as at 31 December 2024, the Directors have considered a number of
factors, including:
• the current statement of financial position and in particular the adequacy of the estimate of the liability for incurred claims;
• the Group’s strategic and financial plan, taking account of possible changes in trading performance and funding retention;
• the Group's capital forecast, which takes into account the capital requirements of major subsidiaries and their current
external credit rating and outlook;
• the Group's liquidity at both a Group and material Subsidiary level;
• stress testing and scenario analysis assessing the impact of natural and cyber catastrophe events on the Group's capital and
liquidity positions and reverse stress test scenarios designed to render the business model unviable; and
• other qualitative factors, such as the market environment, the Group's ability to raise additional capital and/or liquidity, and
climate change.
For further details, refer to the viability statement on page 80 of this Annual Report and Accounts.
As a result of the assessment, no material uncertainty in relation to going concern has been identified. As at its most recent
regulatory submission, the Group’s capital ratios and its total capital resources are comfortably in excess of regulatory solvency
requirements, and internal stress testing indicates that the Group can withstand severe economic and competitive stresses.
Based on the going concern assessment performed, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Group has adequate
resources to continue in operational existence over a period of 12 months from the date of this report being authorised for
issue, and therefore believe that the Group is well placed to manage its business risks successfully. Accordingly, they continue
to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the consolidated financial statements.
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185
Notes to the financial statements continued
2 Statement of accounting policies
2a Use of key judgements and estimates
The preparation of financial statements requires the use of judgements and estimates that affect the reported amounts of
assets, liabilities, income and expenses. Actual results may differ from those on which management’s estimates are based.
Inputs and assumptions are evaluated on an ongoing basis by considering historical experience, expectations of reasonably
possible future events, and other factors. For example, estimates which are sensitive to economic, regulatory and geopolitical
conditions could be impacted by significant changes in the external environment such as rising inflation, rising interest rates,
climate change, international conflicts and significant changes in legislation. Any revisions to accounting estimates are
recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised and in any future periods affected.
Specific to climate change, the estimate for which there is the highest potential exposure to climate risk is the estimation of
future cash flows within insurance contract assets and liabilities. Management currently includes allowances in the
determination of best estimate cash flows for the potential impact of changes arising from climate risks (which could include
but is not limited to an increased frequency of natural catastrophes, liability claims for green-washing and changes in legislation
related to climate). Management is of the view that for all other estimates, climate risk would not have a material impact on the
valuation of the assets and liabilities held by the Group at the year-end date.
Information about the Group's key judgements and estimates has been disclosed below. Key judgements made by management
in applying its accounting policies are those that have the most significant effect on the amounts recognised in the financial
statements. Key estimates are those that have a significant risk of resulting in a material adjustment to the carrying amounts
of assets and liabilities within the next 12 months. The Group's key judgements and estimates are reassessed at each
reporting period and updated within the financial statements. The impairment assessment of goodwill has been removed
as a key judgement in the current year.
i. Key judgements
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities
Judgement has been applied in the following areas when determining the Group's results on an IFRS 17 basis:
• Management has exercised judgement in determining an appropriate level of aggregation in the measurement of insurance
contracts. Contracts are aggregated into portfolios based on shared risk and management characteristics (i.e. by type of
cover, classes covered, and the reinsurer). These are then split into two groups representing contracts which are onerous and
those which are non-onerous on initial recognition. The latter category is broken down further based on whether there is a
significant possibility of contracts becoming onerous in the future. Further details are included in the accounting policies
at Note 2b(iii).
• Under IFRS 17, discount rates are applied to expected future cash flows in measuring insurance contract liabilities.
Management has applied judgement in determining that the "bottom-up" estimation technique should be used in calculating
these rates.
• Management has also applied judgement in determining an appropriate calculation basis for the risk adjustment. The Cost
of Capital (CoC) approach has been applied as this is consistent with the basis on which the risk margin is calculated
under Solvency II, meaning work in this area could be leveraged. The main difference between the two methods is that the
CoC is prescribed by EIOPA under Solvency II, whereas under IFRS 17 this is calculated in line with the Group’s view of the
required return.
• Judgement has been applied by management in determining the amount of contractual service margin (CSM) that should be
released into the profit or loss in each period. This process is carried out by identifying the coverage units in the group of
contracts based on straight-line earnings patterns, allocating the CSM to coverage units, and then assessing at each
reporting date the amount of CSM to be amortised and recognised as profit.
• Finally, the Group has applied the IFRS 17 expense principles by allocating costs to the "insurance service expense" line
based on those which are deemed to be "directly attributable" to fulfilling insurance contracts. The amount recognised as
insurance service expenses is determined by excluding certain costs as prescribed by IFRS 17, breaking down the balance
by classes of expense (administrative, other acquisition, claims handling and brokerage), and then applying percentages
representing amounts that are directly attributable. These proportions are calculated with references to both forecast and
historical figures.
For further details on the accounting for insurance and reinsurance contracts under IFRS 17, refer to the policies set out at
section (b)(iii) below. For details of the estimates applied in the calculation of discount rates and the risk adjustment, refer
to section (ii) below.
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2 Statement of accounting policies continued
ii. Key estimates
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – Future cash flows
The Group has estimated the amount, timing and probability of future cash flows. Estimates are formed by applying
assumptions about past events, current conditions and forecasts of future conditions. These have been outlined below:
• Future expected premium cash flows are based on data entered into underwriting systems. These have a level of estimate
embedded for certain contracts, with payment/settlement patterns used to determine timing.
• Gross and reinsured claims payments are determined using an approach whereby cash flows are set at a year of account
and reserving class level based on the latest quarterly reserving exercise.
• Expenses are deemed to be within the contract boundary, and therefore included in the cash flows, when these are directly
attributable to fulfilling insurance contracts.
• Lapses/cancellations are projected by applying assumptions determined through statistical measures based on the Group’s
experience. These vary by product type, policy duration and sales trends.
For carrying values of insurance contracts by measurement component (including future cash flows), refer to Note 27(a).
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – Discount rates
The discount rates applied to expected future cash flows in measuring insurance contract liabilities have been determined using
the bottom-up approach. This method takes the risk-free rates and adjusts for an illiquidity premium.
• Risk-free rates are derived using government yield curves denominated in the same currency as the product being measured,
which are sourced from Moody's. These are based on quarter-start and quarter-end rates.
• The Group's illiquidity premium is also sourced from Moody’s and adjusted to reflect the Group’s own asset portfolio.
This represents the differences in the liquidity characteristics between the financial assets used to derive the risk-free yield
and the insurance contract liability characteristics. The illiquidity premium applied by management is a flat percentage which
varies by currency. For the USD discount rate, which is the dominant currency of the Group, as at 31 December 2024 this
was 0.3% (2023: 0.4%).
The discount rates applied in discounting the Group's insurance and reinsurance assets/liabilities are as follows.
31 December 2024
1 year
3 year
5 year
USD
4.5 %
4.6 %
4.7 %
CAD
3.4 %
3.3 %
3.4 %
GBP
4.6 %
4.6 %
4.6 %
EUR
2.4 %
2.3 %
2.5 %
31 December 2023
1 year
3 year
5 year
USD
5.1 %
4.5 %
4.3 %
CAD
5.3 %
4.4 %
4.1 %
GBP
4.9 %
4.0 %
3.8 %
EUR
3.5 %
2.7 %
2.6 %
For carrying values of insurance contract liabilities, refer to Note 27. For an explanation of how amounts may move in the year
as a result of changes in cash flows and amounts recognised in profit or loss, refer to Note 2. Current year movements include
an accrual for additional premiums and a reduction of recoveries contributing to an overall expense on the amount recoverable
from reinsurers for incurred claims following a change in accounting estimate in relation to one of our major reinsurance
contracts in the Specialty Risks division. Sensitivities to a change in interest rate against the carrying value of insurance
contract liabilities are included in Note 29(b)(iii).
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Notes to the financial statements continued
2 Statement of accounting policies continued
Measurement of insurance contract liabilities – Risk adjustment
Estimation of the risk adjustment for non-financial risk is based on various inputs and assumptions, particularly relating to non-
financial risk components of the SCR from the Solvency II internal model which captures all material exposure elements for the
Group. IFRS 17 does not prescribe a specific methodology for the calculation of the risk adjustment for non-financial risk and
the Group has elected to use a CoC approach. This is determined by comparing the required return by each class of business
within the internal model. Our overall cross cycle return on capital target is 15%. Projected capital amounts are derived from
the annual business plan, with adjustments made to factor in emerging risks and uncertainties. The risk adjustment therefore
differs between portfolios depending on the inherent risk associated with each. Diversification is considered between business
types (to allow for negative/positive correlation between risks) and between years (to allow for the different kind of risk written
across years).
The risk adjustment calculations as defined above are performed on a net basis, and the resulting risk adjustment percentage
is then applied separately to insurance contracts issued and reinsurance contracts held.
The reserve confidence level determined by the actuarial department is considered as part of a quarterly reserve review
exercise. These meetings are attended by senior management, senior underwriters, and representatives from actuarial, claims
and finance. The reserve confidence level was deemed to be at the 84th percentile for the 2024 year end as per output from
the latest governed reserve review (2023: 85th percentile) at the balance sheet date. This is in line with the preference that
the Group maintains a reserve confidence level in the 80th to 90th percentile range. The carrying values of insurance contracts
by measurement component (including risk adjustment) are disclosed in Note 27(a). For sensitivities to a change in risk
adjustment, refer to Note 29(a)(iv).
Valuation of level 3 financial assets
The Group holds syndicate loans, illiquid assets and a share of its collateralised loan obligations at level 3 within the fair
value hierarchy. This means that fair values are estimated using model valuations which incorporate both observable and
unobservable market inputs and assumptions. For further details on the methodologies, inputs and assumptions used by the
Group, in addition to carrying values of level 3 financial assets, refer to Note 17. For the sensitivity of level 3 financial assets
to price risk, refer to Note 29(b)(iv).
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2 Statement of accounting policies continued
2b Material accounting policies
i. Subsidiary undertakings
Subsidiary undertakings are entities controlled by the Group. The Group controls an entity when it is exposed to, or has rights
to, variable returns from its involvement with the entity and has the ability to affect those returns through its power over the
entity. Subsidiary companies where the Group has control are consolidated within these financial statements.
Certain Group subsidiaries underwrite as corporate members of Lloyd’s on syndicates managed by Beazley Furlonge Limited. In view
of the several and direct liability of underwriting members at Lloyd’s for the transactions of syndicates in which they participate, only
attributable shares of transactions, assets and liabilities of those syndicates are included in the Group financial statements. The Group
continues to conclude that it remains appropriate to consolidate its share of the result of these syndicates and accordingly, as the
Group is the sole provider of capacity on syndicates 2623, 3622 and 3623, these financial statements include 100% of the economic
interest in these syndicates. Please refer to the financial review on page 18 for a Group structure chart.
The Group provides 10% of capacity on syndicate 4321 for the 2022 to 2023 years of account, and approximately 18% and
20% of capacity on syndicate 5623 for the 2023 and 2024 years of account respectively. In addition, it provides 9% of capacity
in 623 for all open years of account via Beazley Staff Underwriting Limited (BSUL) in order to facilitate a staff participation plan.
These syndicates are managed by Beazley Furlonge Limited. These financial statements include the corresponding economic
interest in these syndicates for the relevant years of account and show the Group's share of the transactions, assets and
liabilities of these syndicates. For the remaining capacity of these syndicates (including, for 5623, the 2022 year of account
where capital was solely provided by third parties), the Group's economic interest in the form of agency fees and profit
commission attributable to non group capital providers is included within these financial statements.
Beazley Furlonge Limited is also the managing agent of syndicate 6107. Capacity for this syndicate is provided entirely by third
parties to the Group, and these financial statements reflect Beazley’s economic interest in the form of agency fees and profit
commission to which it is entitled.
ii. Foreign currency translation
The Group financial statements are presented in US dollars, being the functional and presentational currency of the parent
and its main trading subsidiaries, as the majority of trading assets and insurance premiums are denominated in US dollars.
Foreign currency transactions are translated into the functional currency using average exchange rates applicable to the period
in which the transactions take place. Foreign exchange gains and losses resulting from the settlement of such transactions and
from translation at the period end of monetary assets, and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are recognised in the
statement of profit or loss. Non-monetary items recorded at historical cost in foreign currencies are translated using the
exchange rate on the date of the initial transaction.
The Group has subsidiaries with different functional currencies, the results and financial position of which are translated into
the USD presentational currency as follows:
• assets and liabilities are translated at the closing rate as at the statement of financial position date;
• income and expenses are translated at average exchange rates for the reporting period where this is determined to be a
reasonable approximation of the actual transaction rates; and
• all resulting exchange differences are recognised in other comprehensive income and as a separate component of equity
(the foreign currency translation reserve).
iii. Insurance and reinsurance contracts
Recognition and measurement
The Group applies IFRS 17 to all insurance contracts issued and reinsurance contracts held. These are defined respectively as
contracts under which the Group accepts significant insurance risk by agreeing to compensate a policyholder/cedant if they are
adversely affected by an insured event, and contracts which are issued by a reinsurer to compensate the Group as cedant for
claims arising from underlying contracts. Insurance risk is considered in further detail in Note 29. The Group has elected to
apply the General Measurement Model (GMM) to all insurance and reinsurance contracts that it issues, and applies the GMM
with certain modifications to all reinsurance contracts that it holds. This is the default approach under IFRS 17 – the optional
simplified Premium Allocation Approach has not been applied. Under the GMM, insurance contracts issued are aggregated into
groups. Contracts are then recognised at the earliest of (i) the beginning of the coverage period of the group; (ii) the date when
first payment from a policyholder/cedant in the group is due; or (iii) where applicable, when the group becomes onerous. The
Group measures its reinsurance contracts held separately from the underlying contracts to which the arrangement relates. For
proportional reinsurance contracts, these are recognised at the later of the date on which the first underlying contract is initially
recognised, or the date into which the reinsurance is entered. Non-proportional reinsurance contracts are typically recognised at
the beginning of the coverage period of the group of reinsurance contracts. However if the underlying group is determined to be
onerous, then the reinsurance contract is recognised on the date at which this assessment took place.
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Notes to the financial statements continued
2 Statement of accounting policies continued
Level of aggregation
The Group is required under IFRS 17 to allocate its insurance contracts into groups. These are first aggregated into portfolios
at a granular level based on whether they share similar risk characteristics and are managed together. Generally, all insurance
contracts within a product line are considered by management to represent a portfolio of contracts. These are then aggregated
further into groups based on profitability characteristics. The three categories are as follows:
• contracts that are onerous on initial recognition, meaning the expected costs of meeting contractual obligations will exceed
the expected economic benefits;
• contracts that are not onerous on initial recognition but have a significant possibility of becoming onerous subsequently; and
• contracts that are not onerous on initial recognition and have no significant possibility of becoming onerous subsequently.
The majority of the Group's insurance contracts are deemed not to be onerous on initial recognition with a possibility of
becoming onerous subsequently.
Finally, these are aggregated into annual cohorts with contracts issued more than one year apart separated out. These groups
represent the level of aggregation at which insurance contracts are initially recognised and measured. Such groupings are not
subsequently reconsidered.
Components of insurance and reinsurance contracts
Insurance and reinsurance contracts included within the Group's statement of financial position comprise of the
following components:
• The present value of future cash flows. Cash flows comprise of future expected premium which is based on data entered into
underwriting systems, gross and reinsured claims payments derived from the latest quarterly reserving exercise, expenses
deemed to be within the contract boundary, and lapses/cancellations which are projected by applying assumptions
determined through statistical measures based on the Group’s experience. Cash flows also include amounts due to and from
insureds, brokers and reinsurers. An allowance is made for default by these parties. The future cash flows are discounted
using a rate derived by applying the "bottom-up" estimation technique. As referenced in Note 2a, the future cash flows and
their discounting are both sensitive to changes in accounting estimates.
• A risk adjustment for non-financial risk. This represents the compensation that the Group requires for bearing uncertainty
around the amount and timing of the cash flows that arise from non-financial risk. IFRS 17 does not prescribe a specific
approach, therefore the Group has opted to apply the CoC approach. Under this method, the risk adjustment is calculated
by applying a cost of capital rate to the present value of the projected capital for non-financial risk. The risk adjustment
changes as cash flows crystallise on existing business, new business is recognised, and any changes to the cost of capital
are applied.
• The contractual service margin. This represents the unearned profit that the Group will recognise as it provides services
in the future. If the contract is not deemed to be onerous on initial recognition, the CSM is measured as the equal and
opposite of the sum of its related cash flows and risk adjustment. If deemed to be onerous, then the full CSM is immediately
recognised as a loss in the statement of profit or loss, and included within the loss component on subsequent measurement.
The Group has elected to calculate its CSM on a period-to-period basis. In recognising a group of insurance contracts in a
reporting period, estimates for the discount rates are made at the date of initial recognition and the coverage units provided
in that period. The Group uses a weighted-average discount rate and revisions to the rate are applied from the start of the
reporting period in which the new contracts are added to the group. Groups of insurance contracts, including the CSM, that
generate cash flows in a foreign currency are treated as monetary items. As the Group measures fulfilment cash flows based
on the four major transactional currencies (US dollars, sterling, euros and Canadian dollars), the Group maintains the CSM
based on these respective currencies.
Coverage units
Management is required to identify coverage units in order to determine the amount of CSM that should be released into the
profit or loss in each period. Coverage units are determined at a policy level by considering the quantity of the benefits provided
and the expected coverage duration. For insurance contracts issued and proportional reinsurance contracts held, the number of
coverage units in a group reflects the expected pattern of underwriting of the contracts, as the level of service provided depends
on the number of contracts in force. Once management has determined the number of coverage units included in a group of
insurance contracts, CSM is allocated to each coverage unit. An assessment is then made quarterly as to how much of the
CSM should be released and recognised as profit. For non-proportional reinsurance contracts held, the CSM is amortised
on a straight-line basis over the life of the policy, as benefits are received evenly over the coverage period.
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Liability for remaining coverage (LRC) and liability for incurred claims (LIC)
The LRC represents the Group's obligation for insurance contracts written where insured events have not yet occurred. The LIC
represents the Group's obligation to pay claims for insured events that have already occurred, including events that have
occurred but for which claims have not been reported. Insurance contracts issued comprise the LRC, which includes a loss
component, and the LIC. Reinsurance contracts held comprise of the asset for remaining coverage (ARC), containing a loss
recovery component, and an asset for incurred claims (AIC). Note that the LRC and ARC include an element of the present value
of future cash flows (PVFCF), a risk adjustment for non-financial risk, and the CSM. The LIC and AIC include the remainder of the
PVFCF and a risk adjustment for non-financial risk.
Amounts recognised in profit or loss
• Insurance revenue in each reporting period represents the changes in the LRC that relate to services for which the Group
expects to receive consideration, in addition to an allocation of premiums that relate to the recovery of insurance acquisition
cash flows. Changes in the LRC include claims and expenses incurred in the period measured at the amounts expected at
the beginning of the period, changes in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk, amounts recognised as profit through
release of the CSM for insurance contract services provided, and other amounts including experience adjustments (which
represent the difference between the expected present value of future cash flows versus the actual cash flows generated,
and any resultant second order impacts).
• Insurance service expenses are comprised of incurred claims and other directly attributable expenses, changes that relate
to past service, losses on onerous contracts and reversal of those losses, and the amortisation of insurance acquisition
cash flows.
• Income/expenses from reinsurance contracts are presented separately from income/expenses from underlying insurance
contracts. The Group has elected to present its net expenses from reinsurance contracts in the statement of profit or loss
as the allocation of reinsurance premium and amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims.
• Finance income/expense from insurance contracts issued and reinsurance contracts held shows the interest accreted
and the effect of changes in discount rates and other financial assumptions.
• Changes in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk are disaggregated between insurance service expenses and insurance
finance income/expenses.
• Insurance and reinsurance contract amounts denominated in foreign currencies are translated to the Group's reporting
currency at the balance sheet date, with any translation differences recognised in the statement of profit or loss.
Disaggregation of disclosures
Income statement figures, including details of insurance revenue and insurance service expense by segment, are disclosed in
Note 3. The maturity of insurance and reinsurance contract liabilities by segment is disclosed in Note 29(d). Reconciliations
of insurance and reinsurance assets and liabilities in Note 27 have not been disclosed by segment because a single
measurement model (GMM) is applied to all contracts and the nature of the business is to underwrite only property and
casualty insurance. In management’s view, disaggregating the balance sheet reconciliations (Note 27) by reporting segment
or geography would result in the disclosure of large amounts of insignificant detail and would obscure useful information.
iv. Financial instruments
Financial instruments are recognised in the statement of financial position at such time as the Group becomes a party to the
contractual provisions of the financial instrument. Purchases and sales of financial assets are recognised on the trade date,
which is the date the Group commits to purchase or sell the asset. A financial asset is derecognised when the contractual
rights to receive cash flows from the financial assets expire, or where the financial assets have been transferred, together with
substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership. Financial liabilities are derecognised if the Group’s obligations specified
in the contract expire, are discharged or are cancelled.
Classification
The Group is required to classify its financial instruments into one of the following categories on subsequent measurement:
fair value through profit or loss, fair value through other comprehensive income, or amortised cost. Classification is based on
the business model in which these are managed and the characteristics of the associated contractual cash flows. Almost all
of the Group’s financial assets are measured at FVTPL (mandatory) under IFRS 9. This is with the exception of cash and cash
equivalents, amounts due from managed syndicates, and other receivables, all of which are measured at amortised cost.
The Group’s financial liabilities are held at amortised cost, with the exception of its derivative financial liabilities and a potential
profit uplift commission payment, both of which are held at FVTPL (mandatory) under IFRS 9.
Other receivables
Other receivables are non-derivative financial assets with fixed or determinable payments that are not quoted in an active
market, and are carried at amortised cost less any expected credit losses (ECLs). Other receivables are included within
"Other assets" on the face of the consolidated statement of financial position.
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Notes to the financial statements continued
2 Statement of accounting policies continued
Hedge funds, equity funds and illiquid assets
The Group invests in a number of hedge funds, equity funds and illiquid assets for which there are no available quoted market
prices. The valuation of these assets is based on fair value techniques as described in Note 17. The fair value of our hedge
fund and illiquid asset portfolio is calculated by reference to the underlying net asset values (NAV) of each of the individual
funds. Consideration is also given to adjusting such NAV valuations for any restriction applied to distributions, the existence of
side pocket provisions and the timing of the latest available valuations. At certain times, the Group will have uncalled unfunded
commitments in relation to its illiquid assets and these are are actively monitored by the Group. These amounts are not shown
on the consolidated statement of financial position, and any additional investment into the illiquid asset portfolio is recognised
on the date that this funding is provided by the Group. Further information is included in Note 17 to the financial statements.
Other payables
Other payables are stated at amortised cost determined according to the effective interest rate method. Other payables are
included within "Other liabilities" on the face of the consolidated statement of financial position.
Derivative financial instruments
Derivatives are initially recognised at fair value on the date on which a derivative contract is entered into and are subsequently
remeasured at their fair value. The best evidence of fair value of a derivative at initial recognition is the transaction price. The
method of recognising the resulting fair value gains or losses depends on whether the derivative is designated as a hedging
instrument and, if so, the nature of the item being hedged. The Group does not hold any derivatives designated as fair value
hedges, cash flow hedges or net investment hedges and therefore all fair value movements are recorded through profit or loss.
Fair values are obtained from quoted market prices in active markets, recent market transactions, and valuation techniques
which include discounted cash flow models. All derivatives are carried as assets when fair value is positive and as liabilities
when fair value is negative.
Derivative assets and liabilities are offset and the net amount reported in the statement of financial position when there is a
legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and the parties intend to settle on a net basis, or realise the assets
and settle the liability simultaneously.
Impairment of financial assets
The ECLs model is applied to the Group’s financial assets measured at amortised cost. This requires an entity to calculate an
allowance for credit losses by taking the sum of various probability weighted outcomes. The general approach is the default
method which management applies in determining the ECLs against its cash and cash equivalents. A simplified approach is
permitted for trade receivables, contract assets and lease receivables where there is no significant financing component.
This results in an entity recognising an ECL that is always equal to a lifetime ECL, rather than assessing periodically whether
there has been an increase in credit risk. The amount of expected credit losses recognised by the Group in 2023 and 2024
was not material.
Cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash held at bank, cash in hand, deposits held at call with banks, cash held in Lloyd’s
trust accounts and other short-term highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and which
are subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value. These investments have a maturity of three months or less from the
date of acquisition. Cash and cash equivalents are measured at amortised cost under IFRS 9.
v. Intangible assets
Goodwill
Goodwill is carried at cost less accumulated impairment losses. It has an indefinite useful life and is tested annually for
impairment. The carrying value is allocated between cash-generating units (CGUs) and is impaired when the net carrying amount
of the relevant CGU exceeds its recoverable amount, being its value in use. Value in use is defined as the present value of the
future cash flows expected to be derived from the CGU.
Syndicate capacity
The syndicate capacity represents the cost of purchasing the Group’s participation in the combined syndicates. The capacity is
capitalised at cost in the statement of financial position. It has an indefinite useful life and is carried at cost less accumulated
impairment. It is annually tested for impairment by reference to the latest auction prices provided by Lloyd’s.
IT development costs
Costs that are directly associated with the development of identifiable and unique software products and that are anticipated
to generate economic benefits exceeding costs beyond one year, are recognised as intangible assets. Costs include external
consultants’ fees, certain qualifying internal staff costs and other costs incurred to develop software programs. The Group does
not routinely capitalise costs relating to software products hosted in the cloud. Costs are amortised over their estimated useful
life, usually three years, on a straight-line basis. Amortisation commences when the asset becomes operational. Other non-
qualifying costs are expensed as incurred.
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vi. Share-based compensation
The grant date fair value of share-based payment awards granted to employees is recognised as an employee expense,
with a corresponding increase in equity, over the period that the employees become unconditionally entitled to the awards.
The amount recognised as an expense is adjusted to reflect the number of awards for which the related service and non-market
performance conditions are expected to be met, such that the amount ultimately recognised as an expense is based on the
number of awards that meet the related service and non-market performance conditions at the vesting date. For share-based
payment awards with non-vesting conditions, the grant date fair value of the share-based payment is measured to reflect such
conditions and there is no true-up for differences between expected and actual outcomes.
When options are exercised and new shares are issued, the proceeds received, net of any transaction costs, are credited to
share capital (nominal value) with the excess amount going to share premium. For other plans, when no proceeds are received,
the nominal value of shares issued is to share capital and debited to retained earnings. When the options are exercised and
the shares are granted from the employee share trust, the proceeds received, net of any transaction costs, and the value of
shares held within the trust, are credited to retained earnings.
vii. Taxation
The tax expense recognised by the Group comprises both current and deferred taxes.
Current tax is the expected tax payable on the taxable income for the year using tax rates enacted or substantively enacted
at the year-end reporting date and any adjustments to tax payable in respect of prior periods.
Deferred tax is provided, using the liability method, on temporary differences arising between the tax bases of assets and
liabilities and their carrying amounts in the financial statements. The amount of deferred tax provided is based on the expected
manner of realisation or settlement of the carrying amount of the assets and liabilities, using tax rates enacted or substantively
enacted at the reporting date.
Deferred tax assets are recognised in the statement of financial position to the extent that it is probable that future taxable
profit will be available against which the temporary differences can be utilised.
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Notes to the financial statements continued
3 Segmental reporting
3a Reporting segments
Segmental information is presented based on the Group’s management and internal reporting structures which represent the
level at which financial information is reported, performance is analysed and resources are allocated by the Group’s Executive
Committee, being the chief operating decision-maker as defined by IFRS 8.
Segment results include items directly attributable to a segment as well as those that can be allocated on a reasonable basis.
Foreign exchange gains/losses, other operating expenses and other income are allocated to each segment in proportion to
their respective percentage of total insurance revenue. The reporting segments do not cross-sell business to each other.
Finance costs and taxation have not been allocated to operating segments as these items are determined at a consolidated
level and do not relate to operating performance.
An overview of the Group's segments is set out below.
Cyber Risks
This segment underwrites cyber and technology risks.
Digital
This segment underwrites a variety of marine, contingency and SME liability risks through digital channels such as e-trading
platforms and broker portals.
MAP Risks
This segment underwrites marine, portfolio underwriting and political and contingency business.
Property Risks
This segment underwrites first-party property risks and reinsurance business.
Specialty Risks
This segment underwrites a wide range of liability classes, including employment practices risks and directors and officers,
as well as healthcare, lawyers and international financial institutions.
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3 Segmental reporting continued
3b Segmental information
Year ended 31 December 2024
Cyber Risks
Digital
MAP Risks
Property
Risks
Specialty
Risks
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Insurance revenue
1,156.7
234.7
917.4
1,518.1
1,851.2
5,678.1
Insurance service expenses
(784.8)
(160.0)
(716.8)
(919.6) (1,351.8)
(3,933.0)
Current year claims
(641.8)
(104.0)
(383.9)
(678.4)
(977.5)
(2,785.6)
Adjustments to prior year claims
85.0
37.7
(29.7)
158.4
149.8
401.2
Reversal of/(loss on) onerous contracts
2.6
0.3
2.9
0.2
(0.9)
5.1
Insurance acquisition cash flows amortisation and other directly
attributable expenses
(230.6)
(94.0)
(306.1)
(399.8)
(523.2)
(1,553.7)
Allocation of reinsurance premium
(231.1)
(28.5)
(81.1)
(225.4)
(198.8)
(764.9)
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims
189.1
6.8
40.0
(22.4)
42.3
255.8
Current year claims
212.0
13.5
67.2
68.5
155.7
516.9
Adjustments to prior year claims
(22.0)
(6.6)
(26.0)
(90.0)
(112.1)
(256.7)
Share of expenses and other amounts
(0.9)
(0.1)
(1.2)
(0.9)
(1.3)
(4.4)
Insurance service result
329.9
53.0
159.5
350.7
342.9
1,236.0
Net investment income
108.2
17.7
72.3
112.8
263.4
574.4
Net finance expense from insurance contracts issued
(29.6)
(1.5)
(5.8)
(4.5)
(47.7)
(89.1)
Net finance income from reinsurance contracts held
6.3
—
3.8
10.2
12.9
33.2
Net insurance and financial result
414.8
69.2
229.8
469.2
571.5
1,754.5
Other income
21.6
4.4
17.1
28.3
34.6
106.0
Other operating expenses
(79.2)
(16.1)
(62.8)
(103.9)
(126.6)
(388.6)
Foreign exchange losses
(1.8)
(0.4)
(1.5)
(2.4)
(3.0)
(9.1)
Segment result
355.4
57.1
182.6
391.2
476.5
1,462.8
Finance costs
(39.3)
Profit before tax
1,423.5
Tax expense
(293.2)
Profit after tax
1,130.3
Claims ratio
39.4 %
28.7 %
44.2 %
41.9 %
47.5 %
43.1 %
Expense ratio
25.0 %
45.6 %
36.7 %
31.0 %
31.7 %
31.7 %
Combined ratio
64.4 %
74.3 %
80.9 %
72.9 %
79.2 %
74.8 %
The calculation bases for the claims, expense and combined ratios are disclosed within the APMs section on page 263.
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Notes to the financial statements continued
3 Segmental reporting continued
Year ended 31 December 2023
Cyber Risks
Digital
MAP Risks
Property
Risks
Specialty
Risks
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Insurance revenue
1,174.9
224.7
1,015.4
1,145.2
1,882.2
5,442.4
Insurance service expenses
(802.1)
(144.0)
(635.5)
(643.9) (1,367.1)
(3,592.6)
Current year claims
(565.2)
(90.5)
(430.8)
(470.1)
(940.1)
(2,496.7)
Adjustments to prior year claims
(8.9)
33.7
88.6
108.1
39.8
261.3
(Loss on)/reversal of onerous contracts
(2.6)
2.6
1.4
(0.1)
0.5
1.8
Insurance acquisition cash flows amortisation and other directly
attributable expenses
(225.4)
(89.8)
(294.7)
(281.8)
(467.3)
(1,359.0)
Allocation of reinsurance premium
(308.5)
(24.3)
(236.1)
(198.5)
(359.9)
(1,127.3)
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims
210.1
7.1
23.9
26.4
261.0
528.5
Current year claims
211.8
13.0
107.6
57.0
294.2
683.6
Adjustments to prior year claims
(1.0)
(5.7)
(83.0)
(30.1)
(31.7)
(151.5)
Share of expenses and other amounts
(0.7)
(0.2)
(0.7)
(0.5)
(1.5)
(3.6)
Insurance service result
274.4
63.5
167.7
329.2
416.2
1,251.0
Net investment income
86.6
14.8
53.5
75.2
250.1
480.2
Net finance expense from insurance contracts issued
(17.5)
(2.9)
(12.6)
(10.9)
(125.4)
(169.3)
Net finance (expense)/income from reinsurance contracts
held
(1.3)
0.5
2.1
(13.7)
28.3
15.9
Net insurance and financial result
342.2
75.9
210.7
379.8
569.2
1,577.8
Other income
16.9
3.2
14.8
16.5
27.1
78.5
Other operating expenses
(52.7)
(19.9)
(68.1)
(42.5)
(182.6)
(365.8)
Foreign exchange gains
1.0
0.2
0.8
0.9
1.6
4.5
Segment result
307.4
59.4
158.2
354.7
415.3
1,295.0
Finance costs
(40.6)
Profit before tax
1,254.4
Tax expense
(227.6)
Profit after tax
1,026.8
Claims ratio
42.2 %
23.4 %
40.6 %
35.4 %
41.9 %
39.4 %
Expense ratio
26.1 %
44.9 %
37.9 %
29.8 %
30.8 %
31.6 %
Combined ratio
68.3 %
68.3 %
78.5 %
65.2 %
72.7 %
71.0 %
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3 Segmental reporting continued
3c Information about geographical areas
The Group generates revenue in multiple geographies, an overview of which is set out below. The basis for attributing insurance
revenues is as follows:
• UK insurance revenue represents all risks placed at Lloyd’s;
• US insurance revenue represents all risks placed at the Group’s US insurance companies (Beazley Insurance Company, Inc.,
Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance, Inc. and Beazley America Insurance Company, Inc); and
• European insurance revenue represents all risks placed at the Group’s European insurance company (Beazley Insurance dac).
2024
2023
$m
$m
UK (Lloyd's)
4,412.4
4,539.0
US (Non-Lloyd's)
878.5
603.5
Europe (Non-Lloyd's)
387.2
299.9
Total insurance revenue
5,678.1
5,442.4
Provided below is a geographical split of a portion of the Group's non-current assets, namely intangible assets, plant and
equipment, right-of-use assets, and investments in associates. This excludes financial instruments, deferred tax assets,
pension assets and insurance/reinsurance contract assets.
2024
2023
$m
$m
UK
214.0
186.7
US
60.5
51.4
Europe
2.4
2.8
Total non-current assets
276.9
240.9
3d Total revenue
The table below sets out the Group's total revenue, being insurance revenue, interest on cash and cash equivalents
at amortised cost and other income.
2024
2023
$m
$m
Insurance revenue
5,678.1
5,442.4
Interest on cash and cash equivalents at amortised cost
43.5
16.8
Other income
106.0
78.5
Total revenue
5,827.6
5,537.7
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197
Notes to the financial statements continued
4 Insurance revenue
Insurance revenue represents the total changes in the liability for remaining coverage that relate to services for which the Group
expects to receive consideration. This includes the difference between the claims and other expenses expected at the
beginning of the year versus those actually incurred (per Note 5), after the loss component allocation.
2024
2023
$m
$m
Amounts relating to changes in the liability for remaining coverage:
Expected incurred claims and other expenses after loss component allocation
3,223.6
3,015.7
Change in risk adjustment for non-financial risk for the risk expired after loss component allocation
271.5
316.8
CSM recognised in profit or loss for services provided
807.3
691.4
Other amounts including experience adjustments
366.5
503.7
Insurance acquisition cash flows recovery
1,009.2
914.8
Total insurance revenue
5,678.1
5,442.4
5 Insurance service expenses
The table below shows the insurance service expenses recognised on groups of insurance contracts issued by the Group.
These are recognised in the consolidated statement of profit or loss as they are incurred.
2024
2023
$m
$m
Incurred claims and other directly attributable expenses
3,330.1
2,911.6
Changes that relate to past service – adjustments to the LIC
(401.2)
(232.0)
Losses on onerous contracts and reversal of those losses
(5.1)
(1.8)
Insurance acquisition cash flows amortisation
1,009.2
914.8
Total insurance service expense
3,933.0
3,592.6
6 Net expenses from reinsurance contracts held
The table below shows the net expenses from reinsurance contracts held, comprising the allocation of reinsurance premium
and amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims.
2024
2023
$m
$m
Amounts relating to changes in the remaining coverage:
– Expected claims and other expenses recovery
(494.5)
(740.5)
– Changes in the risk adjustment recognised for the risk expired
(54.0)
(105.2)
– CSM recognised for the services received
(173.1)
(290.8)
– Other amounts including experience adjustments
(43.3)
9.2
Allocation of reinsurance premium
(764.9) (1,127.3)
Effect of changes in the risk of reinsurers non-performance
(1.8)
4.2
Claims recovered
516.9
680.1
Other incurred directly attributable expenses
(4.4)
(3.6)
Changes that relate to past service – adjustments to incurred claims recovery
(254.9)
(152.2)
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims
255.8
528.5
Total net expenses from reinsurance contracts held
(509.1)
(598.8)
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7 Net financial result
Finance income/expense from insurance contracts issued and reinsurance contracts held represents the interest accreted and
the effect of changes in discount rates and other financial assumptions. The net financial result comprises the Group's net
investment income and its net insurance finance expense.
2024
2023
$m
$m
Interest and dividends on financial assets at fair value
313.2
215.3
Interest on cash and cash equivalents at amortised cost
43.5
16.8
Net realised fair value gains/(losses) on financial assets at FVTPL
131.8
(69.2)
Net unrealised fair value gains on financial assets at FVTPL
95.5
325.2
Investment income from financial assets
584.0
488.1
Investment management expenses
(9.6)
(7.9)
Net investment income
574.4
480.2
Interest accreted
(372.5)
(379.1)
Effect of changes in financial assumptions
283.4
209.8
Net finance expense from insurance contracts issued
(89.1)
(169.3)
Interest accreted
80.4
84.4
Effect of changes in financial assumptions
(47.2)
(68.5)
Net finance income from reinsurance contracts held
33.2
15.9
Net insurance finance expense
(55.9)
(153.4)
Net financial result
518.5
326.8
Investment income by category of financial asset
The tables below show the Group's investment income, split by category of financial asset. "Other financial assets" includes
cash and cash equivalents and derivative financial instruments.
Debt securities and
syndicate loans
Capital
growth assets
Other
financial assets
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
Interest and dividends received
308.8
4.4
43.5
356.7
Net realised gains
39.6
87.6
4.6
131.8
Net unrealised fair value gains/(losses)
84.2
28.4
(17.1)
95.5
Total investment income from financial assets
432.6
120.4
31.0
584.0
Debt securities and
syndicate loans
Capital
growth assets
Other
financial assets
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
Interest and dividends received
208.4
3.7
20.0
232.1
Net realised (losses)/gains
(117.8)
52.6
(4.0)
(69.2)
Net unrealised fair value gains
291.2
34.0
—
325.2
Total investment income from financial assets
381.8
90.3
16.0
488.1
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199
Notes to the financial statements continued
8 Other income
2024
2023
$m
$m
Commissions received by Beazley service companies
17.0
42.8
Profit commissions and other income received from syndicates
68.3
29.9
Managing agent fees from third-party syndicates
11.3
3.6
Other income
9.4
2.2
Total other income
106.0
78.5
Commissions received by Beazley service companies
Commissions are received from non-Group syndicates by Group service companies writing business on their behalf. These are
recognised as the services are provided, and therefore the performance obligations of the contracts are met. Commission is
payable to the Group by syndicate 623 due to Group service companies writing business on behalf of the syndicate. While the
commercial purpose of the contract is to pass business to syndicate 623, the remuneration is triggered by incurring expenses,
irrespective of volume of business gained. Fees are recognised as the services are provided, and therefore the performance
obligations of the contracts are met. In addition, the Group charges syndicates 5623 and 4321 for a portion of the profit-related
remuneration paid to its underwriting staff. Payment is therefore triggered by the underlying profitability of the syndicate.
Profit commissions and other income received from syndicates
This primarily relates to profit commissions received from syndicates in the year. The underlying agreements are in place
between the third-party capital syndicates managed by the Group and their managing agent, Beazley Furlonge Limited. Under
these agreements, the transaction price represents a fixed percentage on profit by year of account. As such, the profitability of
the syndicates is a performance criterion. No other variable consideration (for example: discounts, rebates, refunds, incentives)
is attached. The value of each transaction price is derived at the reporting date from the actual profits made by the syndicates,
and therefore represents the most likely amount of consideration at the reporting date.
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9 Operating expenses
2024
2023
$m
$m
Staff costs
656.8
527.6
Other administrative expenses
504.4
401.2
Total administrative expenses
1,161.2
928.8
Recharged to third party syndicates
(129.9)
(115.5)
Expenses reclassified within the insurance service result
(642.7)
(447.5)
Total operating expenses
388.6
365.8
Included within other administrative expenses is depreciation of $16.5m (2023: $17.1m) and amortisation of $11.1m
(2023: $16.2m).
Net staff costs
2024
2023
$m
$m
Wages and salaries
302.2
259.8
Short-term incentive payments
235.3
167.5
Social security
53.8
45.3
Share-based remuneration
40.1
33.8
Costs relating to defined contribution pension schemes
25.4
21.2
Staff costs
656.8
527.6
Recharged to third-party syndicates
(98.8)
(78.2)
Net staff costs
558.0
449.4
Average number of employees
A breakdown by category of employee is disclosed below.
2024
2023
Directors
11
11
Senior managers
157
145
Other employees
2,324
1,988
Total average number of employees
2,492
2,144
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201
Notes to the financial statements continued
10 Auditor's remuneration
2024
2023
$m
$m
Operating expenses include amounts receivable by the Group’s auditor in respect of:
– audit of the Group’s Annual Report and Accounts
4.0
6.5
– audit of subsidiaries pursuant to legislation
4.4
3.6
– audit-related assurance services
1.5
1.1
– other non-audit services
1.1
0.9
Total auditor's remuneration
11.0
12.1
Other than the fees disclosed above, no other fees were paid to the Company’s auditor. Audit-related assurance services
primarily comprise the review and audit of regulatory reporting pursuant to legislation and review of the Group’s condensed
interim financial statements. Fees incurred for other non-audit services primarily relate to reporting required by Regulators and
additional assurance work performed on material included within the Annual Report.
11 Finance costs
2024
2023
$m
$m
Interest expense on financial liabilities
31.6
31.6
Interest expense on lease liabilities
2.9
3.1
Interest and charges related to letters of credit
4.8
5.9
Total finance costs
39.3
40.6
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12 Tax expense
2024
2023
$m
$m
Current tax expense
Current tax expense
219.3
121.8
Prior year adjustment
14.2
1.5
Pillar Two tax expense*
13.1
—
246.6
123.3
Deferred tax expense
Origination and reversal of temporary differences
50.8
97.3
Difference between current and deferred tax rates
—
6.8
Prior year adjustments
(4.2)
0.2
46.6
104.3
Tax expense
293.2
227.6
* Pillar Two tax expense relates to Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax in Ireland.
Reconciliation of tax expense
The Group makes the majority of its profit in Ireland, the UK and the US. The weighted average of statutory tax rates based on
the profits earned in each country in which the Group operates is 18.6% (2023: 17.6%), whereas the tax charged for the year
ended 31 December 2024 as a percentage of profit before tax is 20.6% (2023: 18.1%). The reasons for the difference are
explained below:
2024
2024
2023
2023
$m
%
$m
%
Profit before tax
1,423.5
1,254.4
Tax calculated at the weighted average of statutory tax rate
264.6
18.6
221.4
17.6
Effects of:
– non-deductible/(non-taxable) expenses
1.9
0.1
(2.0)
(0.2)
– losses not previously recognised
—
—
(1.2)
(0.1)
– tax charge/(relief) on remuneration
1.4
0.1
0.9
0.1
– under/(over) provided in prior years
10.1
0.7
1.7
0.1
– difference between current and deferred tax rates
—
—
6.8
0.6
– effect of tax rates in foreign jurisdictions
2.1
0.2
—
—
– Pillar Two tax expense
13.1
0.9
—
—
Tax expense for the year
293.2
20.6
227.6
18.1
Global minimum tax rate
The Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development Pillar Two framework seeks to ensure that large multi-national
enterprises pay a minimum corporate income tax rate of 15% on the income arising in each jurisdiction where they operate.
In 2023, the UK enacted legislation to implement these new rules in respect of accounting periods beginning on or after
31 December 2023.
The Group mainly operates in jurisdictions with a statutory tax rate above 15%. The main impact for the Group is in Ireland
where the tax rate is 12.5%. This is due to Beazley Insurance dac, a wholly owned subsidiary acting as an internal group
reinsurer and writing business directly in Europe, being based in Ireland. In December 2023, Ireland enacted a Qualified
Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax such that in-scope businesses pay at least a 15% effective tax rate on their profits.
The impact of the top-up tax on the current tax charge is set out in the above disclosure.
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203
Notes to the financial statements continued
13 Earnings per share
2024
2023
Profit after tax ($m)
1,130.3
1,026.8
Weighted average number of shares in issue (m)1
645.5
663.8
Adjusted weighted average number of shares in issue (m)
663.3
678.3
Basic (cents)
175.1c
154.7c
Diluted (cents)
170.4c
151.4c
Basic (pence)
137.0p
124.8p
Diluted (pence)
133.3p
122.1p
1 Decreased in the year due to the share buyback programme. Refer to Note 21 for further details.
Basic earnings per share (EPS) is calculated by dividing profit after tax of $1,130.3m (2023: $1,026.8m) by the weighted
average number of shares in issue during the year of 645.5m (2023: 663.8m).
Diluted earnings per share is calculated by dividing profit after tax of $1,130.3m (2023: $1,026.8m) by the adjusted weighted
average number of shares of 663.3m (2023: 678.3m) in issue. This assumes conversion of dilutive potential ordinary shares,
being shares from equity settled employee compensation schemes. Share options with performance conditions attaching to
them have been excluded from the weighted average number of shares to the extent that these conditions have not been met
at the reporting date.
Further details of equity compensation plans can be found in Note 23 as well as in the Directors’ remuneration report
on pages 135 to 157.
Note that both calculations exclude the shares held in the Employee Share Options Plan of 9.1m (2023: 9.8m) until such time
as they vest unconditionally with the employees.
14 Dividends per share
On 3 March 2025 the Board approved the payment of an interim dividend of 25.0p per share covering the whole of 2024
(2023: 14.2p per share) which will be paid on 2 May 2025 to Beazley plc shareholders registered on 21 March 2025. The
Group expects the total amount to be paid in respect of the interim dividend to be approximately £157.5m (2023: £94.2m).
These financial statements do not provide for the interim dividend as a liability.
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15 Intangible assets
Goodwill
Syndicate
capacity
Licences
IT
development
costs
Total
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Opening cost at 01 January 2024
72.0
31.3
9.3
148.7
261.3
Derecognition
—
—
—
(11.2)
(11.2)
Additions
—
—
—
45.0
45.0
Foreign exchange gain
—
—
—
0.4
0.4
Closing cost at 31 December 2024
72.0
31.3
9.3
182.9
295.5
Opening amortisation and impairment at 01 January 2024
(10.0)
—
—
(86.0)
(96.0)
Amortisation
—
—
—
(11.1)
(11.1)
Derecognition
—
—
—
11.2
11.2
Foreign exchange loss
—
—
—
(1.6)
(1.6)
Closing amortisation and impairment at 31 December 2024
(10.0)
—
—
(87.5)
(97.5)
Carrying amount at 31 December 2024
62.0
31.3
9.3
95.4
198.0
Goodwill
Syndicate
capacity
Licences
IT
development
costs
Total
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Opening cost at 01 January 2023
72.0
13.7
9.3
125.3
220.3
Derecognition
—
—
—
(13.2)
(13.2)
Additions
—
17.6
—
33.3
50.9
Foreign exchange gain
—
—
—
3.3
3.3
Closing cost at 31 December 2023
72.0
31.3
9.3
148.7
261.3
Opening amortisation and impairment at 01 January 2023
(10.0)
—
—
(81.5)
(91.5)
Amortisation
—
—
—
(16.2)
(16.2)
Derecognition
—
—
—
13.2
13.2
Foreign exchange loss
—
—
—
(1.5)
(1.5)
Closing amortisation and impairment at 31 December 2023
(10.0)
—
—
(86.0)
(96.0)
Carrying amount at 31 December 2023
62.0
31.3
9.3
62.7
165.3
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205
Notes to the financial statements continued
15 Intangible assets continued
Impairment tests
Goodwill, syndicate capacity and US insurance authorisation licences are deemed to have indefinite useful lives as they are
expected to have a recoverable amount that does not erode or become obsolete over the course of time. Consequently, these
intangible assets are not amortised but are instead annually tested for impairment. For the purpose of impairment testing, they
are allocated to the following cash-generating units (CGUs):
Cyber Risks
Digital
MAP Risks
Property
Risks
Specialty
Risks
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Goodwill
1.7
0.3
31.9
25.7
2.4
62.0
Syndicate capacity
5.7
0.7
6.7
9.2
9.0
31.3
Licences
2.8
0.6
—
1.9
4.0
9.3
Total
10.2
1.6
38.6
36.8
15.4
102.6
Cyber Risks
Digital
MAP Risks
Property
Risks
Specialty
Risks
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Goodwill
1.7
0.3
31.9
25.7
2.4
62.0
Syndicate capacity
5.7
0.7
6.7
9.2
9.0
31.3
Licences
2.8
0.6
—
1.9
4.0
9.3
Total
10.2
1.6
38.6
36.8
15.4
102.6
Goodwill
Goodwill represents the excess of the cost of an acquisition over the fair value of the Group’s share of the fair value of the
identifiable assets, liabilities and contingent liabilities of the acquired subsidiary at the date of acquisition. Goodwill is carried
at cost less accumulated impairment losses.
The Group determines the recoverable amount of its indefinite useful life intangible assets using the value in use (VIU). This is
estimated by discounting the CGUs expected future cash flows sourced from financial budgets approved by management which
cover a five-year period. These cash flows give consideration to the Group's capital requirements, ensuring that a suitable
solvency range is maintained. A discount rate based on weighted average cost of capital of 10.6% (2023: 16.6%) has been
applied to determine the present value of projected future cash flows. In the prior year this was calculated using an internal
discounted dividend model, whereas in the current year this has been calculated using a market observable weighted average
cost of capital. We believe this is more reflective of the Group’s risk profile relative to the market.
The Group has performed the following sensitivity analysis to ensure that the key assumptions used in deriving the VIU for each
CGU considers the potential adverse effects of any changes in economic or regulatory environments. As a result, management
has determined that a reasonably possible change in any of the key assumptions outlined above would not have a material
impact on the outcome of impairment testing.
• Projected cash flows – The Group has used projected cash flows generated from operating profit consistent with five-year
financial forecasts. Sensitivity testing has been performed to model the impact of reasonably possible changes in these
profits (5% and 10% fall) when compared with the base impairment analysis and headroom. Within these ranges, the
recoverable amounts remain supportable.
• Future market conditions – To test each CGU's sensitivity to variances in forecast profits, the discount rate has been flexed
to 5% above and 5% below the central assumption. Within this range, the recovery of goodwill was stress tested and remains
supportable across all CGUs. Headroom was calculated in respect of the VIU of all of the Group’s other intangible assets.
• Premium growth rates/Retention rates – The Group has used a terminal growth rate of 0% (2023: 0%) to extrapolate
projections beyond the covered five-year period.
The impairment test for goodwill is carried out annually and confirms that the recoverable amount exceeds the carrying amount,
therefore no impairment or reversal of impairment is required.
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15 Intangible assets continued
Syndicate capacity
The syndicate capacity represents the cost of purchasing the Group’s participation in the combined syndicates. The capacity is
capitalised at cost in the statement of financial position. It has an indefinite useful life and is carried at cost less accumulated
impairment. It is annually tested for impairment by reference to the latest auction prices provided by Lloyd’s. The Group’s
intangible assets relating to syndicate capacity is allocated across all CGUs.
During the year, the Group did not purchase any syndicate capacity (2023: £35.5m capacity on syndicates 623/2623
purchased at a cost of $17.6m).
Based upon the latest market prices, management has concluded that the fair value exceeds the carrying amount and, as such,
no impairment or reversal of impairment is necessary.
Licences
US insurance authorisation licences represent the privilege to write insurance business in particular states in the US. Licences
are allocated to the relevant CGU. There is no active market for licences, therefore the recoverable amount is estimated as the
present value of projected future cash flows which are sourced from management approved budgets. Key assumptions are
consistent with those outlined in the Goodwill section above. Licences are annually tested for impairment and based upon all
available evidence, the results of the testing indicate that no impairment or reversal of impairment is required.
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207
Notes to the financial statements continued
16 Retirement benefit asset
2024
2023
$m
$m
Present value of funded obligations
(31.8)
(34.9)
Fair value of plan assets
35.8
39.4
Retirement benefit asset in the statement of financial position
4.0
4.5
Amounts recognised in the statement of profit or loss:
Interest cost
(1.6)
(1.5)
Expected return on plan assets
1.7
1.7
Retirement benefit return recognised in the statement of profit or loss
0.1
0.2
Beazley Furlonge Limited operates a defined benefit pension scheme ("the Beazley Furlonge Limited Pension Scheme"),
whichclosed to new entrants in 2002 and to future accrual in 2006.
The scheme is administered by a trust that is legally separated from the Group.
The pension scheme trustees completed a transaction that insures all of the scheme’s liabilities to a third party via a bulk
annuity buy-in with an external insurance company in 2022. The annuity contracts meet the criteria to be classified as qualifying
insurance policies as defined in IAS 19 as the cash flows match the timing and value of the benefits payable to members that
they cover. These annuities are thus valued at the present value of the obligations insured.
At the reporting date, the trustees and the Company retain all obligations to ensure benefits due to scheme members are paid.
Following the buy-in transaction the Group expects to make no further contributions to the scheme.
Historically, the scheme exposed the Group to additional actuarial, interest rate and market risk. However, as a result of
the buy-in transaction in 2022, these risks are now borne by the insurance company to which liabilities have been insured.
The buy-in transaction does expose the Group to additional credit risk with regard to the insurance company from whom the
annuities were purchased. This counterparty has an investment grade credit rating and therefore the Group considers the
credit risk to be minimal.
During the year, the scheme paid an additional $0.6m to the insurance company as a true-up payment relating to the
buy-in transaction.
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16 Retirement benefit asset continued
Included below is a reconciliation from opening to closing of the present value of funded obligations and the fair value of plan
assets. The amount recognised in the statement of comprehensive income is the net position of the actuarial gains/losses due
to changes in financial assumptions and the loss/gain on asset return.
2024
2023
$m
$m
Movement in present value of funded obligations recognised in the statement of financial position
Balance at 1 January
34.9
31.1
Interest cost
1.6
1.5
Actuarial (gain)/loss due to changes in financial assumptions
(4.3)
2.0
Benefits paid
(0.8)
(0.5)
Foreign exchange loss
0.4
0.8
Balance at 31 December
31.8
34.9
2024
2023
$m
$m
Movement in fair value of plan assets recognised in the statement of financial position
Balance at 1 January
39.4
35.7
Expected return on plan assets
1.7
1.7
(Loss)/gain on asset return
(4.8)
1.9
Administrative expenses
(0.3)
(0.3)
Benefits paid
(0.8)
(0.5)
Foreign exchange gain
0.6
0.9
Balance at 31 December
35.8
39.4
2024
2023
$m
$m
Plan assets comprise as follows:
Insurance policy
31.8
34.9
Cash
4.0
4.5
Total
35.8
39.4
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Notes to the financial statements continued
17 Financial assets and liabilities
17a Carrying values of financial assets and liabilities
Financial assets – carrying values
Set out below are the carrying values of the Group's "financial assets at fair value" per the statement of financial position.
These amounts exclude the following financial assets, which are carried at amortised cost and presented separately:
• cash and cash equivalents (Note 20); and
• amounts due from managed syndicates and other receivables (Note 19).
2024
2023
$m
$m
Debt securities:
– Government issued
4,289.1
4,469.1
– Corporate bonds
– Investment grade
3,862.3
3,578.3
– High-yield
662.4
489.0
– Securitised
– Collateralised loan obligations
480.0
—
Syndicate loans
29.5
34.1
Total debt securities and syndicate loans
9,323.3
8,570.5
Equity funds
348.7
282.7
Hedge funds
752.0
582.2
Illiquid assets
175.4
220.1
Total capital growth assets
1,276.1
1,085.0
Total financial investments at fair value through statement of profit or loss
10,599.4
9,655.5
Derivative financial assets
11.2
10.0
Total financial assets at fair value
10,610.6
9,665.5
Investment grade corporate bonds are rated BBB-/Baa3 or higher by at least one major rating agency, high-yield corporate
bonds have lower credit ratings, while collateralised loan obligations have a wider credit spread. Our collateralised loan
obligation holdings are in the highest rated AAA/AA tranches. Equity funds are investment vehicles which invest in equity
securities and provide diversified exposure to global equity markets. Hedge funds are investment vehicles pursuing alternative
investment strategies, structured to have minimal correlation to traditional asset classes. Illiquid assets are investment
vehicles that predominantly target private lending opportunities, often with longer investment horizons. The fair value of these
assets at 31 December 2024 excludes an unfunded commitment of $33.6m (2023: $32.0m).
Financial liabilities – carrying values
Set out below are the carrying values of the Group's "financial liabilities" per the statement of financial position.
These amounts exclude lease liabilities (Note 26) and other payables (Note 28), which are carried at amortised cost
and presented separately.
2024
2023
$m
$m
Tier 2 subordinated debt (2026)
249.7
249.5
Tier 2 subordinated debt (2029)
299.0
298.8
Derivative financial liabilities
27.3
6.3
Total financial liabilities
576.0
554.6
The Group has given a fixed and floating charge over certain of its investments and other assets to secure obligations
to Lloyd’s in respect of its corporate member subsidiary. Further details are provided in Note 32.
For a maturity analysis showing the financial assets and liabilities due within and after one year of the reporting date,
refer to Note 29d.
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17 Financial assets and liabilities continued
17b Valuation hierarchy
All assets and liabilities for which fair value is measured or disclosed in the financial statements are categorised within the fair
value hierarchy described as follows. If the inputs used to measure the fair value of an asset or a liability could be categorised
in different levels of the fair value hierarchy, then the fair value measurement is categorised in its entirety in the same level of
the fair value hierarchy as the lowest level input that is significant to the entire measurement.
Fair value is the price at which an orderly transaction to sell an asset or to transfer a liability would take place between market
participants at the measurement date. Fair value is a market-based measure and in the absence of observable market prices in
an active market, it is measured using the assumptions that market participants would use when pricing the asset or liability.
The best evidence of the fair value of a financial instrument at initial recognition is the transaction price, i.e. the fair value of
the consideration given or received, unless the fair value of that instrument is evidenced by comparison with other observable
current market transactions in the same instrument (i.e. without modification or repackaging) or based on a valuation technique
whose variables include only data from observable markets. When the transaction price provides the best evidence of fair value
at initial recognition, the financial instrument is initially measured at the transaction price and any difference between this price
and the value initially obtained from a valuation model is subsequently recognised in profit or loss depending on the individual
facts and circumstances of the transaction but before the valuation is supported wholly by observable market data or the
transaction is closed out.
Level 1 – Valuations based on quoted prices in active markets for identical instruments. An active market is a market in which
transactions for the instrument occur with sufficient frequency and volume on an ongoing basis such that quoted prices reflect
prices at which an orderly transaction would take place between market participants at the measurement date.
Level 2 – Valuations based on quoted prices in markets that are not active, or based on pricing models for which significant
inputs can be corroborated by observable market data, directly or indirectly (e.g. interest rates and exchange rates). Level 2
inputs include:
• quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets;
• quoted prices for identical or similar assets and liabilities in markets that are not active, the prices are not current, or price
quotations vary substantially either over time or among market makers, or in which little information is released publicly;
• inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability (for example, interest rates and yield curves
observable at commonly quoted intervals, implied volatilities and credit spreads); and
• market corroborated inputs.
Included within level 2 are government bonds and treasury bills, equity funds and corporate bonds which are not actively traded,
hedge funds, collateralised loan obligations and senior secured loans.
Level 3 – Valuations based on inputs that are unobservable or for which there is limited market activity against which to
measure fair value. The availability of financial data can vary for different financial assets and is affected by a wide variety of
factors, including the type of financial instrument, whether it is new and not yet established in the marketplace, and other
characteristics specific to each transaction. To the extent that valuation is based on models or inputs that are unobservable in
the market, the determination of fair value requires more judgement. Accordingly, the degree of judgement exercised by
management in determining fair value is greatest for instruments classified in level 3. The Group uses prices and inputs that
are current as of the measurement date for valuation of these instruments.
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211
Notes to the financial statements continued
17 Financial assets and liabilities continued
Valuation approach – level 2 instruments
a) For the Group’s level 2 debt securities and securitised instruments, our fund administrator obtains the prices used in the
valuation from independent pricing vendors. The independent pricing vendors derive an evaluated price from observable market
inputs. These inputs are verified in their pricing assumptions such as weighted average life, discount margins, default rates,
and recovery and prepayments assumptions for mortgage securities.
b) For our hedge funds, the pricing and valuation of each fund is undertaken by administrators in accordance with each
underlying fund’s valuation policy. Individual fund prices are communicated by the administrators to all investors via the monthly
investor statements. The fair value of the hedge fund portfolios are calculated by reference to the underlying net asset values of
each of the individual funds. Our hedge funds are managed by Falcon Money Management Holdings Limited, an associate of
the Group.
c) Subordinated debt fair value is based on quoted market prices.
Valuation approach – level 3 instruments
a) Our illiquid fund investments are generally closed ended limited partnerships or open ended funds. The Group relies on a
third-party fund manager to manage these investments and provide valuations. Note that while the funds report with full
transparency on their underlying investments, the investments themselves are predominantly in private and unquoted
instruments. The valuation techniques used by the fund managers to establish the fair values therefore require a degree of
estimation. For example, these may incorporate discounted cash flow models or a more market-based approach, whilst the
main inputs might include discount rates, fundamental pricing multiples, recent transaction prices, or comparable market
information to create a benchmark multiple.
b) Syndicate loans are non-tradeable instruments provided by our Group syndicates to the Central Fund at Lloyd’s in respect of
the 2019 (repaid by Lloyd's during the year) and 2020 underwriting years. These are valued internally using discounted cash
flow models provided by Lloyd's to the market, designed to appropriately reflect the credit and illiquidity risk of the instruments.
Valuation outputs are then validated using a control model, with the following inputs and assumptions. Note that these
internally valued instruments are deemed by management to be inherently more subjective than external valuations.
• Cash flows comprise the notional cost of the loans, annual interest income, and the final repayment of the loans at the end
of the five-year term. The weighted average interest rate applicable across all syndicate loans is 3.8% (2023: 3.8%).
• A discount rate of 8.3% (2023: 7.0%) is applied. This is calculated using a combination of the long-term treasury bond risk-
free rate, the industry/geographic average regression beta, and a selected risk premium.
c) Certain collateralised loan obligation securities have been classified within level 3. These represent instruments which were
issued late in 2024 and have been priced at par, predominantly as these had not settled at the balance sheet date. As this is
deemed to be an unobservable input these have been classified within level 3. We expect these instruments to move into level
2 in the near term as these begin to be priced by our pricing vendors using models with observable market inputs.
There were no changes in the valuation techniques during the year compared with those described in the Group's 2023 Annual
Report and Accounts.
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17 Financial assets and liabilities continued
17c Fair values of financial assets and liabilities
The following table shows the fair values of financial assets and financial liabilities, including their levels in the fair value
hierarchy. The fair value of the Group's subordinated debt excludes any accrued interest to allow comparability with the carrying
value in the Group's financial statements. The Group's cash and cash equivalents, other receivables, lease liabilities, and other
payables have been excluded from these tables. These instruments are measured at amortised cost and their carrying values
are deemed to be reasonable approximations of fair values at the reporting date.
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
Financial assets carried at fair value
Fixed and floating rate debt securities
– Government issued
3,235.9
1,053.2
—
4,289.1
– Corporate bonds
– Investment grade
1,819.5
2,042.8
—
3,862.3
– High-yield
662.4
—
—
662.4
– Securitised
– Collateralised loan obligations
—
395.4
84.6
480.0
Syndicate loans
—
—
29.5
29.5
Equity funds
348.7
—
—
348.7
Hedge funds
—
752.0
—
752.0
Illiquid assets
—
—
175.4
175.4
Derivative financial assets
11.2
—
—
11.2
Total financial assets carried at fair value
6,077.7
4,243.4
289.5
10,610.6
Financial liabilities carried at fair value
Derivative financial liabilities
27.3
—
—
27.3
Total financial liabilities carried at fair value
27.3
—
—
27.3
Fair value of financial liabilities carried at amortised cost
Tier 2 subordinated debt (2026)
—
250.6
—
250.6
Tier 2 subordinated debt (2029)
—
294.0
—
294.0
Total fair value of financial liabilities carried at amortised cost
—
544.6
—
544.6
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
Financial assets carried at fair value
Fixed and floating rate debt securities
– Government issued
3,291.9
1,177.2
—
4,469.1
– Corporate bonds
– Investment grade
1,596.7
1,981.6
—
3,578.3
– High-yield
488.1
0.9
—
489.0
Syndicate loans
—
—
34.1
34.1
Equity funds
282.7
—
—
282.7
Hedge funds
—
582.2
—
582.2
Illiquid assets
—
—
220.1
220.1
Derivative financial assets
10.0
—
—
10.0
Total financial assets carried at fair value
5,669.4
3,741.9
254.2
9,665.5
Financial liabilities carried at fair value
Derivative financial liabilities
6.3
—
—
6.3
Total financial liabilities carried at fair value
6.3
—
—
6.3
Fair value of financial liabilities carried at amortised cost
Tier 2 subordinated debt (2026)
—
241.7
—
241.7
Tier 2 subordinated debt (2029)
—
271.9
—
271.9
Total fair value of financial liabilities carried at amortised cost
—
513.6
—
513.6
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Notes to the financial statements continued
17 Financial assets and liabilities continued
17d Transfers
The Group determines whether transfers have occurred between levels in the fair value hierarchy by assessing categorisation at
the end of the reporting period. The following transfers between levels 1 and 2 for the period ended 31 December 2024 reflect
the level of trading activities, including frequency and volume derived from market data obtained from an independent external
valuation tool. There were no transfers into or out of level 3 in the year to 31 December 2024 (2023: no transfers).
Level 1
Level 2
31 December 2024 vs 31 December 2023 transfer from level 2 to level 1
$m
$m
– Corporate Bonds – Investment grade
666.3
(666.3)
Level 1
Level 2
31 December 2024 vs 31 December 2023 transfer from level 1 to level 2
$m
$m
– Corporate Bonds – Investment grade
(624.9)
624.9
The values shown in the transfer tables above are translated using spot foreign exchange rates as at 31 December 2024.
17e Level 3 investment reconciliations
The table below shows a reconciliation from the opening balances to the closing balances of level 3 fair values. All realised and
unrealised gains/(losses) are recognised through net investment income in the statement of profit or loss (refer to Note 7).
2024
2023
$m
$m
Opening position as at 01 January
254.2
255.4
Purchases
118.7
21.8
Sales
(69.2)
(37.4)
Repayment of syndicate loans
(7.7)
—
Realised gain
18.6
20.2
Unrealised loss
(25.6)
(6.6)
Foreign exchange gain
0.5
0.8
Closing position as at 31 December
289.5
254.2
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17 Financial assets and liabilities continued
17f Unconsolidated structured entities
A structured entity is defined as an entity that has been designed so that voting or similar rights are not the dominant factor in
deciding who controls the entity, such as when any voting rights relate to administrative tasks only, or when the relevant
activities are directed by means of contractual arrangements.
As part of its standard investment activities, the Group holds fixed interest investments in high-yield bond funds and
collateralised loan obligation instruments, as well as capital growth investments in equity funds, hedge funds and illiquid
assets which, in accordance with IFRS 12, are classified as unconsolidated structured entities. The Group does not sponsor
any of the unconsolidated structured entities. The assets classified as unconsolidated structured entities are held at fair value
on the statement of financial position. As at 31 December, the investments comprising the Group’s unconsolidated structured
entities are as follows:
2024
2023
$m
$m
Collateralised loan obligations
480.0
—
High-yield bond funds
662.4
489.0
Equity funds
348.7
282.7
Hedge funds
752.0
582.2
Illiquid assets
175.4
220.1
Investments through unconsolidated structured entities
2,418.5
1,574.0
Most of our unconsolidated structured entity exposures fall within our capital growth assets. The capital growth assets are held
in investee funds managed by asset managers who apply various investment strategies to accomplish their respective
investment objectives. The Group’s investments in investee funds are subject to the terms and conditions of the respective
investee fund’s offering documentation and are susceptible to market price risk arising from uncertainties about future values
of those investee funds. Investment decisions are made after extensive due diligence on the underlying fund, its strategy and
the overall quality of the underlying fund’s manager and assets.
The right to sell or request redemption of investments in high-yield bond funds, collateralised loan obligations, equity funds and
hedge funds ranges in frequency from daily to semi-annually. The Group did not sponsor any of the respective structured
entities. The Group’s maximum exposure to loss from its interests in investee funds is equal to the total fair value of its
investments in investee funds and unfunded commitments.
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215
Notes to the financial statements continued
17 Financial assets and liabilities continued
17g Currency exposures
The currency exposures of our financial assets held are detailed below:
UK £
CAD $
EUR €
Other1
Sub total
US $
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Financial assets at FVTPL:
– Fixed and floating rate debt
securities
653.8
428.0
—
—
1,081.8
8,212.0
9,293.8
– Syndicate loans
29.5
—
—
—
29.5
—
29.5
– Equity linked funds
—
—
—
—
—
348.7
348.7
– Hedge funds
—
—
—
—
—
752.0
752.0
– Illiquid assets
13.5
—
36.0
—
49.5
125.9
175.4
– Derivative financial assets
—
—
—
—
—
11.2
11.2
Cash and cash equivalents
110.6
41.6
80.9
16.3
249.4
632.7
882.1
Amounts due from managed
syndicates and other receivables
216.7
12.8
69.9
—
299.4
298.8
598.2
Total
1,024.1
482.4
186.8
16.3
1,709.6
10,381.3
12,090.9
1 Primarily comprises Swiss franc.
UK £
CAD $
EUR €
Other1
Sub total
US $
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Financial assets at FVTPL:
– Fixed and floating rate debt
securities
789.6
432.5
—
—
1,222.1
7,314.3
8,536.4
– Syndicate loans
34.1
—
—
—
34.1
—
34.1
– Equity linked funds
—
—
—
—
—
282.7
282.7
– Hedge funds
—
—
—
—
—
582.2
582.2
– Illiquid assets
6.4
—
45.9
—
52.3
167.8
220.1
– Derivative financial assets
—
—
—
—
—
10.0
10.0
Cash and cash equivalents
125.8
51.5
93.5
12.3
283.1
529.2
812.3
Amounts due from managed
syndicates and other receivables
27.6
9.4
51.4
—
88.4
209.1
297.5
Total
983.5
493.4
190.8
12.3
1,679.9
9,095.3
10,775.3
1 Primarily comprises Swiss franc.
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18 Derivative financial instruments
Derivative financial instruments are utilised by the Group to manage its exposure to currency risk on existing assets and
liabilities. Over-the-counter foreign exchange forward agreements are used to economically hedge the balance sheet's net
assets by currency exposure.
The assets and liabilities of these contracts are detailed below. The Group has the right and intention to settle each contract
on a net basis.
2024
2023
Notional
contract
amount
Market value
of derivative
position
Notional
contract
amount
Market value
of derivative
position
$m
$m
$m
$m
Contract assets
536.0
11.2
648.8
10.0
Contract liabilities
900.0
(27.3)
436.4
(6.3)
Total derivative financial instruments
(16.1)
3.7
19 Other assets
2024
2023
$m
$m
Investment in associates
0.2
0.3
Prepayments and accrued income
83.0
56.4
Due from syndicate 623
79.5
19.1
Due from syndicate 4321
7.8
6.3
Due from syndicate 5623
26.7
—
Other receivables1
484.2
272.1
Total other assets
681.4
354.2
1 Includes $110.8m of investment receivables (2023: $56.3m) and $71.9m of accrued investment income (2023: $64.1m).
Amounts are due within one year of the reporting date, with the exception of the Group's investment in associates and $43.3m
(2023: $13.7m) of other assets which are due after one year from the reporting date.
Investment in associates
The Group’s investments in associates are accounted for using the equity method and consist of the following:
2024
Country/region
of incorporation
% interest
held
Falcon Money Management Holdings Limited (and subsidiaries)
Malta¹
25 %
Pegasus Underwriting Limited
Hong Kong²
33 %
CyberAcu View LLC
US³
14 %
1 B2 Industry Street, Qormi, QRM 3000, Malta.
2 Suite 126, 12/F Somptuex Central, 52–54 Wellington Street, Hong Kong.
3 8 The Green, Ste A, Dover, DE 19901.
The Group has the ability to appoint a member to the Board of CyberAcuView LLC to represent its interest, therefore the Group
is deemed to have significant influence and this investment is recognised as an associate.
A share of loss on associates of $nil (2023: $0.1m) has been recognised in profit or loss for the year.
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217
Notes to the financial statements continued
20 Cash and cash equivalents
2024
2023
$m
$m
Cash at bank and in hand
841.3
812.3
Cash equivalents
40.8
—
Total cash and cash equivalents
882.1
812.3
Included within Cash and cash equivalents held by the Group are balances totalling $273.6m (2023: $132.6m) not available
for immediate use by the Group outside of the Lloyd's syndicate within which they are held. Additionally, $57.3m (2023:
$73.1m) is pledged cash held against Funds at Lloyd's, and $56.1m (2023: $13.3m) is held in Lloyd's Singapore trust
accounts which are only available for use by the Group to meet local claim and expense obligations.
21 Share capital
2024
2023
No. of
shares (m)
$m
No. of
shares (m)
$m
Ordinary shares of 5p each
Issued and fully paid
639.0
44.6
672.5
46.7
Balance at 01 January
672.5
46.7
671.2
46.6
Issue of shares to satisfy employee share schemes
3.8
0.3
1.3
0.1
Share buyback1
(37.3)
(2.4)
—
—
Balance at 31 December
639.0
44.6
672.5
46.7
1 For further information on the share buyback, please see Note 22 Other reserves.
There are no limits to the authorised share capital of the Company.
On 07 March 2024, Beazley plc announced to the market its intention to return surplus capital to its shareholders through a
share repurchase programme ("the buyback"). The buyback completed on 30 September 2024, with 37.3m ordinary shares
repurchased for a total consideration of $327.8m. At 31 December 2024, there were 639.0m ordinary shares in issue.
The purchase price of shares and directly attributable transaction costs of $2.2m (such as stamp duty, commissions, legal
costs and registrar fees) are recognised through retained earnings. On their cancellation, the nominal value of the ordinary
shares is deducted from share capital and the equivalent amount is recognised within the capital redemption reserve
(refer to Note 22).
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22 Other reserves
Employee
share options
reserve
Employee
share trust
reserve
Capital
redemption
reserve1
Total
$m
$m
$m
$m
Balance at 01 January 2023
28.6
(36.2)
—
(7.6)
Share-based payments
36.2
—
—
36.2
Tax on share option vestings
0.7
—
—
0.7
Acquisition of own shares held in trust
—
(33.6)
—
(33.6)
Transfer of shares to employees
(14.8)
6.3
—
(8.5)
Balance at 31 December 2023
50.7
(63.5)
—
(12.8)
Share-based payments
40.5
—
—
40.5
Tax on share option vestings
7.1
—
—
7.1
Acquisition of own shares held in trust
—
(14.0)
—
(14.0)
Transfer of shares to employees
(27.1)
15.7
—
(11.4)
Share buyback
—
—
2.4
2.4
Balance at 31 December 2024
71.2
(61.8)
2.4
11.8
1 The price of shares purchased as part of the buyback scheme is recognised through retained earnings. On their cancellation, the nominal value of the ordinary
shares is deducted from share capital and the equivalent amount is recognised within the capital redemption reserve.
The employee share options reserve is held in accordance with IFRS 2 Share-based Payment. For awards satisfied by the
employee share trust (EBT), shares are purchased on the market with the financial assistance of Beazley plc and are
carried at cost. For further information, refer to Note 23. A reconciliation of the amounts included within the EBT reserve
is provided below.
2024
2023
Number (m)
Number (m)
Balance at 01 January
9.8
5.7
Additions
1.8
5.1
Transfer of shares to employees
(2.5)
(1.0)
Balance at 31 December
9.1
9.8
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219
Notes to the financial statements continued
23 Equity compensation plans
The Group offers the following equity compensation plans: long-term incentive plan (LTIP), Save-As-You-Earn (SAYE) plan,
deferred share plan, and retention share plan. Provided vesting conditions are met, the methods of settlement for each plan
are as follows:
• LTIP – share options which entitle executives and senior management to acquire shares in the Company, satisfied either
through new issue or the EBT.
• SAYE – share options which entitle the Group’s employees to buy shares at a set option price. These are satisfied through
new issue.
• Deferred awards – conditional awards granted to employees in the form of shares, satisfied through the EBT.
• Retention shares – conditional awards granted to senior management in the form of shares, satisfied through the EBT.
Almost all of these had vested by the balance sheet date, with less than 0.1m still outstanding.
The terms and conditions of the grants are as follows:
Equity compensation plans
No. outstanding (m)
Vesting conditions
Contractual life
LTIP (3-year)
11.7
Three years' service + NAVps + minimum shareholding +
sustainability
10 years
LTIP (5-year)
4.8
Five years' service + NAVps + minimum shareholding
10 years
SAYE (UK)
1.8
Three years' service
6 months
SAYE (US)
0.2
Two years’ service
3 months
SAYE (others)
0.2
Two years’ service
Various
Total options outstanding
18.7
Deferred share plan
6.4
Three years’ service
n/a
Total outstanding
25.1
In summary, the vesting conditions are defined as follows:
• Two, three, five or six years’ service – an employee has to remain in employment until the second, third, fifth or sixth
anniversary respectively from the grant date.
• NAVps – the net asset value per share (NAVps) growth, after adjusting for the effect of dividends, is greater than the risk-free
rate of return plus a premium per year.
• The Group CEO and Group CFO ("the Executive Directors") must hold and maintain a shareholding of 300% and 200%
respectively of base salary. The Executive Directors must maintain 100% of their shareholding requirement for two years post-
departure. Other executive management and senior management of the business are expected to hold and maintain a
shareholding of 150% and 100% respectively of base salary.
• Sustainability requirements – starting from 2023, the Group must reduce its carbon emissions and increase its female and
people of colour representation at the Board and senior manager level.
Further details can be found in the Directors’ remuneration report on pages 135 to 157. The total gain on Directors’ exercises
of share option plans during the year was £0.5m (2023: £0.5m).
Number of options and exercise prices
The following table summarises the number of options outstanding at the balance sheet date, the weighted average remaining
contractual life of these options, and the weighted average share price at exercise of options exercised during the year.
2024
2023
Weighted average
exercise price
(pence per share)
No. of
options
(m)
Weighted average
exercise price
(pence per share)
No. of
options
(m)
Outstanding at 01 January
58.0
18.0
56.5
15.9
Forfeited during the year
70.0
(1.1)
40.9
(2.2)
Exercised during the year¹
106.0
(4.7)
76.6
(1.4)
Granted during the year
92.3
6.5
57.8
5.7
Outstanding at 31 December²
56.9
18.7
58.0
18.0
Exercisable at 31 December
—
—
—
—
1 The weighted average share price at the point of exercise of these options was 694.8p (2023: 610.2p).
2 The weighted average remaining contractual life for the outstanding options at end of the year was 1.10 years (2023: 1.33 years).
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23 Equity compensation plans continued
The range of exercise prices for options outstanding at the end of the year were as follows:
2024
2023
Exercise prices (pence per option)
No.
outstanding
(m)
No.
outstanding
(m)
0–100
16.5
15.0
201–300
—
1.6
301–400
0.5
0.6
401–500
0.5
0.7
501–570
1.2
0.1
Total options outstanding
18.7
18.0
Fair values
The fair values of the LTIP and SAYE plans are measured using the Black Scholes model, taking into account the terms and
conditions upon which the options were granted.
For these plans, amounts are recognised in the profit or loss as an employee expense over the period in which the employees
become unconditionally entitled to the options, with a corresponding increase in the employee share options reserve. The
amount recognised as an expense is adjusted to reflect the actual number once vested. The below table is a summary of the
assumptions used to calculate the fair value of share options awarded during the year ended 31 December 2024.
2024
2023
Share options charge to employee share options reserve ($m)
40.1
33.8
LTIP
Weighted average share price (pence per option)
674.8
614.0
Weighted average fair value (pence per option)
674.7
613.9
Weighted average exercise price (pence per option)
—
—
Average expected life of options (years)
2.9yrs
2.9yrs
Expected volatility
30.2 %
35.0 %
Expected dividend yield
— %
— %
Average risk-free interest rate
4.3 %
3.9 %
SAYE
Weighted average share price (pence per option)
646.1
582.5
Weighted average fair value (pence per option)
199.3
184.2
Weighted average exercise price (pence per option)
530.9
480.1
Average expected life of options (years)
3.3yrs
3.3yrs
Expected volatility
30.2 %
34.8 %
Expected dividend yield
2.4 %
2.5 %
Average risk-free interest rate
4.6 %
3.8 %
The expected volatility is based on historic volatility over a period of at least two years.
For the deferred share plan and retention share plan, fair values are determined based on the share price at date of grant.
Amounts are recognised in the statement of profit or loss on a straight-line basis over a period of three years and six
years respectively.
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221
Notes to the financial statements continued
24 Deferred tax
2024
2023
$m
$m
Deferred tax asset
191.8
46.9
Deferred tax liability
(387.2)
(202.2)
Net deferred tax liability
(195.4)
(155.3)
An overview of the nature of the deferred tax assets/(liabilities) is set out below.
Balance
01 Jan 24
Recognised in total
comprehensive income
Recognised in
equity
FX translation
differences
Balance
31 Dec 24
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Plant and equipment
(1.1)
(1.8)
—
—
(2.9)
Intangible assets
(1.3)
(6.3)
—
—
(7.6)
Underwriting profits
(94.2)
(11.8)
—
—
(106.0)
Deferred acquisition costs
—
—
—
—
—
Tax losses carried forward
9.7
(9.7)
—
—
—
Share-based payments
9.0
0.4
7.1
—
16.5
Unrealised gains/(losses) on investments
(1.2)
11.3
—
—
10.1
IFRS 17 adjustments
(87.1)
(44.2)
—
—
(131.3)
Other
10.9
15.3
—
(0.4)
25.8
Net deferred tax (liability)/asset
(155.3)
(46.8)
7.1
(0.4)
(195.4)
Balance
01 Jan 23
Recognised in total
comprehensive income
Recognised in
equity
FX translation
differences
Balance
31 Dec 23
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Plant and equipment
(0.8)
(0.3)
—
—
(1.1)
Intangible assets
(1.8)
0.5
—
—
(1.3)
Underwriting profits
7.4
(101.6)
—
—
(94.2)
Deferred acquisition costs
1.7
(1.7)
—
—
—
Tax losses carried forward
4.0
5.7
—
—
9.7
Share-based payments
8.4
1.5
(0.9)
—
9.0
Unrealised gains/(losses) on investments
9.9
(11.1)
—
—
(1.2)
IFRS 17 adjustments
(83.7)
(3.4)
—
—
(87.1)
Other
6.5
6.8
—
(2.4)
10.9
Net deferred tax liability
(48.4)
(103.6)
(0.9)
(2.4)
(155.3)
Geographical analysis
Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities relating to the same tax authority are presented net in the Group’s balance
sheet. A geographical analysis has been included below.
2024
2023
$m
$m
UK
(245.1)
(152.8)
US
191.8
46.7
Ireland
(98.5)
(38.7)
Other¹
(43.6)
(10.5)
Net deferred tax (liability)
(195.4)
(155.3)
1 Includes Canada, France, Germany, Spain and Switzerland.
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24 Deferred tax continued
Under IFRS 17, the timing of the recognition of the Group’s profits differs significantly from the basis on which corporate taxes
are levied in the tax jurisdictions where the Group operates. None of the Group’s material profit-making entities pay corporate
taxes based on IFRS 17 profits and therefore significant temporary differences arise. In some jurisdictions, such as the UK and
Ireland, profits are recognised earlier under IFRS 17 and thus a deferred tax liability is recognised. The Group expects this to
unwind over time as profits are recognised (offset by new profits on an IFRS 17 basis). In the US, profits are recognised more
slowly on an IFRS 17 basis than under the US Stat basis on which tax is determined, with the Group recognising a deferred tax
asset of $148.2m (2023: $23.2m). The Group is of the view that sufficient future profits will arise on an IFRS 17 basis to
realise this deferred tax asset.
The Group has no deferred tax assets relating to trading losses (2023: $9.7m). The Group also has no unrecognised trading
losses as at 31 December 2024 (2023: nil) and has unrecognised capital losses of $2.5m (2023: $4.0m).
The Group has applied the temporary mandatory exemption from accounting for deferred taxes under the Pillar Two rules.
Therefore, no deferred taxes have been recognised in relation to these rules as at 31 December 2024.
25 Subordinated liabilities
In November 2016, the Group issued $250m of subordinated Tier 2 notes due in 2026. Annual interest, at a fixed rate of
5.875%, is payable in May and November each year. In September 2019, the Group issued $300m of subordinated Tier 2
notes due in 2029. Annual interest, at a fixed rate of 5.5% is payable in March and September each year.
The subordinated liabilities are subject to a covenant that requires the Group to notify the lender of any default (late payment of
principal by 7 days or late payment of interest by 14 days) on an annual basis or where otherwise requested. Compliance with
the covenant is tested annually until the maturity of the subordinated liabilities. The Group has no indication that it will have
difficulty complying with this covenant.
The carrying amounts of the subordinated liabilities are as follows. The total fair value of the Group's subordinated liabilities is
$544.6m (2023: $513.6m).
Tier 2
subordinated
debt (2029)
Tier 2
subordinated
debt (2026)
Total
$m
$m
$m
Opening balance at 01 January 2023
298.6
249.4
548.0
Amortisation of capitalised borrowing costs
0.2
0.1
0.3
Closing balance at 31 December 2023
298.8
249.5
548.3
Amortisation of capitalised borrowing costs
0.2
0.2
0.4
Closing balance at 31 December 2024
299.0
249.7
548.7
The annual interest expense on the Group's subordinated liabilities is included in Note 11. Accrued interest of $7.4m
(2023: $7.4m) is included within Other liabilities (see Note 28).
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223
Notes to the financial statements continued
26 Leases
The Group leases offices and IT equipment. The leased offices are in several locations and the leases of large offices such as
London and New York typically run for a period of 10 years, with an option to renew the lease after that date or continue on a
rolling month-by-month basis. Lease payments are renegotiated as agreed in the lease contracts. Information about leases for
which the Group is a lessee are presented below. Note that the right-of-use assets do not meet the definition of investment
property as per IAS 40.
Right-of-use assets
Offices
IT equipment
Total
$m
$m
$m
Balance at 01 January 2023
53.3
7.2
60.5
Depreciation
(9.6)
(3.3)
(12.9)
Additions
10.9
—
10.9
Foreign exchange gain
0.8
0.1
0.9
Balance at 31 December 2023
55.4
4.0
59.4
Depreciation
(8.2)
(3.3)
(11.5)
Additions
1.5
—
1.5
Foreign exchange gain
0.4
—
0.4
Balance at 31 December 2024
49.1
0.7
49.8
Lease liabilities
Offices
IT equipment
Total
$m
$m
$m
Balance at 01 January 2023
65.4
7.3
72.7
Lease payments
(8.5)
(3.5)
(12.0)
Interest on lease liabilities and dilapidation provision
3.1
0.2
3.3
Additions to lease portfolio
10.9
—
10.9
Foreign exchange gain
1.5
0.2
1.7
Balance at 31 December 2023
72.4
4.2
76.6
Lease payments
(11.0)
(3.7)
(14.7)
Interest on lease liabilities and dilapidation provision
2.7
0.2
2.9
Additions to lease portfolio
1.5
—
1.5
Foreign exchange gain
0.6
—
0.6
Balance at 31 December 2024
66.2
0.7
66.9
The amount falling due within 12 months is $11.6m (2023: $13.5m). For a detailed maturity analysis, refer to Note 29d.
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27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts
27a Reconciliations by measurement component
This section shows how the net carrying amounts of insurance contracts issued and reinsurance contracts held by the Group
have changed during the year, as a result of changes in cash flows and amounts recognised in profit or loss.
i) Insurance contracts issued
The tables below set out the estimated present value of future cash flows, the risk adjustment for non-financial risk and the
CSM for insurance contracts issued.
Present value of
future cash
flows
Risk adjustment
for non-financial
risk
CSM
Total
31 December 2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
Opening insurance contract assets
103.8
(1.2)
(1.1)
101.5
Opening insurance contract liabilities
(6,874.5)
(774.8)
(342.9)
(7,992.2)
Net insurance contract liabilities at 01 January 2024
(6,770.7)
(776.0)
(344.0)
(7,890.7)
CSM recognised in profit or loss for services provided
—
—
807.3
807.3
Changes in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk for risk expired
—
271.5
—
271.5
Experience adjustments
494.2
(234.2)
—
260.0
Total changes relating to current service
494.2
37.3
807.3
1,338.8
Changes in estimates that adjust the CSM
163.8
5.1
(168.9)
—
Changes in estimates that result in onerous contract losses or
reversal of such losses
0.8
(0.1)
9.7
10.4
Contracts initially recognised in the period
1,079.8
(268.7)
(816.4)
(5.3)
Total changes relating to future service
1,244.4
(263.7)
(975.6)
5.1
Total changes relating to past service – adjustments to the LIC
205.0
196.2
—
401.2
Recognised in insurance service result
1,943.6
(30.2)
(168.3)
1,745.1
Finance (expenses)/income from insurance contracts issued
(112.1)
(7.8)
30.8
(89.1)
Foreign exchange gains
27.9
1.2
1.0
30.1
Other amounts recognised in total comprehensive income
(84.2)
(6.6)
31.8
(59.0)
Premiums received net of insurance acquisition cash flows
(5,148.1)
—
—
(5,148.1)
Claims and other directly attributable expenses paid
2,558.6
—
—
2,558.6
Total cash flows
(2,589.5)
—
—
(2,589.5)
Closing insurance contract assets
24.5
(3.9)
(0.4)
20.2
Closing insurance contract liabilities
(7,525.3)
(808.9)
(480.1)
(8,814.3)
Net insurance contract liabilities at 31 December 2024
(7,500.8)
(812.8)
(480.5)
(8,794.1)
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225
Notes to the financial statements continued
27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
Present value of
future cash
flows
Risk adjustment
for non-financial
risk
CSM
Total
31 December 2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
Opening insurance contract assets
123.5
(12.9)
(26.5)
84.1
Opening insurance contract liabilities
(6,324.0)
(711.3)
(314.5)
(7,349.8)
Net insurance contract liabilities at 01 January 2023
(6,200.5)
(724.2)
(341.0)
(7,265.7)
CSM recognised in profit or loss for services provided
—
—
691.4
691.4
Changes in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk for risk expired
—
316.8
—
316.8
Experience adjustments
893.3
(285.5)
—
607.8
Total changes relating to current service
893.3
31.3
691.4
1,616.0
Changes in estimates that adjust the CSM
135.0
(19.1)
(115.9)
—
Changes in estimates that result in onerous contract losses or
reversal of such losses
6.0
(1.1)
7.5
12.4
Contracts initially recognised in the period
870.2
(264.2)
(616.6)
(10.6)
Total changes relating to future service
1,011.2
(284.4)
(725.0)
1.8
Total changes relating to past service – adjustments to the LIC
16.2
215.8
—
232.0
Recognised in insurance service result
1,920.7
(37.3)
(33.6)
1,849.8
Finance income/(expenses) from insurance contracts issued
(190.2)
(13.9)
34.8
(169.3)
Foreign exchange gains/(losses)
1.9
(0.6)
(4.2)
(2.9)
Other amounts recognised in total comprehensive income
(188.3)
(14.5)
30.6
(172.2)
Premiums received net of insurance acquisition cash flows
(4,526.4)
—
—
(4,526.4)
Claims and other directly attributable expenses paid
2,223.8
—
—
2,223.8
Total cash flows
(2,302.6)
—
—
(2,302.6)
Closing insurance contract assets
103.8
(1.2)
(1.1)
101.5
Closing insurance contract liabilities
(6,874.5)
(774.8)
(342.9)
(7,992.2)
Net insurance contract liabilities at 31 December 2023
(6,770.7)
(776.0)
(344.0)
(7,890.7)
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27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
ii) Reinsurance contracts held
The tables below set out the estimates of the present value of future cash flows, risk adjustment for non-financial risk and CSM
for reinsurance contracts held.
Present value of
future cash
flows
Risk adjustment
for non-financial
risk
CSM
Total
31 December 2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
Opening reinsurance contract assets
2,143.4
166.2
117.1
2,426.7
Opening reinsurance contract liabilities
(404.4)
58.4
12.5
(333.5)
Net reinsurance contract assets at 01 January 2024
1,739.0
224.6
129.6
2,093.2
CSM recognised in profit or loss for the services provided
—
—
(173.1)
(173.1)
Changes in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk for the risk
expired
—
(54.0)
—
(54.0)
Experience adjustments
(71.3)
46.0
—
(25.3)
Total changes relating to current service
(71.3)
(8.0)
(173.1)
(252.4)
Changes in estimates that adjust the CSM
159.0
(42.0)
(117.0)
—
Contracts initially recognised in the period
(498.9)
96.6
402.3
—
Total changes relating to future service
(339.9)
54.6
285.3
—
Adjustments to incurred claims recovery
(157.8)
(97.1)
—
(254.9)
Effect of changes in the risk of reinsurers’ non-performance
(1.8)
—
—
(1.8)
Total changes relating to past service
(159.6)
(97.1)
—
(256.7)
Recognised in insurance service result
(570.8)
(50.5)
112.2
(509.1)
Finance income/(expenses) from reinsurance contracts held
38.6
1.7
(7.1)
33.2
Foreign exchange losses
(2.8)
(0.4)
(0.1)
(3.3)
Other amounts recognised in total comprehensive income
35.8
1.3
(7.2)
29.9
Premiums paid net of ceding commissions and other directly
attributable expenses paid
1,254.7
—
—
1,254.7
Recoveries from reinsurance
(499.2)
—
—
(499.2)
Total cash flows
755.5
—
—
755.5
Closing reinsurance contract assets
2,309.7
160.4
196.5
2,666.6
Closing reinsurance contract liabilities
(350.2)
15.0
38.1
(297.1)
Net reinsurance contract assets at 31 December 2024
1,959.5
175.4
234.6
2,369.5
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227
Notes to the financial statements continued
27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
Present value of
future cash
flows
Risk adjustment
for non-financial
risk
CSM
Total
31 December 2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
Opening reinsurance contract assets
1,853.3
184.6
137.4
2,175.3
Opening reinsurance contract liabilities
(193.8)
12.7
19.9
(161.2)
Net reinsurance contract assets at 01 January 2023
1,659.5
197.3
157.3
2,014.1
CSM recognised in profit or loss for the services provided
—
—
(290.8)
(290.8)
Changes in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk for the risk
expired
—
(105.2)
—
(105.2)
Experience adjustments
(139.0)
84.2
—
(54.8)
Total changes relating to current service
(139.0)
(21.0)
(290.8)
(450.8)
Changes in estimates that adjust the CSM
91.6
(16.1)
(75.5)
—
Contracts initially recognised in the period
(436.3)
84.2
352.1
—
Total changes relating to future service
(344.7)
68.1
276.6
—
Adjustments to incurred claims recovery
(110.9)
(41.3)
—
(152.2)
Effect of changes in the risk of reinsurers’ non-performance
4.2
—
—
4.2
Total changes relating to past service
(106.7)
(41.3)
—
(148.0)
Recognised in insurance service result
(590.4)
5.8
(14.2)
(598.8)
Finance income/(expense) from reinsurance contracts held
24.0
5.7
(13.8)
15.9
Foreign exchange (losses)/gains
(20.6)
15.8
0.3
(4.5)
Other amounts recognised in total comprehensive income
3.4
21.5
(13.5)
11.4
Premiums paid net of ceding commissions and other directly
attributable expenses paid
1,080.4
—
—
1,080.4
Recoveries from reinsurance
(413.9)
—
—
(413.9)
Total cash flows
666.5
—
—
666.5
Closing reinsurance contract assets
2,143.4
166.2
117.1
2,426.7
Closing reinsurance contract liabilities
(404.4)
58.4
12.5
(333.5)
Net reinsurance contract assets at 31 December 2023
1,739.0
224.6
129.6
2,093.2
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27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
27b Analysis of the liability for remaining coverage and the liability for incurred claims
i) Insurance contracts issued
The tables below analyse insurance contract assets and liabilities between the liability for remaining coverage (LRC) and the
liability for incurred claims (LIC) for insurance contracts issued.
LRC
LIC
Total
Excluding loss
component
Loss
component
31 December 2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
Opening insurance contract assets
101.7
—
(0.2)
101.5
Opening insurance contract liabilities
(848.8)
(8.3) (7,135.1) (7,992.2)
Net insurance contract liabilities at 01 January 2024
(747.1)
(8.3) (7,135.3) (7,890.7)
Insurance revenue
5,678.1
—
—
5,678.1
Insurance service expenses:
– Incurred claims and other directly attributable expenses
(80.8)
— (3,249.3) (3,330.1)
– Changes that relate to past service – adjustments to the LIC
—
—
401.2
401.2
– Losses on onerous contracts and reversal of those losses
—
5.1
—
5.1
– Insurance acquisition cash flows amortisation
(1,009.2)
—
— (1,009.2)
Recognised in insurance service result
4,588.1
5.1 (2,848.1)
1,745.1
Finance income/(expenses) from insurance contracts issued
96.7
—
(185.8)
(89.1)
Foreign exchange gains
19.2
—
10.9
30.1
Other amounts recognised in total comprehensive income
115.9
—
(174.9)
(59.0)
Premiums received net of insurance acquisition cash flows
(5,148.1)
—
— (5,148.1)
Claims and other directly attributable expenses paid
—
—
2,558.6
2,558.6
Total cash flows
(5,148.1)
—
2,558.6 (2,589.5)
Closing insurance contract assets
52.4
—
(32.2)
20.2
Closing insurance contract liabilities
(1,243.6)
(3.2) (7,567.5) (8,814.3)
Net insurance contract liabilities at 31 December 2024
(1,191.2)
(3.2) (7,599.7) (8,794.1)
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229
Notes to the financial statements continued
27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
LRC
LIC
Total
Excluding loss
component
Loss
component
31 December 2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
Opening insurance contract assets
87.2
—
(3.1)
84.1
Opening insurance contract liabilities
(824.7)
(10.1) (6,515.0) (7,349.8)
Net insurance contract liabilities at 01 January 2023
(737.5)
(10.1) (6,518.1) (7,265.7)
Insurance revenue
5,442.4
—
—
5,442.4
Insurance service expenses:
– Incurred claims and other directly attributable expenses
(86.3)
— (2,825.3) (2,911.6)
– Changes that relate to past service – adjustments to the LIC
—
—
232.0
232.0
– Losses on onerous contracts and reversal of those losses
—
1.8
—
1.8
– Insurance acquisition cash flows amortisation
(914.8)
—
—
(914.8)
Recognised in insurance service result
4,441.3
1.8 (2,593.3)
1,849.8
Finance income from insurance contracts issued
70.8
—
(240.1)
(169.3)
Foreign exchange gains/(losses)
4.7
—
(7.6)
(2.9)
Other amounts recognised in total comprehensive income
75.5
—
(247.7)
(172.2)
Premiums received net of insurance acquisition cash flows
(4,526.4)
—
— (4,526.4)
Claims and other directly attributable expenses paid
—
—
2,223.8
2,223.8
Total cash flows
(4,526.4)
—
2,223.8 (2,302.6)
Closing insurance contract assets
101.7
—
(0.2)
101.5
Closing insurance contract liabilities
(848.8)
(8.3) (7,135.1) (7,992.2)
Net insurance contract liabilities at 31 December 2023
(747.1)
(8.3) (7,135.3) (7,890.7)
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27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
ii) Reinsurance contracts held
The tables below analyse reinsurance contract assets and liabilities between the asset for remaining coverage (ARC) and asset
for incurred claims (AIC) for reinsurance contracts held.
ARC¹
AIC
Total
31 December 2024
$m
$m
$m
Opening reinsurance contract assets
758.4
1,668.3
2,426.7
Opening reinsurance contract liabilities
(1,080.3)
746.8
(333.5)
Net reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) at 01 January 2024
(321.9)
2,415.1
2,093.2
Allocation of reinsurance premium
(764.9)
—
(764.9)
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims:
– Effect of changes in the risk of reinsurers’ non-performance
—
(1.8)
(1.8)
– Claims recovered
—
516.9
516.9
– Other incurred directly attributable expenses
—
(4.4)
(4.4)
– Changes that relate to past service – adjustments to incurred claims recovery
—
(254.9)
(254.9)
Net expenses from reinsurance contracts held
(764.9)
255.8
(509.1)
Finance (expenses)/income from reinsurance contracts held
(27.3)
60.5
33.2
Foreign exchange losses
(0.9)
(2.4)
(3.3)
Other amounts recognised in total comprehensive income
(28.2)
58.1
29.9
Premiums paid net of ceding commissions and other directly attributable expenses paid
1,254.7
—
1,254.7
Recoveries from reinsurance
—
(499.2)
(499.2)
Total cash flows
1,254.7
(499.2)
755.5
Closing reinsurance contract assets
573.8
2,092.8
2,666.6
Closing reinsurance contract liabilities
(434.1)
137.0
(297.1)
Net reinsurance contract assets at 31 December 2024
139.7
2,229.8
2,369.5
1 Includes loss recovery component of $0.9m at 01 January 2024 and $0.2m at 31 December 2024.
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
231
Notes to the financial statements continued
27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
ARC2
AIC
Total
31 December 20231
$m
$m
$m
Opening reinsurance contract assets
24.9
2,150.4
2,175.3
Opening reinsurance contract liabilities
(254.7)
93.5
(161.2)
Net reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) at 01 January 2023
(229.8)
2,243.9
2,014.1
Allocation of reinsurance premium
(1,127.3)
— (1,127.3)
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims:
– Effect of changes in the risk of reinsurers’ non-performance
—
4.2
4.2
– Claims recovered
—
680.1
680.1
– Other incurred directly attributable expenses
—
(3.6)
(3.6)
– Changes that relate to past service – adjustments to incurred claims recovery
—
(152.2)
(152.2)
Net expenses from reinsurance contracts held
(1,127.3)
528.5
(598.8)
Finance (expenses)/income from reinsurance contracts held
(40.9)
56.8
15.9
Foreign exchange losses
(4.3)
(0.2)
(4.5)
Other amounts recognised in total comprehensive income
(45.2)
56.6
11.4
Premiums paid net of ceding commissions and other directly attributable expenses paid
1,080.4
—
1,080.4
Recoveries from reinsurance
—
(413.9)
(413.9)
Total cash flows
1,080.4
(413.9)
666.5
Closing reinsurance contract assets
758.4
1,668.3
2,426.7
Closing reinsurance contract liabilities
(1,080.3)
746.8
(333.5)
Net reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) at 31 December 2023
(321.9)
2,415.1
2,093.2
1 A presentational error was identified in the version of this disclosure included in the 2023 Annual Report and Accounts. The disclosure above has been restated
to correct these errors. There was no impact to the carrying value of any item in the statement of financial position, amounts recognised through the income
statement or the opening and closing balances in this disclosure. Certain amounts had been incorrectly classified between the asset for incurred claims and the
asset for remaining coverage. Specifically: an allocation of reinsurance premium of $763.5m had been classified as a movement in the AIC when it should have
been included in the ARC; movement in the ARC of $1.3m for the effect of changes in the risk of reinsurers non-performance, $767.1m for claims recovered and
$0.5m for other directly attributable expenses should have been included as movements relating to amounts recoverable from reinsurers in the AIC; and $1.8m
relating to foreign exchange is consequently required to be recognised as a movement in AIC, not the ARC.
2 Includes loss recovery component of $3.8m at 01 January 2023 and $0.9m at 31 December 2023.
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27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
27c New business
i) Impact of insurance contracts issued in the year
The following tables show the impact of new insurance contracts issued in the period. These are broken down by contracts
which were/were not deemed to be onerous on initial recognition.
Non-onerous
contracts
originated
Onerous
contracts
originated
Total
Year ended 31 December 2024
$m
$m
$m
Estimated present value of future cash outflows:
– Insurance acquisition cash flows
(949.7)
(20.7)
(970.4)
– Claims and other directly attributable expenses
(2,864.4)
(61.5) (2,925.9)
Estimated present value of future cash inflows
4,890.2
85.9
4,976.1
Risk adjustment for non-financial risk
(259.7)
(9.0)
(268.7)
Contractual service margin
(816.4)
—
(816.4)
Net increase in insurance contract liabilities
—
(5.3)
(5.3)
Non-onerous
contracts
originated
Onerous
contracts
originated
Total
Year ended 31 December 2023
$m
$m
$m
Estimated present value of future cash outflows:
– Insurance acquisition cash flows
(759.3)
(68.1)
(827.4)
– Claims and other directly attributable expenses
(2,489.8)
(176.7) (2,666.5)
Estimated present value of future cash inflows
4,115.0
249.1
4,364.1
Risk adjustment for non-financial risk
(249.3)
(14.9)
(264.2)
Contractual service margin
(616.6)
—
(616.6)
Net increase in insurance contract liabilities
—
(10.6)
(10.6)
ii) Impact of reinsurance contracts held in the year
The following table shows the impact of new reinsurance contracts initially recognised in the period which were not deemed
to originate with a loss recovery component. Contracts originating with a loss recovery component were $0.3m (2023: $0.3m).
2024
2023
$m
$m
Estimated present value of future cash outflows
(1,035.3)
(1,253.5)
Estimated present value of future cash inflows
536.4
817.2
Risk adjustment for non-financial risk
96.6
84.2
Contractual service margin
402.3
352.1
Net increase in reinsurance contract assets
—
—
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
233
Notes to the financial statements continued
27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
27d Future CSM release
The tables below show when the Group expects to release the closing CSM to the profit or loss in appropriate future time
bands. It is presented for both insurance contracts issued and reinsurance contracts held.
2024
2023
Insurance contracts issued
$m
$m
Number of years until expected to be recognised
1
421.7
299.0
2
20.1
14.7
3
13.6
10.5
4
8.7
7.6
5
5.5
5.1
6–10
10.9
7.1
Total
480.5
344.0
2024
2023
Reinsurance contracts held
$m
$m
Number of years until expected to be recognised
1
151.7
118.7
2
49.7
3.7
3
26.2
2.6
4
2.5
1.8
5
1.4
1.2
6–10
3.1
1.6
Total
234.6
129.6
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27 Insurance and reinsurance contracts continued
27e Claims development
The following tables show the estimates of cumulative ultimate claims for each successive underwriting year from six years prior
to the reporting date, reconciled back to LIC. This information has been provided on a gross of reinsurance basis and separately
for reinsurance contracts held. Claims development information has only been disclosed from the 2019 underwriting year
onward (being five years before the end of the annual reporting period in which IFRS 17 was first applied by the Group). In the
below tables, historic periods have been revalued using current exchange rates. The cumulative estimate of claims and
recoveries comprises expected claims, reinsurance recovery cash flows and directly attributable expenses. It does not include
the risk adjustment, premiums or acquisition costs.
Underwriting year
Insurance contracts issued
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
At end of underwriting year
1,711.5 2,309.2 2,696.2 3,122.6 3,110.9 3,403.8
1 year later
2,207.2 2,696.9 2,968.1 3,036.1 3,215.1
2 years later
2,240.9 2,804.3 2,787.7 2,912.8
3 years later
2,237.1 2,652.0 2,620.0
4 years later
2,228.1 2,582.6
5 years later
2,258.2
Cumulative gross estimate of claims
2,258.2 2,582.6 2,620.0 2,912.8 3,215.1 3,403.8 16,992.5
Cumulative payments to date
(1,871.3) (1,982.9) (1,615.0) (1,405.8) (1,105.7)
(254.1) (8,234.8)
Carrying amount relating to 2018 and
prior underwriting years
752.1
Less liability for remaining coverage
claims only
(1,923.7)
Impact of discounting (LIC)
(666.6)
LIC risk adjustment for non-financial risk
680.2
Gross discounted LIC
7,599.7
Underwriting year
Reinsurance contracts held
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
At end of underwriting year
(290.6)
(455.6)
(699.3)
(932.5)
(519.8)
(472.9)
1 year later
(412.4)
(635.6)
(708.1)
(882.8)
(553.1)
2 years later
(377.0)
(701.1)
(707.8)
(841.2)
3 years later
(396.1)
(578.1)
(647.6)
4 years later
(424.9)
(586.9)
5 years later
(468.0)
Cumulative gross estimate of claims
recoveries
(468.0)
(586.9)
(647.6)
(841.2)
(553.1)
(472.9) (3,569.7)
Cumulative payments to date
315.3
411.6
253.8
159.3
55.2
9.5 1,204.7
Carrying amount relating to 2018 and
prior underwriting years
(305.2)
Less asset for remaining coverage
claims only
394.3
Impact of discounting (AIC)
186.9
AIC risk adjustment for non-financial risk
(140.8)
Reinsurance discounted AIC
(2,229.8)
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
235
Notes to the financial statements continued
28 Other liabilities
2024
2023
$m
$m
Accrued expenses including staff bonuses
79.1
98.9
Due to syndicate 5623
106.6
217.7
Due to syndicate 6107
74.6
86.6
Other payables
382.5
207.3
Total other liabilities
642.8
610.5
All other liabilities are payable within one year of the reporting date, with the exception of $22.1m which is due after one year.
Profit uplift payment
The Group has agreed a potential profit uplift commission payment to the Members of Syndicate 623 on the 2023 year of
account contingent upon the underwriting profit recognised in certain entities in the 2025 to 2028 financial years, which would
become payable in 2029.
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29 Risk and sensitivity analysis
The symbol † by a table or numerical information means it has not been audited.
29a Insurance risk
The Group issues insurance contracts under which it accepts significant insurance risk from persons or organisations that are
directly exposed to an underlying loss from an insured event. Insurance risk arises from this risk transfer due to inherent
uncertainties about the occurrence, amount and timing of cash flows associated with the insured event. The four key
components of insurance risk are underwriting, reinsurance, claims management and reserving. Each element is considered
below.
i. Underwriting risk
Underwriting risk comprises four elements that apply to all insurance products offered by the Group:
• cycle risk – the risk that business is written without full knowledge as to the (in)adequacy of rates, terms and conditions;
• event risk – the risk that individual risk losses or catastrophes lead to claims that are higher than anticipated in plans and
pricing;
• pricing risk – the risk that the level of expected loss is understated in the pricing process; and
• expense risk – the risk that the allowance for expenses and inflation in pricing is inadequate.
The Group’s underwriting strategy is to seek a diverse and balanced portfolio of risks in order to limit the variability of
outcomes. This is achieved by accepting a spread of business over time, segmented between different products, geographies
and sizes. The annual business plans for each underwriting team reflect the Group’s underwriting strategy, and set out the
classes of business, the territories and the industry sectors in which business is to be written which are approved by the
appropriate Boards.
Our underwriters determine premiums for risks written based on a range of criteria tailored specifically to each individual risk.
These factors include but are not limited to financial exposure, loss history, risk characteristics, limits, deductibles, terms and
conditions, and acquisition expenses depending on the type of risk. A proportion of the Group’s insurance risks are transacted
by third parties under delegated underwriting and claims authorities. Each third party is thoroughly vetted by our coverholder
approval group before it can bind risks, and is subject to monitoring to maintain underwriting quality and confirm ongoing
compliance with contractual guidelines. All underwriters also have a right to refuse renewal or change the terms and conditions
of insurance contracts upon renewal. Rate monitoring details, including limits, deductibles, exposures, terms and conditions
and risk characteristics, are also captured and the results are combined to monitor the rating environment for each class of
business.
The Group also recognises that insurance events are, by their nature, random, and the actual number and size of events during
any one year may vary from those estimated using established statistical techniques. To address this, the Group sets out the
exposure that it is prepared to accept in certain territories to a range of events such as natural catastrophes and specific
scenarios which may result in large industry losses. This is monitored through regular calculation of realistic disaster scenarios
(RDS). The aggregate position is monitored at the time of underwriting a risk, and reports are regularly produced to highlight the
key aggregations to which the Group is exposed.
The Group uses a number of modelling tools to monitor its exposures against the agreed risk appetite set and to simulate
catastrophe losses in order to measure the effectiveness of its reinsurance programmes. Stress and scenario tests are also
run using these models. The range of scenarios considered includes natural catastrophe, cyber, marine, liability, political,
terrorism and war events.
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
237
Notes to the financial statements continued
29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
One of the largest types of event exposure relates to natural catastrophe events such as windstorms or earthquakes, with the
increasing risk from climate change impacting the frequency and severity of natural catastrophes. The Group continues to
monitor its exposure in this area. Where possible, the Group measures geographic accumulations and uses its knowledge
of the business, historical loss behaviour and commercial catastrophe modelling software to assess the expected range of
losses at different return periods. Upon application of the reinsurance coverage purchased, the key gross and net exposures
are calculated on the basis of extreme events at a range of return periods. The Group’s catastrophe risk appetite is set by
the risk management function and approved by the Board, and the business plans of each team are determined within these
parameters. The Board may adjust these limits over time as conditions change. In 2024, the Group operated to a catastrophe
risk appetite for a probabilistic 1-in-250-year US event of † $578.0m (2023: $534.0m) net of reinsurance. This represents
an increase of 8% in 2024.
Lloyd’s has also defined its own specific set of RDS events for which all syndicates with relevant exposures must report.
Of these, the three largest (net of reinsurance) events which could have impacted Beazley in 2023 and 2024 were as follows.
†
Modelled
PML¹ (before
reinsurance)
Modelled
PML¹ (after
reinsurance)
2024
$m
$m
Lloyd’s prescribed natural catastrophe event (total incurred losses)
Los Angeles earthquake (2024: $78bn)
952.9
410.4
San Francisco earthquake (2024: $80bn)
974.0
389.8
Gulf of Mexico windstorm (2024: $118bn)
1,075.3
374.8
1 Probable market loss.
†
Modelled
PML¹ (before
reinsurance)
Modelled
PML¹ (after
reinsurance)
2023
$m
$m
Lloyd’s prescribed natural catastrophe event (total incurred losses)
Los Angeles earthquake (2023: $78bn)
827.2
325.1
San Francisco earthquake (2023: $80bn)
854.1
315.0
Gulf of Mexico windstorm (2023: $118bn)
927.5
291.3
1 Probable market loss.
† The tables above show each event independent of each other and considered on their own.
• Net of reinsurance exposures for the Los Angeles quake scenario have increased by $85.3m or 26.2% in 2024, with gross
exposures increasing by $125.7m or 15.2%. The increase in gross exposures is being driven by growth in the Property Risks
division and specifically direct Property, which is also leading to the increase in the Northeast windstorm and Gulf of Mexico
windstorm events. The increase in net exposure is less than the increase in gross as additional Reinsurance was bought
during 2024 for the Property Risks division.
• For 2024, the second largest scenario remains as being the San Francisco earthquake scenario, with net of reinsurance
exposure increasing by $74.8m or 23.7% in 2024, with gross exposures increasing by $119.9m or 14.0%. Similar to the Los
Angeles quake scenario, the increase in net exposure is less than gross as additional reinsurance was bought during 2024.
• Windstorm exposures have increased in the Gulf of Mexico during 2024, which has resulted in the Gulf of Mexico scenario
increasing by $83.5m or 28.7% net, with the gross exposure increasing by $147.8m or 15.9%. Similar to the two earthquake
scenarios, the net exposure has increased less than gross due to additional Reinsurance being bought for the Property
Risks division.
• The net natural catastrophe risk appetite increased by 8.2% in 2024 to $578.0m from $534.0m in 2023, with the increase
in appetite being driven by the Property Risks division.
The net exposure of the Group to each of these modelled events at a given point in time is a function of assumptions made
about how and where the event occurs, its magnitude, the amount of business written that is exposed to each event and the
reinsurance arrangements in place.
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29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
The Group also has exposure to man-made claim aggregations, such as those arising from terrorism, liability, and cyber events.
Beazley chooses to underwrite cyber insurance within the Cyber Risks and Specialty Risks divisions using our team of specialist
underwriters, claims managers and data breach services managers. Other than for affirmative cyber coverage, Beazley’s
preference is to exclude cyber exposure where possible.
To manage the potential exposure, the Board has approved a risk appetite for the aggregation of cyber-related claims, which is
set using a 1-in-250 net probabilistic appetite of $775m for 2024. In addition, the Group utilises Cyber realistic disaster
scenarios that have been developed internally. These scenarios include the failure of a data aggregator, the failure of a shared
hardware or software platform, the failure of a cloud provider, and physical damage scenarios. Whilst it is not possible to be
precise, as there is sparse data on actual aggregated events, these severe scenarios are expected to be very infrequent. To
manage underwriting exposures, the Group has developed limits of authority and business plans which are binding upon all
staff authorised to underwrite and are specific to underwriters, classes of business and industry.
†
The reinsurance programmes that protect the Cyber and Specialty Risks divisions would partially mitigate the cost of most, but
not all, cyber catastrophes. The largest cyber net realistic disaster scenario for the Group as at 31 December 2024 was just
under $187m. Beazley also reports on cyber exposure to Lloyd’s using the three largest internal realistic disaster scenarios and
three prescribed scenarios, which include a cloud provider scenario and a ransomware scenario.
Exposure by operating division
In 2024, the Group’s business consisted of five operating divisions. The following table sets out the Group’s insurance revenue
by operating division.
2024
2023
%
%
Cyber Risks
20%
22%
Digital
4%
4%
MAP Risks
16%
19%
Property Risks
27%
20%
Specialty Risks
33%
35%
Total
100%
100%
Concentration by geography
Included below is a geographical analysis of the Group's insurance revenue based on placement of risk.
2024
2023
%
%
UK (Lloyd’s)
78%
83%
US (Non-Lloyd’s)
15%
11%
Europe (Non-Lloyd’s)
7%
6%
Total
100%
100%
Sensitivity analysis
The table below analyses the impact on the Group’s profit after tax and equity of changes in underwriting risk variables that
were reasonably possible at the reporting date. This analysis has been performed assuming a uniform percentage change in
loss ratios used to determine best estimate cash flows within the liability for remaining coverage, and a uniform percentage
change in the best estimate liability within the liability for incurred claims, including any consequential impact on the risk
adjustment or CSM. It should be noted that movements in these variables are non-linear.
Profit after tax/Equity¹
Profit after tax/Equity¹
Gross
Net
Gross
Net
2024
2024
2023
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
Reserves (5% increase)
(299.5)
(215.8)
(289.4)
(179.6)
Reserves (5% decrease)
299.0
215.4
287.7
178.0
1 Impact of changes in risk variables is consistent across profit after tax and equity.
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239
Notes to the financial statements continued
29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
ii. Reinsurance risk
Reinsurance risk arises for the Group where reinsurance contracts put in place to reduce gross insurance risk do not perform
as anticipated, resulting in coverage disputes or proving inadequate in terms of the vertical or horizontal limits purchased.
Failure of a reinsurer to pay a valid claim is considered a credit risk, which is detailed in the credit risk section on page 245.
In some cases, the Group deems it more economic to hold capital than to purchase reinsurance. These decisions are regularly
reviewed. The Reinsurance Security Committee examines and approves all reinsurers to ensure that they possess suitable
security. The Group’s ceded reinsurance team ensures that these guidelines are followed, undertakes the administration
of reinsurance contracts, and monitors and instigates our responses to any erosion of the reinsurance programmes.
iii. Claims management risk
Claims management risk may arise within the Group in the event of inaccurate or incomplete case reserves and claims
settlements, poor service quality or excessive claims handling costs. These risks may damage the Group brand and undermine
its ability to win and retain business, or incur punitive damages. These risks can occur at any stage of the claims lifecycle.
The Group’s claims teams are focused on delivering quality, reliability and speed of service to both internal and external clients.
Their aim is to adjust and process claims in a fair, efficient and timely manner, in accordance with the policy’s terms and
conditions, the regulatory environment, and the business’s broader interests. Case reserves are set for all known claims
liabilities, including provisions for expenses, as soon as a reliable estimate can be made of the claims liability.
iv. Reserving and ultimate reserves risk
Reserving and ultimate reserves risk occurs within the Group where established insurance liabilities are insufficient due to
inaccurate forecasting, or where there is inadequate allowance for expenses and reinsurer non-performance risk in the present
value of future cash flows. To manage reserving and ultimate reserve risk, a risk adjustment for non-financial risk is included
within the valuation of insurance contract liabilities.
The following sensitivity analysis shows how a change in risk adjustment impacts profit after tax and equity. The sensitivity
was calculated by selecting the risk adjustment 2.5 points above/below the current confidence level on the distribution by
which it is calibrated and flowing the consequential impact through other components of (re)insurance assets/liabilities.
This was performed both before and after risk mitigation by reinsurance. It should be noted that movements in these
variables are non-linear.
Profit after tax/Equity¹
Profit after tax/Equity¹
Gross
Net
Gross
Net
2024
2024
2023
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
Change in risk adjustment (2.5% increase)
(77.5)
(60.8)
(80.0)
(57.9)
Change in risk adjustment (2.5% decrease)
71.0
55.8
78.5
56.7
1 Impact of changes in risk variables is consistent across profit after tax and equity.
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29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
29b Market risk
Market risk is referred to as "asset risk" in the Group’s risk management framework. This risk arises from adverse financial
market movements in addition to other external market forces. The four key components of asset risk are investments,
foreign exchange, interest rate, and prices of assets and derivatives. Each element is considered in further detail below.
i. Investments
Efficient management of market risk is key to the investment of Group assets for matching to future liabilities. Beazley uses an
Economic Scenario Generator to create multiple simulations of financial conditions in order to support stochastic analysis of
asset risk. Beazley uses these outputs to assess the value at risk of its investments, at different confidence levels, including
"1 in 200", which reflects Solvency II modelling requirements, and "1 in 10", reflecting scenarios which are more likely to occur
in practice. It is assessed for investments in isolation and also in conjunction with the present value of our liabilities, to assist
in the monitoring and management of asset risk for solvency and capital purposes. By its nature, stochastic modelling does not
provide a precise measure of risk, and Economic Scenario Generator outputs are regularly validated against actual market
conditions. Beazley also uses a number of other qualitative measures to support the monitoring and management of investment
risk, including stress testing and scenario analysis.
The Group’s investment strategy is developed with reference to an investment risk appetite, approved annually by the Board.
The asset risk element of our Solvency II internal model is used to monitor actual investment risk against this appetite, which
specifies the worst-case return at a 12-month horizon relative to a risk-free portfolio, at 90% confidence. The risk-free portfolio
is a blend of government bonds that match Beazley's liability value and term structure, and short-dated government bills, equal
to the value of non-matching assets. The investment risk appetite was set at 2.6% of invested assets for 2025.
ii. Foreign exchange risk
The functional currency and presentational currency of Beazley plc and its main trading entities is US dollars. As a result, the
Group is mainly exposed to fluctuations in exchange rates for non-dollar denominated transactions and to net asset translation
risk on non-dollar functional currency entities.
The Group operates in four main currencies: US dollars, sterling, Canadian dollars and euros. Transactions in all currencies are
converted to US dollars on initial recognition, with any resulting monetary items being translated to the US dollar spot rate at
the reporting date. If any foreign exchange risk arises it is actively managed as described below.
In 2024, the Group managed its foreign exchange risk by periodically assessing its non-dollar exposures and hedging these to
a tolerable level while targeting to have net assets that are predominantly denominated in US dollars. As part of this hedging
strategy, exchange rate derivatives were used to rebalance currency exposure across the Group. Details of foreign currency
derivative contracts entered into with external parties are disclosed in Note 18. On a forward-looking basis, an assessment is
made of expected future exposure development and appropriate currency trades are put in place to reduce risk. The Group’s
underwriting capital is matched by currency to the principal underlying currencies of its insurance transactions. This helps to
mitigate the risk that the Group’s capital required to underwrite business is materially affected by any future movements in
exchange rates.
The Group also has foreign operations with functional currencies that are different from the Group’s presentational currency.
The effect of this on foreign exchange risk is that the Group is exposed to fluctuations in exchange rates for US dollar
denominated transactions and net assets arising in those foreign currency operations. It also gives rise to a currency
translation exposure for the Group to sterling, euro, Swiss francs, Canadian dollars and Singapore dollars on translation to the
Group’s presentational currency. These exposures are minimal and are not hedged.
www.beazley.com
Beazley | Annual report 2024
241
Notes to the financial statements continued
29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
Exposure and risk concentrations by currency
The following tables summarise the carrying values of the insurance/reinsurance contract assets and liabilities and
overall net assets held by the Group, categorised by its main currencies. For a breakdown of financial assets by currency,
refer to Note 17(g).
UK £
CAD $
EUR €
Subtotal
US $
Total $
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Insurance contract assets
1.4
(4.9)
1.6
(1.9)
22.1
20.2
Reinsurance contract assets
212.5
26.1
156.5
395.1
2,271.5
2,666.6
Other
662.0
221.8
577.7
1,461.5 11,270.7 12,732.2
Total assets
875.9
243.0
735.8
1,854.7 13,564.3 15,419.0
Insurance contract liabilities
(823.6)
(220.8)
(815.7) (1,860.1) (6,954.2) (8,814.3)
Reinsurance contract liabilities
(29.7)
(3.6)
(7.6)
(40.9)
(256.2)
(297.1)
Other
(19.6)
(13.9)
(18.7)
(52.2) (1,648.6) (1,700.8)
Total liabilities
(872.9)
(238.3)
(842.0) (1,953.2) (8,859.0) (10,812.2)
Net assets
3.0
4.7
(106.2)
(98.5)
4,705.3
4,606.8
UK £
CAD $
EUR €
Subtotal
US $
Total $
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Insurance contract assets
2.4
13.6
(3.6)
12.4
89.1
101.5
Reinsurance contract assets
243.1
37.0
166.4
446.5
1,980.2
2,426.7
Other
574.8
257.8
69.2
901.8
10,235.4
11,137.2
Total assets
820.3
308.4
232.0
1,360.7
12,304.7
13,665.4
Insurance contract liabilities
(804.4)
(229.0)
(782.3)
(1,815.7)
(6,176.5)
(7,992.2)
Reinsurance contract liabilities
(31.2)
(0.6)
(7.7)
(39.5)
(294.0)
(333.5)
Other
(69.1)
20.7
441.0
392.6
(1,850.2)
(1,457.6)
Total liabilities
(904.7)
(208.9)
(349.0)
(1,462.6)
(8,320.7)
(9,783.3)
Net assets
(84.4)
99.5
(117.0)
(101.9)
3,984.0
3,882.1
Sensitivity analysis
Fluctuations in the Group’s trading currencies against the US dollar would result in a change in profit after tax and equity.
The table below gives an indication of this impact for reasonably possible percentage changes in the relative strength of the
US dollar against the value of sterling, the Canadian dollar and the euro, simultaneously. The analysis is prepared based on
the net assets held by the Group at the balance sheet date.
Profit after tax
Equity
2024
2023
2024
2023
Change in exchange rate of sterling, Canadian dollar and euro relative to
US dollar
$m
$m
$m
$m
Dollar weakens (30%)
(22.4)
(25.0)
81.1
45.2
Dollar weakens (20%)
(15.0)
(16.7)
54.0
30.1
Dollar weakens (10%)
(7.5)
(8.3)
27.0
15.1
Dollar strengthens (10%)
7.5
8.3
(27.0)
(15.1)
Dollar strengthens (20%)
15.0
16.7
(54.0)
(30.1)
Dollar strengthens (30%)
22.4
25.0
(81.1)
(45.2)
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29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
iii. Interest rate risk
The Group’s financial instruments (e.g. cash and cash equivalents, certain financial assets at fair value, and subordinated
debt), in addition to its insurance and reinsurance contracts, are exposed to movements in market interest rates. The Group
manages interest rate risk by primarily investing in short duration financial assets along with cash and cash equivalents.
The Investment Committee monitors the duration of these assets on a regular basis. The Group also entered into bond futures
contracts to manage the interest rate risk on bond portfolios.
Exposure and risk concentrations by duration
The following table shows the modified duration at the reporting date of the financial instruments that are exposed to
movements in market interest rates. Modified duration is a commonly used measure of volatility which represents the
percentage change of the price of a security to yield. The Group believes this gives a better indication than maturity of the likely
sensitivity of the portfolio to changes in interest rates.
<1 yr
1-2 yrs
2-3 yrs
3-4 yrs
4-5 yrs
5-10 yrs
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Financial assets at FVTPL:
- Fixed and floating rate debt securities
3,122.9
2,980.1
1,702.6
1,317.2
169.8
1.2
9,293.8
- Syndicate loans
29.5
—
—
—
—
—
29.5
Cash and cash equivalents
882.1
—
—
—
—
—
882.1
Subordinated debt
—
(249.7)
—
—
(299.0)
—
(548.7)
Total financial instruments
4,034.5
2,730.4
1,702.6
1,317.2
(129.2)
1.2
9,656.7
<1 yr
1-2 yrs
2-3 yrs
3-4 yrs
4-5 yrs
5-10 yrs
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Financial assets at FVTPL:
- Fixed and floating rate debt securities
2,499.9
3,123.8
1,214.6
1,419.5
229.1
49.5
8,536.4
- Syndicate loans
7.6
26.5
—
—
—
—
34.1
Cash and cash equivalents
812.3
—
—
—
—
—
812.3
Subordinated debt
—
—
(249.5)
—
—
(298.8)
(548.3)
Total financial instruments
3,319.8
3,150.3
965.1
1,419.5
229.1
(249.3)
8,834.5
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
243
Notes to the financial statements continued
29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
Sensitivity analysis
All elements of the carrying values of the Group's insurance and reinsurance contracts are exposed to interest rate risk.
The following analysis is performed for reasonably possible movements in key variables with all other variables held constant,
showing the impact on profit after tax and equity. The correlation of variables will have a significant effect in determining the
ultimate impact of interest rate risk, but to demonstrate the impact due to changes in variables, variables had to be changed
on an individual basis. It should be noted that movements in these variables are non-linear.
Profit after tax/Equity¹
2024
2023
Insurance and reinsurance contracts
$m
$m
Interest rate increases (150 bps)
123.4
114.3
Interest rate increases (100 bps)
83.2
77.1
Interest rate increases (50 bps)
42.1
39.1
Interest rate decreases (50 bps)
(43.2)
(40.0)
Interest rate decreases (100 bps)
(87.5)
(81.0)
Interest rate decreases (150 bps)
(133.0)
(123.0)
1 Impact of changes in risk variables is consistent across profit after tax and equity.
Profit after tax/Equity¹
2024
2023
Financial assets
$m
$m
Interest rate increases (150 bps)
(181.3)
(190.6)
Interest rate increases (100 bps)
(120.9)
(127.1)
Interest rate increases (50 bps)
(60.4)
(63.5)
Interest rate decreases (50 bps)
60.4
63.5
Interest rate decreases (100 bps)
120.9
127.1
Interest rate decreases (150 bps)
181.3
190.6
1 Impact of changes in risk variables is consistent across profit after tax and equity.
iv. Price risk
Listed investments that are quoted in an active market are recognised in the statement of financial position at quoted bid price,
which is deemed to be the approximate exit price. If the market for the investment is not considered to be active, then the
Group establishes fair value using valuation techniques (refer to Note 17). This includes comparison of orderly transactions
between market participants, reference to the current fair value of other investments that are substantially the same,
discounted cash flow models and other valuation techniques that are commonly used by market participants.
Price risk applies to financial assets that are susceptible to losses due to adverse changes in prices. At the reporting date,
the Group’s exposure to price risk was $1,276.1m (2023: $1,085.0m). This comprises hedge funds, equity investments and
illiquid assets, with no significant concentrations in one area. Note that the price of debt securities is affected by interest
rate risk and credit risk, both of which have been described above. In addition, the Group does not have any insurance
or reinsurance contracts which are exposed to price risk.
244
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29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
Sensitivity analysis
Included below is a sensitivity analysis of the Group's financial assets against price risk. With all other variables remaining
constant, changes in fair values of the Group's hedge funds, equity investments and illiquid assets would affect reported profit
after tax and equity as indicated in the following table.
Profit after tax/Equity¹
2024
2023
$m
$m
Fair value increases (30%)
304.0
266.6
Fair value increases (20%)
202.7
177.7
Fair value increases (10%)
101.3
88.9
Fair value decreases (10%)
(101.3)
(88.9)
Fair value decreases (20%)
(202.7)
(177.7)
Fair value decreases (30%)
(304.0)
(266.6)
1 Impact of changes in risk variables is consistent across profit after tax and equity.
A 10% decrease in the fair value of the Group's level 3 financial assets would have an impact of ($23.0m) on profit after tax/
equity (2023: ($20.8m)).
29c Credit risk
This risk arises due to the failure of another party to perform its financial or contractual obligations to the Group in a timely
manner. The Group accepts credit risk overall and recognises credit risk is aligned to its appetite for insurance risk. The primary
sources of credit risk for the Group are:
• reinsurers – reinsurers may fail to pay valid claims against a reinsurance contract held by the Group;
• brokers and coverholders – counterparties may fail to pass on premiums or claims collected/paid on behalf of the Group; and
• investments – the issuer may default, resulting in the Group losing all or part of the value of a financial instrument or a
derivative financial instrument.
An approval system exists for brokers with their credit and performance monitored. The Investment Committee has established
parameters for investment managers regarding the type, duration and quality of investments, including credit ratings acceptable
to the Group. The performance of investment managers is regularly reviewed to confirm adherence to these guidelines.
The Group has developed processes to examine all reinsurers before entering into new business arrangements, and ongoing
relationships with Beazley are continually assessed. In addition, reinsurance recoverables are reviewed regularly to assess
their collectability.
2024
A.M. Best
Moody’s
S&P
Tier 1
A++ to A-
Aaa to A3
AAA to A-
Tier 2
B++ to B-
Baa1 to Ba3
BBB+ to BB-
Tier 3
C++ to C-
B1 to Caa
B+ to CCC
Tier 4
D, E, F, S
Ca to C
R, (U,S) 3
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
245
Notes to the financial statements continued
29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
Maximum exposure
The following tables summarise the Group’s maximum exposure to credit risk by reinsurance contract assets
and financial assets.
Tier 1
Tier 2
Tier 3
Tier 4
Unrated
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Reinsurance contracts assets
2,584.9
—
—
—
81.7
2,666.6
Financial assets at FVTPL:
- Fixed and floating rate debt securities
7,354.0
1,691.3
—
—
248.5
9,293.8
- Syndicate loans
29.5
—
—
—
—
29.5
- Equity funds
—
—
—
—
348.7
348.7
- Hedge funds
—
—
—
—
752.0
752.0
- Illiquid assets
—
—
—
—
175.4
175.4
- Derivative financial assets
—
—
—
—
11.2
11.2
Cash and cash equivalents
882.1
—
—
—
—
882.1
Amounts due from managed syndicates and other
receivables
—
—
—
—
598.2
598.2
Total
10,850.5
1,691.3
—
—
2,215.7
14,757.5
Tier 1
Tier 2
Tier 3
Tier 4
Unrated
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Reinsurance contracts assets
2,387.5
—
—
—
39.2
2,426.7
Financial assets at FVTPL:
- Fixed and floating rate debt securities
7,101.7
1,434.7
—
—
—
8,536.4
- Syndicate loans
34.1
—
—
—
—
34.1
- Equity funds
—
—
—
—
282.7
282.7
- Hedge funds
—
—
—
—
582.2
582.2
- Illiquid assets
—
—
—
—
220.1
220.1
- Derivative financial assets
—
—
—
—
10.0
10.0
Cash and cash equivalents
812.3
—
—
—
—
812.3
Amounts due from managed syndicates and other
receivables
—
—
—
—
297.5
297.5
Total
10,335.6
1,434.7
—
—
1,431.7
13,202.0
The Group's maximum exposure to credit risk from insurance contract assets is $20.2m (2023: $101.5m). Overall exposure
to credit risk is concentrated within Tier 1, with the largest counterparty being $2,910.7m of US treasuries (2023: $3,258.7m).
Financial investments falling within the unrated category are those for which there is no readily available market data to allow
classification within the respective tiers.
246
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29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
Credit quality of reinsurance contract assets
Reinsurance recoveries are specifically referenced in IFRS 17 and explicitly de-scoped from IFRS 9. IFRS 17 requires the effect
of any risk of non-performance by the reinsurer, including the effects of collateral and losses from disputes, to be considered
when determining the estimates of the present value of future cash flows for the group of reinsurance contracts held. The Group
has developed an internal policy, which involves calculating and re-evaluating expected credit losses for reinsurance assets and
actively following up on disputes with reinsurers for recoveries. Reinsurance recoveries are assessed for Non-Performance Risk
Provision using a % of the reinsurance programme/year of account level under IFRS 17.
The Group has reinsurance recoveries that are past due at the reporting date. An aged analysis of these (on an undiscounted
basis) is presented below.
Up to 30 days
past due
30-60 days
past due
60-90 days
past due
Greater than 90
days past due
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Reinsurance recoveries
66.1
1.6
18.8
73.5
160.0
Up to 30 days
past due
30-60 days
past due
60-90 days
past due
Greater than 90
days past due
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Reinsurance recoveries
61.3
57.5
4.1
54.9
177.8
29d Liquidity risk
Liquidity risk arises where cash may not be available to pay obligations. The Group is exposed to daily calls on its available
cash resources, principally from claims arising from its insurance business, which is an industry norm. In the majority of the
cases, these claims are settled from the premiums received held as assets. Beazley avoids the risk of having insufficient liquid
assets to meet expected cash flow requirements.
The Group’s approach is to manage its liquidity position so that it can reasonably survive a significant individual or market loss
event (details of the Group’s exposure to RDS are provided on pages 237 to 239). This means that the Group maintains
sufficient liquid assets, or assets that can be converted into liquid assets at short notice and without any significant capital
loss, to meet expected cash flow requirements. These liquid funds are regularly monitored using cash flow forecasting to
ensure that surplus funds are invested to achieve a higher rate of return. The Group also makes use of loan facilities and
subordinated liabilities, details of which can be found in Note 25. Further information on the Group’s capital resources is
contained on pages 17 to 18.
Maturity analysis – Insurance and reinsurance contracts
Included below is a maturity analysis of the estimated timing of the present value of future cash flows of the Group's net
insurance contract liabilities (per Note 27a). The tables also include the weighted average term to settlement, calculated
based on undiscounted future cash flows for total ultimate claims, excluding the risk adjustment and premium-related
claims cash flows.
<1 year
1-2 years
2-3 years
3-4 years
4-5 years
>5 years
Total
Weighted
average
term to
claims
settlement
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Years
Cyber Risks
594.4
441.8
247.3
125.8
56.7
51.7 1,517.7
1.7
Digital
68.8
51.0
25.0
11.3
5.6
8.4
170.1
1.7
MAP Risks
350.5
242.8
127.4
69.6
39.3
49.4
879.0
1.7
Property Risks
584.2
295.7
111.9
45.3
19.8
20.2 1,077.1
1.2
Specialty Risks
939.7
938.8
725.3
491.2
304.0
457.9 3,856.9
2.8
Net insurance contract liabilities
2,537.6 1,970.1 1,236.9
743.2
425.4
587.6 7,500.8
2.2
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
247
Notes to the financial statements continued
29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
<1 year
1-2 years
2-3 years
3-4 years
4-5 years
>5 years
Total
Weighted
average
term to
claims
settlement
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Years
Cyber Risks
503.0
372.8
214.5
116.0
56.7
64.8
1,327.8
1.9
Digital
65.6
44.5
21.7
10.8
5.2
6.6
154.4
1.5
MAP Risks
344.5
232.3
130.4
71.0
37.9
50.0
866.1
1.7
Property Risks
510.3
247.5
93.9
39.6
18.8
21.0
931.1
1.2
Specialty Risks
796.9
884.1
677.1
453.2
280.1
399.9
3,491.3
2.6
Net insurance contract liabilities
2,220.3
1,781.2
1,137.6
690.6
398.7
542.3
6,770.7
2.1
No insurance contract liabilities held by the Group as at 31 December are payable on demand.
Included below is a maturity analysis of the estimated timing of the present value of future cash flows of the Group's net
reinsurance contract assets (per Note 27a). The tables also include the weighted average term to settlement for claims
recoveries, calculated based on undiscounted future cash flows for total ultimate claims, excluding the risk adjustment and
premium-related cash flows.
<1 year
1-2 years
2-3 years
3-4 years
4-5 years
>5 years
Total
Weighted
average
term to
settlement
of claims
recoveries
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Years
Cyber Risks
59.0
237.0
127.9
62.9
27.9
25.8
540.5
1.6
Digital
(13.8)
11.8
5.1
1.9
0.8
1.0
6.8
1.4
MAP Risks
(120.0)
73.3
48.4
26.9
16.2
24.0
68.8
1.7
Property Risks
44.6
66.7
34.1
11.8
6.9
6.3
170.4
1.2
Specialty Risks
231.9
318.5
231.5
154.9
94.9
141.3 1,173.0
2.7
Net reinsurance contract assets
201.7
707.3
447.0
258.4
146.7
198.4 1,959.5
2.0
<1 year
1-2 years
2-3 years
3-4 years
4-5 years
>5 years
Total
Weighted
average
term to
settlement
of claims
recoveries
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Years
Cyber Risks
(51.4)
169.3
94.6
51.4
24.3
26.5
314.7
1.7
Digital
(11.4)
9.3
4.5
1.9
0.9
0.9
6.1
1.5
MAP Risks
(70.4)
61.7
52.3
30.7
18.2
25.6
118.1
1.5
Property Risks
104.4
59.2
27.0
15.6
3.4
5.3
214.9
1.1
Specialty Risks
75.8
336.5
249.7
167.7
105.9
149.6
1,085.2
2.8
Net reinsurance contract assets
47.0
636.0
428.1
267.3
152.7
207.9
1,739.0
2.0
248
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29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
Maturity analysis – Total liabilities
The following is a maturity analysis of the net contractual cash flows of the Group’s liabilities as at 31 December. This excludes
current tax and deferred tax liabilities, and reinsurance contracts which are in a net asset position at 31 December.
<1 year
1-2 years
2-3 years
3-4 years
4-5 years
>5 years
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Net insurance contract liabilities
2,537.6
1,970.1
1,236.9
743.2
425.4
587.6
7,500.8
Financial liabilities:
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
- Derivative financial liabilities
27.3
—
—
—
—
—
27.3
- Subordinated debt
31.2
278.9
16.5
16.5
311.4
—
654.5
Lease liabilities
11.6
10.5
9.3
8.7
7.5
28.6
76.2
Other liabilities
642.8
—
—
—
—
—
642.8
Total liabilities
3,250.5
2,259.5
1,262.7
768.4
744.3
616.2
8,901.6
<1 year
1-2 years
2-3 years
3-4 years
4-5 years
>5 years
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Net insurance contract liabilities
2,220.3
1,781.2
1,137.6
690.6
398.7
542.3
6,770.7
Financial liabilities:
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
- Derivative financial liabilities
6.3
—
—
—
—
—
6.3
- Subordinated debt
31.2
31.2
278.9
16.5
16.5
311.4
685.7
Lease liabilities
13.5
10.3
9.2
8.2
7.7
32.6
81.5
Other liabilities
610.5
—
—
—
—
—
610.5
Total liabilities
2,881.8
1,822.7
1,425.7
715.3
422.9
886.3
8,154.7
Maturity analysis – Financial assets
Included below is a maturity analysis of the Group’s financial assets as at 31 December, based on their carrying values per the
balance sheet.
<1 year
1-2 years
2-3 years
3-4 years
4-5 years
>5 years
Total
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Financial assets at FVTPL:
- Fixed and floating rate debt securities
2,497.6
2,660.4
1,843.0
843.7
1,237.5
211.6
9,293.8
- Syndicate loans
29.5
—
—
—
—
—
29.5
- Derivative financial assets
11.2
—
—
—
—
—
11.2
Cash and cash equivalents
882.1
—
—
—
—
—
882.1
Amounts due from managed syndicates
and other receivables
598.2
—
—
—
—
—
598.2
Total financial assets
4,018.6
2,660.4
1,843.0
843.7
1,237.5
211.6
10,814.8
<1 year
1-2 years
2-3 years
3-4 years
4-5 years
>5 years
Total
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Financial assets at FVTPL:
- Fixed and floating rate debt securities
2,014.6
3,061.5
1,336.2
929.6
1,045.3
149.2
8,536.4
- Syndicate loans
7.6
26.5
—
—
—
—
34.1
- Derivative financial assets
10.0
—
—
—
—
—
10.0
Cash and cash equivalents
812.3
—
—
—
—
—
812.3
Amounts due from managed syndicates
and other receivables
297.5
—
—
—
—
—
297.5
Total financial assets
3,142.0
3,088.0
1,336.2
929.6
1,045.3
149.2
9,690.3
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
249
Notes to the financial statements continued
29 Risk and sensitivity analysis continued
Our capital growth assets have no defined maturity dates and have thus been excluded from the above maturity table. However,
all $348.7m (2023: $282.7m) of equity funds could be liquidated within two weeks, $593.2m (2023: $440.2m) of hedge fund
assets within six months and the remaining $158.8m (2023: $142.0m) of hedge fund assets within 18 months, in normal
market conditions. Illiquid assets are not readily realisable and principal will be returned over the life of these assets, which
may be up to 12 years. The Group makes regular interest payments for its subordinated debt. Further details are provided in
Notes 11 and 25.
29e Capital management
The Group follows a risk-based approach to determine the amount of capital required to support its activities. Recognised
stochastic modelling techniques are used to measure risk exposures, and capital to support business activities is allocated
according to risk profile. Stress and scenario analysis is regularly performed and the results are documented and reconciled to
the Board’s risk appetite where necessary.
The Group has several requirements for capital, including the following:
• To support underwriting at Lloyd’s through the syndicates in which it participates, being 623 (via BSUL), 2623, 3622, 3623,
5623 and 4321. This is based on the Group’s own individual capital assessment. It may be provided in the form of either the
Group’s cash, investments, debt facilities, or letters of credit.
• To support underwriting in Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance, Inc., Beazley Insurance Company, Inc., Beazley America
Insurance Company, Inc., and Beazley NewCo Captive Company, Inc. in the US.
• To support underwriting in Beazley Insurance dac in Europe.
• To support strategic acquisitions and investments.
All entities within the Group have been in compliance with externally imposed capital requirements during the year. The Group
uses letters of credit (LOC) available under a syndicated short-term banking facility led by Lloyds Banking Group plc to support
Funds at Lloyd’s (FAL) requirements. Lloyd’s of London applies certain criteria to banks issuing LOC as FAL, including minimum
credit rating requirements and counterparty limits. Should any of the banks on the existing LOC facility breach Lloyd’s of London
requirements, the Group might be asked to replace the LOC provided with alternative eligible issuer(s) and/or assets meeting
Lloyd’s requirements. The creditworthiness of the counterparties on the facility is monitored by the Group on an ongoing basis.
The Group considers Shareholders' Funds, Tier 2 subordinated debt and letters of credit to be the primary sources
of capital for the Group. For more detail on the value of capital managed and how its value has changed in the year,
please see pages 17 to 18.
When deciding on the appropriate level of capital to hold, we consider several criteria: firstly, we aim to maintain a solvency
ratio in excess of 170% of solvency capital requirement. We also seek to absorb volatility to ensure financial resilience should
a 1-in-250 event occur as well as assessing the impact of interest rate movements. Finally, we consider the opportunities
for growth, which encompasses the business plan for the following year as well as the opportunities for growth in the medium
term (subsequent 1-2 years) whilst ensuring we can swiftly take advantage of rising unforeseen opportunities.
The Group operates a progressive dividend strategy, intending to grow the dividend each year. When considering the dividend
for 2024, the Board took into account the fact that the Group has grown significantly in recent years. To reflect this growth and
the Group's confidence in the sustainability of its results, the Board decided to rebase the ordinary dividend by 76% to 25p.
When determining the level of the dividend, the Board considers the Group's capital position, future investment and growth
opportunities and its ability to generate cash flows. Dividends are typically paid on an annual basis to align with the Group's
capital planning cycle. The Group's capital management strategy is to carry some surplus capital which makes it possible to
take advantage of growth opportunities which may arise. Where surplus capital cannot be profitably deployed, it will be returned
to shareholders.
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30 Subsidiary undertakings
Beazley plc, a company incorporated in England and Wales and resident for tax purposes in the United Kingdom, is the ultimate
parent and the ultimate controlling party within the Group.
The following is a list of all the subsidiaries in the Group as at 31 December 2024, all of which are wholly owned.
Country/region
of incorporation
Beazley Canada Limited
Canada
Beazley Corporate Member (No.2) Limited
England
Beazley Corporate Member (No.3) Limited
England
Beazley Corporate Member (No.6) Limited
England
Beazley Furlonge Holdings Limited
England
Beazley Furlonge Limited
England
Beazley Group Limited
England
Beazley Investments Limited
England
Beazley Management Limited
England
Beazley Staff Underwriting Limited
England
Beazley Solutions Limited
England
Beazley Underwriting Limited
England
Beazley Underwriting Services Limited
England
Beazley Security Limited
England
Beazley Corporate Governance Services Limited
England
BHI Digital UK Limited
England
Beazley Insurance dac
Ireland
Beazley Solutions International Limited
Ireland
Beazley Ireland Holdings plc
Jersey
Beazley Labuan Limited
Malaysia
Beazley America Insurance Company, Inc.**
USA
Beazley Group (USA) General Partnership*
USA
Beazley Holdings, Inc.*
USA
Beazley Insurance Company, Inc.**
USA
Beazley Newco Captive Company, Inc.**
USA
Beazley USA Services, Inc.*
USA
Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance, Inc.**
USA
BHI Digital, LLC.*
USA
Beazley RI Manager, Inc.*
USA
Beazley Security LLC***
USA
Beazley Pte. Limited
Singapore
Please see page 252 for registered addresses.
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251
Notes to the financial statements continued
30 Subsidiary undertakings continued
The following is a list of the Group's registered office locations:
Address
City
Postcode
Country/region
United Kingdom and Continental Europe
22 Bishopsgate
London
EC2N 4BQ
England
2 Northwood Avenue
Dublin
D09 X5N9
Ireland
22 Grenville Street
Saint Helier
JE4 8PX
Jersey
North America
1209 Orange Street*
Wilmington, Delaware
19801
USA
65 Memorial Road**
West Hartford, Connecticut
06107
USA
160 Greentree Drive, Suite 101***
Dover, Delaware
19904
USA
100 King Street West, Suite 4530
Toronto, Ontario
M5X 1E1
Canada
Asia
138 Market Street, 03-04 Capita Green
Singapore
048946
Singapore
Kensington Gardens, No. U1317, Lot 7616, Jalan Jumidar Buyong
Labuan
87000
Malaysia
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31 Related party transactions
The Group has related party relationships with syndicates 623, 5623, 4321 and 6107, in addition to its subsidiaries,
associates and Directors. All amounts shown below exclude amounts attributable to Group entities.
31a Syndicates 623, 5623, 4321 and 6107
Syndicate 623
The Group received management fees and profit commissions for providing a range of management services to syndicate 623.
The total amount due from 623 at 2024 year end was $79.5m (2023: $19.1m). During the year, the Group began reinsuring a
portion of Property Treaty business from syndicate 623. Insurance revenue of $22.7m was recognised in the year, and the
amount due at the period end was $3.1m. The Group provides 9% of capital to 623 on all open years of account in order to
facilitate the staff participation plan.
Syndicate 5623
The Group has historically ceded certain business to 5623. This has led to an allocation of reinsurance premium due of
$33.6m (2023: $27.0m). The Group also receives management fees and profit commissions from syndicate 5623. The amount
due at the 2024 year end was $26.7m (2023: nil). The total amount due from the Group to the syndicate at the year end was
$106.6m (2023: $217.7m). The Group provides approximately 18% and 20% of capital to 5623 for the 2023 and 2024 years
of account respectively.
Syndicate 4321
The total amount due from 4321 at 2024 year end was $7.8m (2023: $6.3m). The Group provides 10% of the capital for
syndicate 4321 for the 2022 and 2023 years of account.
Syndicate 6107
The Group ceded portions of a group of insurance policies to syndicate 6107, which has led to an allocation of reinsurance
premium due of $34.7m (2023: $40.4m). The amount due from the Group to the syndicate at 2024 year end was $74.6m
(2023: $86.6m). The participants on syndicate 6107 are solely third-party capital providers.
31b Key management compensation
2024
2023
$m
$m
Salaries and other short-term benefits
40.9
38.4
Pension costs
0.6
0.6
Share-based remuneration
15.4
11.9
56.9
50.9
Key management includes Executive and Non-Executive Directors and other senior management.
The total number of Beazley plc ordinary shares held by key management is 2.5m (2023: 2.5m). Apart from the transactions
listed in the table above, there were no further related party transactions involving key management or a close member of their
family. Further details of Directors’ shareholdings and remuneration can be found in the Directors’ remuneration report on
pages 135 to 157.
31c Other related party transactions
At 31 December 2024, the Group had purchased services from Falcon Money Management Holdings Limited of $3.4m
(2023: $3.1m) throughout the year. All transactions with the associates and subsidiaries are priced on an arm’s length basis.
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253
Notes to the financial statements continued
32 Contingencies
Funds at Lloyd’s (FAL)
The following amounts are held in trust by Lloyd’s to secure underwriting commitments:
2024
2023
$m
$m
Financial assets at fair value and cash¹
1,469.7
1,277.8
Letters of credit (LOC)
225.0
225.0
Total Funds at Lloyd’s
1,694.7
1,502.8
1 Included within "financial assets at fair value" and "cash and cash equivalents" on the statement of financial position.
The funds are held in trust and can be used to meet claims liabilities should syndicates fail to meet their claim liabilities.
The funds can be only used to meet claim liabilities of the relevant member.
Letters of credit (FAL)
The Group has a syndicated short-term banking facility which was renewed on 25 May 2023, under which $450.0m may be
utilised as LOC placed as FAL to provide capital support for the Group’s underwriting at Lloyd’s. The cost of the facility is based
on a commitment fee of 0.4725% per annum and any amounts drawn are charged at a margin of 1.5% per annum. As at 31
December 2024, $225.0m (2023: $225.0m) has been issued as LOC and is being utilised to support FAL requirements. LOC
issued under the facility are uncollateralised. No liability is recognised in these financial statements for the LOC (2023: $nil),
as amounts would only become due if called upon to fund liabilities. These borrowings are subject to covenants, with which
the Group has complied throughout the year. The Group considers the risk of covenants being breached to be remote.
Letters of credit (US)
During the year, the Group has also placed LOC totalling $47.0m (2023: $47.0m) with the State of Connecticut Insurance
Department to collateralise reinsurance arrangements between the Group’s US admitted carrier, Beazley Insurance Company
Inc. (BICI) and Beazley NewCo Captive Company Inc. These amounts are guaranteed by Beazley plc. In addition, BICI and
Beazley Excess and Surplus Insurance, Inc. (BESI) have standby letters of credit of $9.9m (2023: $7.5m) and $6.3m
(2023: nil) respectively. These are in place to secure certain reinsurance transactions settled through Lloyd’s. No amounts
relating to these letters of credit are recognised in the Group's statement of financial position (2023: $nil).
33 Subsequent events
The Group is exposed to the California Wildfires which occurred in January 2025. Our initial estimates expect a net claims
impact of around $80m (unaudited).
On 3 March 2025, the Board of Beazley plc approved a share buyback of its ordinary shares for up to a maximum aggregate
consideration of $500m which is expected to commence on 5 March 2025. The buyback will reduce the Group's net asset
value by approximately $500m.
For details of dividends declared after the end of the reporting period please refer to note 14.
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Company financial
statements
256
Company statement of financial position
257
Company statement of changes in equity
258
Company statement of cash flows
259
Notes to the financial statements
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
255
Company statement of financial position
as at 31 December 2024
2024
2023
Notes
$m
$m
Investment in subsidiaries
7
724.6
724.6
Other receivables
690.5
799.3
Current tax asset
5.2
4.3
Cash and cash equivalents
0.8
0.9
Total assets
1,421.1
1,529.1
Share capital
5
44.6
46.7
Share premium
17.9
10.6
Merger reserve
55.4
55.4
Foreign currency translation reserve
0.7
0.7
Other reserves
6
(2.7)
(20.2)
Retained earnings
1,288.5
1,431.9
Total equity
1,404.4
1,525.1
Other liabilities
16.7
4.0
Total liabilities
16.7
4.0
Total equity and liabilities
1,421.1
1,529.1
No statement of profit or loss is presented for the parent company as permitted by section 408 of the Companies Act 2006.
The result after tax of the parent company for the year was a profit of $295.7m (2023: loss of $14.0m).
The financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 3 March 2025 and were signed on its behalf by:
C Bannister
Chair
B Plucnar Jensen
Group Chief Financial Officer
3 March 2025
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Company statement of changes in equity
for the year ended 31 December 2024
Share
capital
Share
premium
Merger
reserve¹
Foreign
currency
translation
reserve
Other
reserves
Retained
earnings
Total
Notes
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
$m
Balance at 01 January 2023
46.6
9.7
55.4
0.7
(14.3)
1,545.1
1,643.2
Total comprehensive loss
—
—
—
—
—
(14.0)
(14.0)
Dividend paid
4
—
—
—
—
—
(107.7)
(107.7)
Issue of shares
5
0.1
0.9
—
—
—
—
1.0
Equity settled share-based payments
6
—
—
—
—
36.2
—
36.2
Acquisition of own shares held in trust
6
—
—
—
—
(33.6)
—
(33.6)
Transfer of shares to employees
6
—
—
—
—
(8.5)
8.5
—
Balance at 31 December 2023
46.7
10.6
55.4
0.7
(20.2)
1,431.9
1,525.1
Total comprehensive income
—
—
—
—
—
295.7
295.7
Dividend paid
4
—
—
—
—
—
(120.5)
(120.5)
Share buyback2
5
(2.4)
—
—
—
2.4
(330.0)
(330.0)
Issue of shares
5
0.3
7.3
—
—
—
—
7.6
Equity settled share-based payments
6
—
—
—
—
40.5
—
40.5
Acquisition of own shares held in trust
6
—
—
—
—
(14.0)
—
(14.0)
Transfer of shares to employees
6
—
—
—
—
(11.4)
11.4
—
Balance at 31 December 2024
44.6
17.9
55.4
0.7
(2.7)
1,288.5
1,404.4
1 A merger reserve was created through a scheme of arrangement on 13 April 2016, in which Beazley plc became the parent company of the Group.
2 Refer to Note 21 of the Group's consolidated financial statements for further details and to Note 22 of the Group's consolidated financial statements for the
value of the capital redemption reserve as at 31 December 2024.
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257
Company statement of cash flows
for the year ended 31 December 2024
2024
2023
$m
$m
Cash flows from operating activities:
Profit/(loss) before tax
294.5
(18.0)
Adjustments for non-cash items:
Interest and dividends receivable
(300.1)
(0.1)
Finance costs payable
4.1
5.9
Equity settled share based compensation
40.5
36.2
Other non-cash items
2.7
3.0
Changes in operational assets and liabilities:
Increase in other receivables1
(56.7)
(21.4)
Increase/(decrease) in other liabilities
12.7
(0.2)
Interest received on financial assets
0.1
0.1
Net cash (out)/inflows from operating activities
(2.2)
5.5
Cash flows from investing activities:
Dividend received from subsidiaries
300.0
—
Decrease in loan to subsidiary1
165.6
141.2
Net cash inflows from investing activities
465.6
141.2
Cash flows from financing activities:
Acquisition of own shares in trust
(14.0)
(33.6)
Share buyback
(330.0)
—
Finance costs paid
(4.1)
(5.9)
Dividend paid
(120.5)
(107.7)
Net cash outflows from financing activities
(468.6)
(147.2)
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents
(5.2)
(0.5)
Opening cash and cash equivalents
0.9
3.4
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents
5.1
(2.0)
Closing cash and cash equivalents
0.8
0.9
1 Loan to subsidiary is included within Other receivables on the Company balance sheet.
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Notes to the financial statements
1 General information
Nature of operations
Beazley plc ("the Company", registered number 09763575) is a public company incorporated in England and Wales.
The Company’s registered address is 22 Bishopsgate, London, EC2N 4BQ, United Kingdom. The principal activity of the
Company is to act as a holding company for the Beazley group of companies.
Basis of preparation
The separate financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with UK adopted International Accounting
Standards and the requirements of Companies Act 2006. The exemption under section 408 of the Companies Act 2006 from
presenting its own profit and loss account has been applied. The Company financial statements are prepared on the historical
cost basis. All amounts presented are in US dollars and millions, unless stated otherwise.
New standards and amendments to existing standard
In the current year, the Company has applied new standards and amendments to IFRS issued by the International Accounting
Standards Board ("IASB") and endorsed by the UK Endorsement Board ("UKEB") that are mandatorily effective for accounting
periods beginning on or after 01 January 2024. These amendments are consistent with those set out in Note 1 of the Group
financial statements. None of the amendments issued by the IASB and endorsed by the UKEB have had a material impact on
the Company.
Going concern
The basis of the assessment for going concern as set out in Note 1 of the Group's consolidated financial statements also
applies to the Company. The Directors consider it appropriate to continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting
in preparing these financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024.
2 Material accounting policies
Foreign currency translation
The Company financial statements are presented in US dollars, being its functional and presentational currency.
Subsidiary undertakings
Equity financial investments made by the Company in subsidiary undertakings and associates are stated at cost and are
reviewed for impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value may be impaired.
Other receivables
Other receivables primarily relate to amounts due from other Group companies and are carried at amortised cost less any
impairment losses. Under IFRS 9, expected credit losses are recognised for all financial assets held at amortised cost.
The amount of expected credit losses recognised by the Company on a standalone basis in 2023 and 2024 was not material.
The carrying values of the Group's other receivables are deemed to be reasonable approximations of fair values at the
reporting date.
Other reserves
The employee share options reserve is held in accordance with IFRS 2 Share-based payment. The Company accounting policy
follows that of the Group which is detailed within Note 2 of the Group's consolidated financial statements.
Dividends paid
Dividend distributions to the shareholders of the Company are recognised in the period in which the dividends are paid.
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259
Notes to the financial statements continued
3 Risk and sensitivity analysis – Company risk
Foreign exchange risk
The functional and presentational currency of Beazley plc is US dollars. As a result, the Company is mainly exposed
to fluctuations in exchange rates for non-dollar denominated transactions and to net asset translation risk on non-dollar
functional currency entities.
Exposure and risk concentrations by currency
The following table summarises the carrying value of total assets and total liabilities categorised by the Company's
main currencies:
EUR €
UK £
US $
Total $
2024
$m
$m
$m
$m
Investment in subsidiaries
—
724.6
—
724.6
Other receivables
—
47.9
642.6
690.5
Current tax asset
—
5.2
—
5.2
Cash and cash equivalents
0.4
0.3
0.1
0.8
Total
0.4
778.0
642.7
1,421.1
Other liabilities
0.3
0.8
15.6
16.7
Total
0.3
0.8
15.6
16.7
EUR €
UK £
US $
Total $
2023
$m
$m
$m
$m
Investment in subsidiaries
—
724.6
—
724.6
Other receivables
(1.2)
(136.5)
937.0
799.3
Current tax asset
—
4.3
—
4.3
Cash and cash equivalents
0.5
0.4
—
0.9
Total
(0.7)
592.8
937.0
1,529.1
Other liabilities
—
3.4
0.6
4.0
Total
—
3.4
0.6
4.0
Other receivables are due within one year of the reporting date aside from $354.1m due after one year (2023: nil). All other
liabilities are payable within one year of the reporting date.
Credit risk
Credit risk arises where counterparties fail to meet their financial obligations in full as they fall due. The other receivables in
2024 consist of amounts owed from other entities within the Group. The maximum exposure to credit risk has been assessed
within Note 8 of the Company financial statements and is not material to the Company. All other receivables are intergroup in
nature and the Directors are of the view that the Group companies have sufficient liquidity and assets to pay all loans as and
when they fall due.
4 Dividends per share
A dividend of 25.0p per share (2023: 14.2p per share) will be payable on 2 May 2025, as described in Note 14 of the Group
consolidated financial statements.
5 Share capital
Details of the ordinary shares in issue at 31 December 2024 are set out in Note 21 of the Group consolidated financial
statements. This includes further information on the share buyback programme which took place during the year.
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6 Other reserves
Employee
share options
reserve
Employee
share trust
reserve
Capital
redemption
reserve1
Total
$m
$m
$m
$m
Balance at 01 January 2023
0.2
(14.5)
—
(14.3)
Share-based payments
36.2
—
—
36.2
Acquisition of own shares held in trust
—
(33.6)
—
(33.6)
Transfer of shares to employees
(14.8)
6.3
—
(8.5)
Balance at 31 December 2023
21.6
(41.8)
—
(20.2)
Share-based payments
40.5
—
—
40.5
Acquisition of own shares held in trust
—
(14.0)
—
(14.0)
Transfer of shares to employees
(27.1)
15.7
—
(11.4)
Share buyback
—
—
2.4
2.4
Balance at 31 December 2024
35.0
(40.1)
2.4
(2.7)
1 The price of shares purchased as part of the buyback scheme is recognised through retained earnings. On their cancellation, the nominal value of the ordinary
shares is deducted from share capital and the equivalent amount is recognised within the capital redemption reserve.
The employee shares are held in accordance with IFRS 2 Share-based payment. For more information refer to Notes 22 & 23
of the Group's consolidated financial statements.
7 Subsidiary undertakings
Beazley plc holds a 100% ownership interest in Beazley Ireland Holdings plc. All other entities in the Group are held directly
or indirectly as subsidiaries of that entity. For a full list of subsidiary undertakings of the Company at 31 December 2024,
refer to Note 30 of the Group’s consolidated financial statements.
8 Related party transactions
Beazley plc lends funds to subsidiary entities to help meet group working capital and liquidity requirements. Such loans are
repayable on demand and no interest is payable. A summary of amounts due to Beazley plc from other group entities is set
out below:
2024
2023
$m
$m
Due from Beazley Furlonge Holdings Limited
192.5
192.6
Due from Beazley Management Limited
88.6
58.9
Due from Beazley Underwriting Limited
354.1
519.7
Due from other Group companies
54.8
28.3
Total due from Group companies
690.0
799.5
Due to other Group Companies
16.0
—
Total due to Group companies
16.0
—
The key management of Beazley plc as a standalone entity is deemed to be the same as that of the wider Beazley Group.
Further details of related party relationships can be found within Note 31 of the Group's consolidated financial statements.
9 Subsequent events
On 3 March 2025, the Board of Beazley plc approved a share buyback of its ordinary shares for up to a maximum aggregate
consideration of $500m which is expected to commence on 5 March 2025. The buyback will reduce the Group's net asset
value by approximately $500m.
For details of dividends declared after the end of the reporting period please refer to note 14 of the Group's consolidated
financial statements.
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261
Alternative performance measures (APMs)
Beazley plc uses APMs to help explain its financial performance and position. These measures are not defined under IFRS.
The Group is of the view that the use of these measures enhances the usefulness of our financial reporting and allows
for improved comparison with industry peers.
Information on APMs used by the Group is set out below. Unless otherwise stated, amounts are disclosed in millions
of dollars ($m).
Insurance written premiums & net insurance written premiums
Insurance written premiums ($m) is calculated by deducting the reinstatement premiums and profit commissions from the
gross premiums written. Net insurance written premiums ($m) is calculated by adding insurance ceded premiums to this
result. These APMs represent management’s view of premiums written in each period. The primary difference between
insurance written premiums and insurance revenue relates to the deferral and earning of income over the period in which
coverage is provided.
2024
2023
$m
$m
Insurance written premiums1
6,164.1
5,601.4
Earnings adjustment
(486.0)
(159.0)
Insurance revenue
5,678.1
5,442.4
2024
2023
$m
$m
Insurance ceded premiums1
(1,011.8)
(905.2)
Earnings adjustment
246.9
(222.1)
Allocation of reinsurance premiums
(764.9) (1,127.3)
2024
2023
$m
$m
Insurance written premiums1
6,164.1
5,601.4
Add insurance ceded premiums
(1,011.8)
(905.2)
Net insurance written premiums
5,152.3
4,696.2
1 Beazley Staff Underwriting Limited's participation in syndicate 623 at Lloyd’s, is now fully consolidated within the Group accounts on a line by line basis due
to an increase in materiality. Excluding the impact of this consolidation of premium, growth for the year would have been 8.5% on a gross basis and 8.2%
on a net basis.
Contractual Service Margin (CSM) sustainability index
The CSM reflects the expected profit of contracts within the liability for remaining coverage. The sustainability index ratio is
calculated by dividing the closing CSM at 31 December by the opening CSM at 1 January. A ratio of 1 and above shows that
the expected profit within the LRC is higher than the previous valuation.
Gross
Net
Gross
Net
2024
2024
2023
2023
Closing CSM
480.5
245.9
344.0
214.4
Divided by opening CSM
344.0
214.4
341.0
183.7
CSM sustainability index
1.40
1.15
1.01
1.17
262
Beazley | Annual report 2024
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Claims, expense & combined ratios
Claims ratio (%) is calculated as insurance service expenses less directly attributable expenses, net of reinsurance recoveries,
divided by insurance revenue net of reinsurance ceded revenue. Expense ratio (%) is calculated as the sum of insurance
acquisition cash flows amortisation and other directly attributable expenses, divided by insurance revenue net of reinsurance
ceded revenue. Combined ratio (%) is calculated as insurance service expenses net of reinsurance recoveries, divided by the
insurance revenue net of reinsurance ceded revenue. This is also the sum of the claims and expense ratios. The combined ratio
below is shown both before and after the impact of discounting.
2024
2023
Insurance service expenses ($m)
3,933.0 3,592.6
Less directly attributable expenses ($m)1
(1,558.1) (1,362.6)
Amounts recoverable from reinsurers for incurred claims ($m)
(255.8)
(528.5)
Net claims ($m)
2,119.1 1,701.5
Insurance revenue ($m)
5,678.1 5,442.4
Allocation of reinsurance premium ($m)
(764.9) (1,127.3)
Divided by net insurance revenue ($m)
4,913.2 4,315.1
Claims ratio
43.1 %
39.4 %
Directly attributable expenses ($m)1
1,558.1 1,362.6
Divided by net insurance revenue ($m)
4,913.2 4,315.1
Expense ratio
31.7 %
31.6 %
Combined ratio
74.8 %
71.0 %
Removal of impact of discounting
4.2 %
3.0 %
Combined ratio (undiscounted)
79.0 %
74.0 %
1 Directly attributable expenses are comprised of insurance acquisition cash flows amortisation, other directly attributable expenses, and reinsurers share of
expenses and other amounts per Note 3.
Net assets per share & net tangible assets per share
Net assets per share ("NAVps") is the ratio (in pence and cents) calculated by dividing the net assets or total equity of the
Group by the number of shares in issue at the end of the period, excluding those held by the employee benefits trust.
Net tangible assets per share excludes intangible assets from net assets in the above calculation.
2024
2023
Net assets ($m)
4,606.8
3,882.1
Less intangible assets ($m)
(198.0)
(165.3)
Net tangible assets ($m)
4,408.8
3,716.8
Divided by the shares in issue at the period end (millions)1:
629.9
662.7
Net assets per share (cents)
731.4
585.8
Net tangible assets per share (cents)
699.9
560.9
Converted at spot rate:
0.78
0.80
Net assets per share (pence)
570.5
468.6
Net tangible assets per share (pence)
545.9
448.7
1 Shares in issue at the period end exclude those held by the employee benefits trust of 9.1m (2023: 9.8m).
Net assets per share growth
Net assets per share growth (%) is calculated as the NAVps at the end of the reporting period ("closing"), less the NAVps five
years prior to the start of the reporting period ("opening"), divided by the NAVps at opening. The NAVps has been calculated
on an IFRS 17 basis for the 2022 and subsequent periods, and on an IFRS 4 basis for the 2021 and prior periods.
2024
2023
Net assets per share (cents) at opening
309.6
280.4
Net assets per share (cents) at closing
731.4
585.8
Movement
421.8
305.4
Net assets per share growth (%)
136 %
109 %
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Beazley | Annual report 2024
263
Alternative performance measures ("APMs") continued
Return on equity ("ROE")
Return on equity (%) is calculated by dividing the consolidated profit after tax by the average equity for the period (using an
average of the opening and closing equity positions).
2024
2023
Profit after tax ($m)
1,130.3
1,026.8
Divided by average total equity ($m)
4,244.5
3,418.6
Return on equity
26.6 %
30.0 %
Average return on equity
Average return on equity (%) is calculated as the straight average of the ROE over a period of five and ten years years from the
end of the reporting period. The ROE has been calculated on an IFRS 17 basis for the 2022 and subsequent periods, and on an
IFRS 4 basis for the 2021 and prior periods.
2024
2023
31 December 2014
—
17.0 %
31 December 2015
19.0 %
19.0 %
31 December 2016
18.0 %
18.0 %
31 December 2017
9.0 %
9.0 %
31 December 2018
5.0 %
5.0 %
31 December 2019
15.0 %
15.0 %
31 December 2020
(3.0) %
(3.0) %
31 December 2021
16.0 %
16.0 %
31 December 2022
19.0 %
19.0 %
31 December 2023
30.0 %
30.0 %
31 December 2024
26.6 %
—
Average ROE over 5 years
17.7 %
15.4 %
Average ROE over 10 years
15.5 %
14.5 %
Investment return
Investment return (%) is calculated by dividing the net investment income by the average financial assets at fair value and cash
and cash equivalents held by the Group over the period.
2024
2023
Net investment income ($m)
574.4
480.2
Opening invested assets:
Financial assets at fair value ($m)
9,665.5
8,345.6
Cash and cash equivalents ($m)
812.3
652.5
Invested assets at the beginning of the period ($m)
10,477.8
8,998.1
Closing invested assets:
Financial assets at fair value ($m)
10,610.6
9,665.5
Cash and cash equivalents ($m)
882.1
812.3
Invested assets at the end of the period: ($m)
11,492.7
10,477.8
Divided by average invested assets ($m)
10,985.3
9,738.0
Investment return
5.2 %
4.9 %
264
Beazley | Annual report 2024
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Beazley plc
22 Bishopsgate
London
EC2N 4BQ
T +44 (0)20 7667 0623
info@beazley.com
www.beazley.com
Beazley online Annual Report and Accounts 2024
beazley.com/2024-annual-report
and so it
continues...