HSBC 2012 Annual Report Download - page 237

235
Overview Operating & Financial Review Corporate Governance Financial Statements Shareholder Information
Europe
Hong
Kong
Rest of
Asia-
Pacific
North
America
Latin
America
Total
US$m US$m US$m US$m US$m US$m
2011
Accident and health ............................................ 23 186 8 – 39 256
Motor .................................................................. – 17 25 – 328 370
Fire and other damage ........................................ 5 29 13 30 29 106
Liability ............................................................... 1 16 5 – 1 23
Credit (non-life) .................................................. 6 – – 48 1 55
Marine, aviation and transport ............................ – 10 3 – 25 38
Other non-life insurance contracts ..................... 7 39 1 7 91 145
Total net written insurance premiums ................ 42 297 55 85 514 993
Net insurance claims incurred and movement
in liabilities to policyholders .......................... 56 (127) (26) (22) (231) (350)
2010
Accident and health ............................................ 78 174 8 3 37 300
Motor .................................................................. – 15 28 – 267 310
Fire and other damage ........................................ 38 29 11 16 22 116
Liability ............................................................... – 20 4 – 2 26
Credit (non-life) .................................................. 25 – – 53 2 80
Marine, aviation and transport ............................ 3 10 4 – 18 35
Other non-life insurance contracts ..................... 20 39 1 9 84 153
Total net written insurance premiums ................ 164 287 56 81 432 1,020
Net insurance claims incurred and movement
in liabilities to policyholders .......................... (169) (117) (25) (13) (201) (525)
For footnotes, see page 249.
Our motor business was written predominantly
in Argentina; this business was sold in May 2012.
Our accident and health and fire and other
damage to property contracts was written in all
regions but mainly in Hong Kong; this business was
sold in November 2012.
Credit non-life insurance, which was historically
originated in conjunction with the provision of loans
but now in run-off, was concentrated in the US.
Balance sheet of insurance manufacturing
subsidiaries
(Audited)
A principal tool used to manage exposures to both
financial and insurance risk, in particular for life
insurance contracts, is asset and liability matching.
In many markets in which we operate it is neither
possible nor appropriate to follow a perfect asset
and liability matching strategy. For long-dated
non-linked contracts in particular, this results in a
duration mismatch between assets and liabilities.
We therefore structure portfolios to support
projected liabilities from non-linked contracts.
In the absence of insurable events occurring,
unit-linked contracts match assets more directly with
liabilities. This results in the policyholder bearing
the majority of the financial risk exposure.
The tables below show the composition of assets
and liabilities by contract and by geographical region
and demonstrate that there were sufficient assets to
cover the liabilities to policyholders in each case at
the end of 2012.