Lloyd’s MAT largely profitable in 2025 but aviation losses bite

Individual syndicate results for direct marine, aviation and transport (MAT) insurance were mostly profitable in 2025, but ​aviation losses, primarily associated with leasing claims, continued to weigh on the earnings of certain Lloyd's carriers.

Forty-six of the 79 syndicates that wrote direct MAT business in 2025 reported a profit, The ‌Insurer’s analysis of syndicate results shows.

Ascot Syndicate 1414 and Arch Syndicate 2012 produced the largest MAT underwriting profits in 2025 at $55 million and $52 million, respectively. For Ascot, this came on the back of a $38 million profit in 2024, while Arch's result was a turnaround from the previous year’s $25 million loss.

Hamilton Syndicate 4000, Brit Syndicate 2987, Antares Syndicate 1274 and Munich Re Syndicate 457 also reported double-digit million-dollar upswings in underwriting profits, with results of $28 million, $20 million, $33 million and $33 million, respectively.

The profits posted by Antares, Arch and Hamilton were particularly ​outsized given the syndicates' respective gross written premiums of $144 million, $116.6 million and $61.2 million were materially lower than peers in the top 10 underwriting results set.

The extent of syndicates’ profits or losses relative to their ​GWP in the segment may also reflect their use of reinsurance.

MOST UNDERWRITING RESULTS IMPROVED IN 2025 COMPARED TO 2024

Only three of the syndicates that reported the top 10 ⁠underwriting results had a reduction in profit in 2025 compared to the prior year.

And, of the 75 syndicates that underwrote MAT in both 2024 and 2025, 61% reported an improved underwriting result year on year.

These generally improved results ​have come despite much market commentary expressing concerns about the trajectory of many classes across Lloyd’s, marine in particular.

Lloyd’s Q2 market message said the marine market’s rate adequacy was marginal and heading in a weakening direction. Aviation was ​also classed as marginal, albeit its direction was classed as stable.

The Corporation’s chief of market performance Rachel Turk “called out” the marine market for its weakening outlook, pointing to reserve increases related to the Baltimore bridge as an example of how U.S. social inflation should be priced into a broader range of classes to ensure nobody overstates adequacy.

AVIATION LEASING LOSSES

Tokio Marine Kiln Syndicate 510 and Liberty Syndicate 4472 reported the largest MAT underwriting losses for 2025, both disclosing significant aviation leasing reserve losses in their annual syndicate disclosures.

Syndicate 510, ​now combined with Syndicate 1880, reported an underwriting loss of $138 million for its direct MAT portfolio, the same figure the two syndicates recorded in 2024. In its 2025 syndicate results filing, TMK disclosed reserve deteriorations of 5.6% to ​its net claims ratio, which “included an increase in provisions for potential exposures arising from the Russian invasion of Ukraine".

Liberty Syndicate 4472 reported a loss of $93 million for direct MAT business in 2025, an improvement on the $128 million loss in 2024. The ‌syndicate’s net loss ⁠ratio increased by 17% on the prior-year period in 2025, 11.5% of which related to a strengthening in prior year reserves that were “largely due” to the recognition of additional Russia-Ukraine reserves.

Talbot Syndicate 1183's $42 million loss was the third largest in 2025 and followed a $52 million loss in 2024 for direct MAT business.

Its 2025 syndicate filing did not offer a specific explanation on the MAT loss figure, with an increase in its current accident year combined ratio attributed to catastrophe losses and higher managing agency profit commission.

However, its filing did note that the syndicate has exposure from the Russia-Ukraine conflict related to contingent and possessed coverage.

It said that a significant proportion of the estimated gross exposure has been ​settled, albeit the syndicate filing did not provide an ​overall loss estimate. Talbot declined to comment.

CANOPIUS STRETCHES POSITION ⁠AS LARGEST MAT SYNDICATE

Conventional wisdom suggests softening market conditions make it more challenging for carriers to grow. However, 55% of syndicates that wrote MAT in both 2024 and 2025 reported a year-on-year increase in GWP.

In pure dollar terms, Canopius, already Lloyd’s largest MAT syndicate by GWP, also recorded the largest growth year on year, with overall premium ​of $672 million for 2025, up $160 million on the prior year.

This 2025 premium figure means Syndicate 4444’s MAT portfolio is $242 million larger than TMK Syndicate 510, the second-largest ​syndicate for MAT premiums. That gap ⁠alone is larger than nearly nine in 10 syndicate MAT books in 2025.

The only other two syndicates to increase their premiums by more than $50 million in 2025 were Everest Syndicate 2786 and Lancashire Syndicate 3010. Everest nearly tripled its $40 million portfolio in 2024 to $110 million in 2025, while Lancashire’s book grew from $148 million to $211 million.

Liberty Syndicate 4472, Atrium Syndicate 609 and Beazley Syndicate 2623 recorded the largest falls in premium in dollar terms, down by $49.6 million, $43.3 million and $41.2 million, respectively. In ⁠percentage terms, those ​reductions were 42.2% for Syndicate 4472, 13.7% for Syndicate 609 and 11.5% for Syndicate 2623.

It is not clear how much rate reductions contributed ​to some syndicates' MAT books shrinking in GWP terms. This is partly a reflection of the verticalised nature of pricing structures in MAT classes, which can create an asymmetry between syndicates in the level of reductions. It also reflects the lack of specific disclosures on rate decreases ​in syndicate filings.

Liberty and Beazley did not comment specifically in syndicate filings on why their direct MAT GWP had fallen. Atrium said that overall specialty business unit premium reductions were driven by planned 2025 premium targets in aviation war.