Item 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
(Dollar amounts in millions, except for per share data, unless otherwise stated)
The Hartford provides projections and other forward-looking information in the following discussions, which contain many forward-looking statements, particularly relating to the Company’s future financial performance. These forward-looking statements are estimates based on information currently available to the Company, are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and are subject to the cautionary statements set forth on pages 4 and 5 of this Form 10-K. Actual results are likely to differ, and in the past have differed, materially from those forecast by the Company, depending on the outcome of various factors, including, but not limited to, those set forth in the following discussion and in Part I, Item 1A, Risk Factors, and those identified from time to time in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Hartford undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.
On September 30, 2020, the Company entered into a definitive agreement to sell all of the issued and outstanding equity of Navigators Holdings (Europe) N.V., a Belgium holding company, and its subsidiaries, Bracht, Deckers & Mackelbert N.V. (“BDM”) and Assurances Contintales Contintale Verzekeringen N.V. (“ASCO”), (collectively referred to as "Continental Europe Operations").
On May 23, 2019, the Company completed the acquisition of Navigators Group, a specialty underwriter.
For discussion of acquisitions, dispositions and reclassifications, see Note 1 - Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
The Hartford defines increases or decreases greater than or equal to 200% as “NM” or not meaningful.
For discussion of the earliest of the three years included in the financial statements of the current filing, refer to Part 2, Item 7, Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in The Hartford’s 2019 Form 10-K Annual Report.
Index
Description Page
Key Performance Measures and Ratios 38
The Hartford's Operations 43
Consolidated Results of Operations 49
Investment Results 52
Critical Accounting Estimates 54
Commercial Lines 75
Personal Lines 80
Property & Casualty Other Operations 84
Group Benefits 85
Hartford Funds 88
Corporate 90
Enterprise Risk Management 91
Capital Resources and Liquidity 110
Impact of New Accounting Standards 119
Throughout the MD&A, we use certain terms and abbreviations, the more commonly used are summarized in the Acronyms section.
KEY PERFORMANCE MEASURES AND RATIOS
The Company considers the measures and ratios in the following discussion to be key performance indicators for its businesses. Management believes that these ratios and measures are useful in understanding the underlying trends in The Hartford’s businesses. However, these key performance indicators should only be used in conjunction with, and not in lieu of, the results presented in the segment discussions that follow in this MD&A. These ratios and measures may not be comparable to other performance measures used by the Company’s competitors.
Definitions of Non-GAAP and Other Measures and Ratios
Assets Under Management (“AUM”)- Include mutual fund and ETP assets. AUM is a measure used by the Company's Hartford Funds segment because a significant portion of the Company’s mutual fund and ETP revenues are based upon asset values. These revenues increase or decrease with a rise or fall in AUM whether caused by changes in the market or through net flows.
Book Value per Diluted Share (excluding AOCI)- This is a non-GAAP per share measure that is
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calculated by dividing (a) common stockholders' equity, excluding AOCI, after tax, by (b) common shares outstanding and dilutive potential common shares. The Company provides this measure to enable investors to analyze the amount of the Company's net worth that is primarily attributable to the Company's business operations. The Company believes that excluding AOCI from the numerator is useful to investors because it eliminates the effect of items that can fluctuate significantly from period to period, primarily based on changes in interest rates. Book value per diluted share is the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measure.
Combined Ratio- The sum of the loss and loss adjustment expense ratio, the expense ratio and the policyholder dividend ratio. This ratio is a relative measurement that describes the related cost of losses and expenses for every $100 of earned premiums. A combined ratio below 100 demonstrates underwriting profit; a combined ratio above 100 demonstrates underwriting losses.
Core Earnings- The Hartford uses the non-GAAP measure core earnings as an important measure of the Company’s operating performance. The Hartford believes that core earnings provides investors with a valuable measure of the performance of the Company’s ongoing businesses because it reveals trends in our insurance and financial services businesses that may be obscured by including the net effect of certain items. Therefore, the following items are excluded from core earnings:
•Certain realized capital gains and losses - Some realized capital gains and losses are primarily driven by investment decisions and external economic developments, the nature and timing of which are unrelated to the insurance and underwriting aspects of our business. Accordingly, core earnings excludes the effect of all realized gains and losses that tend to be highly variable from period to period based on capital market conditions. The Hartford believes, however, that some realized capital gains and losses are integrally related to our insurance operations, so core earnings includes net realized gains and losses such as net periodic settlements on credit derivatives. These net realized gains and losses are directly related to an offsetting item included in the income statement such as net investment income.
•Restructuring and other costs - Costs incurred as part of a restructuring plan are not a recurring operating expense of the business.
•Loss on extinguishment of debt - Largely consisting of make-whole payments or tender premiums upon paying debt off before maturity, these losses are not a recurring operating expense of the business.
•Gains and losses on reinsurance transactions - Gains or losses on reinsurance, such as those entered into upon sale of
a business or to reinsure loss reserves, are not a recurring operating expense of the business.
•Integration and transaction costs in connection with an acquired business - As transaction costs are incurred upon acquisition of a business and integration costs are completed within a short period after an acquisition, they do not represent ongoing costs of the business.
•Change in loss reserves upon acquisition of a business - These changes in loss reserves are excluded from core earnings because such changes could obscure the ability to compare results in periods after the acquisition to results of periods prior to the acquisition.
•Deferred gain resulting from retroactive reinsurance and subsequent changes in the deferred gain - Retroactive reinsurance agreements economically transfer risk to the reinsurers and including the full benefit from retroactive reinsurance in core earnings provides greater insight into the economics of the business.
•Change in valuation allowance on deferred taxes related to non-core components of pre-tax income - These changes in valuation allowances are excluded from core earnings because they relate to non-core components of pre-tax income, such as tax attributes like capital loss carryforwards.
•Results of discontinued operations - These results are excluded from core earnings for businesses sold or held for sale because such results could obscure the ability to compare period over period results for our ongoing businesses.
In addition to the above components of net income available to common stockholders that are excluded from core earnings, preferred stock dividends declared, which are excluded from net income available to common stockholders, are included in the determination of core earnings. Preferred stock dividends are a cost of financing more akin to interest expense on debt and are expected to be a recurring expense as long as the preferred stock is outstanding.
Net income (loss) and net income (loss) available to common stockholders are the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measures to core earnings. Core earnings should not be considered as a substitute for net income (loss) or net income (loss) available to common stockholders and does not reflect the overall profitability of the Company's business. Therefore, The Hartford believes that it is useful for investors to evaluate net income (loss), net income (loss) available to common stockholders, and core earnings when reviewing the Company's performance.
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Reconciliation of Net Income to Core Earnings
For the years ended December 31,
Preferred stock dividends 21 21 6
Net income available to common stockholders $ 1,716 $ 2,064 $ 1,801
Restructuring and other costs, before tax 104 — —
Loss on extinguishment of debt, before tax — 90 6
Loss on reinsurance transactions, before tax — 91 —
Pension settlement, before tax — — —
Change in loss reserves upon acquisition of a business, before tax — 97 —
Change in deferred gain on retroactive reinsurance, before tax 312 16 —
Income tax expense (benefit) (115) 2 (75)
Loss (income) from discontinued operations, net of tax — — (322)
Core Earnings Margin- The Hartford uses the non-GAAP measure core earnings margin to evaluate, and believes it is an important measure of, the Group Benefits segment's operating performance. Core earnings margin is calculated by dividing core earnings by revenues, excluding buyouts and realized gains (losses). Net income margin, calculated by dividing net income by revenues, is the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measure. The Company believes that core earnings margin provides investors with a valuable measure of the performance of Group Benefits because it reveals trends in the business that may be obscured by the effect of buyouts and realized gains (losses) as well as other items excluded in the calculation of core earnings. Core earnings margin should not be considered as a substitute for net income margin and does not reflect the overall profitability of Group Benefits. Therefore, the Company believes it is important for investors to evaluate both core earnings margin and net income margin when reviewing performance. A reconciliation of net income margin to core earnings margin is set forth in the Results of Operations section within MD&A - Group Benefits.
Current Accident Year Catastrophe Ratio- A component of the loss and loss adjustment expense ratio, represents the ratio of catastrophe losses incurred in the current accident year (net of reinsurance) to earned premiums. For U.S. events, a catastrophe is an event that causes $25 or more in industry insured property losses and affects a significant number of property and casualty policyholders and insurers, as defined by the Property Claim Services office of Verisk. For international events, the Company's approach is similar, informed, in part, by how Lloyd's defines catastrophes. Lloyd's is an insurance market-place operating worldwide. Lloyd's does not underwrite risks. The Company accepts risks as the sole member of its Lloyd's Syndicate. The current accident year catastrophe ratio includes the effect of catastrophe losses, but does not include the effect of reinstatement premiums.
Expense Ratio- For the underwriting segments of Commercial Lines and Personal Lines is the ratio of underwriting expenses less fee income, to earned premiums. Underwriting expenses include the amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs ("DAC") and insurance operating costs and expenses, including certain centralized services costs and bad debt expense. DAC include commissions, taxes, licenses and fees and other incremental direct underwriting expenses and are amortized over the policy term.
The expense ratio for Group Benefits is expressed as the ratio of insurance operating costs and other expenses including amortization of intangibles and amortization of DAC, to premiums and other considerations, excluding buyout premiums.
The expense ratio for Commercial Lines, Personal Lines and Group Benefits does not include integration and other transaction costs associated with an acquired business.
Fee Income- Is largely driven from amounts earned as a result of contractually defined percentages of assets under management in our Hartford Funds business. These fees are generally earned on a daily basis. Therefore, the growth in assets under management either through positive net flows or favorable market performance will have a favorable impact on fee income. Conversely, either negative net flows or unfavorable market performance will reduce fee income.
Gross New Business Premium- Represents the amount of premiums charged, before ceded reinsurance, for policies issued to customers who were not insured with the Company in the previous policy term. Gross new business premium plus gross renewal written premium less ceded reinsurance equals total written premium.
Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Ratio- A measure of the cost of claims incurred in the calendar year divided by earned premium and includes losses and loss adjustment expenses incurred for both the current and prior
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accident years. Among other factors, the loss and loss adjustment expense ratio needed for the Company to achieve its targeted ROE fluctuates from year to year based on changes in the expected investment yield over the claim settlement period, the timing of expected claim settlements and the targeted returns set by management based on the competitive environment.
The loss and loss adjustment expense ratio is affected by claim frequency and claim severity, particularly for shorter-tail property lines of business, where the emergence of claim frequency and severity is credible and likely indicative of ultimate losses. Claim frequency represents the percentage change in the average number of reported claims per unit of exposure in the current accident year compared to that of the previous accident year. Claim severity represents the percentage change in the estimated average cost per claim in the current accident year compared to that of the previous accident year. As one of the factors used to determine pricing, the Company’s practice is to first make an overall assumption about claim frequency and severity for a given line of business and then, as part of the rate-making process, adjust the assumption as appropriate for the particular state, product or coverage.
Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Ratio before Catastrophes and Prior Accident Year Development- A measure of the cost of non-catastrophe loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred in the current accident year divided by earned premiums. Management believes that the current accident year loss and loss adjustment expense ratio before catastrophes is a performance measure that is useful to investors as it removes the impact of volatile and unpredictable catastrophe losses and prior accident year development.
Loss Ratio, excluding Buyouts- Utilized for the Group Benefits segment and is expressed as a ratio of benefits, losses and loss adjustment expenses, excluding those related to buyout premiums, to premiums and other considerations, excluding buyout premiums. Since Group Benefits occasionally buys a block of claims for a stated premium amount, the Company excludes this buyout from the loss ratio used for evaluating the profitability of the business as buyouts may distort the loss ratio. Buyout premiums represent takeover of open claim liabilities and other non-recurring premium amounts.
Mutual Fund and Exchange-Traded Product Assets- Are owned by the shareholders of those products and not by the Company and, therefore, are not reflected in the Company’s Consolidated Financial Statements except in instances where the Company seeds new investment products and holds an investment in the fund for a period of time. Mutual fund and ETP assets are a measure used by the Company primarily because a significant portion of the Company’s Hartford Funds segment revenues are based upon asset values. These revenues increase or decrease with a rise or fall in AUM whether caused by changes in the market or through net flows.
Net New Business Premium- Represents the amount of premiums charged, after ceded reinsurance, for policies issued to customers who were not insured with the Company in the previous policy term. Net new business premium plus renewal written premium equals total written premium.
Policies in Force- Represents the number of policies with coverage in effect as of the end of the period. The number of
policies in force is a growth measure used for Personal Lines and standard commercial lines (small commercial and middle market lines within middle & large commercial) within Commercial Lines and is affected by both new business growth and policy count retention.
Premium Retention- Represents renewal premium written in the current period divided by total premium written in the prior period.
Policy Count Retention- Represents the ratio of the number of policies renewed during the period divided by the number of policies available to renew. The number of policies available to renew represents the number of policies, net of any cancellations, written in the previous policy term. Policy count retention is affected by a number of factors, including the percentage of renewal policy quotes accepted and decisions by the Company to non-renew policies because of specific policy underwriting concerns or because of a decision to reduce premium writings in certain classes of business or states. Policy count retention is also affected by advertising and rate actions taken by competitors.
Policyholder Dividend Ratio- The ratio of policyholder dividends to earned premium.
Prior Accident Year Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Ratio- Represents the increase (decrease) in the estimated cost of settling catastrophe and non-catastrophe claims incurred in prior accident years as recorded in the current calendar year divided by earned premiums.
Reinstatement Premiums- Represents additional ceded premium paid for the reinstatement of the amount of reinsurance coverage that was reduced as a result of the Company ceding losses to reinsurers.
Renewal Earned Price Increase (Decrease)- Written premiums are earned over the policy term, which is six months for certain Personal Lines automobile business and twelve months for substantially all of the remainder of the Company’s Property and Casualty business. Since the Company earns premiums over the six to twelve month term of the policies, renewal earned price increases (decreases) lag renewal written price increases (decreases) by six to twelve months.
Renewal Written Price Increase (Decrease)-For Commercial Lines, represents the combined effect of rate changes, amount of insurance and individual risk pricing decisions per unit of exposure on commercial lines policies that renewed. For Personal Lines, renewal written price increases represent the total change in premium per policy since the prior year on those policies that renewed and includes the combined effect of rate changes, amount of insurance and other changes in exposure. For Personal Lines, other changes in exposure include, but are not limited to, the effect of changes in number of drivers, vehicles and incidents, as well as changes in customer policy elections, such as deductibles and limits. The rate component represents the change in rate filed with and approved by state regulators during the period and the amount of insurance represents the change in the value of the rating base, such as model year/vehicle symbol for automobiles, building replacement costs for property and wage inflation for workers’ compensation. A number of factors affect renewal written price increases (decreases) including
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expected loss costs as projected by the Company’s pricing actuaries, rate filings approved by state regulators, risk selection decisions made by the Company’s underwriters and marketplace competition. Renewal written price changes reflect the property and casualty insurance market cycle. Prices tend to increase for a particular line of business when insurance carriers have incurred significant losses in that line of business in the recent past or the industry as a whole commits less of its capital to writing exposures in that line of business. Prices tend to decrease when recent loss experience has been favorable or when competition among insurance carriers increases. Renewal written price statistics are subject to change from period to period, based on a number of factors, including changes in actuarial estimates and the effect of subsequent cancellations and non-renewals, and modifications made to better reflect ultimate pricing achieved.
Return on Assets ("ROA"), Core Earnings- The Company uses this non-GAAP financial measure to evaluate, and believes is an important measure of, the Hartford Funds segment’s operating performance. ROA, core earnings is calculated by dividing annualized core earnings by a daily average AUM. ROA is the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measure. The Company believes that ROA, core earnings, provides investors with a valuable measure of the performance of the Hartford Funds segment because it reveals trends in our business that may be obscured by the effect of items excluded in the calculation of core earnings. ROA, core earnings, should not be considered as a substitute for ROA and does not reflect the overall profitability of our Hartford Funds business. Therefore, the Company believes it is important for investors to evaluate both ROA, and ROA, core earnings when reviewing the Hartford Funds segment performance. A reconciliation of ROA to ROA, core earnings is set forth in the Results of Operations section within MD&A - Hartford Funds.
Underlying Combined Ratio-This non-GAAP financial measure of underwriting results represents the combined ratio before catastrophes, prior accident year development and current accident year change in loss reserves upon acquisition of
a business. Combined ratio is the most directly comparable GAAP measure. The underlying combined ratio represents the combined ratio for the current accident year, excluding the impact of current accident year catastrophes and current accident year change in loss reserves upon acquisition of a business. The Company believes this ratio is an important measure of the trend in profitability since it removes the impact of volatile and unpredictable catastrophe losses and prior accident year loss and loss adjustment expense reserve development. The changes to loss reserves upon acquisition of a business are excluded from underlying combined ratio because such changes could obscure the ability to compare results in periods after the acquisition to results of periods prior to the acquisition as such trends are valuable to our investors' ability to assess the Company's financial performance. A reconciliation of combined ratio to underlying combined ratio is set forth in the Results of Operations section within MD&A - Commercial Lines and Personal Lines.
Underwriting Gain (Loss)- The Hartford's management evaluates profitability of the Commercial and Personal Lines segments primarily on the basis of underwriting gain or loss. Underwriting gain (loss) is a before tax non-GAAP measure that represents earned premiums less incurred losses, loss adjustment expenses and underwriting expenses. Net income (loss) is the most directly comparable GAAP measure. Underwriting gain (loss) is influenced significantly by earned premium growth and the adequacy of The Hartford's pricing. Underwriting profitability over time is also greatly influenced by The Hartford's underwriting discipline, as management strives to manage exposure to loss through favorable risk selection and diversification, effective management of claims, use of reinsurance and its ability to manage its expenses. The Hartford believes that the measure underwriting gain (loss) provides investors with a valuable measure of profitability, before tax, derived from underwriting activities, which are managed separately from the Company's investing activities.
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Reconciliation of Net Income to Underwriting Gain (Loss)
For the years ended December 31,
Commercial Lines
Adjustments to reconcile net income to underwriting gain (loss):
Net servicing income (4) (2) (2)
Net realized capital losses (gains) 60 (271) 43
Loss on reinsurance transaction — 91 —
Underwriting gain (loss) $ (37) $ 189 $ 525
Personal Lines
Adjustments to reconcile net income to underwriting gain (loss):
Net servicing income (14) (13) (16)
Net realized capital losses (gains) 5 (43) 7
Other expense 1 1 1
Income tax expense (benefit) 184 76 (19)
P&C Other Ops
Adjustments to reconcile net income to underwriting gain (loss):
Net investment income (55) (84) (90)
Net realized capital losses (gains) 1 (20) 4
Other expense (income) (1) — 1
Income tax expense (benefit) (46) 12 (7)
Underwriting loss $ (269) $ (31) $ (77)
Written and Earned Premiums- Written premium represents the amount of premiums charged for policies issued, net of reinsurance, during a fiscal period. Premiums are considered earned and are included in the financial results principally on a pro rata basis over the policy period. Management believes that written premium is a performance measure that is useful to investors as it reflects current trends in the Company’s sale of property and casualty insurance products. Written and earned premium are recorded net of ceded reinsurance premium.
Traditional life and disability insurance type products, such as those sold by Group Benefits, collect premiums from policyholders in exchange for financial protection for the policyholder from a specified insurable loss, such as death or disability. These premiums, together with net investment income earned, are used to pay the contractual obligations under these insurance contracts. Two major factors, new sales and persistency, impact premium growth. Sales can increase or decrease in a given year based on a number of factors including, but not limited to, customer demand for the Company’s product offerings, pricing competition, distribution channels and the
Company’s reputation and ratings. Persistency refers to the percentage of premium remaining in-force from year-to-year.
THE HARTFORD'S OPERATIONS
The Hartford conducts business principally in five reporting segments including Commercial Lines, Personal Lines, Property & Casualty Other Operations, Group Benefits and Hartford Funds, as well as a Corporate category. The Company includes in the Corporate category reserves for run-off structured settlement and terminal funding agreement liabilities, restructuring costs, capital raising activities (including equity financing, debt financing and related interest expense), transaction expenses incurred in connection with an acquisition, purchase accounting adjustments related to goodwill, and other expenses not allocated to the reporting segments. Corporate also includes investment management fees and expenses related to managing third party business, including management of the invested assets of Talcott Resolution Life, Inc. and its subsidiaries ("Talcott Resolution").
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Talcott Resolution is the holding company of the life and annuity business that was sold in May 2018. In addition, Corporate includes a 9.7% ownership interest in the legal entity that acquired the life and annuity business sold.
The Company derives its revenues principally from: (a) premiums earned for insurance coverage provided to insureds; (b) management fees on mutual fund and ETP assets; (c) net investment income; (d) fees earned for services provided to third parties; and (e) net realized capital gains and losses. Premiums charged for insurance coverage are earned principally on a pro rata basis over the terms of the related policies in-force.
The profitability of the Company's property and casualty insurance businesses over time is greatly influenced by the Company’s underwriting discipline, which seeks to manage exposure to loss through favorable risk selection and diversification, its management of claims, its use of reinsurance, the size of its in force block, actual mortality and morbidity experience, and its ability to manage its expense ratio which it accomplishes through economies of scale and its management of acquisition costs and other underwriting expenses. Pricing adequacy depends on a number of factors, including the ability to obtain regulatory approval for rate changes, proper evaluation of underwriting risks, the ability to project future loss cost frequency and severity based on historical loss experience adjusted for known trends, the Company’s response to rate actions taken by competitors, its expense levels and expectations about regulatory and legal developments. The Company seeks to price its insurance policies such that insurance premiums and future net investment income earned on premiums received will cover underwriting expenses and the ultimate cost of paying claims reported on the policies and provide for a profit margin. For many of its insurance products, the Company is required to obtain approval for its premium rates from state insurance departments and the Lloyd's Syndicate's ability to write business is subject to Lloyd's approval for its premium capacity each year. Most of Personal Lines written premium is associated with our exclusive licensing agreement with AARP. This agreement provides an important competitive advantage given the size of the 50 plus population and the strength of the AARP brand. During the second quarter of 2020, the Company extended this agreement through December 31, 2032.
Similar to property and casualty, profitability of the group benefits business depends, in large part, on the ability to evaluate and price risks appropriately and make reliable estimates of mortality, morbidity, disability and longevity. To manage the pricing risk, Group Benefits generally offers term insurance policies, allowing for the adjustment of rates or policy terms in order to minimize the adverse effect of market trends, loss costs, declining interest rates and other factors. However, as policies are typically sold with rate guarantees of up to three years, pricing for the Company’s products could prove to be inadequate if loss and expense trends emerge adversely during the rate guarantee period or if investment returns are lower than expected at the time the products were sold. For some of its products, the Company is required to obtain approval for its premium rates from state insurance departments. New and renewal business for group benefits business, particularly for long-term disability, are priced using an assumption about expected investment yields over time. While the Company employs asset-liability duration matching strategies to mitigate risk and may use interest-rate sensitive derivatives to hedge its
exposure in the Group Benefits investment portfolio, cash flow patterns related to the payment of benefits and claims are uncertain and actual investment yields could differ significantly from expected investment yields, affecting profitability of the business. In addition to appropriately evaluating and pricing risks, the profitability of the Group Benefits business depends on other factors, including the Company’s response to pricing decisions and other actions taken by competitors, its ability to offer voluntary products and self-service capabilities, the persistency of its sold business and its ability to manage its expenses which it seeks to achieve through economies of scale and operating efficiencies.
The financial results of the Company’s mutual fund and ETP businesses depend largely on the amount of assets under management and the level of fees charged based, in part, on asset share class and product type. Changes in assets under management are driven by the two main factors of net flows and the market return of the funds, which are heavily influenced by the return realized in the equity and bond markets. Net flows are comprised of new sales less redemptions by mutual fund and ETP shareholders. Financial results are highly correlated to the growth in assets under management since these products generally earn fee income on a daily basis.
The investment return, or yield, on invested assets is an important element of the Company’s earnings since insurance products are priced with the assumption that premiums received can be invested for a period of time before benefits, losses and loss adjustment expenses are paid. Due to the need to maintain sufficient liquidity to satisfy claim obligations, the majority of the Company’s invested assets have been held in available-for-sale securities, including, among other asset classes, corporate bonds, municipal bonds, government debt, short-term debt, mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities and collateralized loan obligations. The primary investment objective for the Company is to maximize economic value, consistent with acceptable risk parameters, including the management of credit risk and interest rate sensitivity of invested assets, while generating sufficient net of tax income to meet policyholder and corporate obligations. Investment strategies are developed based on a variety of factors including business needs, regulatory requirements and tax considerations.
Impact of COVID-19 on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity
Impact to revenues
Earned premiums
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant disruption to the economy of the U.S. and other countries in which we operate. Due to government restrictions that have prevented some businesses from offering goods and services to their customers and due to shelter-in-place guidelines that have reduced business activity, many of our customers, especially small businesses, have had to curtail their operations or have found they are unable to meet cash flow needs due to declining business volume, causing some to lay off workers. As one of the largest providers of small business insurance in the U.S., in 2020, we experienced a 3% year over year decline in our small commercial written premium although trends improved in the second half of 2020. In addition
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to the expected decline in small commercial written and earned premium, other business lines in Commercial Lines have also been negatively affected due to government-mandated restrictions and stay-at-home guidelines reducing business activity and due to consumers having less disposable income or less willingness to spend on the products and services that our commercial lines policyholders sell. Excluding the effect of the Navigators acquisition, Commercial Lines written premium declined $290, or 4%, year over year driven by lower new business and due to endorsements or other changes to in-force policies that decrease premiums to reflect reduced exposures.
Within Commercial Lines, workers’ compensation written premium declined year over year, partly due to declining payrolls as a result of the economic effects of COVID-19.
Contributing to a 6% decline in Personal Lines written premium in 2020 was the effect of increased shopping behaviors, and lower new business levels arising out of the competitive marketplace. In addition, The Hartford provided a 15 percent refund on policyholders’ April, May and June personal automobile insurance premiums which reduced Personal Lines written and earned premiums by $81 in the second quarter of 2020. In Group Benefits, fully insured ongoing premium decreased 2% in 2020 resulting primarily from lower insured exposure on in-force policies. Because of the economic stress caused by COVID-19, we also experienced a higher amount of uncollectible premiums receivable in 2020. As a result, to reflect our higher expectation of credit losses, The Hartford increased its allowance for credit losses ("ACL") on premiums receivable by $40 in the twelve months ended December 31, 2020.
Net investment income and realized capital gains (losses)
Total net investment income decreased in 2020 primarily due to a lower yield on fixed maturity investments resulting from lower reinvestment rates and lower yields on floating rate securities, partially offset by a higher level of invested assets, due in part to the acquisition of Navigators Group. In an effort to stimulate the economy, central banks have reduced benchmark interest rates to near zero, impacting our yields on floating rate securities and reinvestment rates. From late March to mid-May, 2020, the Company temporarily reinvested receipts of interest and proceeds from maturing fixed maturity investments in liquid, short-term investments. While the Company resumed investing in fixed maturities in May, 2020, lower interest rates since the pandemic began have generally resulted in lower investment yields on newly invested funds. A prolonged period of lower interest rates could depress the Company's net investment income such that to earn the same level of return on equity we may have to charge higher premiums for the insurance products we sell unless loss costs similarly lessen.
Net realized capital gains (losses) on equity securities for the year ended December 31, 2020 totaled $(214) before tax, consisting of unrealized mark-to-market gains (losses) on equity securities held and net realized gains (losses) on equity securities sold, net of realized gains on equity derivative hedges. While equity markets in the last nine months of 2020 increased more than the value they lost during the first quarter, economic conditions remain uncertain and if equity markets were to experience similar declines as occurred in the first quarter of 2020, we may incur more net realized capital losses in future periods.
Net realized capital losses for the year ended December 31, 2020 also included $47 of increases in the allowance for credit losses, partially offset by reversals of the allowance due to improvements in market value or sales, and $5 of intent-to-sell impairments. The increase in the allowance for credit losses in the twelve month period included increases of $28 on available for sale fixed maturities and increases of $19 on commercial mortgage loans. If it takes a prolonged period for the economy to recover or if the impacts of the economic downturn are deeper than anticipated, we could experience further credit losses and intent-to-sell impairments, particularly with highly leveraged companies and issuers in the energy, commercial real estate, and travel and leisure sectors, resulting in further net realized capital losses.
Impact to direct benefits, losses and loss adjustment expenses from COVID-19 claims
For the year ended December 31, 2020, we recorded direct COVID-19 incurred losses in P&C of $278, reflecting management’s best estimate of the ultimate cost of settling COVID-19 claims incurred, including $141 for property claims, $66 for workers’ compensation, net of favorable frequency on other workers' compensation claims, and $71 of incurred losses largely concentrated in financial lines such as D&O and E&O and in surety and marine.
Nearly all of our property insurance policies require direct physical loss or damage to property and contain standard exclusions that we believe preclude coverage for COVID-19 related claims, and the vast majority of such policies contain exclusions for virus-related losses. Included in the $141 of COVID-19 property incurred losses and loss adjustment expenses in the twelve month period were $101 of losses arising from a small number of property policies that do not require direct physical loss or damage and from policies intended to cover specific business needs, including crisis management and performance disruption, as well as a reserve of $40 for legal defense costs. Given the significant business disruptions that have occurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company has experienced increased property claims, resulting in increased litigation activity and legal expenses. Within Property & Casualty, we incur COVID-19 workers’ compensation losses when it is determined that workers were exposed to COVID-19 out of and in the course of their employment and in other cases where states have passed laws providing for the presumption of coverage for certain industry classes, including health care and other essential workers. While current accident year losses for workers’ compensation for the year ended December 31, 2020 increased by $180 due to COVID-19 claims, this has been partially offset by lower claim frequency of non-COVID-19 related workers’ compensation claims due to reduced business activity, resulting in a net increase in incurred losses of $66. Favorable non-COVID-19 workers’ compensation claim frequency could continue through 2021 though possibly to a lesser extent if more business activity resumes. The Company could incur additional COVID-19 direct incurred losses in P&C through much of 2021, particularly for workers’ compensation and financial lines.
Within Group Benefits, the Company experienced excess mortality in its group life business of $239 in 2020, primarily caused by direct and indirect impacts of COVID-19. Within the group disability business, in 2020 the Company recognized $29 of
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COVID-19 direct losses from short-term disability claims, more than offset by $38 of favorable frequency on other short-term disability claims.
Other impacts from COVID-19 and resulting economic downturn
Apart from impacts on the investment portfolio, net investment income and net realized capital gains (losses), in 2020, the Company incurred a number of other insurance business impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic downturn as follows:
•For the year ended December 31, 2020, we recognized an estimated decrease in current accident incurred losses in Personal Lines automobile of $218 due to a significant reduction in miles driven since the pandemic began, though miles driven has begun to increase again. In the second quarter of 2020, Personal Lines written and earned premiums were reduced by $81 due to providing automobile policyholders with premium refunds or credits in recognition of the decrease in miles driven.
•The Company experienced the impacts of lower premium retention, including the impact of a lower exposure base on workers' compensation premium.
•From April through approximately July of 2020, the Company waived late payment fees for a period of time for business and personal insurance customers and temporarily suspended the policy cancellation process for policyholders of our Commercial Lines, Personal Lines and Group Benefits segments with the period of policy cancellations for non-payment varying by state.
•Because of the economic stress caused by COVID-19 and partly due to the extension of billing terms, we expect a higher amount of uncollectible premiums receivable. As a result, to reflect our higher expectation of credit losses, The Hartford increased its ACL on premiums receivable by $40 in the year ended December 31, 2020.
•Apart from the increase in the premiums receivable allowance, we have experienced a decline in insurance operating costs and other expenses partly due to lower travel and employee benefits costs and lower operating costs associated with lower earned premium volumes.
Considering the impacts of COVID-19, the Company evaluated the impact of market factors on the fair value of the reporting units using the income approach and determined the estimated fair values do not indicate a goodwill impairment for any reporting unit. The annual goodwill assessment for the reporting units was completed as of October 31, 2020, and resulted in no write-downs of goodwill for the year ended December 31, 2020.
For information about additional resources the Company has to manage capital and liquidity during the COVID-19 pandemic and economic downturn, refer to the Capital Resources & Liquidity section of MD&A.
For additional information about the potential impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic downturn, see the risk factor "The pandemic caused by the spread of COVID-19 has disrupted our operations and may have a material adverse impact
on our business results, financial condition, results of operations and/or liquidity" in Item 1A of Part I.
Common stockholders’ equity
Apart from the direct loss and premium impacts of COVID-19 on net income, we could also experience a reduction in AOCI within common stockholders’ equity. The net unrealized gain position on our portfolio of fixed maturities, AFS increased by $1.4 billion from December 31, 2019 to December 31, 2020, due to an increase in valuations resulting from a decline in interest rates. If credit spreads widen going forward or if interest rates increase from the level they were at as of December 31, 2020, we would recognize a decline in the fair value of fixed maturities, AFS in future periods through a reduction of AOCI within common stockholders’ equity.
In December 2020, the Company announced a $1.5 billion equity repurchase authorization by the Board of Directors which is effective from January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2022. Any future repurchase of shares is dependent on market conditions and other factors including the extent to which COVID-19 impacts our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity. For further information, see Note 16 - Equity of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
Operational Transformation and Cost Reduction Plan
In recognition of the need to become more cost efficient and competitive along with enhancing the experience we provide to agents and customers, on July 30, 2020, the Company announced an operational transformation and cost reduction plan it refers to as Hartford Next. Through reduction of its headcount, IT investments to further enhance our capabilities, and other activities, relative to 2019, the Company expects to achieve a reduction in annual insurance operating costs and other expenses of approximately $500 by 2022. The Hartford Next program will contribute to our goal of reducing the 2022 P&C expense ratio by about 2.0 to 2.5 points, reducing the 2022 Group Benefits expense ratio by about 1.5 to 2.0 points and reducing our 2022 claim expense ratio by approximately 0.5 point.
To achieve those expected savings, we expect to incur approximately $410, with $153 expensed over the last six months of 2020, and expected expenses of $110 in 2021, $77 in 2022 and $70 after 2022, with the expenses after 2022 consisting mostly of amortization of internal use software and capitalized real estate costs. The estimated costs of approximately $410 includes an expected $54 in capitalized development costs for internal use software to be amortized over the useful life of the software, typically 3 years, and approximately $23 of capitalized real estate assets to be amortized over their useful lives. Included in the estimated costs of $410, we expect to incur restructuring costs of approximately $158, including $73 of employee severance, and approximately $85 of other costs, including consulting expenses and the cost to retire certain IT applications.
Restructuring costs are reported as a charge to net income but not in core earnings. All other costs of the Hartford Next program will be included in insurance operating costs and other expenses in the Consolidated Statement of Operations. Relative to 2019 full year actual expenses, the Company recognized a net increase in insurance operating costs and other expenses of approximately
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$47 over the last six months of 2020 and expects a net expense reduction of approximately $240 in 2021 and approximately $423 in 2022.
The following table presents Hartford Next program costs incurred, including restructuring costs, and expense savings realized in 2020 from the inception of the program on July 30, 2020 through December 31, 2020, and expected costs and expense savings in each year through the expected completion of the program on December 31, 2022:
Hartford Next Costs and Expense Savings
Employee severance $ 73 $ — $ —
IT costs to retire applications 2 10 14
Professional fees and other expenses 29 23 7
Estimated restructuring costs 104 33 21
Non-capitalized IT costs 30 56 33
Amortization of capitalized IT development costs [1] — 1 5
Amortization of capitalized real estate [2] — 1 3
Estimated costs within core earnings 49 77 56
Total Hartford Next program costs 153 110 77
Net expense (savings) before tax $ 47 $ (240) $ (423)
Net expense (savings) before tax:
To be accounted for within core earnings $ (57) $ (273) $ (444)
Restructuring costs recognized outside of core earnings 104 33 21
Net expense (savings) before tax $ 47 $ (240) $ (423)
[1] Does not include approximately $48 of IT asset amortization after 2022.
[2] Does not include approximately $19 of real estate amortization after 2022.
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2020 Financial Highlights
+ Decrease in weighted average shares outstanding
- A decrease in net investment income
- Higher mortality within group life driven by COVID-19
- Restructuring costs related to the Hartford Next initiative
+ Loss on reinsurance and loss on extinguishment of debt in 2019
+ Greater net favorable prior accident year development
Þ Decreased 40 bps Þ Improved 0.8 points Þ Decreased 2.4 points
- Lower net investment income
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CONSOLIDATED RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The Consolidated Results of Operations should be read in conjunction withthe Company's Consolidated Financial Statements and the related Notes as well as with the segment operating results sections of the MD&A.
Consolidated Results of Operations
Net realized capital gains (losses) (14) 395 (112) (104 %) NM
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs 1,706 1,622 1,384 5 % 17 %
Insurance operating costs and other expenses 4,480 4,580 4,281 (2 %) 7 %
Loss on extinguishment of debt — 90 6 (100 %) NM
Loss on reinsurance transactions — 91 — (100 %) NM
Amortization of other intangible assets 72 66 68 9 % (3 %)
Restructuring and other costs 104 — — NM — %
Income from discontinued operations, net of tax — — 322 — % (100 %)
Preferred stock dividends 21 21 6 — % NM
Year ended December 31, 2020 compared to year ended December 31, 2019
Net income available to common stockholders decreased by $348 primarily driven by a $409 before tax change from net realized capital gains in the 2019 period to net realized capital losses in the 2020 period, $278 before tax of P&C COVID-19 claims in the 2020 period, higher mortality in group life, mostly driven by COVID-19, a $143 before tax increase in current accident year catastrophes, a $105 before tax decrease in net investment income, and $104 before tax of restructuring costs, partially offset by lower Personal Lines automobile claim frequency in the 2020 period net of premium credits given to policyholders in second quarter 2020, lower non-catastrophe property losses, a decrease in P&C insurance operating costs, higher net favorable P&C prior accident year development, and the effect of charges in 2019, including the Navigators ADC premium paid of $91 before tax and a $90 before tax loss on debt extinguishment.
For a discussion of the Company's operating results by segment, see MD&A - Segment Operating Summaries. In addition, for further discussion of impacts resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, refer to the Impact of COVID-19 on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity section of this MD&A.
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Revenue
Earned Premiums
[1]For the years ended 2020 and 2019, the total includes $9 and $10, respectively, recorded in Corporate other revenue.
Year ended December 31, 2020 compared to year ended December 31, 2019
Earned premiums increased primarily due to:
•An increase in Property and Casualty reflecting a 7% increase in Commercial Lines driven by the Navigators Group acquisition, partially offset by a 6% decline in Personal Lines. Driving part of the decrease in Personal Lines earned premiums was the impact of the Company offering a 15 percent credit on policyholders’ April, May and June personal automobile insurance premiums totaling $81.
•A 1% decrease in Group Benefits, principally driven by a decline in group life due to lower insured exposure on in-force policies.
Fee income decreased due to:
•Lower fee income in Hartford Funds largely due to a shift in mix of assets to lower fee generating funds, lower installment fee income in P&C and lower fee income on administrative services only business in Group Benefits.
Other revenues decreased primarily due to a decrease in income generated from the Talcott Resolution investment and less transition services revenue received related to the sale of the life and annuity business in 2018.
Net Investment Income
Year ended December 31, 2020 compared to year ended December 31, 2019
Net investment income decreased primarily due to:
•Lower yield on fixed maturity investments resulting from lower reinvestment rates and lower yields on floating rate securities, partially offset by a higher level of invested assets, due in part to the acquisition of Navigators Group.
Net realized capital gains (losses) decreased from net gains in the 2019 period to net losses in the 2020 period, primarily driven by:
•Depreciation in the value of equity securities due to the significant decline in equity market levels in the first quarter of 2020 as well as realized losses upon sales of equity securities, partially offset by net realized gains upon termination of derivatives used to hedge against a decline in equity market levels.
•A loss of $48, before tax, on sale of the Company’s Continental Europe Operations, which the Company agreed to sell in September of 2020, net credit losses recognized on fixed maturities and an increase in the ACL on mortgage loans, partially offset by slightly higher net gains on sales of fixed maturity securities.
For further discussion of investment results, see MD&A - Investment Results, Net Realized Capital Gains and MD&A - Investment Results, Net Investment Income.
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Benefits, losses and expenses
Year ended December 31, 2020 compared to year ended December 31, 2019
Losses and LAE Incurred for P&C
Benefits, losses and loss adjustment expenses increased due to:
•An increase in incurred losses for Property & Casualty which was driven by an increase in Commercial Lines, partially offset by a decrease in Personal Lines, and was attributable to:
–An increase in Property & Casualty current accident year ("CAY") loss and loss adjustment expenses before catastrophes due to the effect on incurred losses of earned premium from the Navigators Group acquisition and COVID-19 incurred losses of $278 which is net of favorable frequency of workers’ compensation claims due to reduced business activity and lower payrolls. Partially offsetting the increase were lower weather-related non-COVID-19 non-catastrophe property claims and lower claim frequency in personal automobile due to shelter-in-place guidelines reducing miles driven.
–An increase in current accident year catastrophe losses of $143 before tax. Current accident year catastrophe losses for 2020 were primarily from civil unrest, a number of hurricanes and tropical storms, Pacific Coast wildfires and Northeast windstorms as well as tornado, wind and hail events in the South, Midwest and Central Plains. Catastrophe losses in the 2019 period were primarily from tornado, wind and hail events in the South, Midwest and Mountain West and winter storms across the country as well as from hurricanes and tropical storms in the Southeast. For additional information, see MD&A - Critical Accounting Estimates, Property & Casualty Insurance Product Reserves, Net of Reinsurance.
–Partially offset by more favorable Property & Casualty net prior accident year reserve development of $71, before tax. Prior accident year reserve development in the 2020 period was a favorable $136 before tax, with $529 of reserve reductions related to catastrophes, including decreases in estimated losses arising from wind and hail events in 2017, 2018 and 2019 and from the 2017 and 2018 California wildfires, including a $289 before tax subrogation benefit from PG&E. Reserve development in 2020 also included a $254 before tax increase in reserves for sexual molestation and sexual abuse claims, a $208 before tax increase in A&E reserves and a $102 before tax increase in reserves on Navigators related to 2018 and prior accident years. While $220 of A&E and $102 of Navigators’ reserve development has been economically ceded to NICO, the Company recognized a $312 deferred gain under retroactive reinsurance accounting with $10 of the $220 ceded A&E losses recognized as a benefit to income in 2020. Prior accident year development in 2019 primarily included reserve decreases for workers’ compensation, small commercial package business, catastrophes, personal lines automobile liability, and uncollectible reinsurance, partially offset by increases in general liability and professional liability, including increases in Navigators Group reserves upon acquisition of the business, and commercial lines automobile liability. For further discussion, see MD&A - Critical Accounting Estimates, Property & Casualty Insurance Product Reserves, Net of Reinsurance.
Losses and LAE Incurred for Group Benefits
•Losses and LAE increased in Group Benefits driven by higher mortality on group life claims, primarily caused by direct and indirect impacts of COVID-19, partially offset by the impact of a lower group disability loss ratio driven by lower claim incidence and increased favorable prior incurral year development.
For further discussion of impacts resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, refer to the impact of COVID-19 on our financial
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condition, results of operations and liquidity section of this MD&A
Amortization of deferred policy acquisition costs increased from the prior year period primarily due to an increase in Commercial Lines mainly attributable to the impact of the Navigators Group acquisition, partially offset by decreases in Personal Lines and Group Benefits consistent with the decline in earned premium in those segments.
Insurance operating costs and other expenses decreased due to:
•A reduction in incentive compensation and employee travel and benefits costs, a reduction in contingent consideration of $12 before tax in Hartford Funds associated with the acquisition of Lattice, and expense reductions from the Company’s Hartford Next operational and transformation cost reduction plan.
•Partially offsetting the decrease in expenses were a $40 before tax increase in the ACL on uncollectible premiums receivable in 2020 due to the economic impacts of COVID-19 and higher information technology costs within
Group Benefits and middle & large commercial, partially offset by Personal Lines technology expenses incurred in 2019. In addition, 2020 included a full year of operating costs incurred due to the Navigators Group acquisition in May of 2019, partially offset by lower integration and transaction costs in 2020.
Restructuring and other costs are due to the Company's Hartford Next operational transformation and cost reduction plan which includes $73 of incurred severance costs.
For further discussion of impacts resulting from the Hartford Next initiative, see MD&A - The Hartford's Operations, Operational Transformation and Cost Reduction Plan and Note 23 - Restructuring and Other Costs of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
Income tax expense decreased primarily due to a decline in income before tax.
For further discussion of income taxes, see Note 17 - Income Taxes of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
INVESTMENT RESULTS
Composition of Invested Assets
Amount Percent Amount Percent
Limited partnerships and other alternative investments 2,082 3.7 % 1,758 3.3 %
[1] Primarily consists of equity fund investments, overseas deposits, consolidated investment funds and derivative instruments which are carried at fair value.
December 31, 2020 compared to December 31, 2019
Fixed maturities, AFS increased primarily due to net additions of corporate securities and an increase in valuations as a result of a decline in interest rates.
Short-term investments are slightly higher in order to fund asset purchase commitments at year end 2020, which were settled in January 2021.
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Net Investment Income
For the years ended December 31,
(Before tax) Amount Yield [1] Amount Yield [1] Amount Yield [1]
Investment expense (71) (83) (77)
[1]Yields calculated using annualized net investment income divided by the monthly average invested assets at amortized cost as applicable, excluding repurchase agreement and securities lending collateral, if any, and derivatives book value.
[2]Includes net investment income on short-term investments.
[3]Primarily includes changes in fair value of certain equity fund investments and income from derivatives that qualify for hedge accounting and are used to hedge fixed maturities.
Year ended December 31, 2020 compared to the year ended December 31, 2019
Total net investment income decreased primarily due to a lower yield on fixed maturity investments resulting from lower reinvestment rates and lower yields on floating rate securities, partially offset by a higher level of invested assets, due in part to the acquisition of Navigators Group.
Annualized net investment income yield, excluding limited partnerships and other alternative investments and non-routine items on fixed maturities, which primarily include make-whole payments and prepayment fees, partially offset by paydowns, was down primarily due to lower reinvestment and short-term rates.
Average reinvestment rate, on fixed maturities and mortgage loans, excluding certain U.S. Treasury securities, for the
year-ended December 31, 2020, was 2.5% which was below the average yield of sales and maturities of 3.4% for the same period. The average reinvestment rate for the year-ended December 31, 2019 was 3.4% which was below the average yield of sales and maturities of 4.0%.
For the 2021 calendar year, we expect the annualized net investment income yield, excluding limited partnerships and other alternative investments and non-routine items on fixed maturities, to be lower than the portfolio yield earned for the year ended December 31, 2020, due to a lower yield on short-term investments and lower reinvestment rates. The estimated impact on net investment income yield is subject to change due to evolving market conditions and active portfolio management.
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Net Realized Capital Gains (Losses)
For the years ended December 31,
Gross losses on sales (50) (56) (172)
Net credit losses on fixed maturities, AFS [2] (28)
Change in ACL on mortgage loans [3] (19)
Intent-to-sell impairments [4] (5) — —
Valuation allowances on mortgage loans 1 —
Net realized capital gains (losses) $ (14) $ 395 $ (112)
[1]The net unrealized gains (losses) on equity securities included in net realized capital gains (losses) related to equity securities still held as of December 31, 2020, were $53 for the year-ended December 31, 2020. The net unrealized gains (losses) on equity securities included in net realized capital gains (losses) related to equity securities still held as of December 31, 2019, were $164 for the year-ended December 31, 2019. The net unrealized gains (losses) on equity securities included in net realized capital gains (losses) related to equity securities still held as of December 31, 2018, were $(80) for the year-ended December 31, 2018.
[2]Due to the adoption of accounting guidance for credit losses on January 1, 2020, realized capital losses previously reported as OTTI are now presented as credit losses which are net of any recoveries. For further information refer to Note 1 - Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies. In addition, see Credit Losses on Fixed Maturities, AFS within the Investment Portfolio Risks and Risk Management section of the MD&A.
[3]Represents the change in ACL recorded during the period following the adoption of accounting guidance for credit losses on January 1, 2020. For further information refer to Note 1 - Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies. In addition, see ACL on Mortgage Loans within the Investment Portfolio Risks and Risk Management section of the MD&A.
[4]See Intent-to-Sell Impairments within the Investment Portfolio Risks and Risk Management section of the MD&A.
[5]Includes gains (losses) on non-qualifying derivatives for 2020, 2019, and 2018 of $104, $(24), and $(12), respectively, gains (losses) from transactional foreign currency revaluation of $(1), $(9) and $1, respectively, and a loss of $48 from the sale of the Continental Europe Operations for the year ended December 31, 2020.
Year ended December 31, 2020
Gross gains and losses on sales were primarily driven by issuer-specific sales of corporate securities and tax-exempt municipal bonds, rebalancing within the foreign government sector, and sales of U.S. treasury securities for duration and/or liquidity management.
Equity securities net losses were driven by mark-to-market losses due to the decline in equity market levels in the first quarter and losses incurred on sales across multiple issuers as the Company reduced its exposure to equity securities, partially offset by mark-to-market equity gains given recent equity market performance and tighter credit spreads, which resulted in price appreciation of preferred equities.
Other, net gains are primarily due to $75 of realized gains on terminated derivatives used to hedge against a decline in equity market levels and $21 of gains on interest rate derivatives due to a decline in interest rates. These gains were partially offset by a loss of $48, before tax, on the sale of the Company’s Continental Europe Operations which the Company agreed to sell in September of 2020.
Year ended December 31, 2019
Gross gains and losses on sales were primarily driven by issuer-specific selling of corporate securities, continued reduction of tax-exempt municipal bonds and sales of U.S. treasuries for duration management.
Equity securities net gains were primarily driven by appreciation of equity securities due to higher equity market levels.
Other, net losses includes losses on interest rate derivatives of $34 due to higher rates, losses on equity derivatives of $17 due
to an increase in domestic equity markets, and losses of $9 due to foreign currency revaluation. These losses were partially offset by gains on credit derivatives of $27 due to credit spread tightening.
CRITICAL ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ, and in the past have differed, from those estimates.
The Company has identified the following estimates as critical in that they involve a higher degree of judgment and are subject to a significant degree of variability:
•property and casualty insurance product reserves, net of reinsurance;
•group benefit long-term disability ("LTD") reserves, net of reinsurance;
•evaluation of goodwill for impairment;
•valuation of investments and derivative instruments including evaluation of credit losses on fixed maturities, AFS and ACL on mortgage loans; and
•contingencies relating to corporate litigation and regulatory matters.
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Certain of these estimates are particularly sensitive to market conditions, and deterioration and/or volatility in the worldwide debt or equity markets could have a material impact on the Consolidated Financial Statements. In developing these estimates management makes subjective and complex judgments that are inherently uncertain and subject to material change as facts and circumstances develop. Although variability is inherent in these estimates, management believes the amounts provided are appropriate based upon the facts available upon compilation of the financial statements.
Property & Casualty Insurance Product Reserves
P&C Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves, Net of Reinsurance, by Segment as of December 31, 2020
Loss and LAE Reserves, Net of Reinsurance as of December 31, 2020
Automobile physical damage 13 25 — 38 0.1%
[1]Commercial Lines policy packages that include property and general liability coverages are generally referred to as the package line of business.
For descriptions of the coverages provided under the lines of business shown above, see Part I - Item1, Business.
Overview of Reserving for Property and Casualty Insurance Claims
It typically takes many months or years to pay claims incurred under a property and casualty insurance product; accordingly, the Company must establish reserves at the time the loss is incurred. Most of the Company’s policies provide for occurrence-based
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coverage where the loss is incurred when a claim event happens like an automobile accident, house or building fire or injury to an employee under a workers’ compensation policy. Some of the Company's policies, mostly for directors and officers insurance and errors and omissions insurance, are claims-made policies where the loss is incurred in the period the claim event is reported to the Company even if the loss event itself occurred in an earlier period.
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves provide for the estimated ultimate costs of paying claims under insurance policies written by the Company, less amounts paid to date. These reserves include estimates for both claims that have been reported and those that have not yet been reported, and include estimates of all expenses associated with processing and settling these claims. Case reserves are established by a claims handler on each individual claim and are adjusted as new information becomes known during the course of handling the claim. Incurred but not reported (“IBNR”) reserves represent the difference between the estimated ultimate cost of all claims and the actual loss and loss adjustment expenses reported to the Company by claimants (“reported losses”). Reported losses represent cumulative loss and loss adjustment expenses paid plus case reserves for outstanding reported claims. For most lines, Company actuaries evaluate the total reserves (IBNR and case reserves) on an accident year basis. An accident year is the calendar year in which a loss is incurred, or, in the case of claims-made policies, the calendar year in which a loss is reported. For certain lines acquired from the Navigators Group book of business, total reserves are evaluated on a policy year basis and then converted to accident year. A policy year is the calendar year in which a policy incepts.
Factors that Change Reserve Estimates- Reserve estimates can change over time because of unexpected changes in the external environment. Inflation in claim costs, such as with medical care, hospital care, automobile parts, wages and home and building repair, would cause claims to settle for more than they are initially reserved. Changes in the economy can cause an increase or decrease in the number of reported claims (claim frequency). For example, an improving economy could result in more automobile miles driven and a higher number of automobile reported claims, or a change in economic conditions can lead to more or less workers’ compensation reported claims. An increase in the number or percentage of claims litigated can increase the average settlement amount per claim (claim severity). Changes in the judicial environment can affect interpretations of damages and how policy coverage applies which could increase or decrease claim severity. Over time, judges or juries in certain jurisdictions may be more inclined to determine liability and award damages. New legislation can also change how damages are defined or change the statutes of limitations for the filing of civil suits, resulting in greater claim frequency or severity. In addition, new types of injuries may arise from exposures not contemplated when the policies were written. Past examples include pharmaceutical products, silica, lead paint, sexual molestation and sexual abuse and construction defects.
Reserve estimates can also change over time because of changes in internal Company operations. A delay or acceleration in handling claims may signal a need to increase or reduce reserves from what was initially estimated. New lines of business may have loss development patterns that are not well established. Changes in the geographic mix of business, changes in the mix of business
by industry and changes in the mix of business by policy limit or deductible can increase the risk that losses will ultimately develop differently than the loss development patterns assumed in our reserving. In addition, changes in the quality of risk selection in underwriting and changes in interpretations of policy language could increase or decrease ultimate losses from what was assumed in establishing the reserves.
In the case of assumed reinsurance, all of the above risks apply. The Company assumes property and casualty risks from other insurance companies as part of its Global Re business acquired from Navigators Group and from certain pools and associations. Global Re, which is a part of the global specialty business, mostly assumes property, casualty, surety, agriculture, and marine risks and, until recently, assumed accident and health insurance risks. Changes in the case reserving and reporting patterns of insurance companies ceding to The Hartford can create additional uncertainty in estimating the reserves. Due to the inherent complexity of the assumptions used, final claim settlements may vary significantly from the present estimates of direct and assumed reserves, particularly when those settlements may not occur until well into the future.
Reinsurance Recoverables- Through both facultative and treaty reinsurance agreements, the Company cedes a share of the risks it has underwritten to other insurance companies. The Company records reinsurance recoverables for loss and loss adjustment expenses ceded to its reinsurers representing the anticipated recovery from reinsurers of unpaid claims, including IBNR.
The Company estimates the portion of losses and loss adjustment expenses to be ceded based on the terms of any applicable facultative and treaty reinsurance, including an estimate of IBNR for losses that will ultimately be ceded.
The Company provides an allowance for uncollectible reinsurance, reflecting management’s best estimate of reinsurance cessions that may be uncollectible in the future due to reinsurers’ unwillingness or inability to pay. The allowance for uncollectible reinsurance comprises an ACL and an allowance for disputed balances. The ACL primarily considers the credit quality of the Company's reinsurers while the allowance for disputes considers recent outcomes in arbitration and litigation in disputes between reinsurers and cedants and recent commutation activity between reinsurers and cedants that may signal how the Company’s own reinsurance claims may settle. Where its reinsurance contracts permit, the Company secures funding of future claim obligations with various forms of collateral, including irrevocable letters of credit, secured trusts, funds held accounts and group-wide offsets. The allowance for uncollectible reinsurance was $105 as of December 31, 2020, comprised of $44 related to Commercial Lines, $1 related to Personal Lines and $60 related to Property & Casualty Other Operations.
The Company’s estimate of reinsurance recoverables, net of an allowance for uncollectible reinsurance, is subject to similar risks and uncertainties as the estimate of the gross reserve for unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses for direct and assumed exposures.
Review of Reserve Adequacy- The Hartford regularly reviews the appropriateness of reserve levels at the line of business or more detailed level, taking into consideration the variety of trends that impact the ultimate settlement of claims.
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For Property & Casualty Other Operations, asbestos and environmental (“Run-off A&E”) reserves are reviewed by type of event rather than by line of business.
Reserve adjustments, which may be material, are reflected in the operating results of the period in which the adjustment is determined to be necessary. In the judgment of management, information currently available has been properly considered in establishing the reserves for unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses and in recording the reinsurance recoverables for ceded unpaid losses.
Reserving Methodology
The following is a discussion of the reserving methods used for the Company's property and casualty lines of business other than asbestos and environmental.
Reserves are set by line of business within the operating segments. A single line of business may be written in more than one segment. Lines of business for which reported losses emerge over a long period of time are referred to as long-tail lines of business. Lines of business for which reported losses emerge more quickly are referred to as short-tail lines of business. The Company’s shortest-tail lines of business are homeowners, commercial property, marine and automobile physical damage. The longest tail lines of business include workers’ compensation, general liability, professional liability and assumed reinsurance. For short-tail lines of business, emergence of paid loss and case reserves is credible and likely indicative of ultimate losses. For long-tail lines of business, emergence of paid losses and case reserves is less credible in the early periods after a given accident year and, accordingly, may not be indicative of ultimate losses.
Use of Actuarial Methods and Judgments- The Company’s reserving actuaries regularly review reserves for both current and prior accident years using the most current claim data. A variety of actuarial methods and judgments are used for most lines of business to arrive at selections of estimated ultimate losses and loss adjustment expenses. New methods may be added for specific lines over time to inform these selections where appropriate. The reserve selections incorporate input, as appropriate, from claims personnel, pricing actuaries and operating management about reported loss cost trends and other factors that could affect the reserve estimates. Most reserves are reviewed fully each quarter, including loss and loss adjustment expense reserves for homeowners, commercial property, marine, automobile physical damage, automobile liability, package property business, and workers’ compensation. Other reserves, including most general liability and professional liability lines, are reviewed semi-annually. Certain additional reserves are also reviewed semi-annually or annually, including reserves for losses incurred in accident years older than twelve years for Personal Lines and older than twenty years for Commercial Lines, as well as reserves for bond, assumed reinsurance, latent exposures such as construction defects, and unallocated loss adjustment expenses. For reserves that are reviewed semi-annually or annually, management monitors the emergence of paid and reported losses in the intervening quarters and, if necessary, performs a reserve review to determine whether the reserve estimate should change.
An expected loss ratio is used in initially recording the reserves for both short-tail and long-tail lines of business. This expected loss ratio is determined by starting with the average loss ratio of
recent prior accident years and adjusting that ratio for the effect of expected changes to earned pricing, loss frequency and severity, mix of business, ceded reinsurance and other factors. For short-tail lines, IBNR for the current accident year is initially recorded as the product of the expected loss ratio for the period, earned premium for the period and the proportion of losses expected to be reported in future calendar periods for the current accident period. For long-tailed lines, IBNR reserves for the current accident year are initially recorded as the product of the expected loss ratio for the period and the earned premium for the period, less reported losses for the period.
As losses emerge or develop in periods subsequent to a given accident year, reserving actuaries use other methods to estimate ultimate unpaid losses in addition to the expected loss ratio method. These primarily include paid and reported loss development methods, frequency/severity techniques and the Bornhuetter-Ferguson method (a combination of the expected loss ratio and paid development or reported development method). Within any one line of business, the methods that are given more influence vary based primarily on the maturity of the accident year, the mix of business and the particular internal and external influences impacting the claims experience or the methods. The output of the reserve reviews are reserve estimates representing a range of actuarial indications.
Reserve Discounting- Most of the Company’s property and casualty insurance product reserves are not discounted. However, the Company has discounted liabilities funded through structured settlements and has discounted a portion of workers’ compensation reserves that have a fixed and determinable payment stream. For further discussion of these discounted liabilities, see Note 1 - Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
Differences Between GAAP and Statutory Basis Reserves- As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, U.S. property and casualty insurance product reserves for losses and loss adjustment expenses, net of reinsurance recoverables, reported under U.S. GAAP were lower than net reserves reported on a statutory basis, primarily due to reinsurance recoverables on two ceded retroactive reinsurance agreements that are recorded as a reduction of other liabilities under statutory accounting. One of the retroactive reinsurance agreements covers substantially all adverse development on asbestos and environmental reserves subsequent to 2016 and the other covers adverse development on Navigators Insurers' existing net loss and allocated loss adjustment reserves as of December 31, 2018. Under both agreements, the Company cedes to NICO, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. ("Berkshire").
Reserving Methods by Line of Business- Apart from Run-off A&E which is discussed in the following section on Property & Casualty Other Operations, below is a general discussion of which reserving methods are preferred by line of business. Because the actuarial estimates are generated at a much finer level of detail than line of business (e.g., by distribution channel, coverage, accident period), other methods than those described for the line of business may also be employed for a coverage and accident year within a line of business. Also, as circumstances change, the methods that are given more influence will change.
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Preferred Reserving Methods by Line of Business
In the final step of the reserve review process, senior reserving actuaries and senior management apply their judgment to determine the appropriate level of reserves considering the actuarial indications and other factors not contemplated in the actuarial indications. Those factors include, but are not limited to, the assessed reliability of key loss trends and assumptions used in the current actuarial indications, the maturity of the accident
year, pertinent trends observed over the recent past, the level of volatility within a particular line of business, and the improvement or deterioration of actuarial indications in the current period as compared to the prior periods. The Company also considers the magnitude of the difference between the actuarial indication and the recorded reserves.
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Based on the results of the quarterly reserve review process, the Company determines the appropriate reserve adjustments, if any, to record. In general, adjustments are made more quickly to more mature accident years and less volatile lines of business. Such adjustments of reserves are referred to as “prior accident year development”. Increases in previous estimates of ultimate loss costs are referred to as either an increase in prior accident year reserves or as unfavorable reserve development. Decreases in previous estimates of ultimate loss costs are referred to as either a decrease in prior accident year reserves or as favorable reserve development. Reserve development can influence the comparability of year over year underwriting results.
For a discussion of changes to reserve estimates recorded in 2020, see Note 12 - Reserve for Unpaid Losses and Loss Adjustment Expenses in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
Current Trends Contributing to Reserve Uncertainty
The Hartford is a multi-line company in the property and casualty insurance business. The Hartford is, therefore, subject to reserve uncertainty stemming from changes in loss trends and other conditions which could become material at any point in time. As market conditions and loss trends develop, management must assess whether those conditions constitute a long-term trend that should result in a reserving action (i.e., increasing or decreasing the reserve).
General liability- Within Commercial Lines, including the acquired Navigators Group book of business, and Property & Casualty Other Operations, the Company has exposure to general liability claims, including from bodily injury, property damage and product liability. Reserves for these exposures can be particularly difficult to estimate due to the long development pattern and uncertainty about how cases will settle. In particular, the Company has exposure to bodily injury claims that is the result of long-term or continuous exposure to harmful products or substances. Examples include, but are not limited to, pharmaceutical products, silica, talcum powder, head injuries and lead paint. The Company also has exposure to claims from construction defects, where property damage or bodily injury from negligent construction is alleged. In addition, the Company has exposure to claims asserted against religious institutions, and other organizations, including the Boy Scouts of America, relating to sexual molestation and sexual abuse. State “reviver” statutes, extending statutes of limitations for certain sexual molestation and sexual abuse claims, could result in additional litigation or could result in unexpected sexual molestation and sexual abuse losses. Such exposures may involve potentially long latency periods and may implicate coverage in multiple policy periods, which can raise complex coverage issues with significant effects on the ultimate scope of coverage. Such exposures may also be impacted by insured bankruptcies. These factors make reserves for such claims more uncertain than other bodily injury or property damage claims. With regard to these exposures, the Company monitors trends in litigation, the external environment including legislation, the similarities to other mass torts and the potential impact on the Company’s reserves. Additionally, uncertainty in estimated claim severity causes reserve variability, particularly with respect to changes in internal claim handling and case reserving practices.
Workers’ compensation- Included in both small commercial and in middle & large commercial, workers’ compensation is the Company’s single biggest line of business and the property and casualty line of business with the longest pattern of loss emergence. To the extent that patterns in the frequency of settlement payments deviate from historical patterns, loss reserve estimates would be less reliable. Medical costs make up approximately 50% of workers’ compensation payments. As such, reserve estimates for workers’ compensation are particularly sensitive to changes in medical inflation, the changing use of medical care procedures and changes in state legislative and regulatory environments. In addition, a deteriorating economic environment can reduce the ability of an injured worker to return to work and lengthen the time a worker receives disability benefits. In National Accounts, reserves for large deductible workers’ compensation insurance require estimating losses attributable to the deductible amount that will be paid by the insured; if such losses are not paid by the insured due to financial difficulties, the Company is contractually liable.
Commercial Lines automobile- Uncertainty in estimated claim severity causes reserve variability for commercial automobile losses including reserve variability due to changes in internal claim handling and case reserving practices as well as due to changes in the external environment.
Directors' and officers' insurance- Uncertainty regarding the number and severity of class action suits can result in reserve volatility for both directors' and officers' insurance claims. Additionally, the Company’s exposure to losses under directors’ and officers’ insurance policies, both domestically and internationally, is primarily in excess layers, making estimates of loss more complex.
Personal Lines automobile- While claims emerge over relatively shorter periods, estimates can still vary due to a number of factors, including uncertain estimates of frequency and severity trends. Severity trends are affected by changes in internal claim handling and case reserving practices as well as by changes in the external environment. Changes in claim practices increase the uncertainty in the interpretation of case reserve data, which increases the uncertainty in recorded reserve levels. Severity trends have increased in recent accident years, in part driven by more expensive parts associated with new automobile technology, causing additional uncertainty about the reliability of past patterns. In addition, the introduction of new products and class plans has led to a different mix of business by type of insured than the Company experienced in the past. Such changes in mix increase the uncertainty of the reserve projections, since historical data and reporting patterns may not be applicable to the new business.
Assumed reinsurance- While the pricing and reserving processes can be challenging and idiosyncratic for insurance companies, the inherent uncertainties of setting prices and estimating such reserves are even greater for the reinsurer. This is primarily due to the longer time between the date of an occurrence and the reporting of claims to the reinsurer, the diversity of development patterns among different types of reinsurance treaties or contracts, the necessary reliance on the ceding companies for information regarding reported claims and differing pricing and reserving practices among ceding companies. In addition, trends that have affected development of liabilities in the past may not necessarily occur or impact liability
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development in the same manner or to the same degree in the future. As a result, actual losses and LAE may deviate, perhaps substantially, from the expected estimates.
International business- In addition to several of the line-specific trends listed above, the International business acquired through the Navigators Group book of business may have additional uncertainty due to geopolitical, foreign currency, and trade dispute risks.
COVID-19 impacts- As further explained under "Impacts of COVID-19" within The Hartford's Operations section of MD&A, through December 31, 2020, the Company incurred $278 of COVID-19 claims in P&C, including in workers' compensation, property and financial lines. Under workers’ compensation, we could experience a continuation of COVID-19 incurred losses, particularly due to laws or directives in certain states that require coverage of COVID-19 claims for health care and other essential workers based on a presumption that they contracted the virus while working. We could also incur losses on general liability policies if claimants can successfully assert that insureds were negligent from protecting employees, customers and others from exposure though we do not expect this exposure to be significant. Under commercial property policies, we have reserved for business interruption claims that pertain to policies in middle & large commercial and in global specialty which do not require direct physical loss or property damage. We have also experienced an increase in COVID-19 related claims under director's and officer's insurance policies. In other cases, particularly in small commercial, where there are policy exclusions and the requirement that there be direct physical loss or damage to the property, we have not recorded loss reserves as there is no coverage though we have recorded a reserve for legal defense costs.
In addition to the direct impacts of COVID-19 mentioned above, we are monitoring for indirect impacts as well. In our commercial surety lines there continues to be the potential for elevated frequency and severity due to an increase in the number of bankruptcies, especially in small businesses and impacted industries such as hospitality, entertainment and transportation. In construction surety, there is the potential for elevated losses from contractors who experience project shutdowns or payment delays, which negatively impact their cash flows, or result in disruptions in their supply chains, labor shortages or inflation in the cost of materials.
Reserve estimates for COVID-19 claims are difficult to estimate. In establishing reserves for COVID-19 incurred claims through December 31, 2020, we have provided IBNR at a higher percentage of ultimate estimated incurred losses than usual as we expect longer claim reporting patterns given the economic effects of COVID-19. For example, we expect longer delays than usual between the time a worker is treated and the date the claim is eventually submitted for workers' compensation coverage. Reserve estimates for D&O, E&O and employment practices liability are subject to significant uncertainty given that estimates must be made of the expected ultimate severity of claims that have recently been reported. Several lines have experienced a decline in frequency during the pandemic months; however, uncertainty remains with respect to severity given the pandemic's potential impact on economic activity, driving behaviors, and the healthcare and legal systems. Changes in the legal environment and litigation process, including but not limited
to court delays and closings, may also have potential impacts on development patterns for liability lines.
Impact of Key Assumptions on Reserves
As stated above, the Company’s practice is to estimate reserves using a variety of methods, assumptions and data elements within its reserve estimation process. The Company does not consistently use statistical loss distributions or confidence levels around its reserve estimate and, as a result, does not disclose reserve ranges.
Across most lines of business, the most important reserve assumptions are future loss development factors applied to paid or reported losses to date. The trend in loss cost frequency and severity is also a key assumption, particularly in the most recent accident years, where loss development factors are less credible.
The following discussion discloses possible variation from current estimates of loss reserves due to a change in certain key indicators of potential losses. For automobile liability lines in both Personal Lines and Commercial Lines, the key indicator is the annual loss cost trend, particularly the severity trend component of loss costs. For workers’ compensation and general liability, loss development patterns are a key indicator, particularly for more mature accident years. For workers’ compensation, paid loss development patterns have been impacted by medical cost inflation and other changes in loss cost trends. For general liability, incurred loss development patterns have been impacted by, among other things, emergence of new types of claims (e.g., construction defect claims) and a shift in the mixture between smaller, more routine claims and larger, more complex claims.
Each of the impacts described below is estimated individually, without consideration for any correlation among key indicators or among lines of business. Therefore, it would be inappropriate to take each of the amounts described below and add them together in an attempt to estimate volatility for the Company’s reserves in total. For any one reserving line of business, the estimated variation in reserves due to changes in key indicators is a reasonable estimate of possible variation that may occur in the future, likely over a period of several calendar years. The variation discussed is not meant to be a worst-case scenario, and, therefore, it is possible that future variation may be more than the amounts discussed below.
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Reserving for Asbestos and Environmental Claims
How A&E Reserves are Set- The process for establishing reserves for asbestos and environmental claims first involves estimating the required reserves gross of ceded reinsurance and then estimating reinsurance recoverables.
In establishing reserves for gross asbestos claims, the Company evaluates its insureds’ estimated liabilities for such claims by examining exposures for individual insureds and assessing how coverage applies. The Company considers a variety of factors, including the jurisdictions where underlying claims have been brought, past, pending and anticipated future claim activity, the level of plaintiff demands, disease mix, past settlement values of similar claims, dismissal rates, allocated loss adjustment expense, and potential impact of other defendants being in bankruptcy.
Similarly, the Company reviews exposures to establish gross environmental reserves. The Company considers several factors in estimating environmental liabilities, including historical values of similar claims, the number of sites involved, the insureds’ alleged activities at each site, the alleged environmental damage, the respective shares of liability of potentially responsible parties, the appropriateness and cost of remediation, the nature of governmental enforcement activities or mandated remediation efforts and potential impact of other defendants being in bankruptcy.
After evaluating its insureds’ probable liabilities for asbestos and/or environmental claims, the Company evaluates the insurance coverage in place for such claims. The Company considers its insureds’ total available insurance coverage, including the coverage issued by the Company. The Company also considers relevant judicial interpretations of policy language, the nature of how policy limits are enforced on multi-year policies and applicable coverage defenses or determinations, if any.
The estimated liabilities of insureds and the Company’s exposure to the insureds depends heavily on an analysis of the relevant legal issues and litigation environment. This analysis is conducted by the Company’s lawyers and is subject to applicable privileges.
For both asbestos and environmental reserves, the Company also analyzes its historical paid and reported losses and expenses year by year, to assess any emerging trends, fluctuations or characteristics suggested by the aggregate paid and reported activity. The historical losses and expenses are analyzed on both a direct basis and net of reinsurance.
Once the gross ultimate exposure for indemnity and allocated loss adjustment expense is determined for its insureds by each policy year, the Company calculates its ceded reinsurance projection based on any applicable facultative and treaty reinsurance and the Company’s experience with reinsurance collections. See the section that follows entitled A&E Adverse Development Cover that discusses the impact the reinsurance agreement with NICO may have on future adverse development of asbestos and environmental reserves, if any.
Uncertainties Regarding Adequacy of A&E Reserves- A number of factors affect the variability of estimates for gross asbestos and environmental reserves including assumptions with respect to the frequency of claims, the average severity of those claims settled with payment, the dismissal rate of claims with no payment, resolution of coverage disputes with our policyholders and the expense to indemnity ratio. Reserve estimates for gross asbestos and environmental reserves are subject to greater variability than reserve estimates for more traditional exposures.
The process of estimating asbestos and environmental reserves remains subject to a wide variety of uncertainties, which are detailed in Note 15 - Commitments and Contingencies of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements. The Company believes that its current asbestos and environmental reserves are appropriate. Future developments could continue to cause the Company to change its estimates of its gross asbestos and environmental reserves. Losses ceded under the adverse development cover ("A&E ADC") with NICO in excess of the ceded premium paid of $650 have resulted in a deferred gain resulting in a timing difference between when gross reserves are increased and when reinsurance recoveries are recognized. This timing difference results in a charge to net income until such periods when the recoveries are recognized. Consistent with past practice, the Company will continue to monitor its reserves in Property & Casualty Other Operations regularly, including its annual reviews of asbestos liabilities, reinsurance recoverables, the allowance for uncollectible reinsurance, and environmental liabilities. Where future developments indicate, we will make appropriate adjustments to the reserves at that time.
Total P&C Insurance Product Reserves Development
In the opinion of management, based upon the known facts and current law, the reserves recorded for the Company’s property and casualty insurance products at December 31, 2020 represent the Company’s best estimate of its ultimate liability for unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses related to losses covered by policies written by the Company. However, because of the significant uncertainties surrounding reserves, it is possible that management’s estimate of the ultimate liabilities for these claims
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may change in the future and that the required adjustment to currently recorded reserves could be material to the Company’s results of operations and liquidity.
Rollforward of Property and Casualty Insurance Product Liabilities for Unpaid Losses and LAE for the Year Ended December 31, 2020
Provision for unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses
Current accident year before catastrophes 5,493 1,695 — 7,188
Current accident year ("CAY") catastrophes 397 209 — 606
Prior accident year development ("PYD") [2] 44 (438) 258 (136)
Net reserves transferred to liabilities held for sale (45) — — (45)
Foreign currency adjustment 14 — — 14
Earned premiums and fee income $ 8,940 $ 3,042
Loss and loss expense paid ratio [3] 48.6 58.9
Loss and loss expense incurred ratio 66.5 48.7
Prior accident year development (pts) [4] 0.5 (14.6)
[1]Includes a cumulative effect adjustment of $1 and $(1) for Commercial Lines and Property & Casualty Other Operations respectively, representing an adjustment to the ACL recorded on adoption of accounting guidance for credit losses on January 1, 2020. See Note 1 - Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for further information.
[2]Prior accident year development does not include the benefit of a portion of losses ceded under the Navigators and A&E ADC which, under retroactive reinsurance accounting, is deferred and is recognized over the period the ceded losses are recovered in cash from NICO. For additional information regarding the two adverse development cover reinsurance agreements, refer to Note 12 - Reserve for Unpaid Losses and Loss Adjustment Expenses of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
[3]The “loss and loss expense paid ratio” represents the ratio of paid losses and loss adjustment expenses to earned premiums and fee income.
[4]“Prior accident year development (pts)” represents the ratio of prior accident year development to earned premiums.
Commercial Lines Personal Lines Total
Hurricanes and Tropical Storms 96 51 147
Other 8 — 8
In December, 2019, the judge overseeing the bankruptcy of PG&E Corporation and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (together, “PG&E”) approved an $11 billion settlement of insurance subrogation claims to resolve all such claims arising
from the 2017 Northern California wildfires and 2018 Camp wildfire. That settlement was contingent upon, among other things, the judge entering an order confirming PG&E’s chapter 11 bankruptcy plan (“PG&E Plan”) incorporating the settlement
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agreement. On June 20, 2020, the bankruptcy court judge approved the PG&E Plan and PG&E subsequently transferred the $11 billion settlement amount to a trust designed to allocate and distribute the settlement among subrogation holders, including certain of the Company’s insurance subsidiaries. In the second quarter of 2020, the Company recorded an estimated $289
subrogation benefit though the ultimate amount it collects will depend on how the Company’s ultimate paid claims subject to subrogation compare to other insurers’ ultimate paid claims subject to subrogation. In 2020, the Company received distributions, net of attorney costs, of $227.
Workers’ compensation $ (110) $ — $ — $ (110)
Workers’ compensation discount accretion 35 — — 35
Marine 3 — — 3
Package business (58) — — (58)
Commercial property (4) — — (4)
Professional liability (14) — — (14)
Assumed reinsurance (6) — — (6)
Automobile liability 27 (61) — (34)
Homeowners — 7 — 7
Net asbestos reserves — — (2) (2)
Net environmental reserves — — — —
Uncollectible reinsurance — — (8) (8)
Other reserve re-estimates, net — (4) 58 54
Total prior accident year development $ 44 $ (438) $ 258 $ (136)
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Rollforward of Property and Casualty Insurance Product Liabilities for Unpaid Losses and LAE for the Year Ended December 31, 2019
Navigators Group acquisition 2,001 — — 2,001
Provision for unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses
Current accident year before catastrophes 4,913 2,087 — 7,000
Current accident year catastrophes 323 140 — 463
Prior accident year development [1] (44) (42) 21 (65)
Foreign currency adjustment (1) — — (1)
Earned premiums and fee income $ 8,325 $ 3,235
Loss and loss expense paid ratio [2] 50.0 74.2
Loss and loss expense incurred ratio 62.6 68.3
Prior accident year development (pts) [3] (0.5) (1.3)
[1]Prior accident year development does not include the benefit of a portion of losses ceded under the Navigators ADC which, under retroactive reinsurance accounting, is deferred and recognized over the period the ceded losses are recovered in cash from NICO. For additional information regarding the Navigators ADC agreement, refer to Note 12 - Reserve for Unpaid Losses and Loss Adjustment Expenses of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
[2]The “loss and loss expense paid ratio” represents the ratio of paid losses and loss adjustment expenses to earned premiums and fee income.
[3]“Prior accident year development (pts)” represents the ratio of prior accident year development to earned premiums.
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Commercial Lines Personal Lines Total
Other 1 — 1
Workers’ compensation $ (120) $ — $ — $ (120)
Workers’ compensation discount accretion 33 — — 33
General liability 61 — — 61
Marine 8 — — 8
Package business (47) — — (47)
Commercial property (11) — — (11)
Professional liability 29 — — 29
Bond (3) — — (3)
Assumed reinsurance 3 — — 3
Automobile liability 27 (38) — (11)
Homeowners — 3 — 3
Net asbestos reserves — — — —
Net environmental reserves — — — —
Catastrophes (40) (2) — (42)
Uncollectible reinsurance (5) — (25) (30)
Other reserve re-estimates, net 5 (5) 46 46
Total prior accident year development (60) (42) 21 (81)
Total prior accident year development $ (44) $ (42) $ 21 $ (65)
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Rollforward of Property and Casualty Insurance Product Liabilities for Unpaid Losses and LAE for the Year Ended December 31, 2018
Provision for unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses
Current accident year before catastrophes 4,037 2,249 — 6,286
Current accident year catastrophes 275 546 — 821
Prior accident year development (200) (32) 65 (167)
Earned premiums and fee income $ 7,081 $ 3,439
Loss and loss expense paid ratio [1] 50.0 76.7
Loss and loss expense incurred ratio 58.4 81.3
Prior accident year development (pts) [2] (2.8) (0.9)
[1]The “loss and loss expense paid ratio” represents the ratio of paid losses and loss adjustment expenses to earned premiums and fee income.
[2]“Prior accident year development (pts)” represents the ratio of prior accident year development to earned premiums.
Commercial Lines Personal Lines Total
Volcanic eruption — 2 2
Massachusetts gas explosion 1 — 1
Earthquake — 1 1
[1]Refers to reinsurance recoverable under the Company's Property Aggregate treaty. For further information on the treaty, refer to Part II, Item 7, MD&A — Enterprise Risk Management — Insurance Risk.
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Workers’ compensation $ (164) $ — $ — $ (164)
Workers’ compensation discount accretion 40 — — 40
General liability 52 — — 52
Package business (26) — — (26)
Commercial property (12) — — (12)
Professional liability (12) — — (12)
Bond 2 — — 2
Automobile liability (15) (18) — (33)
Homeowners — (25) — (25)
Net asbestos reserves — — — —
Net environmental reserves — — — —
Uncollectible reinsurance — — 22 22
Other reserve re-estimates, net 2 (7) 43 38
Total prior accident year development $ (200) $ (32) $ 65 $ (167)
For discussion of the factors contributing to unfavorable (favorable) prior accident year reserve development, refer to Note 12 - Reserve for Unpaid Losses and Loss Adjustment Expenses of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
Property & Casualty Other Operations
Net reserves and reserve activity in Property & Casualty Other Operations are categorized and reported as asbestos, environmental, and “all other”. The “all other” category of reserves covers a wide range of insurance and assumed reinsurance coverages, including, but not limited to, potential liability for construction defects, lead paint, silica, pharmaceutical products, head injuries, sexual molestation and sexual abuse and other long-tail liabilities. In addition to various insurance and assumed reinsurance exposures, "all other" includes unallocated loss adjustment expense reserves. "All other" also includes the Company’s allowance for uncollectible reinsurance. When the Company commutes a ceded reinsurance contract or settles a ceded reinsurance dispute, net reserves for the related cause of loss (including asbestos, environmental or all other) are increased for the portion of the allowance for uncollectible reinsurance attributable to that commutation or settlement.
P&C Other Operations
Total Reserves, Net of Reinsurance
Asbestos and Environmental Reserves
The vast majority of the Company's exposure to A&E relates to policy coverages provided prior to 1986, reported within the P&C Other Operations segment (“Run-off A&E”). In addition, since 1986, the Company has written asbestos and environmental exposures under general liability policies and pollution liability under homeowners policies, which are reported in the Commercial Lines and Personal Lines segments.
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Run-off A&E Summary as of December 31, 2020
Asbestos Environmental Total A&E
Gross
Ceded - NICO A&E ADC "Run-off"[1] (566) (332) (898)
[1]Including $898 of ceded losses for Run-off A&E and a ($38) reduction in ceded losses for Commercial Lines and Personal Lines, cumulative net incurred losses of $860 have been ceded to NICO under an adverse development cover reinsurance agreement. See the section that follows entitled A&E Adverse Development Cover for additional information.
Rollforward of Run-off A&E Losses and LAE
Asbestos Environmental
Beginning liability — net $ 874 $ 120
Losses and loss adjustment expenses incurred (2) —
Losses and loss adjustment expenses paid (172) (33)
Reclassification of allowance for uncollectible insurance [1] 2 —
Ending liability — net $ 702 $ 87
Beginning liability — net $ 984 $ 151
Losses and loss adjustment expenses incurred — —
Losses and loss adjustment expenses paid (111) (32)
Reclassification of allowance for uncollectible insurance [1] 1 1
Ending liability — net $ 874 $ 120
Beginning liability — net $ 1,143 $ 182
Losses and loss adjustment expenses incurred — —
Losses and loss adjustment expenses paid (159) (31)
Ending liability — net $ 984 $ 151
[1] Related to the reclassification of an allowance for uncollectible reinsurance from the "all other" category of P&C Other Operations reserves.
A&E Adverse Development Cover
Effective December 31, 2016, the Company entered into an A&E ADC reinsurance agreement with NICO, a subsidiary of Berkshire, to reduce uncertainty about potential adverse development. Under the A&E ADC, the Company paid a reinsurance premium of $650 for NICO to assume adverse net loss and allocated loss adjustment expense reserve development up to $1.5 billion above the Company’s existing net A&E reserves
as of December 31, 2016 of approximately $1.7 billion, including both Run-off A&E and A&E reserves in Commercial Lines and Personal Lines. The $650 reinsurance premium was placed in a collateral trust account as security for NICO’s claim payment obligations to the Company. The Company has retained the risk of collection on amounts due from other third-party reinsurers and continues to be responsible for claims handling and other administrative services, subject to certain conditions. The A&E ADC covers substantially all the Company’s A&E reserve development up to the reinsurance limit.
Under retroactive reinsurance accounting, net adverse A&E reserve development after December 31, 2016 will result in an offsetting reinsurance recoverable up to the $1.5 billion limit. Cumulative ceded losses up to the $650 reinsurance premium paid have been recognized as a dollar-for-dollar offset to direct losses incurred. Cumulative ceded losses exceeding the $650 reinsurance premium paid have resulted in a deferred gain. As of December 31, 2020, the Company has incurred a cumulative $860 in adverse development on A&E reserves that have been ceded under the A&E ADC treaty with NICO, including $898 for Run-off A&E reserves and ($38) for A&E reserves in Commercial Lines and Personal Lines. As such, $640 of coverage is available for future adverse net reserve development, if any. As a result, the Company has recorded a $210 deferred gain within other liabilities, representing the difference between the reinsurance recoverable of $860 and ceded premium paid of $650. The deferred gain is recognized over the claim settlement period in the proportion of the amount of cumulative ceded losses collected from the reinsurer to the estimated ultimate reinsurance recoveries. Consequently, until periods when the deferred gain is recognized as a benefit to earnings, cumulative adverse development of asbestos and environmental claims will result in charges against earnings, which may be significant.
Net and Gross Survival Ratios
Net and gross survival ratios are a measure of the quotient of the carried reserves divided by average annual payments (net of reinsurance and on a gross basis) and is an indication of the number of years that carried reserves would last (i.e. survive) if future annual payments were consistent with the calculated historical average.
Since December 31, 2016, asbestos and environmental net reserves have been declining since all adverse development has been ceded to NICO, up to a limit of $1.5 billion and the deferred gain on retroactive reinsurance has been recorded within other liabilities rather than in net loss and loss adjustment expense reserves. Recoveries from NICO will not be collected until the Company has cumulative loss payments of more than the $1.7 billion carrying value of net reserves as of December 31, 2016. Accordingly, the payment of losses without any current collection of recoveries from NICO has reduced the Company’s net loss reserves which decreases the net survival ratios such that, unadjusted, the net survival ratios would not be representative of the true number of years of average loss payments covered by the reserves. Therefore, the net survival ratios presented in the table below are calculated before considering the effect of the A&E ADC reinsurance agreement but net of other reinsurance in place.
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Table of Contents Index to MD&A
Part II - Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
Net and Gross Survival Ratios
Asbestos Environmental
One year net survival ratio [1] 7.3 12.7
Three year net survival ratio [1] 8.6 13.1
One year gross survival ratio 6.8 13.2
Three year gross survival ratio 8.6 12.5
[1] As of December 31, 2020, the one year net survival ratios after considering the reduction in reserves for losses ceded to the ADC were 4.1 and 2.6 for asbestos and environmental, respectively. As of December 31, 2020, the three year net survival ratios after considering the ADC were 4.7 and 2.7, respectively.
Run-off A&E Paid and Incurred Losses and LAE Development
Asbestos Environmental
Paid Losses & LAE Incurred Losses & LAE Paid Losses & LAE Incurred Losses & LAE
Ceded- other than NICO (80) (40) (7) (35)
Ceded - NICO A&E ADC — (132) — (106)
Ceded- other than NICO (20) (39) (7) (39)
Ceded - NICO A&E ADC — (76) — (56)
Ceded- other than NICO (54) (85) (16) (12)
Ceded - NICO A&E ADC — (164) — (71)
Annual Reserve Reviews