UAE Property & Casualty Insurance Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2025 - 2030)

UAE Property And Casualty Insurance Market Trends and Insights

Mandatory Motor Insurance & Rising Vehicle Parc

Federal Decree-Law No. 14 of 2024 on traffic regulation obliges every registered vehicle to carry locally underwritten third-party liability, anchoring a stable premium stream even during economic slowdowns^{[1]United Arab Emirates Federal Government, “Federal Decree-Law No. 14 of 2024 on Traffic Regulation,” uaelegislation.gov.ae}. Dubai alone counted almost 26,000 electric cars by late 2023, creating demand for products such as Sukoon’s “InsureMyTesla,” which bundles battery and charger protection with higher third-party limits. GIG Gulf’s instant Orange Card through UAE PASS simplifies cross-border compliance for motorists who regularly drive into Oman. Compulsory status insulates the line from price wars, while rising ADAS and telematics adoption provide underwriters with richer data for granular pricing. 

Construction Boom & Mega-Projects Pipeline

More than USD 100 billion worth of residential, hospitality, and infrastructure works are either underway or tendered, led by super-tall towers that account for 90% of global projects in this class^{[2]Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty, “Engineering & Construction Market Overview,” agcs.allianz.com}. Developers increasingly arrange owner-controlled insurance programmes to consolidate coverage and reduce premium leakages, with global reinsurers supplying capacity for single-site limits that often exceed USD 2 billion. Completed assets transition into operational property programmes, ensuring long-tail growth for the UAE property and casualty insurance market. Abu Dhabi’s industrial zones add large energy and logistics schemes, broadening engineering and delaying start-up exposure. 

Stronger Solvency Regulation Boosting Consumer Trust

Since January 2024, the Central Bank has enforced risk-based capital, tighter reserving, and annual “skilled-person” reviews, compelling insurers to strengthen governance and clean up legacy books^{[3]Clyde & Co, “Insurance Regulation Update UAE,” clydeco.com}. The Sanadak ombudsman now offers a structured path for dispute resolution, further bolstering policyholder confidence. Higher barriers to entry encourage consolidation and attract well-rated reinsurers, improving retention capacity and lowering frictional cessions. 

Growth of Digital/Aggregator Distribution

Lookinsure and similar portals let customers compare more than 10 insurers in real time, compressing the quote-to-bind cycle to minutes. The April 2024 Open Finance Regulation obliges all insurers to open application-program interfaces for data and payment initiation, enabling fintech partnerships and personalized offers. Banks such as Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank have embedded end-to-end motor policies inside their wealth apps, driving bancassurance volumes. 

Price Competition Squeezing Underwriting Margins

Insurers posted an average combined ratio of 122% in H1 2024, highlighting inadequate pricing discipline, especially in commoditized motor and medical policies. Aggregators amplify price visibility, pushing carriers toward premium-centred tactics that erode profitability. The broker channel, which captured 48.30% of 2024 premiums, often prioritizes commission maximization over risk-adequate pricing, adding to pressure on technical margins. 

Heavy Reliance on Foreign Reinsurance Capacity

Higher global catastrophe losses have hardened reinsurance rates, raising cedant costs in the UAE. Currency mis-matches emerge because treaties are predominantly denominated in USD, while retail premiums accrue in AED. The launch of RIQ at Abu Dhabi Global Market, seeded with USD 1 billion, is a first step toward domestic capacity but remains modest compared with national exposure. 

Segment Analysis

By Insurance Type: Motor Dominance Drives Digital Innovation

Motor policies contributed 44.6% of the UAE property and casualty insurance market share in 2024, a result of compulsory cover and a 5% annual rise in vehicle registrations. The UAE property and casualty insurance market size linked to cyber and digital-risk lines is on track to climb 12.5% annually to 2030, reflecting heightened ransomware activity and the government’s aggressive digitization agenda. Engineering and construction mirror the USD 100 billion project pipeline, while marine and aviation lines leverage the nation’s global logistics hub status. 

Demand for specialty EV cover is intensifying as government targets call for 50% of on-road units to be electric or hybrid by 2050. Products such as InsureMyTesla bundle a charger, battery, and roadside-assist benefits, differentiating on features instead of price. Custodial risk insurance for digital assets, introduced under the “OneInfinity” banner, extends the UAE property and casualty insurance market by insulating Web3 custodians against hot-wallet hacks. Liability products gain traction under stricter professional-indemnity mandates, lifting average policy limits across legal, architectural, and accounting professions. 

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By Distribution Channel: Bancassurance Disrupts Traditional Models

Brokers maintained 48.3% of premiums in 2024 through their ability to place complex energy, marine, and mega-project risks. Yet, bancassurance is growing 10.57% per year as banks leverage transaction data to pre-fill quote screens and offer installment payments that remove upfront sticker shock. Aggregators are surging in standardized lines, pushing underwriters to deploy real-time rating engines and straight-through policy issuance. 

Traditional agent networks still serve personal accident and SME property buyers in smaller emirates, but growth is sluggish compared with digital channels. The Open Finance framework will accelerate embedded insurance propositions, enabling ride-hailing apps, airlines, and retailers to deliver single-click coverage. Direct insurer websites have improved net promoter scores following AI chatbot deployments that cut claims-settlement turnaround. 

By Customer Type: Corporate Segment Drives Premium Growth

Individual policyholders generated 58.6% of written premiums in 2024, anchored by mandatory motor and home covers. Large corporations and government entities, however, are expanding premiums at an 11.24% CAGR by bundling multi-line towers that include property, cyber, marine, and general liability in a single slip. Mega health-care operator PureHealth processed over 25 million claims in H1 2024, illustrating the scale of enterprise needs. 

SMEs remain price-sensitive but are increasingly adopting package products sold via digital kiosks in free zones. The government segment’s steady capex on strategic logistics corridors, smart-city platforms, and renewable power plants feeds a growing demand for project-specific covers. Data-rich corporate buyers also expect parametric and usage-based solutions that require high-frequency IoT feeds, nudging insurers to modernize core systems. 

Note: Segment shares of all individual segments available upon report purchase

By End-Industry: Automotive Transformation Reshapes Risk Profiles

Automotive risks captured 25.1% of 2024 premiums after heavy vehicle turnover and a preference for comprehensive cover. Fast-charging infrastructure rollouts create ancillary property, equipment breakdown, and environmental-impairment exposures. Real estate and construction is the second-largest class, benefiting from an unbroken string of luxury hospitality and branded-residence launches. Oil and gas portfolios evolve as ADNOC invests in carbon-capture and petrochemical expansion, requiring bespoke wording for untested process technology. 

Trade and logistics enjoy tailwinds from Jebel Ali Port expansion, which adds container-terminal capacity and drives cargo liability volumes. Healthcare facilities need ever-higher malpractice limits, while the manufacturing base in Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah demands combined property-business interruption wraps. Renewable energy projects add solar panels and battery-storage covers that extend the UAE property and casualty insurance market into green-finance territory. 

Geography Analysis

Geography Analysis

Dubai continues to anchor more than half of the UAE property and casualty insurance market, undergirded by the Dubai International Financial Centre’s mature legal regime, which draws international capacity providers and establishes the city as the region’s reinsurance placement hub. Experience from the April 2024 cloud-burst spurred widespread adoption of parametric flood riders, lifting the non-motor average premium per policy by nearly 20% in the following 12 months. The emirate’s AI-driven claims-triage pilots cut average settlement time from 14 days to under 5 days, sharpening customer retention and facilitating upsells into cyber and home covers. 

Abu Dhabi is the fastest-growing geography, posting 12.34% CAGR on the strength of public-sector building, large energy projects, and a concerted push to localize reinsurance through the ADGM-based RIQ platform, which targets USD 10 billion in assumed liabilities over five years. The emirate’s public health insurer Daman recorded 84% profit growth over three years, underscoring the efficacy of vertically integrated care and cover models. Pro-enterprise regulation, including tax holidays in free zones, fosters specialty manufacturing clusters that require bespoke, multilined programs. 

Northern Emirates collectively account for a rising sliver of the UAE property and casualty insurance market. Fujairah’s deep-sea bunkering and Ajman’s growing SME manufacturing base keep marine hull and cargo lines buoyant. Ras Al Khaimah’s construction of resort islands and integrated entertainment districts expands demand for erection-all-risk and third-party liability policies. Cross-emirate mobility, aided by seamless e-policy recognition, encourages insurers to design pooled programs that travel with both assets and personnel, supporting premium diversification.