2023-09-14 15:57:12
“It’s our survival that we’re talking regarding. » Patrick Blanchard, the general director of SMACL Assurances, did not seek to minimize the situation on Thursday September 14. The insurer, a specialist in local authorities, had already warned at the beginning of July that the riots which followed the death of Nahel M., 17, killed at point blank range by a motorcycle police officer in Nanterre on June 27, would have a cost that would be difficult to bear. for the company.
A little over two months later, the prediction is confirmed: SMACL must quickly strengthen its balance sheet to preserve its solvency. It will therefore issue 56 million euros of debt before the end of the month in order to prevent its solvency ratio, which measures its ability to cover risks, from falling below 100%, the minimum required by the Authority. Prudential Control and Resolution (ACPR), the sector’s supervisory authority. “It was the only solution, given the timetable,” underlined Mr. Blanchard, adding that “this coverage ratio threshold was threatened as early as September”.
The debt issue will be subscribed to by current shareholders, starting with Maif, which has held 86% of the capital since the start of 2022 and had already bailed out SMACL to the tune of 140 million euros. But this solution of “ very short term » will not be sufficient and the specialized insurer is working on additional solutions: other loans and above all a new capital increase, the amount of which might be between 45 and 65 million euros.
The insurer of three quarters of communities affected by the riots
A range which owes nothing to chance: 65 million euros is the amount estimated to date for the cost of the riots for SMACL alone. A bill certainly lower than that of 100 million feared at the beginning of July, but difficult to bear for a small player in the market.
By subtracting around twenty million euros covered by reinsurance, the final bill for the company should be 45 million, which will be added to the 20 million euros deficit forecast for 2023 even before the riots. SMACL thus pays a high price for its specialization in the local authority market: it insures three quarters of those affected by the riots.
In addition to the measures to strengthen the balance sheet, there will be an acceleration of the insurer’s savings plan, which includes the pooling of IT systems with those of Maif and the systematic non-replacement of departures, a measure which might lead to the elimination of around sixty positions out of a total workforce of just under 800 people.
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