Insurance companies Helsana significantly improves profit figures in 2024
Health insurer Helsana grew significantly in 2024 and significantly increased its profit. Further improvements on the cost side contributed to this, but the insurance group also benefited from an increased return on its investments.
04.03.2025, 10:57
SDA
Overall, Helsana reported an annual result of CHF 448 million for the 2024 financial year after a small profit of CHF 11 million in the previous year, as can be seen from the insurance group's annual results published on Tuesday.
The health insurer was also able to significantly increase its premium volume by almost 6 percent to CHF 8.25 billion. The annual results enable Helsana to strengthen its position as a leading health insurer, the company writes in its press release.
Improved combined ratio
Helsana was also satisfied with the underwriting result of CHF 140 million. Overall, the Group's combined ratio improved again to 98.3% (previous year: 100.4%). A combined ratio of less than 100 percent means that the Group's expenses in the insurance business were lower than its premium income.
The company has "worked hard" to keep operating expenses as low as possible, CEO Roman Sonderegger is quoted as saying in the press release. Accordingly, the operating expense ratio was further reduced to 7.4 percent for the past year, compared to 7.7 percent in the previous year.
Helsana was also able to significantly increase its equity, which amounted to CHF 3.22 billion at the end of the year (previous year: CHF 2.77 billion). Investment income at Group level amounted to CHF 367 million. This corresponds to a performance of 7.2 percent compared to 5.9 percent in the previous year.
Over 100,000 new customers in basic insurance
Despite an improvement in the combined ratio to 100.1 percent, Helsana was still not entirely profitable in basic insurance. The fact that Helsana responded to rising healthcare costs two years ago with a "forward-looking premium policy" has paid off. For 2025, customers are now benefiting from a below-average increase, the insurer emphasizes: Helsana has thus been able to gain 108,000 new customers.
The Group also recorded a positive development in the supplementary insurance business, where the combined ratio improved to 93.3 percent. The business with individual customers was particularly profitable with a ratio of 90.7%. Helsana was also able to report positive developments in the corporate business, the daily sickness benefits supplementary insurance business and the accident insurance business.
New offers
With a new strategy, Helsana intends to focus on further optimizing its individual and corporate customer business. At the same time, the company wants to develop new offers for its customers, identifying "mental health", "longevity", "desire to have children & pregnancy", "self-determined life & living" and "health savings" as promising areas for the future.
