Consolidation and Its Impact on Business

The state, which in some cases had shaped the fortunes of the German public insurers for centuries, largely withdrew from the insurance business at that time. The savings banks assumed responsibility for the insurers almost everywhere. However, with the locally rooted savings banks as the new owners, the insurers remained under public-law influence.

Consolidation processes in Hesse, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria

In Hesse, by 1997, a new “SV Sparkassen-Versicherung Öffentliche Versicherungsgesellschaft Hessen-Nassau-Thüringen” had emerged, including the newly added activities in Thuringia. By 2000, a major public insurance group had emerged in Baden-Württemberg, under the umbrella of “SV Sparkassen-Versicherung Baden-Württemberg Holding AG”. And in Bavaria, Germany’s largest public insurer was created between 1995 and 1999, under the group umbrella of “Versicherungskammer Bayern”.

Cross-Regional Groups

In a further stage of consolidation, cross-regional groups also emerged after 2000. In 2004, for example, the savings bank insurers in Baden-Württemberg and Hesse merged to form “SV SparkassenVersicherung”. In 2005, Westfälische Provinzial and Provinzial Nord merged to form the Provinzial NordWest Group. This group later merged with Provinzial Rheinland in 2020 and became the second-largest public insurer. Versicherungskammer Bayern expanded its area of activity through the acquisition of Saarland Versicherungen (2002) and Feuersozietät/Öffentliche Leben Berlin-Brandenburg (2004).