Selective Insurance Set Aside $11.6 Million For Unpaid Premiums In One Quarter, Triple The Prior Quarter's $3.8 Million
The reserve against premiums customers owe rose to $30.8 million from $24.1 million even as gross receivables shrank.
Selective Insurance Group, an insurance holding company that sells coverage through independent agents, took an $11.6 million charge for expected losses on uncollected premiums in the third quarter. The charge was about three times the $3.8 million it took in the second quarter, and it came while the amount customers owe the company was falling.
A reserve that grew as receivables shrank
The allowance for credit losses on premiums receivable stood at $30.8 million on September 30, up from $24.1 million at the end of the second quarter. Gross premiums receivable over the same stretch slipped from $1.66 billion to $1.58 billion.
Write-offs, meaning balances the company gave up on collecting, were $5.2 million in the quarter against $2.7 million in the third quarter of 2025. For the first nine months, the expected-loss charge was $18.5 million, versus $7.9 million a year earlier.
The charge sits inside a quarter the company called strong. Net income available to common stockholders rose 12% to $126.4 million, or $2.11 per diluted share, and the combined ratio, the insurer's measure of claims and expenses against premiums, improved to 96.8% from 98.6%.
Shrinking premiums, by design
Net premiums written fell 7% in the quarter. Management says it is deliberately pushing down retention on underperforming commercial accounts, and Standard Commercial Lines retention was 82%. Renewal price increases averaged 5.6%, down from 9.6% a year ago.
Standard Commercial Lines, sold to businesses, non-profits and local governments, made up 71% of 2025 revenue, according to the company's annual report. After-tax net investment income rose 16% to $127 million, and the company raised its full-year outlook for that line to $490 million from $480 million.
Buybacks and a bigger dividend
Selective repurchased $55 million of stock in the quarter. On October 22 its board authorized a new $200 million program, which takes capacity to $253.1 million alongside the $53.1 million left on the old one, and raised the quarterly dividend 12% to $0.48 a share.
Shares traded at $97.73 in Friday trading, up about 6.5% from the prior close of $91.74, for a market value of about $5.5 billion.
The fourth-quarter report will show whether the premiums-receivable charge stays above the $11.6 million taken this quarter.
Sources
- 10-Q Filing — Selective Insurance Group (SIGI) — SEC EDGAR
- 10-Q Filing — Selective Insurance Group (SIGI), Q2 FY2026 filed 2026-07-24 (comparison basis) — SEC EDGAR
- Earnings release (8-K Item 2.02, pressreleaseexh991q32026.htm) — Selective Insurance Group, filed 2026-10-22 — SEC EDGAR
- Selective outlines 96.5%-97.5% 2026 combined ratio outlook as it raises after-tax net investment income view to $490M (NASDAQ:SIGI) | Seeking Alpha — seekingalpha.com
- Selective Reports Third Quarter 2026 Results – Company Announcement - FT.com — Financial Times
- Selective Insurance Group (SIGI) To Report Earnings Tomorrow: Here Is What To Expect — Yahoo Finance
- Selective Insurance (SIGI) Q3 Earnings Top Estimates — Yahoo Finance
- Here's What Key Metrics Tell Us About Selective Insurance (SIGI) Q3 Earnings — Yahoo Finance
