Ageing workforce puts London’s specialty insurance sector at risk
London’s specialty (re)insurance market employs around 61,000 people, but despite this, the sector is facing a ‘critical’ talent shortage.
According to data from the trade body, the London Market Group (LMG), that headcount is up 3 per cent since 2022, but the sector is expected to require around 82,200 by the end of 2034.
The workforce is ageing, with the average age expected to increase to 46 years in 2034.
LMG CEO Caroline Wagstaff said: “The age profile of the London Market is estimated to shift significantly over the next ten years. This is most dramatic in the under-30s, whose share of the total workforce is predicted to fall from 24 per cent to 7 per cent in that period.”
To reach the estimated target in eight years’ time, graduate and entry-level employment needs to increase to meet demand, but current data show that graduate job postings in insurance fell 18 per cent year-on-year in September 2025.
“This is an industry-wide problem that needs industry-wide attention,” stated Wagstaff.
The talent crisis is not a new problem. Wagstaff told City PM in 2024 that the sector faced a “retirement cliff and a shortage of talent to take up the baton”.
The trade body has been working on pushing the knowledge of working in the insurance market by working with British universities to create awareness about careers in specialty insurance.
Insurance sector now over a third of City GDP
The London insurance market is important to the UK and the City as it contributes £61bn to UK GDP, which is around 2.1 per cent of the UK economy, and around 37 per cent of ‘the City’ GDP.
Chris Lay, LMG chair, stated: “London remains the global leader in risk transfer, demonstrated by its growth in absolute size and market share.”
London’s specialty (re)insurance market is the largest cyber insurance market in Europe, with over 800 firms providing cybersecurity products and services, around 30 per cent increase from 2022.
The City also remains the leading centre for marine and aviation with a 45 per cent market share, and just under 20 per cent of the property market.
“Yet we cannot be complacent as, whilst much smaller than London, some other jurisdictions have grown faster in recent years,” Lay added.