Captives survey: 58% of respondents considering UK captive

The results of Airmic's 2026 members’ captive survey highlight the growing strategic importance of captives to many UK businesses, cementing captives as an established and mature tool that transcends market conditions.

“The insights shared by Airmic members highlight a clear trend: businesses are using their captives more intelligently, more proactively and with greater ambition,” commented Oliver Davies, chief distribution officer at HDI UK & Ireland, one of the report sponsors.

Key survey findings, revealed at Airmic's Captive Forum in March, include:

• 42% of respondents have increased their use of captives despite softer market conditions.
• Businesses are using captives for a wide range of insurance lines, including people-related solutions, cyber and motor. Property, business interruption and general liability are the most common lines.
• More than half of respondents are writing employee benefits – a significantly higher proportion than the international average.
• More than three-quarters of respondents plan to increase the use of their captive for further covers or services – such as for incubating emerging risks, gathering data and setting up risk management bursaries.
• When selecting a fronting partner, Airmic members value flexibility and claims handling capability over price.

“The business reasons for using captive insurance are no longer dependent on insurance market conditions,” Julia Graham, Airmic CEO, told the Captive Forum. “Today, captives are central for building resilience for your business, your sector and society.”

With the anticipated UK captive regime on the horizon, Davies added that “now is a pivotal moment for companies to reassess their risk strategies and ensure they are positioned to take full advantage of the opportunities ahead.”

High interest in new UK regime

Although the UK has a relatively mature captive penetration with over 300 UK-based organisations using a captive, well over half of respondents said they will consider establishing a UK captive if the new regulatory regime is considered proportionate.

31% said they would consider moving an existing captive to the UK; 10% would consider forming a new captive in the UK; while 17% will consider both options.

It is widely anticipated that a competitively designed UK captive regime will be beneficial for captives globally, serving to reinforce captives as a core risk financing solution.

“It can only be a good thing,” said Paul Eaton, CEO of Artex EMEA, also a survey sponsor. Speaking at the Captive Forum, he added: “There can be no room for sensitivity from other domiciles – a UK regime will make captives more mainstream and that’s good for us all.”

Aligning strategies

Captive governance remains key to captive success, the survey report noted, with captive boards playing an essential role in delivering core objectives.

The results revealed a mixed response about current board effectiveness, with just under a quarter of respondents believing their captive board has sufficient independence and expertise to challenge the parent organisation effectively. 34% believe they are partially effective, while 38% were not sure.

Eaton noted that as captives evolve and grow, captive boards must adapt and realign their risk appetite to the strategic objectives of the parent company:

“Give sufficient time to planning your captive strategy. As your captive evolves, it’s important to compare your strategy with that of the parent company and identify gaps.”

Reinsurance demand grows

With captives writing more premium and new lines, demand for reinsurance is growing. As balance sheets and exposures grow, 52% of respondents said reinsurance is either important or critical for their strategy.

Eaton noted that reinsurers do more than protect balance sheets: they provide a centralised risk management programme and offer a rich source of experience.

“In the current, post‑hard market environment, we’re seeing captives increasingly re‑evaluate their structures to secure additional resilience, optimise capital, unlock new capacity and benefit from reinsurers’ insight,” he observed.

Stay informed

Based on the Airmic 2026 captive survey results, it is conservatively estimated that Airmic members spend more than £5.5 billion in annual premium through their captives and hold more than £25 billion in assets under management in captives domiciled around the world.

Given the survey results and domicile developments in the UK and elsewhere, Airmic expect to see captive numbers continuing to grow amongst the Airmic membership.

To reflect the level of interest Airmic has developed a Captive Resource Hub on its website, where relevant contemporary guidance, papers and other documents of interest are stored.