IDI's Car Insurance: The Tariff Was Approved, But Profitability Is Still Under Supervision
IDI Insurance's new tariff approval removed an immediate marketing constraint, but it also reminded investors that comprehensive and third-party car insurance are not only profit engines. Pricing, claims, spare parts, garages, litigation and the regulator determine how much of the underwriting gain stays with the company.
The Approval Removed The Block, But Not The Question
On May 4, 2026, IDI Insurance, IDI Issuances and Zur reported the same material event: the Capital Market Authority approved a new motor-property insurance tariff for IDI Insurance, and the restriction on marketing motor-property policies was removed.
The filing may sound technical, but it is not. Motor-property insurance is one of IDI's central operating engines. In 2025, gross premiums in this sub-segment were about NIS 2.047 billion, and insurance service revenue was about NIS 2.035 billion. Insurance service profit rose to about NIS 275 million, and total comprehensive profit before tax in the line reached about NIS 274 million. A short tariff filing therefore matters for the whole company read.
The important point is not only that approval was received. It is that the regulator has already shown willingness to intervene in pricing. In November 2025, the authority required eight insurers to resubmit motor-property tariffs that better reflect underlying risk. According to IDI's reports, if the tariff had not been approved by April 30, 2026, the company would not have been able to continue operating that insurance program from that date. The restriction was removed, but pricing supervision remains part of the thesis.
Why Motor Property Matters So Much For IDI
Motor-property insurance covers damage to the insured vehicle and third-party property damage. Unlike compulsory motor insurance, which covers bodily injury and is affected by a different regulatory structure, motor-property insurance is where pricing, underwriting, spare parts, garages and theft frequency flow into the report relatively quickly. Many claims are closed within less than a year, so changes in price or claims cost can reach results faster than in long-tail insurance lines.
IDI's 2025 picture was mixed. On the positive side, motor-property profitability improved: insurance service revenue rose 7%, insurance service profit rose 19%, and comprehensive profit before tax rose 16%. The Combined Ratio was around 90%, indicating a relatively profitable line.
On the other hand, headline gross premiums in motor property did not really grow. They slipped slightly from about NIS 2.054 billion to about NIS 2.047 billion. Excluding the government accountant tender effect, they grew about 2%, mainly due to policy-count growth, but this was offset by tariff reduction following risk adjustment. In other words, IDI improved profitability even while customer pricing moved down. That is an achievement, but it raises the burden of proof for the coming periods: if the regulator limits tariff flexibility, IDI must keep winning through underwriting, claims management and cost control.
The Chain: From Customer To Zur
| Company | Exposure To The Event | How It Reaches The Reports |
|---|---|---|
| IDI Insurance | The operating insurer selling motor-property policies and receiving tariff approval | Premiums, insurance service revenue, loss ratio, underwriting profit and regulatory capital |
| IDI Issuances | Debt-raising vehicle for IDI Insurance | No independent insurance activity; repayment capacity depends on IDI Insurance's strength and payments |
| Zur | Holding company above IDI, alongside Adgar and Direct Finance | Value flows through subsidiaries' earnings, dividends and holding-company discounts |
IDI Issuances matters here precisely because it is not a regular insurer. Its 2025 report describes its sole activity as raising capital in Israel for IDI Insurance and depositing the proceeds with it. In September 2025, it raised about NIS 340.6 million through Series G, recognized as Tier 2 capital for IDI Insurance, and in November 2025 Series E was redeemed in full for about NIS 315.9 million. For debtholders, the operating event at IDI Insurance matters because it affects profitability, capital and payment capacity, even though IDI Issuances itself does not sell policies.
At Zur, the read is broader. Zur is a holding layer above IDI, Adgar and Direct Finance. A motor-property event should therefore not be read as if all of Zur is a car-insurance company. But when the key insurance engine gets a regulatory reminder, it affects the quality of value that can move up to the holding layer and the certainty around future dividends.
Do Not Mix Motor Property With Compulsory Motor
One common mistake in reading IDI is mixing motor property and compulsory motor. In 2025, motor property was a clear profit engine. Compulsory motor, by contrast, moved to an insurance service loss of about NIS 12.8 million, compared with a profit of about NIS 18.8 million in 2024, and a comprehensive pre-tax loss of about NIS 24.6 million.
The implication is that motor-property tariff approval does not fix the entire motor book. It addresses a marketing constraint and pricing in one line, but it does not change the pressure in compulsory motor. IDI should therefore be read by separating the engine that generates profit from the line that continues to drag results.
There is also legal risk. In its 2025 report, the company said it updated legal provisions by an unusual amount of about NIS 53 million before tax, with about 60% of that amount related to a judgment in motor property that the company appealed. Even when underwriting improves, litigation and regulation can take back part of the gain.
What The Regulator Was Really Testing
The broader story is not one policy form. IDI's reports explain that motor-property tariffs require supervisory approval and are meant to be actuarial and differential, meaning adjusted to the risk of the vehicle and driver. The authority required insurers to resubmit tariffs that reflect the underlying risk.
That creates a delicate balance. If the tariff is too high relative to risk, the regulator may pressure it lower in favor of policyholders. If the tariff is too low relative to claims cost, the company may grow premiums without growing profit. Approval therefore does not just mean "the company can sell again." It also defines the rules of the game: the company must show that price matches risk and that profitability improvement does not rely only on higher pricing.
In 2025, IDI emphasized spare-parts and garage management, portfolio improvement, tight claims management and operating efficiency. These are exactly the areas where a direct insurer can try to create advantage. They are also the areas where conflicts with garages, regulation and litigation can send some of the saving back to policyholders or claimants.
What To Track Next
| Metric | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Motor-property gross premiums | Shows whether approval enables renewed growth or only normal continuation |
| Policy count versus average tariff | Separates real customer growth from lower pricing |
| Combined Ratio and loss ratio | The critical test for profitable growth |
| Legal provisions | Can erase part of the underwriting improvement |
| Capital surplus and dividends | Determines how much profit can move to shareholders and debt layers |
The bottom line: tariff approval is positive because it removes an immediate restriction and lets IDI continue marketing motor-property insurance. But it does not close the story. It highlights that the most important general-insurance engine at IDI operates under close pricing supervision.
If, in the next quarters, IDI shows continued policy growth, a Combined Ratio near 2025 levels, lower legal provisions and sufficient capital, the approval will look like short-term noise on the way to continued profitability. If average tariff declines erase margin, the loss ratio rises or regulation tightens again, the market will need to price motor property less like a free profit engine and more like a profitable but heavily supervised line.
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