Lloyd's of London expects £1.4 billion in losses from the US-Iran war in the Gulf, one of the first large-scale estimates of the conflict's financial toll. Most of the damage stems from strikes on land infrastructure rather than shipping, even as marine insurers separately face a multibillion-dollar bill from vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz.
Lloyd's of London expects to pay out £1.4 billion in Gulf-related losses tied to the US-Iran war, one of the first large-scale estimates of the conflict's financial fallout, chief executive Patrick Tiernan told the Financial Times.
Infrastructure damage drives the claims
Despite ongoing strikes on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, Tiernan said the losses stemmed mostly from damage to infrastructure on land, which triggered large claims under political violence and terrorism policies. Iran has used drones and missiles to attack energy plants and other critical infrastructure in the region since the US and Israel attacked Tehran at the end of February. Saudi chemicals giant Sabic is expected to make an $800 million claim on a political violence policy after a missile strike damaged a petrochemical complex; Sabic declined to comment.
A quarter of Lloyd's Ukraine losses
By comparison, the £1.4 billion figure represents about a quarter of Lloyd's losses to date from the war in Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, Tiernan said. Insurers including Lloyd's have also faced losses of more than $1 billion from claims by aircraft leasing companies whose planes were stranded in Russia after the EU imposed sanctions. Yet Tiernan said Lloyd's insurers are far more exposed in the Gulf to the destruction of infrastructure than they were in Ukraine, where sanctions drove the bulk of the losses.
Marine insurers face a separate multibillion-dollar bill
Separately, marine insurers across the London market have racked up estimated claims of between $1.5 billion and $2 billion as of late August 2026, with projections that total losses could climb as high as $3 billion, according to Crypto Briefing. Between 1,000 and 1,150 vessels are currently stranded or threading through high-risk zones in the Gulf. War risk premiums have surged from about 0.25% of a vessel's hull value to between 3% and 10% at their peak.
Lloyd's results hold up despite the war
The war-related losses come despite a relatively mild half-year for Lloyd's insurers, without the large-scale natural disasters that typically drive the market's biggest claims. Still, the market's combined profit before tax fell almost a fifth to £3.5 billion owing to investment losses, even as underwriting profit rose to £1.9 billion in the six months to June 30. Tiernan called the market's performance "very solid" and said Lloyd's is aiming to expand into emerging sectors such as AI data centres.
Sources: Financial Times, Crypto Briefing
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