Premiums at Ageas UK pass £2bn for the first time in 2012
INSURER Ageas UK, best known for its partnership with Tesco, yesterday revealed that total written premiums passed £2bn for the first time in 2012.
This allowed the company to post an 11 per cent rise in full-year net profits to £82.9m.
Ageas managed to increase returns at its Tesco tie-up, which sees motor and household cover sold under the supermarket’s brand, by focusing on more profitable business.
Its combined ratio – a measure of underwriting profitability that compares total premiums with total claims – improved slightly to 99.8 per cent.
It also booked a one-off £50.9m gain following September’s purchase of Groupama’s UK business at a discount to net assets.
“While the market is not without its challenges our breadth of distribution, strong partnerships and reputation for service excellence gives us confidence that we will continue to build momentum during 2013,” said chief executive Andy Watson.
The company’s Belgian parent group, previously known as Fortis, yesterday beat analysts’ expectations to unveil a full-year profit of €624m (£545m).