Company results
Beazley CEO hails ‘standout year’ for property underwriting
Beazley CEO Adrian Cox has labelled property risks as one of the insurer’s “biggest long-term opportunities”, saying that underwriting conditions increasingly favour the specialty market.
Hiscox sets sights on 5%-15% retail growth after subdued 2023
Hiscox is aiming to grow its UK retail business by 5% to 15% in 2024, after new business growth in 2023 fell “below management expectations”.
Axa points to pricing for GWP and revenue uplift
Axa has reported a 7% increase in its global P&C book thanks to “favourable price effects” throughout all geographies and business lines.
Is the Aon–NFP deal a sign of mega broking M&A to come?
Content Director's View: Jonathan Swift reflects on the recent record broking deal between Aon and NFP, and asks whether the $13.4bn (£10.5bn) price tag will be beaten by another acquisition in 2024.
Saga holds off sale of insurance arm
Saga has announced that it is pausing its pursuit of a sale of the insurance business as it waits for improved market conditions.
Neal predicts consolidation as Lloyd’s delivers £3.9bn H1 pre-tax profit
Lloyd’s CEO John Neal has said the market’s underwriting performance is “as good as we’ve seen in recent decades”, as it reported a £3.9bn profit before tax for the first half of 2023.
Beazley achieves record H1 profit for second year in a row
Beazley has posted a small uptick in first-half pre-tax profits to a record $366m (£292.8m), boosted by its US property and European cyber businesses.
Updated – Insurer results directory H1 2023
Insurance Post tracks insurers' half-year 2023 results, including gross written premium and combined operating ratio.
Could a motor insurance crisis become a political storm?
Content director's view: As Zurich pulls out of the personal lines broker market, and with motor far from being flavour of the month for investors and capacity providers, Jonathan Swift asks could a combination of withdrawals and lack of new competition…
D&G CEO reveals plans for the US
In its results, the group reported a 7% increase in revenue, as well as a 12% growth in Ebitda.
Esure chief says plummeting profits won’t derail digital ambitions
Esure chief executive David McMillan revealed the provider will press ahead with the £140.6m digital transformation programme despite posting a £29.1m loss for 2022.
Best Lloyd’s underwriting result in years not enough to prevent pre-tax loss
Lloyd’s has posted a pre-tax loss of £769m for 2022, despite achieving its strongest underwriting result since 2015.
Group income surpasses £1bn as Ross reflects on five years of Ardonagh
The broker celebrated its fifth birthday in 2022, and has continued on its path to growth through acquisitions.
‘Major reset’ expected in motor personal injury two years on from whiplash reforms
Minster Law CEO Shirley Woolham said following a complex year that saw industry come out of a pandemic and continue to deal with the aftermath of whiplash reforms, the personal injury motor market is transforming into a different landscape.
Aviva UK&I GI sees growth as it returns more than £5bn in capital since 2021
Aviva Group CEO Amanda Blanc has announced strong results for the UK and Ireland general insurance business, while launching a £300m share buyback scheme, having taken capital return to over £5bn in two years.
Hiscox’s UK & London Markets’ GWP drops for 2022 but sectors stay profitable
Hiscox’s UK and London Markets businesses both dropped gross written premium in real terms but continued profitability, as the insurer announced the launch of an ESG sub-syndicate.
War exclusions curb Beazley’s cyber growth
Updated war exclusions slowed down the growth of Beazley's cyber book last year, according to CEO Adrian Cox.
Weather and inflation turn up the heat on Allianz Holdings’ profit
Allianz Holdings saw its 2022 operating profit more than halve as a result of higher-than-expected inflation and continued disruptive weather, CEO Colm Holmes has said.
Big freeze pushes RSA's personal lines to Q4 underwriting loss
Adverse weather drove RSA’s personal lines business to an underwriting loss in 2022, with freezing winter temperatures and dry summer conditions pushing its full-year combined ratio to 106.2%.
How will the new IFRS 17 reporting rules impact insurers?
Laura Miller examines the new financial reporting rules insurers must contend with in 2023, and how the IFRS 17 requirements could result in providers posting reduced profit margins.
Is Direct Line’s profit warning a bellwether of more bad news to come?
Content director's view: Jonathan Swift reflects on what Direct Line Group's trading update, and decision to scrap its 2022 dividend, might mean for both it and the UK insurance market.
Direct Line Group shares fall off a cliff as it scraps dividend for 2022
Direct Line CEO Penny James has announced that the board "no longer expects to declare a final dividend for 2022" after a significant increase in claims as a result of the prolonged period of severe cold weather in December, causing its shares to crash.
Insurtech unicorns Zego and Marshmallow reveal large losses
The holding companies of UK insurtech unicorns Zego and Marshmallow have both reported losses for the financial year ending on 31 December 2021.
RSA targets market-beating 'low 90s' combined ratio by 2025
RSA has set out plans to achieve a “low 90s” combined ratio and surpass £3bn in premiums by 2025.