Insurers and brokers alike are being constantly urged to embrace technology but so far only telematics has made a serious impact in the industry – but what an impact that has been.
For proof, look no further than the half-year results of the Hastings Group, announced earlier today.
The insurer enjoyed operating profits of £70.8 million – that’s up 20% compared to the same six-month period in 2015. Its gross written premiums increased to £360.6 million, a leap of 28%, and net revenue climbed to £282.7 million – that’s up 27% from last year’s £222.6 million. Indeed its market share was also up with live customer policies increasing by 17% to stand at 2.2 million.
Notably, however, at the heart of the growth were its home and telematics products – which enjoyed leaps of 67% and 73% respectively.
Hastings has made a significant investment into technology having reached a deal with Guidewire earlier in the year to develop a claims and broker platform. It is currently being rolled out across its retail division.
In reaction to the results, chief executive officer of the company, Gary Hoffman, outlined that Brexit should not have a significant impact on its operations even though it has an underwriting arm in Gibraltar.
“The group's strong growth trajectory is driven by the commitment of our 2,700 colleagues as we remain focused on providing competitively priced insurance to UK customers,” he said.
“We remain well positioned to deliver continued profitable growth in 2016; the increases in premiums we've written will continue to earn through over the life of the policies, and we've seen no significant changes to the premium and claim inflation trends since the period end. We are firmly on track to meet, or beat, all of our targets.”
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