Bromley-headquartered Direct Line Group Plc (Direct Line) has today announced its preliminary results for full-year 2021, with CEO Penny James (pictured) commenting that she is “delighted by the group’s strong performance”.
Direct Line’s combined operating ratio improved, standing at 90.1% in 2021 compared to 91.0% in 2020. But while its operating profit rose 11.4%, from £522.1 million in 2020 to £581.8 million in 2021, its profit before tax dipped £5.4 million to £446.0 million – this was largely credited to restructuring and one-off costs, including the purchase of the Bromley office in early 2021.
Direct Line’s overall in-force policies fell 0.3% in 2021. Direct own brands GWP dropped 0.8% for the year, though it grew 0.7% in H2 2021. Motor direct own brands in-force policies saw a reduction of 1.9% over the year. The group’s direct own brands in-force grew 1% with growth across commercial direct (up 7.5%), Green Flag Rescue (up 5.8%) and home (up 2.3%).
Commenting on the results, James said she was proud of how the group had navigated the complexities of the challenging market and that Direct Line was pleased to announce a further share buyback programme. 2021 was a year of strategic progress, she said, and the business had successfully completed the key elements of its technology build and data capability.
Direct Line’s new motor platform is improving its competitiveness, she added, and the group has announced a new partnership with Motability Operations that is expected to see over 640,000 customers come on board in 2023. The business has also extended its home partnership with NatWest Group until 2027.
James thanked her colleagues at Direct Line and noted that the success of 2021 was due to the “sheer dedication of our brilliant people who have continued to deliver despite the challenges of a pandemic”.
“This is a fantastic business, with great brands, a customer obsessive mindset and an exceptional claims service where we are harnessing the best of technology to meet customer needs,” she said. “The capability we have built is already delivering improved competitiveness and we believe there is plenty more to come in 2022.”
