Ageas UK reports first quarter numbers

The numbers are in for Ageas UK, and it looks like the insurer’s decisions in the first quarter are paying off.

Announcing its financial results for the three months ended March 31, the company said it posted a net profit of £12.4 million – an increase from £9.4 million for the same period in 2018. In terms of operating result, Ageas UK enjoyed a leap to £26.6 million from £10.2 million previously.

Broken down, here are the operating result figures:

• Motor – £17.3 million, down from £24.9 million
• Household – £7 million, up from a £9.9 million loss
• Other lines – £2.3 million, up from a £4.8 million loss

“Our sustained efforts to focus on profitability, combined with benign weather in the first quarter, have put us in a strong position to start the year,” commented Ageas UK chief executive Andy Watson.

“We made some tough but necessary decisions in the first quarter to simplify the business and meet changing customer needs. This is about building a business that is fit for the future for our customers, employees, brokers, and partners.”

Meanwhile Ageas UK’s combined ratio stood at 95.5%, improving significantly from 100.7% in the first three months of 2018.

“We are still very much operating in soft market conditions, which is somewhat surprising given the current levels of claims inflation,” added Watson.

“However, we are seeing encouraging signs in both the aggregator channel for our direct motor proposition, and the broker channel where we have secured a number of significant new deals in the last few months.”

These include a new five-year partnership with independent insurance broker Darwin Clayton worth £45 million.