UK Financial results summary
| In GBP million | 3M 20 | 3M19 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Results after tax | (£2.7m) | (£12.4m) | (£15.1) |
| Gross income | £365.3m | £370.7m | (£5.5m) |
| Combined Ratio | 107.1% | 95.5% | 11.7% |
| COR excluding weather | 98.7% | 93.8% | -4.9% |
| Product | Household | Motor | Travel & Other | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | 3M 20 | 3M 19 | 3M 20 | 3M 19 | 3M 20 | 3M 19 | 3M 20 | 3M 19 |
| GWP | £71.4m | £64.9m | £180.9m | £193.8m | £42.3m | £33.9m | £294.60 | £292.60 |
| COR | 112.3% | 91.2% | 103.5% | 96.1% | 114.5% | 99.5% | 107.1% | 95.5% |
Weather impact on otherwise resilient performance
- The UK net result reflects an impact of £23.5m from storms Ciara and Dennis across the home, motor and commercial lines of business. This compares with a strong first quarter in 2019, following a period of benign weather.
- The combined ratio was negatively affected by the weather events in February, particularly in home and commercial lines. Excluding this impact, the COR was 98.7%, mainly due to continuing claims inflation in the first quarter.
Flat level of income with some growth in household and commercial lines business
- Gross written premiums for the first three months of 2020 were broadly flat. Lower motor income was partly offset by the household book benefitting from a new broker proposition and with some growth in commercial lines new deals and digital channels.
Commenting on the start to the year, Andy Watson, CEO Ageas UK said:
“In times like these, our priority is helping our people and our customers to navigate the unchartered territory we find ourselves in as a society. But as I reflect on the beginning of the year I have many reasons to be proud.
“We cannot underestimate the impact that the storms and floods had on our customers. The priority remains to get these customers back in their properties, while operating in very unusual circumstances.
“Only a month later we find ourselves in a pandemic situation and thanks to a quick response, the majority of our people we able to work from home, continuing to provide a fantastic service to our customers and, importantly, ensuring we recognise and keep key workers mobile.
“Looking into the second quarter, the lockdown has had a varied impact on our product lines. While motor claims frequencies have reduced across the industry, it is still too early to have a clear picture on the overall impact. We moved early to reduce our motor pricing to reflect the current situation; we are not applying any inflationary rate increases during this period; and we continue to work with industry bodies and our intermediated distribution channel to ensure we consider all fair options for our customers.
“As we look ahead, we have a stable business with a strong solvency position giving us the confidence we need to emerge from a resilient position and reflect on how we become even stronger over the next few months.
“This is my last time reporting Ageas’s results in the UK before I hand over the reins to Ant Middle. I want to express my huge appreciation for our people, intermediaries and suppliers in supporting both our customers and business while I have been at Ageas and in particular in what has been a truly unprecedented start to the year.”