Financial results season rolls on in the insurance sector, with Aviva moving into the spotlight today, revealing its Q3 2021 trading update – and for the general insurance side of the business, it was certainly something of a mixed bag.
In Canada, there was an overall jump in GWP from £864 million (around CA$1.44 billion) to £885 million (around CA$1.48 billion) – boosted by a 1% rise in personal lines (to £606 million) and a 6% rise in commercial lines (to £279 million). Its combined ratio in the country improved from 95.5% to 93.0%.
On home turf in the UK, its personal lines business fell from £596 million to £572 million in Q3, while its commercial business shot up 16% to £615 million, up from £531 million in the same period a year earlier. Overall, GWP was up 5% to £1,187 million but its combined ratio suffered at 94.9%, compared to 88.9% a year earlier.
Meanwhile, in Ireland, GWP stayed flat at £101 million overall, with personal lines falling 15% to £53 million and commercial lines rising 26% to £48 million. Its combined ratio jumped from 89.1% to 89.7%.
When combined, the general insurance business saw a 3% jump in GWP at £2,547 million; while its combined ratio was hit – moving from 92.2% to 96.6%. For the nine-month period, general insurance GWP was up 5% to £6.5 billion.
The company had additional reasons to celebrate, however, with UK&I life sales of £25.3 billion over nine months, compared to £21.8 billion a year earlier, with strong growth in savings & retirement.
“Aviva has delivered strong performance in the first nine months. Record inflows in savings & retirement and excellent growth in general insurance support our confidence in Aviva’s growth potential,” said CEO Amanda Blanc. “Savings & retirement net flows were up 21% year-to-date, continuing the strong first half performance. Bulk annuity volumes accelerated sharply in the third quarter. General insurance premiums grew 5% year-to-date reflecting solid customer retention and new business wins, particularly in commercial lines.”
Blanc also commented on the company’s ongoing disposals – highlighting the completion of deals in France and Italy. She also mentioned that the company aimed to be net zero by 2040.
