Admiral enjoys record year as premiums rise

2nd Mar 2010 07:27

Motor insurer Admiral reported record profits and sales in 2009, but cautioned conditions will remain challenging for its price comparison site Confused in 2010 as competition increases.Profit before tax at £215.8m was 7% ahead of 2008, while turnover rose 18% to £1.08bn."In 2009 Admiral's continued strong growth enabled us to exceed £1bnturnover for the first time in our history, to deliver yet another set of record profits and to pay another record dividend, " chief executive Henry Engelhardt said.The UK car insurance business made a pre-tax profit of £206.9m, with the number of customers up by 17% and a combined ratio of 85%. Admiral added it raised premium rates by 12% during 2009, broadly in line with the UK market where, after a period of minimal increases, premiums are now rising to compensate for claims inflation in recent years."Confused also had a good year, increasing revenue and maintaining profit levels in what continues to be a hyper-competitive market. There is no doubt that 2010 will again be a challenging year in the price comparison industry," Engelhardt added.The dividend for the year rises by 10% to 57.5p.