Ageas reports first quarter 2021 results

Ageas UK today provides a trading update for the first three months of 2021.

UK financial results summary

2020 result reflects an impact of Storm Ciara and Storm Dennis.
From 2019 a new internal reinsurance programme became operational, impacting combined ratio and Non-Life net result.
From 2020 the cession rate of the internal Quota Share and the Loss Portfolio agreements has been increased from 30% to 40%.
The combined ratio including the effect of the new internal reinsurance agreement stood at 89.9% YTD. 

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

• Strong combined ratio and net result supported by reduced claim volumes for private cars, as a result of less traffic on the roads during the lockdown.
• The improved year on year performance was only partially offset by some weather impact in the household portfolio, which compares favourably with the impact of the storms and floods in the first quarter of 2020.
• Total income (excluding Tesco Underwriting) was stable reflecting growth in Household and Commercial lines from new deals secured in 2020, which balanced the impact of the competitive pricing environment and lower quote volumes in the motor market during the lockdown.

STRATEGIC HIGHLIGHTS - A sharp focus to deliver better results

We are transforming at pace to become a focused leader in our chosen markets by being smarter, faster, and more affordable.

• Our focus is to double down on our historic heartland, growing personal lines business via brokers and aggregators, particularly where it is an electronically traded business.
• Investment will focus on growing our technical engine room in underwriting, pricing, fraud, actuarial and claims handling, while also developing the technology we need for the future to support our ambition.
• We will take pride in being a truly low-cost business by working and buying smarter, and using data, digital and artificial intelligence to automate and simplify processes.
• Supporting our strategic focus, earlier this month we confirmed the completion of the change in control of our 50.1% share in Tesco Underwriting to Tesco Bank.

CUSTOMER AND PEOPLE HIGHLIGHTS

As the restrictions continued to affect our people and our customers in the first quarter, we offered a range of initiatives to support them through the uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

• Our Employee engagement scores increased during the year, with an eNPS _[1] of 42, despite the challenges of the pandemic, and we are now implementing new ways of working.
• Last month we were awarded the Institute of Customer Service’s ServiceMark accreditation, an independent and national benchmark of an organisation’s achievement in customer service and its commitment to upholding those standards. The Institute’s assessors noted that we had “built a wonderful culture where people are recruited for the right attitude, trained for the required skills and then, most importantly, trusted to deliver their best.”

Commenting on the start to the year, Ant Middle, CEO Ageas UK said:

 “As we all emerge from the third national lockdown, we reflect on the continuing challenges presented by the pandemic, and take pride in our response to supporting customers, brokers and colleagues while also managing a dynamic market environment.

 “I’m pleased we can report a solid quarter in terms of financial performance. We’re in good shape as we look ahead to delivering our new strategy with pace and enthusiasm. Supporting brokers to grow in our heartland market of personal lines is our key focus, navigating an evolving market landscape together. We have clear plans, we’re investing in the capabilities that matter, and we’re sharpening our competitive position to support that ambition.”

_{[1] An eNPS score of between 10-30 is considered to be good while anything near 50 is excellent.}