Liberty Insurance Reduced Gross Profit in Premium Income
Liberty Insurance Group (Liberty Insurance, Genesis and Regal) achieved a gross profit of 32.3 million euros in the first six months of the year, representing a 22.17% less due to the declining value of the investments as result of rising interest rates, the organization reported today.
By contrast, premium income grew by 6.95% in the period up to 459.4 million euros. Adding interest income, which stood at 28 million, the Liberty Insurance Group had total revenues of 487 million, an increase of 7.2% over 2006.
In the automotive sector, its first line of business, grew more than twice the market average, entering more than 281.7 million in premiums in the first half of the year. In this sense, the company increased its premium income by 7.9% through June, compared to the average industry growth, which stands at 3.6%, according to data from UNESP.
Car Insurance (61.3% of total) are not the only ones who experienced a remarkable growth in this period. Thus, the second strategic business focus of Liberty Insurance in Spain, home insurance, rose 17% in the semester, to achieve the 59 million euros.
As figures in non-life ratios, both the combined and the claims experienced falls. Thus, the combined fell by 2.2 points to stand at 91%, while the claims also fell by 0.9 points to 65.1%
As the field of Life, Liberty Seguros Group’s business remained at similar figures, with a 1.54% less in relation to the previous year. Thus, until June the life insurance and savings insurance products the Group reported EUR 79.5 million, compared to nearly 81 last year.
Finally, the remaining products, including insurance for companies and industries, businesses or leisure, accounted for 8.5% of the remaining business.
CHANNELS OF DISTRIBUTION.
Liberty Insurance Group markets its products through channel ‘mediators’, where Liberty Seguros has the second largest bancassurance network in Spain, and ‘direct’ (Telephone and Internet), the latter represented by the marks Genesis and Regal.
The mediators continued in the first half of the first channel distribution group with nearly 43% of the total business generated, with just over 196.2 million euros.
In second place was the institutional channel, which includes the pan-European business (life products marketed under freedom to provide services in Germany and Austria) that captured 28.9% to 132.5 million euros reported. Finally, we placed the direct channel, with more than 28% and revenues of 130.6 million euros.
In addition, since 2006 Liberty Portugal SA companies Seker Sigorta and A.S. (Turkish insurer specializing in car) Liberty Seguros members of the Group, so that their results add to the business of Spain.
Overall, if you add the premium income derived from international activity, this amounts to 601.5 million euros during the first half, 16% more than in 2006, while total revenues exceeded 643.1 million.
With respect to business lines, auto policies represent about 62%, Life took second place with 15.7% Household third with 12%.
During the last quarter of 2007, will begin operations in Poland Liberty Direct, sponsored by Liberty Insurance company and sells auto insurance by phone and Internet.
