Insurance company Admiral sails ahead with website's profit success
ADMIRAL’S Confused.com price comparison website helped drive the car insurer’s profits ahead as the economic upturn encouraged more motorists to take to the roads.
Confused.com increased its profits by more than £3million to £21.7million, helping Admiral to post a 7 per cent rise in annual pre-tax profits to £370million.
The group said it managed to lift profits despite an 8 per cent fall in turnover to £2.03billion as it held off from slashing premiums to compete with rivals’ price cuts.
Chief executive Henry Engelhardt said: “We didn’t chase the UK market all the way to the bottom.” The group said UK car insurance prices were now falling more slowly than they had done six to 12 months ago and the frequency of claims had risen slightly for the first time since the recession, possibly indicating that more people were driving.
Chief operating officer David Stevens said: “There could be a possibility of claims going up in 2014.”
The group said its long-term expansion was likely to come in its international businesses in France, Italy, Spain and the US, which have small market shares and significant growth potential.
Confused’s shares rose 107p to 1526p.
