Storm and cold snap hit FBD’s H1 profits
Profits at insurer FBD fell in the first half of this year due to the impact of Storm Éowyn and a cold spell of weather in January.
The company estimated that the weather events resulted in a net cost of €30.6 million during the period.
Gross incurred claims increased by €96 million, mainly due to the storm and cold spell.
Profits halved
While insurance revenue rose by 10% to €235 million, underwriting profits almost halved to €13.7 million.
This meant that pre-tax profits almost halved to just over €17 million.
FBD’s results showed that its average premium rose by 6.1% during the first half, adding that two-thirds of this increase was linked to customers increasing their level of insurance cover and a changing business mix.
Motor premiums increased by 5.4%, with the firm attributing the rise to high levels of inflation and more damage claims in recent years.
Home and farm average premiums increased by 9.3% and 10%, respectively, reflecting increases in property sums insured.
More motor-injury claims
FBD said that the average cost of property claims increased by 3%.
While the overall number of injury claims fell by 2% year-on-year, motor-injury notifications were up 7%, with the majority of the increase relating to the commercial sector.
The average cost of motor-injury claims settlements fell by 1% compared with a year earlier.
Motor-damage notifications increased by 5%, due mainly to weather-related claims.
“We continue to see increasing motor-damage costs due to higher cost of repairs and an increase in vehicle write-offs,” the firm stated.