The Hibernian Group today announced another year of strong operating performance in 2002 with combined operating profit of €192.2m from its life and pensions, general insurance and investment businesses.
The Hibernian Group today announced another year of strong operating performance in 2002 with combined operating profit of €192.2m from its life and pensions, general insurance and investment businesses.
The highlights of Hibernian's results are (see appendix for detail):
- Total Group operating profit up 24% to €192m.
- Life and Pensions new business sales steady at €162m on an APE basis.
- General Insurance premiums up from €845m to €940m with profit before tax increasing by €61.1m to €27.4m, representing 3% of premiums.
- Hibernian Investment Management funds down 4% to €6,757m.
Commenting on the results, Bryan Jenkins, Chief Executive, Hibernian Group, said: "The insurance market in 2002 was dominated by four main issues: Falls in all major equity markets for the third year in a row had a major impact on our life and pensions business; world equities, as measured by the Morgan Stanley World Index, were down over 20% in the year. The tax advantaged Special Savings Investment Accounts, available until April 2002 also had significant impact."
"In terms of general insurance the continuing high level of court awards in Irish personal injury cases relative to other jurisdictions; as well as continuation of the trend of recent years of more stormy weather leading to flooding and wind damage".
"Against this difficult background, I am pleased to report an increase of 24% in operating profit for Hibernian in 2002".
In Hibernian Life and Pensions, operating profit was €119m, including a margin on new business slightly up on 2001 at 28.5%. Within new business, a 21% increase in Pensions Annual Premium business was particularly pleasing.
General Insurance pre-tax profits, after the impact of investment market movements, grew to €27.4m after a loss of €33.7m in 2001. Once again, this is, at under 3% of premiums, below the cost of capital. Hibernian welcomes the establishment of the Personal Injuries Assessment Board as well as recent governmental initiatives aimed at improving road safety. It is to be hoped that these developments will have a sustained beneficial impact on the cost of court awards and the frequency and severity of road accidents."
Aviva plc shareholders entitled to receive a dividend converted to euro will receive €0.2078 per share. The payment date of the dividend will be 16 May 2003 and the record date will be 28 March 2003.
Irish shareholders are offered the opportunity to participate in the Group's dividend reinvestment plan, which enables dividends to be reinvested in Aviva plc shares at reduced dealing costs. Shareholders who wish to do so should contact the Group's Registrars at the address below in order to obtain full details and a mandate form. Completed mandate forms must be returned to the Registrar no later than 25 April 2003 in order to participate in the plan for the 2002 final dividend.
The Group's Registrar may be contacted at:
Lloyds TSB Registrars, The Causeway, Worthing, West Sussex, BN99 6DA.
Ends
Appendix: Hibernian Group 2002 financial summary
| 12 months to 31 Dec 2002 €m | 12 months to 31 Dec 2001 €m | |||
| IRISH GROUP | ||||
| | ||||
| Gross premium income | 1,711.7 | 1,933.7 | ||
| Operating profit (incl. life achieved profit) | 192.2 | 155.5 | ||
| LIFE & PENSIONS | ||||
| | ||||
| Achieved Operating Profit | 119.0 | 126.8 | ||
| Embedded Value | 724.5 | 762.7 | ||
| New Business Contribution | 46.3 | 46.1 | ||
| Gross Premium Income | 772.2 | 1,088.4 | ||
| New Business Premium Income (APE) | 162.3 | 163.7 | ||
| GENERAL INSURANCE | ||||
| | ||||
| Gross Written Premium Income | 939.5 | 845.3 | ||
| Operating Profit | 71.1 | 26.3 | ||
| Profit Before Tax | 27.4 | (33.7) | ||
| INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT | ||||
| | ||||
| Funds under management | 6,757 | 7,028 | ||
| Operating Profit | 2.1 | 2.4 | ||
Press contact: Kela O'Riordan, 01 607 8164, 086 606 8842, kela.oriordan@hibernian.ie
Notes to editors:
- Hibernian is part of the Aviva plc, the seventh largest insurance group worldwide based on gross written premium
- Hibernian is Ireland's largest composite insurer, ranked first for general insurance and top five for life and pensions
- A photograph is available by ISDN
- Hibernian news releases are also available on www.hibernian.ie