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Informist, Friday, Oct. 18, 2024

By Richard Fargose and Kshipra Petkar

MUMBAI – ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co Ltd's net profit for the quarter ended September rose 20.2% on year to INR 6.94 billion on the back of strong growth in net premium earned, coupled with robust income from investments. As per the estimates from four brokerages, the net profit was expected in the range of INR 6.40 billion to INR 7.10 billion. Sequentially, the general insurer's bottomline was up 19.6%.

During the reporting quarter, the general insurance company reported net premium earned of INR 50.26 bln rupees, up 16.7% on year, and 11.6% on quarter. The net income from investments rose nearly 14% on year to INR 8.46 billion, which also aided the rise in the bottom line.

The net profit for the first half of the current financial year increased to INR 12.74 billion from INR 9.68 billion reported a year ago. The net premium written for the same period rose to INR 101.96 billion from INR 87.08 billion.

The gross premium written increased 10.8% on year to INR 69.48 billion in Jul-Sept and the net premium written was up 14.04% on year at INR 48.35 billion. The total income of the general insurance company was up 15.9% on year at INR 58.51 billion in the quarter ended September. Sequentially, the total income was up 9.3%.

The incurred claim ratio for ICICI Lombard increased marginally to 71.4% as of Sept. 30 from 70.7% reported a year ago. The claims paid increased by 30.7% on year to INR 31.25 billion in the reporting quarter. The change in outstanding claims, including unreported claims, were down 29.4% on year at INR 4.6 billion. Sequentially, it fell by over 30%.

The total expenses were up 16.5% on year at INR 51.8 billion. The general insurer's net commissions rose 14.6% on year to INR 8.4 billion in the reporting quarter. Sequentially, it was up 5%.

The solvency ratio was 2.65 times as of Sept. 30 compared to 2.56 times as of Jun. 30 and higher than the minimum regulatory requirement of 1.50 times. As of Mar 31, the solvency ratio stood at 2.62 times.

The combined ratio increased to 104.5% as of Sept. 30 from 103.9% reported a year ago and 102.3% a quarter ago. Combined ratio is a measure of an insurer's underwriting performance, with a ratio below 100% showing underwriting profit.

Consequently, the general insurance company has reported an underwriting loss of INR 1.61 billion in the reporting quarter. In Apr-Jun, the general insurance company reported an underwriting loss of INR 3.47 billion.

The product mix of the general insurance company largely remained unchanged between Apr-Sept of the current financial year and a year ago. However, in Apr-Sept the share of fire insurance segment fell to 13% from 15% and share of crop insurance increased to 9% from 8% a year ago.

The general insurance company sourced 17.2 million policies digitally and issued 99.1% policies electronically, as per the investor presentation.

The board has recommended an interim dividend of INR 5.50 per share. Friday, shares of ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co ended at INR 2,020.95 on National Stock Exchange, down 1%. The earnings were announced after market hours.  End

Edited by Vidhi Verma

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