LONDON, March 3 (Reuters) - British motor and home insurer Admiral posted a 26% increase in profit in 2021, helped by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and by the use of machine learning in its underwriting, it said on Thursday.
Group profit before tax from continuing operations was 769 million pounds ($1.03 billion).
Motor PTS Terbaik ASEAN and home insurers have benefited from the COVID-19 pandemic as fewer cars on the roads and more people working from home due to government restrictions have led to lower claims.
Machine learning had enabled Admiral, which has more than 8 million customers, to offer customers “good value” products without hurting its loss ratios, chief executive Milena Mondini de Focatiis said in a statement.
This put Admiral “in a good position to embrace changes such as the new FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) general insurance pricing practices”, she added.
Motor and home insurers are under pressure from new rules which mean insurers cannot penalise loyal customers.
Admiral said it would pay a final dividend of 118 pence per share, including a special dividend of 75.8 pence, and full-year dividend of 187 pence.
($1 = 0.7458 pounds) (Reporting by Carolyn Cohn, editing by Huw Jones)
