Bhargav Dasgupta, MD & CEO, ICICI Lombard General Insurance
The insurer has combined ratio, one of the key measures of profitability for general insurers, of 103.20 per cent in q4 FY 2021-22,as against 101.80 per cent in year-ago period
The insurer’s underwriting losses escalated in the reporting quarter to Rs 308.98 crore as compared to Rs 91.29 crore in the year ago period
For the full year 2021-22, the profit after tax or net profit declined 14 percent to Rs 1,271 crore from Rs 1,473 crore in the preceding fiscal year
Mumbai:
ICICI Lombard General Insurance, the second largest general insurer in the country, on Thursday, reported a 10 percent decline in net profit at Rs 313 crore due to covid claims and higher expenses for the fourth quarter of FY2021-22.
The non-life insurer had posted a net profit of Rs 346 crore in the corresponding period of 2020-21.
The insurer has combined ratio, one of the key measures of profitability for general insurers, of 103.20 per cent in q4 FY 2021-22,as against 101.80 per cent in the year-ago period.
Any combined ratio of above 100 means, the general insurer has paid more claims over premiums.
The insurer’s underwriting losses escalated in the reporting quarter to Rs 308.98 crore as compared to Rs 91.29 crore in the year ago period.
It paid total claims worth of Rs 1,915.21 crore in Q4FY22, up 15 per cent from Rs 1,665. 52 crore in the year ago period. In the preceding quarter (Q3FY22), it had paid claims to the tune of Rs 2,083.23 crore.
The gross direct premium income (GDPI) of the company stood at Rs 4,666 crore in the quarter under review as compared to Rs 3,478 crore in the year-ago period, ICICI Lombard said in a statement.
The insurer’s capital gains were at Rs 136 crore in Q4 FY2022 as compared Rs 66 crore in year ago period.
Bhargav Dasgupta, MD & CEO, ICICI Lombard General Insurance said the insurer has paid a total Covid-19 claims of Rs556 crore during 2021-22.
“We have not increased retail health premium but had increased group health premium since last July,” said Dasgupta adding that going ahead health business will grow faster than other business for the company.
Total expenses including claims paid increased 34 per cent to Rs 3627 crore from Rs 2708 crore a year ago and was higher than the Rs 3581 crore reported in December 2021.
The company said the higher expenses were due to current accounting norms which require upfronting of sourcing cost whereas benefit of earned premium will be realised over policy period,
Operating expenses also remained elevated mainly due to higher advertising and publicity expenses increasing 62 per cent to Rs 866 crore in the fourth quarter from Rs 535 crore a year ago.
The company has proposed a final dividend of Rs 5 per share for FY22, it said, adding that the overall dividend including the proposed final dividend is Rs 9 per share.
The solvency ratio was 2.46 times in March-end 2022 as against 2.45 times on December 31, 2021, and higher than the minimum regulatory requirement of 1.50 times.
The solvency ratio was 2.90 times on March 31, 2021.
With a gross premium of Rs 17,977 crore, for the full year 2021-22, the profit after tax or net profit declined 14 per cent to Rs 1,271 crore from Rs 1,473 crore in the preceding fiscal year.
It had a combined ratio of 108.80 per cent in 2021-22 as compared to to 99.81 per cent in the year ago period.
The company’s capital gains were at Rs 738 crore in FY2022 as against Rs 359 crore in FY2021.
Shares of the insurer closed 2.61 per cent higher at Rs 1,400.30 on the BSE.