ARAG reports 10th year in profit as company prepares for Covid-19 challenges
Published on 02/07/2020
While the company has identified a number of significant challenges created by the ongoing global pandemic, its high solvency ratio and the strong position recently reported by the global ARAG Group put the business in a good place to overcome them.
ARAG’s gross written premium under management increased by more than 6 per cent in 2019 to £40.1 million (2018: £37.8 million) and the company reported a pre-tax profit of £0.5 million in the UK, generating a total of £3.7m in profit for the ARAG international group.
Growth in the BTE market was strongest for its family and commercial legal protection products, while the ongoing recovery of outstanding ATE premiums began after the landmark Court of Appeal judgment in West v Stockport NHS Foundation Trust and Demouilpied v Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, in July.
Last year, the company was also instrumental in the Group’s acquisition and subsequent launch of ARAG Legal Protection Limited in Ireland, which was completed in December.
Our success in 2019 inevitably looks almost irrelevant in the light of the huge challenges facing our industry and the whole world amidst the continuing pandemic,
commented Managing Director, Tony Buss.
However, the decade of restrained growth and the strength of our international group mean that we are in the best possible position to confront them.
Clearly, trading conditions are going to be extremely difficult for most businesses and we have revised our expectations for 2020. We’re preparing for an increase in claims, especially for employment and commercial contract disputes, while the uncertainties of Brexit and the recently postponed implementation of the Civil Liability Act remain.
However, our teams have adapted exceptionally well to the new working world that we all have to accommodate, and the pandemic has highlighted the value of legal protection and assistance products. So, we remain cautious but optimistic about ARAG’s future success.
Notes to Editors
ARAG plc is part of the global ARAG Group, the largest family-owned enterprise in the German insurance industry. Founded in 1935, on the principle that every citizen should be able to assert their legal rights, ARAG now employs more than 4,300 people in 19 countries around the world and generates revenue and premium income totaling almost €1.8 billion.
Operating in the UK since 2006, ARAG plc provides a comprehensive suite of ‘before-the-event’ and ‘after-the-event’ legal insurance products and assistance solutions to protect both businesses and individuals.
Contacts
Rachael Wornes, Marketing Manager, ARAG UK, 0117 917 1578, pressoffice@arag.co.uk
Paul Jacobs, Director, Consultable, 079 0982 1731, paul@consultable.co.uk
Disclaimer - all information in this article was correct at time of publishing.
