Zenith Insurance Records N12.5bn Gross Premium, Pays N6.7bn Claims

Stories by Ebere Nwoji

Zenith Insurance has recorded a gross premium written of N12.5billion, an increase of 12 percent from the N11.116 billion recorded in the previous year.

The company also recorded a gross premium income of N12.806 billion in 2017, up from N11.187 billion in 2016, while net premium income stood at N8.090 billion compared with N7.446 billion in 2016.

Similarly, fees and commission income rose by 37 per cent from N907 million in 2016 to N1.245 billion in 2017.

Also, the company’s financial statements, which were approved by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) on the 20th of April 2018, showed healthy net assets of N23 billion, one of the highest in the Nigerian Insurance Industry.

The company has a solvency ratio of 634 per cent in 2017, meaning that it is able to cover its minimum regulatory solvency requirement six times over.

The results showed that net underwriting income also rose from N8.354 billion in 2016 to N9.336 billion while the profit before tax dropped to N4.750 billion from N5.927 billion in 2016 owing to the high claims, increase in management expenses and high taxation expenses.

However, the company’s stellar performance shone through with a return on equity of 15.5 per cent despite the strong economic headwinds in 2017.

The company’s claims paid out in 2017 stood at N6.7 billion, representing an increase of 36 per cent from the N4.7 billion paid out in 2016 and a total claims ratio of 58 per cent in 2017.