Daily Archives: September 14, 2010

Assets, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Management, Financial Services, Insurance, Insurance Services, Money

LV Announces Strong Performance In First Half Of 2010

LV=, the mutual insurance, retirement and investment group, has announced a strong performance in the first half of 2010, with sales and trading profits significantly up on the same period of 2009.

Life cover sales are up 40% to £63.5m on an APE (Annual Premium Equivalent) basis, compared to £45.2m in the first half of 2009. This includes retirement business seeing a 36% increase with an APE of £48.3 (H1 2009: £35.4m) while protection and savings businesses saw a 55% increase with an APE of £15.2m (H1 2009: £9.8m).

General insurance GWP (Gross Written Premiums) were up 37% to £546.4m (H1 2009: £397.5m), this includes including new business GWP up by
39% to £85.0m (H1 2009: £61.3m). The results also confirm that LV= is now fourth biggest private car insurer (according to FSA returns 2009).

In asset management (LVAM), investment performance shows continued strong outperformance against benchmark for the with-profits portfolio. 85% of eligible funds are ranked in the first or second quartile of their peer groups for performance in the first six months of 2010 while H1 2010 sales exceed the total for 2009 (excluding third party institutional sales).

Mike Rogers, LV= group chief executive, commented: “Although the market environment remains challenging, our focus has paid off enabling us to
continue to grow profitably across the LV= Group. Our trading performance in terms of both sales and profitability was significantly up on the same period last year.

“In the life business, pensions and annuities spearheaded a strong performance, driven partly by legislation change moving the retirement age from 50 to 55. Profitability in life was also enhanced by improved cost control and by our development of new IFA accounts.

Via EPR Network
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Assets, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Management, Financial Services, Insurance, Insurance Services, Money

LV= Research Suggests That Poor Sighted Drivers Put Lives At Risk

LV= has revealed new research conducted amongst motorists that shows many drivers are still getting behind the wheel, despite having poor eye sight.

The research conducted by LV= car insurance reveals that 4.2 million drivers who don’t currently wear glasses admitted their vision was ‘not perfect’ although they still drive and 1.1 million drivers who are prescribed glasses or lenses for driving said they don’t always wear them whilst behind the wheel.

Among the 53% of motorists that don’t currently wear prescribed glasses or lenses, the statistics reveal that nearly a quarter (23%) confess that their eyesight is ‘not perfect’, and around one in ten (11%) admit to finding it difficult to see at night and one in twenty (6%) say they struggle to see in poor weather.

Yet despite these problems a third of these motorists say they haven’t had their eyes tested in the last five years with a further one in eight (13%) saying they either had a test over ten years ago or they have simply never bothered.

Aside from the number plate reading test in the driving exam, drivers are not currently legally required to have an eye test until they are 70 years old, although medical experts recommend that all drivers have an eye test at least every two years, regardless of whether they think their eyesight is okay for driving.

And in a test among 256 randomly selected drivers, one in ten (9%) were unable to make out a number plate just over 20 metres away on their first attempt. This rose to 18% of all drivers aged 55 and over5.

If motorists drive when they cannot see clearly and do not meet the visual requirements, they could be fined £1,000, receive three penalty points or be disqualified from driving. If drivers are involved in an accident caused by their lack of vision they could be charged with reckless or dangerous driving and potentially face a prison sentence.

Via EPR Network
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