By Bisi Bamishe
Inspite of the challenges posed by COVID-19 pandemic, Unitrust Insurance recorded Gross Premium Written (GPW) of N3.98billion in 2020, representing a year-on-year growth rate of 13 per cent when compared to the previous year.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the underwriting company, John Ijerheime, disclosed this today during a courtesy visit by the executive members of National Association of Insurance and Pension Correspondents (NAIPCO) to the company’s head office in Lagos.
According to him, the company’s underwriting total profit improved significantly by rising to N802.19 million in 2020, from N301.759 million recorded in 2019. While N1.8 billion was paid as claims, Profit After Tax (PAT) for the year stood at N747.17 million in 2020.
Ijerheime reiterated that against the backdrop of challenges that characterised the year, Unitrust lnsurance delivered an outstanding performance across key metrics.
“Indeed, 2020 was a year that will be remembered for its unprecedented disruptions, which were primarily attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and its multidimensional impacts on global economies. Yet, in the face of prevailing circumstances the Company delivered impressive results during the year.
“Our business growth model is driven by structural analysis of our Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunity and Threats (SWOT) for responsive bonding irrespective of the challenging situations. We have by this result, demonstrated our robust capacity and sustainable execution of our strategic growth plans,” he submitted.
On 2021 half year performance, he stated that as at July 31, 2021, the company had generated N3.7 billion premium, which was closed to what it did in the full year of 2020, adding that Unitrust anticipates closing the year with over N5 billion. Meanwhile, the company has paid over N400 million claims this year.
Chairman of NAIPCO, Chuks Udo Okonta, used the visit to abreast the management of the company of the initiatives adopted by the association to contribute immensely towards the development of insurance sector.
He spoke on the association’s flagship products, tagged profiling which include; product profiling, claims profiling, management profiling and advert to news initiative.
According to him, claims profiling helps in showcasing companies claims payment history for a period of five years, while product profiling focuses on the benefits of arrays of products paraded by companies and management profiling helps showcase the pedigree of individuals steering the affairs of companies.
The advert to news, he said, was developed to help the public understand fully the concepts of the contents of advertorials published by companies.