ICICI Lombard Q2 net up 32% to Rs 591 cr on reversal of tax provision

Gross direct premium income up 17% to Rs 5,185 cr; combined ratio, which indicates underwriting discipline, stable at 105.1%

Aided by a reversal of tax provision, ICICI Lombard General Insurance’s net profit jumped 32 per cent to Rs 591 crore in the July-September quarter (Q2FY23), from Rs 447 crore in the same period last year.

Its gross direct premium income was up 17 per cent to Rs 5,185 crore in Q2FY23 compared to Rs 4,424 crore in the same period a year ago. Its gross and net earned premium was up 18 per cent during the same period to Rs 5,503 crore and Rs 3,387 crore, respectively.

The company’s combined ratio, which indicates an insurer’s discipline in underwriting policies, remained stable at 105.1 per cent.  A ratio below 100 percent indicates that the company is making an underwriting profit. Combined ratio of the insurer in Q2FY22 was 105.3 per cent and in FY22 was 108.8 per cent.

The company increased the share of health insurance in its portfolio from 22 per cent in FY22 to 27 per cent in H1FY23. On the other hand, the share of motor insurance, its largest business, dipped to 35 per cent in H1FY23 from 46 per cent in FY22.

The company posted a solvency ratio of 2.47 against the regulatory requirement of 1.5.

The incurred claims ratio -- the total claims settled by an insurer to the total insurance premiums received by the insurance company over a period – of the insurer was slightly higher at 72.8 per cent in Q2FY23 compared to 69.8 per cent in Q2FY22.

The board of directors of the company recommended an interim dividend of Rs 4.50 per equity share with a face value of Rs 10 each for the year to date ended September 30, 2022. Shares of the insurer closed at Rs 1,149.70, up 1.54 per cent from the previous days’ close, on the BSE.