Brit announces relocation to The Netherlands as profit falls
Brit Insurance is relocating its corporate headquarters to The Netherlands.
The UK-domiciled general insurance and reinsurance group announced the news as it reported a pre-tax profit of £89.2 million for 2008, against pre-tax profit of £191.2 million a year earlier.
The company has been examining relocation options since last summer, when together with a number of other businesses it voiced protests over Treasury proposals to increase the amount of tax UK-based firms pay on overseas earnings.
Returning to the insurer’s results, the group reported gross written premiums (GWP) of £1394.6 million, up from £1264.9 million in 2007. At Brit UK, GWP for 2008 soared 28.0%, to £350.6 million.
The company also revealed that overall Brit UK rates fell by 0.8% during 2008, compared with a drop of 4.5% in 2007.
With regard to the firm’s reinsurance and global markets business, these recorded falls in annualised rates of 2.0% and 3.3% respectively, compared with an 0.8% decline for reinsurance and a gain of 1.5% for global markets in 2007.
Commenting on the results, chief executive, Dane Douetil, said: “In a difficult year for insurance, our adherence to the principles of our strategy has led us to a strong result. Market conditions are improving further in most areas, our strong balance sheet and the subscription nature of much of our business are attractive to risk buyers and stand us in good stead for 2009.”
Brit’s proposed move to The Netherlands will be subject to requisite regulatory clearances and approvals.
Category: Brit Insurance News, Employment News, Financials, Insurance News
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