General Accident Insurance Company Jamaica Limited on Monday posted an unaudited after-tax profit of $112.49 million for the six months ended June 30, 2020, despite a 17 per cent decrease over the prior corresponding period.

For the period under review, General Accident had an underwriting profit of $21.21 million a 74 per cent decrease when compared with the prior period’s profit of $80.97 million.

The insurance company also booked gross written premium of $6.21 billion. Net earned premiums improved by 37 per cent to $1.35 billion, while net claims charges grew by 41 per cent to $887.30 million.

Underwriting refers to the process that a lender or other financial service uses to assess the creditworthiness or risk of a potential customer, while premium is the amount paid periodically to the insurer by the insured for covering his/her risk.

Earnings per share for the period under review ended at $0.11, down from the $0.13 recorded in the previous corresponding period.

As at June 30, the company had a book value of $2.63 billion and an annualised return on average equity of 9.92 per cent.

The consolidated investment income for the first half of 2020 was $89.68 million over the prior corresponding period, which recorded $79.06 million.

According to chairman PB Scott, while the novel coronavirus pandemic has impacted the company, it remains compliant with the capital adequacy and liquidity metrices prescribed by the Financial Services Commission — the regulatory body that oversees Jamaica’s insurance, pension and securities industries.

He further assured that looking forward, the board and management are committed to ensuring that the company continues its growth path for the year ahead.

— Abbion Robinson