Hibernian sales rise 27% since January

Life and pensions group Hibernian recorded a 27 per cent growth in sales to €741 million (£504 million sterling) for…

Life and pensions group Hibernian recorded a 27 per cent growth in sales to €741 million (£504 million sterling) for the first nine months of the year, according to figures released by its British parent company Aviva today.

Single premium sales rose by more than 100 per cent to €411 million (£280 million).

Pension sales grew by 24 per cent in the period to €495 million (£337 million), while life sales increased 36 per cent to €245.5 million (£167 million).

Aviva reported its nine-month life and pension sales in line with market expectations, with a strong performance in continental Europe offsetting flat sales in the UK market.

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The biggest insurer in Britain said life and pension sales for the nine months to September 30th came in at £16.260 billion, in line with analysts' forecasts.

Total sales including investment products came in at £17.933 billion, 12 per cent up on the same period last year.

The improvement was driven by robust growth in Europe, where life and pensions sales rose 20 per cent on the year to £8.778 billion. In contrast, UK life sales dipped 3 per cent to £6.586 billion.

Total sales In the UK stood at £7.441 billion, slightly higher than the £7.438 billion in the previous nine-month period.

Aviva has achieved strong growth in Europe over the past two years through distribution agreements with retail banks. But progress in the UK has been held back by a slower overall market growth rate, and by stiff competition from the likes of Prudential, Legal & General, and Friends Provident.

"This is another strong performance from our international portfolio of life businesses. Bancassurance continues to go from strength to strength and is a key part of our multi-distribution approach," Aviva chief executive Richard Harvey said.