UK-based insurer Aviva has reported profit of £705m for the year ended 31 December 2024, a 36% decrease from £1.1bn in 2023.
The company’s insurance revenue for the period rose to £20.7bn, from £18.4bn in 2023.
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Fee and commission income also increased to £1.41bn, compared with £1.3bn the previous year.
The company reported 20% growth in group operating profit to £1.7bn, up from £1.4bn in 2023.
Cash remittances also saw a 5% increase, amounting to £1.99bn compared with the previous year.
General Insurance premiums surged by 14%, reaching £12.2bn.
UK&I General Insurance premiums rose by 16% to £7.6bn, while Canada General Insurance premiums grew by 11% to £4.5bn.
Aviva also announced a 7% increase in the final dividend per share, which rose to 23.8p per share from 22.3p in 2023.
The total dividend per share for the year increased by 7% to 35.7p, up from 33.4p the previous year.
In December last year, Aviva signed a preliminary agreement with Direct Line on the financial terms for a proposed buyout bid valued at £3.6bn, or 275p per share.
Looking ahead, the company is optimistic about future growth, following the proposed acquisition of Direct Line.
This acquisition is expected to drive Aviva’s trajectory, accelerating its progress towards achieving more than 70% of capital-light operating profit as synergies are realised.
Aviva is targeting an operating profit of £2bn by 2026.
Aviva Group CEO Amanda Blanc said: “2024 was an excellent year, right across Aviva. We made clear strategic progress and delivered another set of very good numbers, with higher sales, higher operating profit and a higher dividend. Over the last four and a half years we have completely transformed Aviva, built a track record of consistently strong results and returned £10bn to shareholders.
“The proposed acquisition of Direct Line is on track and is a clear opportunity to accelerate our capital-light growth, deliver brilliant service to millions more customers and support the wider development of the UK economy.
“There is so much untapped potential for Aviva to go after and I have real confidence in our ability to unlock this. So I am more excited about Aviva’s future than ever before, and I am personally looking forward to delivering this next phase of progress.”
Earlier this month, Aviva’s Indian unit was instructed to pay close to $7.5m in back taxes and penalties after an investigation by Indian tax authorities.
