Aviva confirms financial position is "strong" as new sales increase by 40 per cent

A multinational insurance company has today announced that its sales for the first nine months of the year have risen by 40 per cent.

Aviva, headquartered in London, saw new business sales increase from £6.6bn to £9.2bn, which it said has been driven by a record £5bn of bulk purchase annuity sales.

The company has also predicted that its cost savings for the year will exceed £150m, and it is aiming to reduce costs by £300m by 2022.

This comes as the firm simplifies its portfolio, having recently sold various branches of its overseas business.

As part of the simplification plan, Aviva has also announced that it is implementing a new “sustainable” dividend policy, with dividends for 2020 confirmed to be 7.0 pence per share.

Amanda Blanc, CEO of Aviva, commented: “We are making good progress in our strategy to simplify Aviva’s portfolio and have recently announced the sale of Aviva Singapore and Aviva Vita in Italy for £2 billion.

“We are announcing today a new sustainable and resilient dividend policy, based on our core markets of the UK, Ireland and Canada.

“As we simplify Aviva’s portfolio, we will deliver further value to shareholders by returning excess capital above 180 per cent solvency cover ratio, once our debt leverage target ratio has been reached.

“Our trading performance is robust and our financial position is strong with a capital surplus of £11.8bn.

“The first nine months have demonstrated Aviva’s ability to grow in core markets where we have attractive, long-term growth prospects.

“Bulk purchase annuities sales increased to £5bn, which is a record for Aviva and commercial insurance premiums are up 9 per cent across the UK, Canada and Ireland.

“The response of our people to the Covid crisis has been nothing less than phenomenal and I would like to thank them for all they have done for our customers this year.

“We continue to work at pace to deliver our strategy, support our customers, and unlock value for Aviva shareholders.”