Sabre Insurance on track despite ongoing premium weakness

(Sharecast News) - Motor insurance underwriter Sabre Insurance reiterated its guidance for steady annual profits despite a sharp drop in premiums this year. Gross written premiums by the end of the third quarter were £151.7m, down 18.7% on the first nine months of 2024, driven by a 19.6% drop in premiums at the core motor vehicle division to £133.1m.

Taxi premiums were down 22% at £9.9m, while motorcycle premiums grew 6.1% to £8.7m.

Nevertheless, the company said that pricing discipline means that policies continued to be written within that targeted margin range of 18-22%.

"I continue to be pleased with our performance at the Q3 stage of 2025," said chief executive Geoff Carter.

"Our long-term focus on margins over volume means we are confident of delivering a strong full-year result with profits in-line with 2024 with a very robust capital position, despite market-wide motor premium pricing weakness for large parts of 2025."

In recent weeks, Carter said the business has experienced "positive momentum" in weekly premium levels with modest growth returning in the core motor book - though this is driven by pricing initiatives rather than a market turnaround.

The company said that continued strong capital generation has bolstered its confidence in the ability to make "an attractive capital distribution at year-end".

Shares were 3.7% higher at 134.8p by 0926 BST.