Major insurers boast promising financial strength

Results from Money Management’s annual survey of the financial strength of life offices show that they are weathering the financial storm well.

Small mutual Teacher’s Assurance once again ranked first in terms of realistic free asset ratio (FAR), although all companies experienced a dip in their assets meaning that the average was lower than last year’s. Teacher’s, in top spot, found its FAR had fallen from 38.7% last year to 32.9% this year.

Major changes that will be seen in this year’s results are the mergers of Phoenix & London into Phoenix Life, and Royal Liver into Royal London. As well as this, Friends Life Company is looking stronger, having settled from its transition from Axa Sun Life.

Notably missing from this year’s survey is major player Legal & General, which does skew the results somewhat; it says it does not currently have the resources to complete surveys.

Though there are changes in rankings and holdings, life offices are largely looking steady again this year, which will be good news to with profits policyholders.

Full results can be found in the August edition of Money Management, which will soon land online and in print.