19 February 2024 , 11:13
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Moneysupermarket Group has seen a boost in profits thanks to record sales.
This is due to more people switching their car and home insurance to find better deals, as insurance costs have spiralled. The company, which helps customers compare deals, saw an 8% increase in pre-tax profits to £92.1 million for 2023. Sales also went up by 11%, reaching £432.1 million.
Over the year, there was a 28% rise in insurance revenues. This was driven by high premium prices, which led to more people switching. The company said: "Exceptionally high premium inflation continued, driving high search traffic in the quarter and fuelling high levels of switching in car and in home."
However, it noted that the increase in car premium costs started to level out towards the end of the year. The group expects it will be harder to match the same levels of insurance revenues over 2024, especially in the second half.
Moneysupermarket didn't see much revenue from energy switching and doesn't expect this to improve over the next year. Peter Duffy, the chief executive of Moneysupermarket Group, said: "We helped customers save a record £2.7 billion in 2023. The more we can help households save, the more the group grows."
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The group, known for its Moneysupermarket.com TV ads featuring actress Dame Judi Dench, revealed that car insurance premiums have shot up by 35% until the end of November, while home cover has also increased by 34%. Insurance companies have been raising their prices to balance out the growing costs of repairs and labour in the industry.
According to Moneysupermarket, "The combination of high levels of premium price inflation and the cost-of-living squeeze resulted in high levels of search traffic with consumers seeking a better deal,"
This has helped makeup for the loss of energy switching business. However, there's been less demand for borrowing and mortgage switching due to rising interest rates after the Bank of England raised them to a 15-year high of 5.25% last year.
They said: "Within our banking product lines, current accounts performed strongly as customers looked to lock in high savings rates and promotional switching incentives. 2023 was our best ever year for current account switching, with attractive deals available across a range of providers."