British insurance company Aviva announced that general insurance (GI) premiums increased by 19% in the first quarter of 2026, reaching 3.4 billion pounds, and the group’s undiscounted combined ratio improved to 94.1%.
By comparison, in the first quarter of 2025, the insurer’s GI premiums were £2.9 billion, with a combined ratio of 96.6%.
UK and Country I GI premiums increased 26% to £2.5 billion compared to £2.0 billion reported in Q1 2025.
Personal lines contributed 59% to growth, supported by the acquisition of Direct Line and growth in intermediate channels. Commercial lines declined 7%, reflecting the impact of the rating environment partially offset by strong retention rates.
Canadian GI premiums amounted to £900 million, up 3% year-on-year, with individual premiums rising 4% on the back of rate action and commercial premiums rising 1%, reflecting wins in the GCS program partially offset by the ratings environment.
In the first quarter of 2026, the group’s undiscounted consolidated operating ratio (COR) improved by 2.5 percentage points, down from 96.6% reported in the first quarter of 2025. The results included improvements across all markets on the back of strong rate adequacy and better weather experiences.
The discounted COR was 90.0%, down from 92.9% in the first quarter of 2025.
Group CEO Amanda Blanc said: “We delivered another quarter of strong trading, building momentum for 2026. Despite global market volatility, we delivered profitable growth at Aviva, once again demonstrating the strength of our market leading position and diversified business model.”
She continued: “We have made excellent progress in general insurance, with premiums up 19% in the UK, Ireland and Canada and profitability improving significantly. The integration of Direct Line is firmly on track to become even more profitable, with the number of policies sold through the price comparison site almost doubling since the start of the year. In wealth, where we are the number one player, we once again delivered a very positive performance with net traffic up 49% to £3.3 billion.”
“Our workplace pensions business performed particularly well, with a 71% increase in net flows and another successful end to the tax year, with significant inflows across our advisory platform and direct wealth business.”
Aviva also reported expected Solvency II shareholder coverage of 171%, compared with 180% in the first quarter of 2025.
The company’s pension sales rose 4% in Q1’25 to £1.8bn, compared with £1.7bn in Q1’24, driven by higher personal annuity and share issuance volumes. BPA sales were £1.3 billion, broadly in line with the first quarter of 2024.
These results reinforce the insurer’s confidence in achieving its 2028 group targets, which include operating earnings per share CAGR of 11% and IFRS return on equity >20%; and cumulative cash remittances in excess of £7 billion.
Blanc concluded: “We have made a strong start to 2026. Our continued strong trading performance, high-quality balance sheet and diverse leading businesses give us confidence in our ability to deliver on the group’s objectives and deliver further results for our clients and shareholders this year.”