OREANDA-NEWS. On 27 August 2009 was announced, that according to preliminary statistics, the total premiums collected by the insurance companies of SOGAZ Group in the first six months of 2009 amounted to RUR 44.5 billion, or 25% more than in the similar period of 2008 (RUR 35.6 billion). At the same time, the total volume of insurance indemnity rose by 44% to RUR 28 billion (RUR 19.4 billion in the first half of 2008). The net profits of the Group’s members in the first half of 2009 amounted to RUR 3.2 billion.

The volume of premiums collected by the Group’s key member, OJSC SOGAZ grew by 6% to RUR 23.2 billion. The company’s total volume of voluntary insurance premiums (except life insurance) in the period under review reached RUR 22.8 billion, up 6% year-on-year. The highest growth rate was registered by the company in voluntary medical insurance, which gained 36% (up to RUR 11.4 billion as compared with RUR 8.4 in the first half of 2008). Property insurance premiums rose by 17% to RUR 9.4 billion, while liability insurance collections went down by 18% (from RUR 2 billion to RUR 1.6 billion). Personal insurance (except life insurance) premiums collected by OJSC SOGAZ amounted to RUR 12.2 billion (up 3%). The total volume of compensations paid by OJSC SOGAZ in the period under review grew by 24% to RUR 8.5 billion (against RUR 6.8 billion in the first half of 2008).

Compulsory medical insurance premiums collected by SOGAZ Group reached RUR 18.8 billion, or 49% more than in the first six months of 2008 (RUR 12.7 billion), with indemnity amounting to RUR 18.3 billion (up 52%).

Based on the results of the first half of 2009, the assets of the insurance companies that make part of SOGAZ Group rose by 32% as compared with the similar period of 2008 and reached RUR 80.2 billion. The Group’s insurance reserves grew to RUR 54.4 billion (up 27%). The total equity of the companies within SOGAZ Group increased by 42% to RUR 15.3 billion.

“Despite a certain slowdown in the growth rates as compared with the last year we have managed to preserve the positive trend in premiums collection actually in all kinds of insurance“, says Chairman of the Management Board of SOGAZ Insurance Group, Vadim Yanov commenting on the results of the first half of the year. “The considerable increase of the premiums collected in the voluntary medical insurance sector is explained by a number of major insurance contracts signed with nuclear and power businesses in the first half year. Amid crisis conditions companies with sizable headcount prefer to use the services of the most reliable voluntary medical insurers”.