Appliance insurer Domestic & General Group PLC turned in a 4.4 pct rise in interim pretax profit and said it is set for further progress in the second half of the year.
D&G, which provides warranties on household goods sold across the UK and Europe, said pretax profit for the six months to Sept 30 came in at 18.9 mln stg, up from 18.1 mln stg in the same period last year.
The improvement reflected strong growth in warranty profits, which jumped 17 pct on the year to 13.8 mln stg. D&G said it benefited from reduced claims expenses thanks to a growing emphasis on electronic goods such as flat screen televisions, which break down less frequently than kitchen appliances.
Chief executive John Pearmund told AFX News the group sold five times more warranties on flatscreen televisions than in the first half of 2005.
‘Innovative products such as flatscreen televisions are theoretically a good area for us. The boom in flatscreen TVs seems to be continuing longer than expected,’ he said in a telephone interview.
He added that revenues are expected to increase in the second half, boosted by traditionally strong sales of household appliances in the run-up to Christmas. However, any increase in warranty sales will be partly offset by higher claims expenses due to a seasonal rise in the number of malfunctioning heating devices.