Tower says gross written premium grew 3% in the year to September 30 and it will not need to use all its annual large event allowance.

The New Zealand insurer now expects underlying net profit of $NZ69-$NZ79 million ($55.4-$63.5 million), compared with previous guidance of $NZ55-$NZ65 million ($44.2-$52.2 million).

While conditions were more typical after unusually favourable claims the previous year, only about $NZ25 million ($20.1 million) of Tower’s large event allowance was used. This will increase underlying profit by $NZ14 million ($11.2 million) after tax.

“Customer growth remains strong, with customer numbers increasing by 8% in the year to 345,000 ... driven primarily by growth in New Zealand home insurance policies and new and existing partnerships delivering scale,” Tower said. 

Competitive pricing is supporting growth, the company says, while expanded risk-based pricing is strengthening portfolio quality and reducing exposure to weather impacts. 

Tower will release full financial results on November 26.