Guardian Life President and CEO Earl Moore (right) entertains Prime Minister Bruce Golding, who was guest speaker at the company's annual staff awards and luncheon at the Hilton Kingston hotel, Wednesday. - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer

Guardian Life Limited made $6.3 billion of sales last year, a 14 per cent increase in business for the Jamaican insurance company.

The company's net premium income, after expenses to sell policies, was $3.7 billion, up 19 per cent over the 2006 results.

President Earl Moore, who disclosed the figures Tuesday, said that Guardian was able to eke out growth while the industry had suffered a year-on-year decline in annualised premium income.

Over the year, Guardian's employee benefits division added 50 new group clients "covering over 20,000 lives", and 118 new schemes, increasing the enrollees by 58 per cent.

Its group life premiums rose by a third, while the business done under the Medecus health scheme shot up by 60 per cent.

On the flip side, Guardian paid out $2.6 billion to policyholders, 22 per cent more than last year's, and approximately 28 per cent of total industry payouts.

"The year end IAJ figures reveal that cash disbursements totalled $9 billion, an increase of 31 per cent over 2006," said Moore.

"In some cases it is good to be below average and this is one of them."

In 2006, the insurance industry wrote premiums of $18.5 billion setting a new record, and disbursed $9.02 billion to policyholders, according to figures supplied by the Insurance Association of Jamaica.

business@gleanerjm.com