AIB's life assurance arm has reported a sharp drop in sales for last year, though its sales were slightly ahead when the effects of strong SSIA sales in 2002 are stripped out.
Ark Life sales, measured by annual premium equivalent (APE), were €103.7m last year, compared with €162.1m in 2002. Excluding SSIAs, sales rose from €100m to €102.2m.
APE, which includes 10% of new single premium sales plus 100% of regular premium sales, is the standard measure for life assurance companies.
Ark Life managing director Billy Finn said the life and pensions market was down overall in 2003, but had seen a strong recovery in the second half of the year, with APE growth of 40% in the period.
Mr Finn said PRSAs, the Government's new personal pensions scheme, were beginning to have an impact. Ark Life said it had won a 24% share of the PRSA market.
He added, however, that the number of people with a pension still needed to increase from the current 50%. He suggested that the Government reward savers who transferred SSIA savings into a pension fund through additional tax relief or a lump sum pensions top-up. He said this would also help protect against overheating of the economy as SSIA savings became available in 2006.
A breakdown of the Ark Life figures showed that new regular premium business fell to €56.2m from €114.5m in 202, with new regular pensions up slightly at €29.7m. Sales of single premium investments were almost flat at €475m.
