Shares in Hastings, the insurer which makes most of its sales through price comparison websites, have lost 43 per cent in the past two years, closing yesterday at 185¼p. That is a lacklustre return for a company which floated four years ago at 170p a share (Katherine Griffiths writes).
The Bexhill-based company was set up to be a new type of insurer, with low costs and a focus on direct sales. Its growth raced away on the back of playing nimbly in the price comparison market, which accounts for just over 90 per cent of its business. Hastings now has almost 8 per cent of the UK car insurance market.
The company is not entirely responsible for its limp share price performance. The general