Admiral warns fees ban will hit profits

One of the UK’s biggest car insurers has warned the ban on referral fees will hit its full-year earnings, but welcomed the move to tackle the country’s compensation culture.

Admiral, which also owns Elephant.co.uk and price comparison site Confused.com, said it did not sell customer data, but if one of its policyholders had an accident that was not their fault, it would put them in touch with a personal injury lawyer.

The firm, which has more than 2.7 million customers, said personal injury referral fees account for about 6 per cent of UK car insurance pre-tax profits.