An accident management firm has bucked the gloomy industry trend by announcing massive profit and turnover rises.

The Newcastle-based Winn Group, which includes the brands Winn Solicitors, Winn Legal, On Medial and On Hire, increased turnover by 139% to £235m in 2022/23. Profit before tax leapt by 56% to £24.7m for the year.

The group appears to have benefitted from claims management companies exiting the personal injury market following the launch of the whiplash claims portal and the increasing revenues from vehicle repair and hire charges.

The business now employs 535 people from its base in Byker but aims to increase this to around 700 over the next 12-18 months.

Chief executive Chris Birkett said: ‘Our continued growth not only reflects how we have benefitted from the challenges our competitors have faced; it has also been driven by our commitment to being a trusted business partner delivering an exceptional service.

‘Winn has successfully adapted to the persistent and significant reduction in legal fees which now account for just 7.2% of our turnover. We have shown the ability to not just ride out the storm in the legal market, but to flourish when many others have fallen by the wayside.’

As well as vehicle hire, repair and personal injury claims, the group also offers an in-house insurance product as part of a one-stop-shop service.

Jeff Winn

Jeff Winn, executive chairman

Jeff Winn, executive chairman, said the set-up of the company means that it can process claims without the involvement of external third parties. In the last year the group has handled around 60,000 claimants and settled 98% of cases successfully. 

The group intends to continue to invest in technology but says it wants to achieve the ‘right balance’ between human-based customer interaction and AI cloud-based processes.

‘Our medium-term target is to markedly grow our EBITDA which we have done successfully over the last two years,’ added Winn. ‘Whilst we do not rule out acquisitions, our primary focus is organic growth which delivers scale without significant injections of fresh capital.

‘We have witnessed rapid changes to the legal landscape, particularly the substantial reduction in fees brought about by changes in legislation. At Winn we have embraced the change and focussed on delivering comprehensive in-house services that go beyond legal support.’

 

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