About 3000 staff at Admiral are to receive free shares worth £1500 after the car insurer posted record half-year profits. It is on the way to record dividend payments too.

The company, which is also behind internet brands confused.com and elephant, today reported six-month pre-tax profits up 5% at £150 million and an interim dividend of 27.7p. The number of customers across the group jumped by almost a fifth to 1.92 million, with premiums written jumping 17% to £540.1 million.

In a statement to the Stock Exchange, chief executive Henry Engelhardt, an American who instructs his mainly Welsh staff to have fun at work, could not contain his excitement, saying: “Wow! Considering the general economic climate and pathetic investment returns, this was an outstanding result.

“It's a great set of numbers for the first half of the year and I'm very pleased to say that as a result every member of staff will receive £1500 of free shares in the group, worth over £4.5 million in total.”

Bermuda-based Lloyd's catastrophe insurer Hiscox also posted record half year pre-tax profits, up 30% at £141 million on premiums up by two fifths at £906 million. The interim dividend is ahead by 6% to 4.5p.