RECORDS were smashed all round last year by Bradford-based cash plan provider Sovereign Health Care.

It achieved its highest ever turnover and paid out a record amount in claims to its customers.

Sovereign boosted turnover by £400,000 to £12 million during 2015 and had a pre-tax surplus of £2.2 million. The mutual's reserves continued to exceed solvency capital requirements, with its investment portfolio and cash deposits worth around £55 million at year end - £2.1million higher than in 2014.

It paid out claims totalling £7.2 million – the highest amount paid to policyholders since Sovereign was founded as the Bradford Hospital Fund in 1873.

Any surplus made by Sovereign, a company limited by guarantee based on Manningham Lane, is reinvested in the business or given by Gift Aid to the Sovereign Health Care Charitable Trust.

In 2015 the charitable trust received just under £500,000, allowing it to make donations of £691,000 to local good causes, equating to 25 per cent of Sovereign’s post-tax profits.

Dr Bob Dugdale, Sovereign chairman, said: “Our 2015 results show the great strides that Sovereign Health Care has made, which in turn enabled continued significant donations through the charitable trust. This is my second year as chairman and I am delighted that we have been able to build on past successes in this way.”

Russ Piper, chief executive, added: “As we entered the final full year of a pricing cycle, an increase in claims was to be expected. However, the level of that increase was unprecedented compared to previous years, and it is encouraging to know that our cash plans are relevant and helpful for our customers.

“Our charitable trust and the donations and grants we make are very important to us, so it’s essential that our business operates in a manner that enables us to make these donations. Being there for our customers and local communities when they need us most remains a key priority for Sovereign and I’m pleased to say that we certainly achieved that in 2015.”

The charitable trust made 183 grants to good causes in the Bradford area, with the largest single donation of more than £200,000 going to Bradford Hospital Crocus Cancer Appeal, enabling it to meet its funding target to buy a new mass spectrometer. Dr Chris Sutton and his team at the University of Bradford's Institute of Cancer Therapeutics are using the spectrometer to help analyse proteins in cancer cells more quickly, improving opportunities for the development of new cancer medicines.