The company continued expanding in 2007, with the acquisition of four bodyshops.

Nationwide reported pre-tax profit before non-recurring items up 15 per cent to £6.8m.

Earnings per share before non-recurring items were up 26 per cent to 11.3p and net cash at year end was £5.2m.

Major contract wins for the company during the year included new customers Hastings Direct and Zenith, as well as contract extensions with existing customers Norwich Union, AXA and Zurich.

Michael Marx, chairman of Nationwide, said: “It is encouraging to have achieved such pleasing results whilst laying strong foundations for future growth.

“We are focused on developing customer relationships which will enable us to leverage our scale and operational efficiencies to the benefit of both Nationwide and our customers.”

Chief executive Michael Wilmshurst added: “Overall, the market consolidation we highlighted in last year's report continues, with a considerable number of insurance companies reducing the number of repairers to which they send work.

“With our skilled team, national coverage and sophisticated IT package, we believe that we are well positioned to benefit from ongoing consolidation.”