Agency chief executive forsakes £1m in bonuses during Covid

The annual report of a major estate agency has revealed that its chief executive took two large cuts to bonus payments last year, as part of Covid cutbacks.

Mark Ridley, chief executive of Savills, had a total remuneration in 2019 of £2,144,035; but in 2020 that fell to £1,203,087.

Ridley’s headline salary fell slightly from £289,000 in 2019 to £249,750 in 2020 although his fixed remuneration - including pension contributions - rose slightly over the year.

However, whereas Ridley in 2019 received £1,047,770 as part of the company\s annual profit share, this fell in 2020 to £575,900.

And in 2019 he received £755,770 as deferred shares in the company’s profit share process - but in 2020 he received only £280,900.

Savills’ chief financial officer also took a substantial cut: total remuneration in 2019, including profit share bonuses, came to £1,626,479 whereas in 2020 this was £918,639.

In May last year the agency announced it was donating over £800,000 to nominated charities across the UK, including those directly relating to NHS projects for both front line workers as well as those impacted by the virus, care workers and care for the elderly, homelessness and food banks for vulnerable people, refuge and women’s aid, mental health and action for children.

In June 2020 it explained that it had implemented senior management salary cuts of 20 per cent across the group and cancelling shareholders’ 2019 final dividend.