Rockford is second buy for personal lines giant
Swinton’s acquisition of Rockford is a significant move for the personal lines giant.
It is the group’s second commercial broker buy in recent months. In March, Insurance Times revealed that Swinton would begin buying commercial brokers as part of its plans to ramp up its SME offering.
Swinton is aiming to exceed over £100m in premium income over the next two years – achieved through organic growth and acquisition. The company’s chief executive Patrick Smith says a “significant number” of commercial acquisitions are set to follow.
In April Swinton acquired Vectis, based in the Isle of Wight, giving the company its first foothold in the high street commercial broking market.
Its purchase of Rockford, which has a premium income of £15m, provides Swinton with three offices in the north of England.
Swinton says the latest deal “will substantially increase its B2B offering and will complement the work of its existing commercial arm, Swinton Business”.
Rockford is larger in size than Swinton had previoulsy indicated it would look to acquire.
In addition to its corporate commercial client base, Rockford also specialises in the motor trade, education and medical sectors, which Swinton highlighted as making it attractive.
