Markerstudy unveils commercial broker spree

The Blagrove buy was the insurer's first foray into commercial motor. Prior to this the only commercial broker Markerstudy owned was Insurance Connections.

Mr Humphreys said the purchase highlighted the insurer's commitment to the SME arena. Overall Markerstudy has a target of adding £100m gross written premium to its books through commercial broker opportunities, making it a top 20 player in the commercial market.

Gary Humphreys, group underwriting director, said: "When Kevin and I established the firm, it was always the intention for the all the divisions to be roughly the same size but as time has gone on, the broking arm is now just a third of the size of the underwriting business. We have been looking to make acquisitions - it is just a matter of as and when."

When asked what kind of timeframe he was working towards, Mr Humphreys said: "We want to buy as soon as we can. We are looking at several potential acquisitions with one broker being worth £30m. One substantial acquisition is better for us than lots of small ones but we are fairly flexible".

Mr Humphreys said the firm was moving into commercial motor to take advantage of the hardening market in this sector.

"The 2010 Financial Services Authority headline figures may have been worse but if you look at the pure year 2010 there was a six point improvement in combined operating ratio compared to 2009. In 2011 we have seen continued rate increases so it is likely that the market will break even this year. Smaller niche players like us made money in 2010 and will continue to do so in 2011," he added.