Spring sales start early for Ecclesiastical and R&SA

Hastings Direct was shouting from the rooftops this week about being named “the UK's 17th most recognised motor insurance brand”. Interestingly, the insurer believed that now was the time to remove its mascot Harry, one of the most recognisable things about Hastings aside from the irritating TV theme tune, in favour of a skinnier, younger and slightly gormless looking replacement. Oh well, as the saying goes, the king is dead, long live the king. Meanwhile, PB has launched a campaign for them to re-start their sponsorship of Eastbourne. Nothing to do with the potential free tickets you understand.

Royal & SunAlliance and Ecclesiastical joined the ranks of insurers buying broking groups this week. The Fyfe Group, snapped up by R&SA on 6 February for an undisclosed amount, has informed its advisory panel that their services are no longer required, since following the takeover the business will now be run as an underwriting agency with RSA as the sole underwriter. Cue much cynicism about the broker treating its customers’ fairly and questions about whether Fyfe’s customers will be informed that their policies are now held by an underwriting agency with a single underwriter.

Ecclesiastical meanwhile has purchased South Essex Insurance Brokers and brought in a new board, though the staff and location will remain the same. Speaking exclusively to PB’s sister magazine Post, Steve Wood, managing director of Ecclesiastical’s UK and Ireland business said that the acquisition was not necessarily a sign of things to come, but that Ecclesiastical wouldn’t rule out further broker purchases in the coming months. SEIB’s former director and future deputy chairman Barry Fehler, who picked up the achievement award and marketing campaign of the year award at the Broker Awards last year, admitted “mixed feelings” about the sale, but said Ecclesiastical proved to be the one the broker wanted. Fehler added that he didn’t envisage any “day-to-day” input from the insurer.

I took a trip to Leicester on Valentine’s Day to meet Berkeley Burke and though the main interview was on a completely different topic, I couldn’t help but ask about the commercial broker’s latest office opening in Luton and the subsequent rumours accusing BB of pinching Oval’s staff. Asked if they would like to put the story straight, group chief executive officer Tim Maxted and chief executive Andy Bedford replied: “We are very much in the process of discussing it and it would be wrong of us to make any comment at the moment. Our view is that out of courtesy we’ll talk to them rather than the press first.” So there you are.

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