Markel International, the specialty property and casualty insurer, has agreed to acquire Elliott Special Risks (ESR), a managing general agent in Canada.
The acquisition is expected to close on Oct. 1 and values ESR at CDN $75 million. In 2008 ESR reported gross premium income of CDN $113 million. ESR is being sold by Newport Partners Income Fund.
ESR provides insurance underwriting and administrative services on behalf of other insurers.
Markel said the acquisition is part of its plans to develop further its international portfolio of specialist insurance businesses. ESR will continue to trade under its own name as a wholly-owned Markel subsidiary.
The acquisition will make Markel International one of the leading players in the Canadian specialty insurance market and comes four years after the establishment of MINT Canadian Specialty, its service company in Toronto.
Markel International is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Markel Corp., which had gross premium volume of US $2.2 billion for 2008.
In 2008, Markel International’s gross premium volume was US $693 million.
ESR was established in 1966 and today employs 80 staff in Toronto and Montreal. It provides a range of specialty insurance products such as Environmental Impairment, Exporters Liability, General Liability, Errors and Omissions, Directors and Officers, Non-standard Property and Umbrella and Excess Liability risks. Historically ESR has utilized a network of insurance companies and Lloyd’s syndicates, including Markel International, to provide insurance pools for the various lines of business.
Source: Markel Corp.
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