Loss adjustor snapped up in growth-driven acquisition

Manchester-based loss adjustor, Quadra, has been acquired for an undisclosed sum.

Woodgate and Clark, based in Kent with regional offices, has acquired  Quadra Claims Services for an undisclosed sum.

Quadra was founded in 2010 and specialises in heritage and ecclesiastical buildings, HNW (high net worth) losses and other property claims.

The company also owns Quadrassist, a bespoke building contractor network.

The deal will give Woodgate and Clark access to complementary services in niche and specialist personal lines and accelerate growth by 20% during the next two-three years, according to managing director Phil Scarrett, who said: “This is a great deal for us, and our partners and their customers.

“Although we will go through some measured integration, this acquisition is about growth through collaboration and new proposition development, rather than cost cutting.”

He said the Quadra brand and Deansgate offices will remain in situ and the whole 80-strong team, including directors John Carr, Dave Greenwood and Simon Jones, will become part of the bigger group.

“There will be no job losses as a result of this deal – on the contrary, this is a growth story and we expect that our added scale will build growth and lead to more recruitment for the business over time.”

Quadra director, John Carr, said: “Woodgate and Clark has the integrity and values we strongly identify with and I am hugely excited by the opportunity to become part of a bigger team.

“We see growth opportunities from increased scale, and the group will deliver additional investment in training the next generation of adjusters, which is a top priority for our industry.”

Phil Scarrett said he wanted to grow into the mid-ranking loss adjusting space, which, in recent years, has been hollowed out by consolidation.

He said that Woodgate and Clark’s parent, European claims management company Van Ameyde which acquired Woodgate and Clark in 2015, was “four square behind our strategy and eager for us to expand our product and service footprint in the UK.”

He added: “We have been committed to organic growth since 2015, but at the same time Van Ameyde has encouraged us to seek inorganic growth opportunities where they made strategic sense, and our acquisition of Quadra meets all our priorities.

“There may be additional opportunities for Quadra to partner our parent company in the UK, where they have a number of claims contracts with insurers and fleets.”