Bristol insurance firm snapped up in global deal

Bristol insurance firm DAS UK  has been acquired by European firm ARAG for an undisclosed amount.

DAS UK was purchased from ERGO Versicherung AG, a property and casualty insurance subsidiary of ERGO Group located in Germany.

For the time being the business will remain independent from ARAG Group’s existing managing general agent in the UK which has been trading as ARAG since 2006.

Together the companies represented gross written premium of £190m and had around 800 employees in 2022.

Following completion, a new executive management committee will be established.

It will include seven members in total: three from ARAG plc, three from DAS UK, and one from the wider ARAG Group of companies.

Tony Buss will lead the new business as chief executive with Tony Coram, previously chief executive of DAS UK, becoming chief operations officer.

Dr Renko Dirksen, from the board of management of ARAG SE, said: “This is an important moment for our group as we continue to deliver against our strategy for growth and expansion in key international markets. This now makes the UK our largest operation outside of Germany.

“I am pleased we have been able to establish a balanced EMC for ARAG UK and, while both companies will continue running operations separately for now, we will gradually work towards having both companies operate under the ARAG brand.”

Tony Buss added: “This development will bring benefits to all our stakeholders.

“It will allow us to share knowledge and skills, and to bring new ideas, products, and services to our customers, including further digitalisation of our offering. Our many dedicated employees are the key to achieving this as they support our customers every day. I am excited about how this new chapter will encourage even more collaboration and best practice.”

Tony Coram added: “This marks the start of a strong new partnership – one underpinned by experience, great people, and a deep understanding of legal insurance. Together we have the opportunity to invest for the long term – in our UK based products, operations, systems and employees.”

The ARAG Group previously acquired the operations and business of DAS UK’s branch in the Republic of Ireland in 2019, as well as the entirety of ERGO Group’s DAS business in Canada in 2021