Newest GRP hub buys Dorset-based broker

Alan & Thomas, which was bought by consolidator GRP earlier this month, has bought Dorset-based broker Commercial and General Insurance Services for an undisclosed sum.

Commercial and General places around £4m of gross written premium annually.

Commercial and General is the first deal for Alan & Thomas since becoming GRP’s newest regional hub, covering the south. Alan & Thomas chief executive Julian Boughton said it is one of a number of deals in the pipeline for the newest GRP hub.

Commercial and General’s ten-strong team, including directors John Cran and Derek Bugler, will stay with the company.

Boughton said: “We are delighted to welcome John, Derek and the CGI team to A&T. They have a great business and this is a coup for us. It marks our first investment since we became part of the GRP Group and we are talking to a number of other businesses where we feel there is a joint value creation opportunity.”

Cran and Bugler said in a joint statement: “The decision to join Alan & Thomas was an easy one to make. Their reputation for value creation made them our number one choice. They have a track record for delivery and investment in the businesses they have purchased and this was a real attraction for us.”

GRP retail chief executive Mike Bruce added: “This acquisition underscores our intention to support Alan & Thomas accelerate their growth in the South. The acquisition of Commercial and General is the first of a number of local acquisitions that Julian Boughton and his team had already identified, and I warmly welcome John Cran, Derek Bugler and their colleagues, to our wider team.”