Broker to enter new lines to meet premium target of £160m

Primary Broker Services (PBS) is to open a raft of offices in the South and enter new lines of business in a bid to increase its premium income five-fold by the end of 2008.

The virtual insurer, which currently has a premium income of £30m is to open offices in Bristol, Maidstone, Southampton and Exeter.

It will also be adding commercial fleet and motor trade to its existing portfolio in 2006.

PBS chief operating officer Tim Rolfe told Insurance Times that the company had "ambitious" growth plans to achieve its target of £160m in three years' time.

On the new offices, he said the rising number of composite insurers closing offices in the regions had left a gap in the market.

"We plan to fill up the space which others have left behind," he said.

"We are offering old fashioned values to brokers. That means personal access to underwriters and skilled people who are prepared to listen and accommodate the broker," Rolfe said.

On the new product lines Rolfe said: "Commercial vehicle is a very profitable product. We have to meet the demand of our brokers who want this."

He said he would like to see a stronger relationship between PBS and other Primary Broker Holdings subsidiaries.

"We are going to try to tie up some of the synergies within PBS Holdings to bring the capabilities of a holding company to PBS," he said.

This included a plan to make better use of the services of PBS Holdings' recently established professional indemnity division, Prime Professions, through PBS.