The Qatar Insurance Company is to enter the Irish motor insurance market according to reports by the Irish Independent.
The report claims it is understood that the Middle East ‘heavyweight’ will provide millions of euros in capital to a new venture that’s been established by Chill Insurance owners Padraig and Seamus Lynch.
And the Irish Independent also understands that the new venture has lured former Axa executive Seamus Merity to head up the business.
It is believed that the Chill Insurance owners have been plotting the new motor insurance venture for the past 12 months and is expected to receive regulatory approval within weeks, enabling it to start selling policies by the end of September.
The new business is majority-owned by Seamus and Padraig Lynch, with its management team – which is completely separate to that of Chill Insurance – also owning a stake.
It is understood that the new company’s motor insurance product will initially be sold through the Chill Insurance website. Chill already acts as a broker for a number of insurance companies.
The Qatar Insurance Company – which has an ‘A’ credit rating with Standard & Poor’s – has been increasingly targeting the motor insurance sector in Europe, and already has a presence in a number of countries including the UK.
In recent weeks Gibraltar-based Zenith Insurance said it was quitting the Irish motor insurance market and in July, Gibraltar-based Enterprise Insurance collapsed. It had sold its policies through Wexford-based Wrightway Underwriting.
