Zurich Insurance’s Irish arm has agreed to buy RedClick Insurance from Italian insurer Generali for €337 million, in a deal that will propel it into the top three general insurers in the Republic.
The development is in line with Zurich’s retail strategy for its European business, the Swiss group said in a statement. It will transform its Irish market position to match that of its life insurance business.
The Irish Times reported in December that Zurich and Intact Insurance Ireland, previously known as RSA Ireland, were among a small numbers of parties still involved in the process as the sale reached an advanced stage.
The outcome will come as a surprise to many industry observers. Intact had been seen as the most likely buyer, especially after it emerged last month that Zurich was advancing on a much bigger deal in the UK with speciality insurer Beazley. The group agreed last week to buy Beazley for about £8.1 billion (€9.35 billion).
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The RedClick deal in Ireland would mark a second change in ownership of that business in recent years. The insurer was acquired by Generali in early 2024 from US-based Liberty Mutual as part of a wider European transaction. The unit was subsequently rebranded as RedClick.
Zurich had been among final bidders for the Liberty Mutual assets in Europe, which included businesses in Ireland, Spain and Portugal.
“This is an important and exciting milestone for our business and reflects Zurich’s long-term commitment to the Irish insurance market,” said Anthony Brennan, chief executive of Zurich Ireland. “Following completion, the RedClick team and customers will transfer and become part of Zurich’s non-life insurance business here in Ireland.”
The Irish business was originally set up as Quinn Insurance three decades ago by businessman Seán Quinn. It was taken over by Liberty Mutual in 2011 after falling into administration with a large hole in its balance sheet.
Generali hired Bank of America early last year to carry out a strategic review of the unit, which has an estimated 4.5 per cent share of the €4.5 billion general insurance market in the Republic, measured by annual gross written premiums. The investment bank started running a sale process later in the year as part of the review process.
The Italian group had previously closed a small Irish property and casualty business in Dublin in 2000.
RedClick had 250,000 customers and more than 400 employees across offices in Cavan, Enniskillen and Dublin. Zurich has more than 1,000 employees in a number of offices here, spanning general insurance, life and pensions operations and group services.
Zurich, which has an almost 10 per cent share of the Irish general insurance market, has not said what it expects to happen to all of the jobs and locations once the tie-up goes through.
Zurich said its ambition is “to grow its insurance offering in line with the evolving needs of Irish customers”. The acquisition is conditional on legal and regulatory approvals and is expected to close by the end of 2026 or early 2027.
Zurich’s move to increase its exposure to the Irish general insurance market follows a series of reforms aimed at reducing volatility and coverage costs in a historically highly volatile market even by the standards of the cyclical nature of insurance internationally.
There have also been new entrants in recent years. South African insurer Outsurance officially launched an Irish motor and home coverage offering in 2024. Revolut also entered the Irish motor insurance and travel market in 2023, with policies underwritten by AIG.
