FBD Insurance will target the Dublin motor, home, retail and business markets in a departure from its traditional farmer-based insurance business.

The company opened its first Dublin office in the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) yesterday, from where it will sell insurance directly to private and business customers. The office will also house its brokerage business, FBD Life and Pensions.

"FBD has 8 per cent of the general insurance market nationally, so it's not unreasonable to expect to have 8 per cent of the Dublin market within five years," said Mr John Bourke, regional sales manager. "While our focus still is on farming, one-third of the population is in the Dublin area and not serviced by us. Big urban areas need to be tapped to grow our business. We have 46 offices nationwide and offices in Galway, Limerick and Cork city centres. The real urban centre missing was Dublin. We are considering branch offices in Dublin also.

"Over the next 18 months to two years, we will be targeting the retail sector, pubs and selected trades, which we have handpicked. We don't use brokers; our business is all direct."

Mr Bourke said FBD had a list of more than 9,000 potential customers, garnered from its strategic partnerships with trade bodies and affinity groups such as RGDATA, SuperValu/Centra, Interflora and the Irish Postmasters' Union. He said the contraction of the insurance market in Ireland, as a result of mergers and acquisitions, coupled with a hardening of attitudes in the insurance sector generally, meant the time was now right for FBD (Farmer Business Development) to capitalise on market changes and develop in all the urban areas.

Mr Adrian Taheny, group development manager, said FBD was continuing to build its platforms for growth, with particular emphasis on investment in staff recruitment and training. "This new city-centre location will enable our team to service the book of business established here over the past two years and will support our growth strategy in Dublin," he said.

FBD Insurance is the fifth largest insurance company in the State and the largest that is predominantly Irish-owned. It was started in 1970 to service the agricultural sector and has since branched into all areas of insurance.

KBC, the Belgian bank, is the largest single shareholder, with a 23 per cent stake; the rest is made up of private investors, many of them farmers.