Charles Taylor Adjusting (CTA), an international loss adjuster, has entered the high net worth adjusting market with the purchase of Criterion Adjusters.
The move builds on CTA’s initiatives to grow its presence in specialist property & casualty loss adjusting markets, alongside its market leading positions in the aviation, energy and marine loss adjusting markets.
Criterion Adjusters is a prominent player in the HNW sector and handles a significant share of the UK’s HNW property, fine art and antique-related claims as well as being the preferred loss adjuster to many specialist HNW insurers.
The HNW sector and its insurers are demanding in terms of both technical knowledge and service standards; this makes Criterion Adjusters a good fit with CTA, which focuses on higher value, technical work where expertise is valued.
The acquisition includes Criterion Surveyors, a HNW-focused pre-risk survey business, and Criterion Claims Management, a specialist claims Third Party Administrator (TPA). The businesses fit well with CTA’s existing risk engineering business and Charles Taylor Group’s moves to extend its global TPA capabilities.
Criterion Adjusters offers growth opportunities for CTA. It brings several new clients and further embeds CTA with existing clients. Criterion Adjusters also has the potential to grow by providing surveying, claims management (TPA) and additional HNW adjusting services to existing and new clients and by meeting the demand from clients for offerings with similar service levels on non-HNW claims.
Criterion Adjusters will benefit from Charles Taylor’s brand, support functions and international network. Charles Taylor anticipates that the deal could lead to valuable business referrals from Criterion Adjusters to its other adjusting teams globally and to the wider Group’s other insurance services businesses.
Criterion Adjusters will continue to trade under its existing well-regarded brand name and will be led by its current management team. Criterion Adjusters’ CEO, Chris Monks, and Operations Director, James Long, both join Charles Taylor Adjusting in their existing respective roles and will report to Andrew Jackson, CTA’s managing director of Technical & Special Risks. Criterion’s clients will continue to be served by their existing highly experienced loss adjusters, using the same service standards and operating model.
Damian Ely, Chief Executive Officer, Charles Taylor Adjusting, said:
“I am delighted to welcome our new colleagues from Criterion Adjusters to Charles Taylor Adjusting. The acquisition is part of our strategy to diversify our loss adjusting business into closely-related, specialist P&C markets. We have established a UK construction and engineering capability which is developing well, we are expanding our UK property and professional indemnity teams and growing our global cyber-liability adjusting capabilities. We are also building our P&C team across the USA and extending our reach across Latin America.”
Chris Monks, Chief Executive Officer, Criterion Adjusters, said: “Charles Taylor Adjusting is the ideal home for Criterion Adjusters. CTA has a tremendous reputation for delivering specialist, highly technical loss adjusting services which mirror our service and expertise-driven approach. The strength of CTA’s brand, its global network and high quality technology and support services will give us the structure, support and autonomy to grow our business in the HNW loss adjusting market.”
David Marock, Group Chief Executive Officer, Charles Taylor said: "I am excited that Criterion Adjusters has become part of the Charles Taylor Group, bringing new HNW adjusting and surveying capabilities and adding to our growing TPA businesses. We are focused on building a larger, more capable, more profitable professional services business. This acquisition marks another important step forward in our strategy to grow by developing new professional service business lines, which are closely-related to our core business, both organically and through carefully targeted acquisitions and investments.”