News 2007
- 31 August 07
Lark Group announces that Groupama UK have invested in them
Lark Group has confirmed that Groupama UK has completed the purchase of a majority shareholding in Lark Group Limited for an undisclosed sum. The change of ownership has received formal regulatory approval from the FSA. -
Lark Group was established in 1948 and is now one of the UK's top 50 insurance brokers and in the top 10 independent brokers. The business controls in excess of £75 million in premiums. Lark is a significant player in the UK’s commercial and personal insurance sectors, and operates in a number of specialist niche markets, including the insurance of high net worth individuals. Lark Group employs 250 people and operates from five locations in London and the South East of England.
Speaking today, Pierre Lefèvre, Chairman and Chief Executive at Groupama UK said: "This investment moves us towards the UK’s top twenty largest intermediary groups with approaching £60 million of brokerage and managing premiums of £220 million. Our involvement with Lark will complement our other retail businesses and will offer us a good balance and some strong foundations from which to build. Lark Group is a very professional, highly respected, independent insurance intermediary that has grown strongly in recent years and has some interesting development plans. We will be working closely with the current management to help them build their success."
Whilst Lark Group will work co-operatively with the UK Group’s other retail businesses it will retain the Lark brand and continue to operate independently under the leadership of the existing team of Executive Directors. All of the UK Group’s retail businesses operate entirely separately from Groupama Insurances, the group’s underwriting subsidiary.
Commenting on the agreement with Groupama UK, Graham Lark, Chairman of Lark Group said; "Whilst we have a growing, well diversified business that is developing strongly, we recognise that we need a strong partner to invest in our success and to help us move to the next level. Groupama shares our vision of the future and we believe that they are just the right partner to help us realise the full potential of the Lark Group."
13 August 07
New website launched
At Lark, we pride ourselves in providing an excellent service to all of our clients, bringing a wealth of knowledge and expertise to every area of the business.We have rejuvenated our website to ensure that our web presence is inline with our brand, and that we are projecting a consistent experience of Lark.
Our main objectives were to ensure that we maintained our values and didn't eliminate our personal service. Therefore, the site is mainly an information and advice portal, encouraging users to contact us to discuss their specific needs.
We feel that the new site:
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highlights our key product areas, which are visible on the home page, so that users can find exactly what they are looking for whilst getting a comprehensive summary of the other areas we can assist with.
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is user friendly and accessible, with clear and simple navigation.
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represents Lark in a consistent and coherent manner.
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The new site has some new features including:
Blogs - where we aim to impart some of our knowledge and advice on topical issues.
Director Profiles - an introduction to all of the Main Board and Divisional Directors.
Lark History - a synopsis of the 59 years of Lark's history.
Buy Online Facilities - only available for Overseas Home and Musical Instrument insurance, due to the nature of the policies and the location of the clients. However, this does not distract from the service these clients will receive once they have purchased their cover.
Stephen Lark, Managing Director, said,
