Ardonagh-Bennetts £26m merger reversed after CMA probe

UK insurance intermediary Ardonagh Group has offered to sell Bennetts Motorcycling Services — reversing its recently completed £26 million acquisition deal with the bike insurance broker.

The move follows certain concerns raised by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which launched an investigation into the matter in July.

Following an initial phase 1 investigation, the CMS was concerned that merger of Ardonagh and Bennetts, the two leading distributors of motorcycle insurance to private customers in the UK, may result in a substantial lessening of competition within the UK market.

Ardonagh, which operates the Carole Nash and Swinton brands, completed the purchase of Bennetts in August 2020.

In order to address the CMA's concerns, Ardonagh has now offered to sell Bennetts - effectively reversing the deal completely.

The CMA has accepted a proposal from Ardonagh to fully unwind its recent £26 million purchase of Bennetts to resolve competition concerns.

The authority believes this move could remedy the competition concerns it has identified. If the proposed remedy is accepted, Ardonagh will have a fixed period of time to sell Bennetts to a purchaser approved by the CMA.

The CMA has an initial deadline of November 25 2020 to take its final decision on whether to accept the proposed remedy and will consult publicly on the detailed aspects of the offer in the coming weeks.