Arachas buys Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers in Tipperary Town

Group’s chief executive Joey Wynne said the move strengthened the company’s regional presence throughout Ireland

Arachas, one of the largest insurance brokers in the State, has acquired Tipperary-based insurer Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers.

Announcing the move on Friday, it described the business as “one the most respected insurance brokers in Tipperary town”. It did not disclose the value of the deal.

The acquisition is the second investment in Tipperary by Arachas after it bought O’Donoghue Hooper Dolan in 2020.

Arachas provides businesses and consumers with motor and home insurance. It said the acquisition would increase the availability of those products to the people of Tipperary.

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“Tom Fogarty Insurance Brokers is a well-established and respected independent insurance brokerage for over 60 years operating from offices at Bank Place in Tipperary Town,” said Arachas.

“The business caters for the personal- and medium-sized business market specialising mainly in farm, home, shop, office and business insurance.”

Arachas chief executive Joey Wynne said the move strengthened the company’s regional presence throughout Ireland.

Speaking on behalf of Tom Fogarty Insurance, Michael Fogarty said: “We have had over 60 years servicing the people of Tipperary Town and wider area and I would like to thank both our staff and customers.

“Our staff will transfer directly to Arachas and it will be very much business as usual whereby our customers can continue to deal directly with the same staff and they will now have access to a much wider range of insurance products as well.”

Arachas, which is chaired by former minister for finance Charlie McCreevy, saw its net profit jump by 35 per cent in 2022 to €30.9 million, as deal-making across the industry continued at pace.

The company paid out €77.7 million in dividends to holding companies within the wider corporate family, according to filings with the Companies Registration Office.

Arachas, which has 18 offices around the Republic, has been active in the acquisitions market in recent years, including Dublin-based Stuart Insurances and Apex Insurance in Cork.

It has also said its growth last year was underpinned by the acquisitions of Glennon Insurances in Dublin and Limerick-based O’Malley-Griffin.

Arachas itself was acquired in 2020 by Ardonagh, which is backed by US private equity firms Madison Dearborn and HPS Partners, for €250 million.

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson

Colin Gleeson is an Irish Times reporter