Try again, says Brit Insurance after rejecting £824m Apollo bid

England cricket team sponsor Brit Insurance yesterday rejected a second takeover proposal from suitor Apollo worth £824m but said it was willing to do a deal at the right price.

The 1050p-a-share cash indicative approach from the US private equity firm comes three weeks after the Lloyd's of London insurer snubbed an opening 1000p pitch.

Brit has decided that the latest proposal undervalues the company after "carefully listening" to its major shareholders and asked Apollo to try again.

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The firm said: "The board remains open to engaging if Apollo were to put forward an offer capable of recommendation."

Shares in Brit have jumped 28 per cent since it confirmed the takeover interest.

Brit specialises in property and casualty insurance and became the England cricket team sponsor in January to boost brand recognition. The firm has also sponsored county cricket club Surrey since 2004 and lends its name to the club's Oval ground in south London.

The company distributes insurance and re-insurance worldwide through brokers, while it also operates in the Lloyd's of London insurance market and as an insurer to small and medium-sized businesses.

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The firm grew profits by 31 per cent last year, although gross written premiums fell 13 per cent in the first quarter of 2010 as Brit decided to concentrate on higher margin business rather than sales volumes.

In May the group also flagged up a 46m bill from February's earthquake in Chile.

n The French owners of car repairs chain Kwik-Fit have agreed to sell its insurance broking arm in a 215m deal, it was announced yesterday.

Private equity group PAI Partners is selling Kwik-Fit Insurance Services (KFIS) – which has around 600,000 customers with policies across lines including home, car and travel insurance – to the UK division of Belgian insurer Ageas.

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Ageas said the deal would consolidate its position as the fourth largest personal insurance broker in the UK, with 1.6 million customers.

The sale of the insurance arm comes after PAI – which bought Kwik-Fit for 800m in 2005 – pumped 20m into the business earlier this year to avoid breaching banking covenants.

Proceeds from the insurance disposal will be put towards cutting Kwik-Fit's net debts, which stood at 811m at the end of last year.

KFIS, which was launched in 1995, has around 1,000 staff and sells insurance under the Kwik-Fit brand, as well as through the Green Insurance Company and Express Insurance names.

Ageas is the company left from the remains of the former banking and insurance giant Fortis.

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