Applied Underwriters Receives UK Financial Authority’s Approval to Complete Acquisition of Leading International Yacht and Watercraft Underwriting Facility

UK-Based Concept Special Risks Will Expand in US and Caribbean Markets Underwriting Extensive Vessel Classes

Omaha -- April 14, 2021 -- Mr. Steve Menzies, Chairman, Applied Underwriters, announced today that the Company has received definitive regulatory approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the United Kingdom’s governing body for insurance, banking and investment transactions, for the completion of Applied’s acquisition of Concept Special Risks (CSR), effective April 12, 2021. The acquisition, announced in February, will enable the further growth of CSR, the 22-year old Yorkshire, UK-based market leader founded by top sector executive, Tony Usher. CSR holds a dominant place in the US and Caribbean markets for motor yachts, trailer craft, sailboats, and catamarans, covering both private/pleasure and charter.

For Applied, the first quarter of 2021 has been marked by several acquisitions and consolidations of insurance facilities as part of its protracted long-term growth in niche segments in the US and abroad, such as a nationwide (US) program for casualty E&S risks; expanded D&O coverages in the US, Europe and Israel; and a global leadership facility for the provision of coverage and risk management solutions for fine art, jewelry and collectibles.

According to Mr. Menzies, the FCA approval of the CSR transaction signals continuing regulatory recognition of Applied Underwriters’ economic strength and financial probity: “As regulators in the UK, EU and in the vast majority of capitals across the US approve and even encourage Applied’s growth, we are enabled to satisfy market demand among a growing customer base seeking financially sound, prudent and responsible insurance. Our knowledgeable, experienced and acutely specialized underwriting may now be placed in the service of the customer and, as regulators acknowledge, in the service of the entire insurance business, state by state and country by country.”

According to Tony Usher, Founder of CSR: “We are very pleased that this transaction has come to fruition, and we are ready and optimistic for the coming season for the underwriting of yachts, recreational vessels of all types and for commercial excursion operators.”

Concept Special Risks issues policies through retail agents in the US and Caribbean. It has offices in the UK and in Florida.

For further information contact:
Ryan Gerding, Public Relations, at +1 (913) 602-8531 or at press@auw.com.

About Applied Underwriters
Applied Underwriters® is a global risk services firm that helps businesses and people manage uncertainty through its business services, insurance and reinsurance solutions. As a company, Applied Underwriters has been distinguished by its innovative approaches to client care and by its strong financial strength. Applied Underwriters operates widely throughout the US, UK, EU and Middle East. Its operational headquarters is located in Omaha, Nebraska.

About Concept Special Risks (www.special-risks.com)
Operating globally with a proud twenty-nine-year history, Concept Special Risks has a strong presence in both the US and Caribbean marketplaces. Its flexible and responsive approach to underwriting provides specialist risk solutions for a wide variety of vessel types from small recreational pleasure craft to harder to place yacht accounts.