What these brokerages bring to the table in Hub merger

A Quebec brokerage recently acquired by Hub International Ltd. brings expertise in construction and auto dealerships to the table.

“Hub is already major player, if not one of the biggest brokers in Quebec,” Alain Giroux, executive vice president of Montreal commercial brokerage Forum Risques et Assurance Inc., said in an interview. “We can complement the Hub group with our experience in construction, technology and manufacturing.”

Chicago-based Hub announced Jan. 10 it has acquired Forum Risques.

Forum Risques president François Jean, along with Giroux, co-founded Forum Risques in 2013. That was when Jean and Giroux acquired the Quebec assets of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Gallagher, whose headquarters is in the Chicago suburb of Itasca, Ill., has more than 30 locations in Canada. Gallagher recently announced the acquisition of P&C brokerage Jones Brown Inc., which has offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Hamilton.

In addition to Forum Risques, Hub’s recent acquisitions include Vancouver-based TRG Group Benefits and Pensions Inc. “Hub has been investing a lot in the employee benefits side of the business, where Forum never really had in-house expertise,” Giroux told Canadian Underwriter.

Other recent Hub acquisitions include Tri-Line Agencies Inc. of Rose Valley, Sask., Kuokoa Enterprises Inc. of Edmonton and Anderson McTague & Associates Ltd., a Saint John, N.B.-based managing general agency.

Hub brings expertise to Forum Risques, because Hub employees brokers in specialty lines, such as executive lines and marine cargo, said Giroux. For its part, Forum Risques places a variety of risks for the construction industry, including surety, project insurance, course of construction, wrap up and environmental. “These construction companies have assets as well to cover, whether it be equipment, buildings, machinery there is general liability,” Giroux said.

Forum Risques also places insurance for vehicle dealers.

“It’s meant to be a one-stop shop for automobile and truck dealers so we insure their inventory, their immovable and movable property, executive risks, crime travel – pretty much everything as far as damage insurance,” said Jean.

Hub was founded in 1998 through the merger of 11 Canadian brokerages.

During the summer of 2018, Hub acquired the property and casualty business of Cypher Systems Group of Windsors, Ont. as a result, Hub now has Insurance Hunter as well as the  Southland bricks-and-mortar brokerage offices in Windsor, Tecumseh, Leamington and Harrow.