Switching your broker · Howden · Checked 7 September 2026

Your broker has been bought by Howden: what changes, and what to do

Howden is an employee-owned multinational broking group that grows by acquisition, and it now includes Aston Lark and the Bristol professional-indemnity specialist Brunel Professions. Here is what changes, when staying is right, and how to check your cover.

Part of: Your broker was bought by a consolidator

In short

Howden is a multinational broking group founded in London in 1994 that calls itself the UK’s fifth-largest employee-owned business, with 1.7 million clients and US$51 billion of premium under management. It acquired Aston Lark, and through it the Bristol professional-indemnity specialist Brunel Professions, so many former Aston Lark and Brunel clients are now Howden clients. If your broker has joined Howden, your policy does not change overnight, but how your risk is marketed, who your named contact is, and whether a group facility now sits in the chain can all change. For international, large or layered programmes, Howden’s scale is often the right home. Apex is an independent, director-owned alternative offering a free written second opinion: if your cover is right, we say so in writing; if not, you see competing quotes.

Who Howden is

Howden began, in its own words, ‘in a tiny office in London in 1994’ and now calls itself ‘the 5th largest employee owned business in the UK’ and ‘one of the largest insurance groups in the world’, reporting 1.7 million clients, US$51 billion of premium under management and 24,000 colleagues across 100 countries (Howden, About us).

On ownership it describes ‘an employee ownership model, with aligned investor partners’ (Howden, About us). It is independent of any insurer, and it grows by acquisition. It agreed to buy Aston Lark, which completed its merger with Howden on 1 October 2023 and is now the Corporate & Commercial division of Howden UK & Ireland (Howden, Aston Lark). Aston Lark had itself bought the Bristol professional-indemnity specialist Brunel Professions, founded in 2005, in September 2020 (Insurance Post, 11 September 2020).

What changes when your broker joins a group

An acquisition does not, by itself, change your policy: the contract you hold runs to its renewal date, and the insurer behind it does not change because your broker’s owner did. What can change is how your broker works for you, and four things are worth checking.

Market access can narrow. A larger group may place business through its own panels, facilities or an in-house managing general agent, so what was ‘whole of market’ can become the group’s preferred markets. That is not wrong in itself — a facility can win terms a single broker cannot — but it is worth knowing whether your risk is still tested across the market.
The group may own the product as well as the advice. Where a group manufactures cover through its own insurer or managing general agent and also advises you on buying it, a conflict of interest can arise. It is manageable and common; the next section sets out what the FCA expects.
Your named contact can change. Integration often reassigns accounts, and the person who knew your firm may move, retire or be folded into a larger team. Aston Lark, and with it Brunel Professions, is now the Corporate & Commercial division of Howden UK & Ireland (Howden, Aston Lark). Check who your named broker is now and whether they know your account.
Fees and remuneration can change. Broker fees and commission arrangements can be revised after an acquisition. No figure is implied here, and none is alleged against any firm — but you are entitled to ask how your broker is paid and whether that has changed since the sale.

The conflict-of-interest question

Consolidation raises one question that is now squarely a regulatory matter. Where the same group owns your broker and the insurer or managing general agent behind your policy, the advice you receive and the product being sold sit under one roof, and their interests can pull in different directions.

In July 2026 the FCA set out its expectations for these vertically integrated business models, and it was measured about them. In the regulator’s own words, ‘a conflict doesn’t automatically make your business model unacceptable’ (FCA, 23 July 2026) — the duty is to identify, prevent or manage the conflict, not to avoid the model altogether. The Consumer Duty and the PROD 4 product-governance rules add that a product must offer fair value and the firm must act to deliver good outcomes for customers.

So the question to put to a group-owned broker is not whether this is allowed — it is — but how the conflict is managed in your case, and whether you can see it. A broker that runs no insurer or managing general agent of its own has no such conflict to manage.

When Howden is the right home for you

Howden’s scale is a genuine advantage in the right situation. It reports 1.7 million clients, US$51 billion of premium under management and 24,000 colleagues across 100 countries (Howden, About us).

International programmes. A group operating in 100 countries can arrange locally admitted policies for overseas offices and subsidiaries in a way a UK specialist cannot.
Large or layered risks. Where excess layers sit above a primary policy, or the limit exceeds what one UK market will write, Howden’s exclusive facilities and market weight can assemble the capacity.
Dedicated professional-indemnity teams. Its heritage Aston Lark and Brunel Professions teams give it real PI depth, and it publishes a legal-sector practice with dedicated experts. If your firm is large, international or layered, Howden fits.

How to check your cover still works for you

Whether you move or stay, these are the checks worth making once your broker has changed hands.

Is your risk still shopped across the market? Ask which insurers were approached at your last renewal and which quoted. If the answer is a single group facility or panel, ask what else was tested.
Who is your named broker now? Ask for a person, not a team inbox, and check they know your account and your trade.
Has your fee or commission changed since the sale? You are entitled to ask how your broker is paid, in fees and in commission, and whether it has changed.
Is there a group insurer or managing general agent in the chain? The FCA says customers should be able to understand ‘your firm’s role in the manufacture and distribution of products’ (FCA, 23 July 2026). If a group company manufactures your cover, ask to see how that is disclosed.
If you might move, is your continuity intact? Professional indemnity is claims-made, so a new policy’s retroactive date must reach back over your past work, any circumstance you already know about is notified to the current insurer first, and the new policy should start the day the old one ends so there is no gap.

An independent second opinion

Apex Insurance Brokers is an independent insurance broker established in 2009 and based in Bristol, owned entirely by its directors and directly authorised by the FCA since 2016, placing professional indemnity insurance for UK professional firms across the UK. It is one of the longest-established independently owned professional indemnity specialists in the UK, and it is not for sale: we have declined approaches to buy the firm. We are not tied to any single insurer or professional-body scheme, we do not run our own policy or underwriting, and we have no placement quotas. We have access to over 30 markets, including Lloyd’s syndicates via wholesale, and we usually return three or four competing quotes set out so you can compare them like for like. Every client has a named broker — the same person from first quote to renewal — and every claim notification gets director-level attention rather than a call-centre queue.

A second opinion is not a sales pitch to leave. If your cover is right where it is, we say so in writing, free and without obligation — that is the stay-put letter. If it is not, you see three or four competing quotes on the same basis and decide. Either way you keep the independence you may have chosen your original broker for, and you can see which UK professional-indemnity specialists have been bought and which are still independently owned.

Owned by its directors, not for sale. No consolidator, no private-equity owner, no external shareholders — and we have declined approaches to buy the firm. Read the Apex Independence Charter.
Independent, not tied. No single-insurer scheme, no in-house policy, no placement quotas — the recommendation is the one that fits, not the one we are paid to push.
Over 30 markets, including Lloyd’s. Specialist UK PI insurers and Lloyd’s syndicates via wholesale, so a risk that one underwriter dislikes can still be placed properly with another.
Usually three or four competing quotes, laid out side by side — limit, excess, retroactive date, exclusions and premium — with a plain-language note on the trade-offs.
The stay-put letter. If your existing cover is right, we say so in writing, free and without obligation. How the stay-put letter works.
A named broker all year. The person who places your cover is the person who picks up the phone at renewal, on a mid-term change, or when a letter of claim lands.
Director-level attention on claims. We help you notify circumstances early and in the right form, stay involved once the insurer’s panel solicitors are appointed, and tell you plainly where you stand.
Directly authorised by the FCA since 2016, not an appointed representative trading under someone else’s permissions.

Frequently asked

Is it bad news that my broker was bought by Howden?

Not in itself. Howden is an established, well-resourced business, and for many firms a larger group is a good home. What matters is whether your cover is still tested across the market, whether you still have a named contact who knows your firm, and how any group conflict is managed. If those still stack up, staying is sensible; if you are not sure, a free written second opinion will tell you where you stand.

Will my cover change now Howden owns my broker?

Not automatically. The policy you hold runs to its renewal date, and the insurer behind it does not change because your broker’s owner did. What can change is how your renewal is marketed next time — which insurers are approached, and whether the group’s own facilities are used. Professional indemnity is claims-made, so continuity of your retroactive date is the thing to protect if you ever move.

Is Howden independent?

Howden is independent of any insurer and describes ‘an employee ownership model, with aligned investor partners’. It is not owned by an insurer, and it is not owned by the directors of your local office alone: it is a 24,000-person multinational group with employee and investor shareholders. Both are legitimate forms of independence; they produce different relationships and different scale from a broker owned by its own directors.

Will my price go up after the acquisition?

There is no rule that it will, and nobody can say before the market has seen your firm. Your premium is set by the insurer that quotes, on your fee income, your work, your claims record, the limit and the excess. What an acquisition can change is your broker’s fee and commission, which you are entitled to ask about. The reliable test is a second quote on the same basis, with the premium plus Insurance Premium Tax at 12%.

How do I know if I’m still getting whole-of-market?

Ask your broker which insurers were approached at your last renewal and which quoted. A whole-of-market approach tests your risk across the available insurers; a panel or facility routes it to a chosen few. Neither is wrong, but you should know which you are getting. If the answer is a single group facility, ask what else was tested and why.

Is it hard to move mid-term?

You can move, but most firms move at renewal, when there is no mid-term adjustment to unwind. If you do move, professional indemnity is claims-made, so the new policy must carry a retroactive date reaching back over your past work, and the new cover starts the day the old one ends so there is no gap. A broker sets that up for you.

Will I lose my retroactive date if I move?

Not if the move is handled properly. The new policy should carry a retroactive date that reaches back over your past work, so claims about earlier work are still covered, and any circumstance you already know about is notified to your current insurer before you move. Done correctly, changing broker does not reset your retroactive date.

When should I stay with Howden?

If you have overseas offices or subsidiaries, a large or layered programme, or you want professional indemnity bought alongside employee benefits, mergers-and-acquisitions or captive cover from one group, Howden’s scale and its 100-country reach suit that. Its heritage Aston Lark and Brunel Professions teams bring dedicated PI capability. If your cover is right there, a stay-put letter will say so.

Ask for a free written second opinion

Send your current schedule and renewal terms. A named Apex broker reviews them and comes back with competing quotes on the same basis, or a stay-put letter if you are already well placed. Or call 0117 325 0027.

Get a comparison quote Ask for a stay-put letter

Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales, company number 07014570. This page is general information, not advice on your individual circumstances, and it does not guarantee that cover will be available or on what terms. Statements about named firms come from those firms’ own websites, Companies House, the FCA register or dated news reports, checked on 7 September 2026, and are linked where quoted. The concerns described are general to insurance consolidation or are the regulator’s own words, not allegations against any particular firm. Any firm named here may ask us to correct its entry; we will make and date the change.