Antur Insurance News

After over 40 years of trading in Quay Street, Haverfordwest Stanley D Sales and Company Insurance Services have merged with Hedley Davies and Company Ltd and are moving to 2 Holloway, Haverfordwest. They have become part of South Wales' largest insurance brokers Antur Insurance Services Ltd, on 1st April 2008.

The owner of S D Sales, Marion Church started working with her father Stanley Sales, an accountant and insurance broker in 1971 at Balfour Chambers in Quay Street. The insurance business soon outgrew Balfour Chambers and Marion and Mr Sales purchased their new offices across the street to Wilton Chambers in 1984 where an additional member of staff was employed. By 1993 Monica had also joined the company as did Pauline in 1999. Mr Sales sadly passed away later that year. Business continued to flourish, despite competition from the internet and other direct insurance providers. Marion and her staff prided themselves in
providing a personal local service offering reasonable premiums, and many customers have remained faithful for 40 years.

 

The time has now come to seek improved premium options and cover and move on in the world of insurance regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Discussions with Antur Insurance and Hedley Davies and Co provided a pathway to a new era of insurance providers for Haverfordwest and South Wales. Marion and Pauline will be moving to join Hedley Davies staff at their office in Holloway. Monica will be retiring and will be greatly missed. Marion would especially like to thank all her clients for their valued support over the years and she assures customers old and new that the same personal service and insurance packages will continue with Antur Insurance Services Ltd – Pembrokeshire
business providing insurance solutions for the people of West Wales.

 

Hedley Davies and Company

Since the early 60's Hedley Davies and Company have built an excellent reputation as an insurance broker by providing expert advice with a personal touch. As part of the Antur Group for the past 6 years Hedley Davies have been able to expand the markets and schemes available to their clients and to remain competitive with the direct insurers, yet still providing a local service.

It is now time to welcome S D Sales to the Antur Group. With the continuing involvement of our directors within the group, we are now adopting the Antur name here in Haverfordwest. All the staff and directors are looking forward to future developments and further building their local reputation.

 

Margaret Wright has worked for Hedley Davies for the past 32 years (she started at a very young age) and is now retiring on the 29th November 2007.

 

When Margaret joined the company she worked with the directors as a secretary to Brian Hedley Davies and Ken Tyrell. In those days, there was no such thing as a computer or printers and all worked had to be manually typed on a typewriter with carbon copy paper with flimsy pink copies. As time progressed, we moved through electric-typewriters, some with built-in memory, eventually to computers and printers and so called ‘Standard Letters’.

 

For the past 25 years Margaret has worked with Ian Ace, so all of us agree that she has certainly earned her retirement.

Emails are replacing letters but, all of us at Hedley Davies know that we will never be able to ‘replace’ Margaret.

We wish her a long, happy and healthy retirement and offer our sincere thanks for all her hard work over the last 32 years.

Wally started with Dyfed Insurance in October 1992 and has since that time assisted the former proprietor of Dyfed Insurance Chris Noott with commercial business. Dyfed Insurance became part of Antur Insurance on the 1st June 2007.

After leaving school in 1962 Wally commenced his career with the NEM Insurance Company in Cardiff.  He became an inspector for the County of Monmouth in 1972 and in 1976 was transferred as a Local Manager to the NEM’s office in Pembrokeshire.

 

Following reorganisation in 1984 Wally took redundancy and stayed in Pembrokeshire and worked with a firm of local brokers in Milford Haven.

 

He was approached again from the NEM and he rejoined the Company as a Senior Property Underwriter at their Southern Regional office in Swindon where he stayed until 1992 when he joined Dyfed Insurance.

 

He is looking forward to his retirement as he hopes to be able to devote more time to his interests of choral singing and his garden as well as spending more time with his wife Ann visiting their son and his family in Geneva and their younger son in Leeds.

 

Wally has dealt personally with many commercial clients in the area and Michael N Charlton, Optician of Fishguard is grateful to Wally for dealing with his insurances as he says Wally has always been professional in his advice, always helpful, pleasant and efficient.

Antur Insurance has appointed Gareth Thomas as Manager of its Small Business Unit in Swansea. In his new role Gareth will be responsible for growing the volume of business going through the "SBU" as Antur expects this area of the business to prosper as a result of its Special rates and products already in place with insurers such as NU, NIG and AXA.

 

Gareth joins Antur from Swansea Broker Murton Alexander where he was a Commercial/Personal lines Insurance Executive. Gareth has also in the past worked for Hill House Hammond and Cunningham Lindsey Loss Adjusters and has over 8 years experience in the industry

A little under thirty-five years ago, Chris Noott, in conjunction with a
local firm of accountants (Pritchard Griffiths & Company - now Pritchard & Company) started Dyfed Insurance Brokers. Their offices in those days were in Hamilton Street.

 

In 1975 Chris Noott bought out the shareholding of the accountants and since then he has been the sole proprietor of the business. Over the years, the business has grown considerably and together with very loyal staff, who have been with the practice for many years, has been highly successful.

Chris Noott attained the age of sixty last year and decided early in the new year that perhaps the time for semi-retirement at least had come. After being approached by a major national broker, he has decided to merge his practice with a West Wales based insurance brokerage which has over the past five or six years merged with several other brokerages to form a substantial unit in the Principality.

When asked, Chris Noott said that he wanted to ensure that his practice
remained in good hands and he did feel that perhaps a national broker might not have the same 'feel' for local people and their requirements. Hence the reason for his decision to go with the locally-based Company, Antur Insurance Services Limited.

"I feel that this merger will be extremely good for all of our existing
customers and indeed all new customers," says Chris." Antur Insurance
Services are a major brokerage within the Principality and as a result have buying power and certainly commercial clout which can only be to the benefit of all our customers generally."

 

He went on to say, that he has enjoyed every minute of the last thirty five years, and intends to stay around for a little bit longer on a Consultancy basis which will probably be at least for a couple of years - by that time he felt he would be ready then to call it a day.

 

"I could write a book on my experiences over the past thirty five years -
particularly with some members of the farming community who are without question in my view the salt of the earth. I can quite understand how James Herriott became a very successful writer!"

 

"I am confident that the practice will continue to grow and flourish under
the new stewardship of Antur Insurance Services Limited and I would like to take this opportunity of wishing them well for the future. However, any
businessman worth his salt, would tell you that his business is only as good as the people who work in it - I have been extremely privileged to have had working with me some of the best people that I know and of course it is important for everyone to know who is associated with the practice that they will be remaining in post for many years yet to come."

 

"In conclusion, may I say to all of my friends and clients that I have had
the privilege of being associated with them over so many years - thank you for your support, loyalty and most of all friendship."