Equistone invests in loss adjusting and claims solutions group QuestGates

Equistone Partners Europe (“Equistone”), one of Europe’s most active mid-market private equity investors, today announces its investment in QuestGates, the UK’s largest independent provider of complex loss adjusting and claims solutions. 

QuestGates is headquartered in Birmingham and operates out of 12 offices across the UK and Ireland. Founded in 2003, the company has evolved over the past two decades from a niche loss adjusting provider into a professional services business providing multi-disciplinary loss adjusting, claims handling, surveying, engineering and legal services. QuestGates employs c.500 people and generated revenues of £41 million in the 2023/24 financial year.

QuestGates’ management team, led by CEO Chris Hall, will continue to lead the company and, alongside the wider team of QuestGates employees, remain majority shareholders in the business. Equistone’s significant minority investment in the company will support the continued delivery of QuestGates’ existing growth strategy. This will comprise both organic growth initiatives, such as further diversification into wider specialist claims services and development of the company’s proprietary suite of technology products, as well as continued acquisitive growth, building on the 18 M&A deals completed by QuestGates since 2003.

Equistone has invested over €1bn in 14 financial services businesses across Europe, with extensive experience across asset-light service-provider models. Dominic Geer and Tristan Manuel will join the board of QuestGates, complementing the management team’s expertise within the loss adjusting industry.

Tristan Manuel, Director at Equistone, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Chris and his team to support the next chapter in QuestGates’ growth. The company has a highly experienced leadership team with strong networks and also boasts a track record of long-term organic growth and successful M&A activity. That combination presents a fantastic opportunity for Equistone to help QuestGates continue to evolve its service offering, grow its client base and consolidate a fragmented market.”

Dominic Geer, Senior Partner at Equistone, said: “Equistone has invested widely across the financial services sector and, in a complex market where subject-matter specialism is a real differentiator, we can offer the benefit of this experience to the companies we back. Insurance is a particularly attractive market currently. The non-cyclical nature of claims volumes, from which loss adjusting revenues are derived, means that businesses like QuestGates are resilient to the kind of economic and geopolitical shocks which currently face every business.”

Chris Hall, Chief Executive Officer of QuestGates, said: “Over the 20 years since incorporation, QuestGates has grown to be a leader in the UK loss adjusting and claims sector. We undertook an extensive review to identify a partner who could provide the capital and support that would allow us to maintain our growth and continue investing in innovation and service quality. With its long-term approach, track record of supporting UK financial services businesses and cultural alignment around our focus on our customers and staff, Equistone is the right fit as the partner to support the next phase of our development.”

Completion of the transaction is subject to the customary regulatory approvals. Dominic Geer, Tristan Manuel, Taha Hasan and Steve O’Hare led the transaction on Equistone’s behalf. Equistone was advised by Hines Associates, Deloitte, PwC and DLA Piper.