 | |
 The company's head office at 32, Cornhill | |
| Industry | Insurance |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1905 |
| Defunct | 2007 |
| Fate | Acquired by Allianz |
| Headquarters | London, England |
Cornhill Insurance was a major British insurance company based in London, England.
| | |
| The company's head office at 32, Cornhill | |
| Industry | Insurance |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1905 |
| Defunct | 2007 |
| Fate | Acquired by Allianz |
| Headquarters | London, England |
Cornhill Insurance was a major British insurance company based in London, England.
The company was founded by the directors of Willis Faber as a fire insurance company in 1905. [1] [2] It moved to new offices at 32, Cornhill in London in the mid-1930s. The offices were designed by Gunton & Gunton in the neoclassical style, built in ashlar stone and completed in 1935. [3] A pair of doors for the building were sculpted in clay by Walter Gilbert and then carved in mahogany by B. P. Arnold at H. H. Martyn & Co. [4]
Thomas Tilling acquired a majority interest in the company in 1943. [1] The company became a major sponsor of test cricket, thereby significant increasing brand awareness, in 1978. [5] After Tilling Group was acquired by BTR in 1983, Cornhill Insurance was marketed for sale: it was acquired by Allianz in 1986. [1] Cornhill Insurance went on to acquire the British Reserve Insurance Company in 1987, [6] Petplan in May 1996 [7] and DBI Insurance in August 1999. [8]
Allianz decided to retire the brand in the early 21st century. It ceased sponsoring test cricket in 2001 [9] [10] and, after its closed life fund was sold to Britannic Assurance in December 2004, [11] the remaining business was rebranded as Allianz Insurance in April 2007. [12]