OTHER STORIES
NEWS IN BRIEF
DARAG Wins Court Nod for UK Transfers — High Court Approves Move of Two Portfolios to DIUK
Legacy acquirer DARAG has received High Court approval to transfer two insurance portfolios to its UK carrier, DARAG Insurance UK (DIUK). The approval gives those books legal finality and completes a deal that started with a loss portfolio transfer 18 months ago.
28 September 2026 • Page 3 • Insurance Business Transfers
The Transaction
The High Court of Justice approved the scheme under Part VII of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 in an order delivered on 17 September. Two portfolios move to DIUK:
- Soteria Insurance Limited’s commercial liability portfolio
- the reinsurance business of DARAG Legacy UK Ltd (DLUK)
The transfers take effect at 23:59 on 30 September. After the transfer, DLUK will be deauthorised and liquidated. The scheme was overseen by the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority, with Lane Clark & Peacock LLP acting as independent expert.
The Soteria book has been with DARAG for some time. Soteria, formerly CIS General Insurance and the underwriting arm of the Co-operative Group, reinsured the portfolio to DARAG Deutschland AG through a loss portfolio transfer in March 2025, with a Part VII transfer planned from the start. The court approval completes that process and moves full legal ownership, not just the economic risk.
28 September 2026 • Page 3 • Insurance Business Transfers
Market Context
An LPT moves the economic risk and a Part VII transfer moves the legal liability, and DARAG has now done both for the Soteria book. The transfer also tidies DARAG’s own structure, bringing its UK operations together under DIUK.
The approval comes as the market questions the cost of the Part VII route. When Carrick completed its Community Re transfer earlier this year, covered in Issue 16, it did so alongside public comments that Part VII’s cost relative to the reserves involved is drawing growing scrutiny. The process still offers something no reinsurance contract can, which is full legal finality, but on smaller books the time and expense are increasingly hard to justify.
For brokers, there is a practical point. Commercial liability clients whose policies trace back to Soteria or CIS General will have DIUK as their legal counterparty from 30 September. Their cover terms don’t change.
By the Numbers
- 2: portfolios transferred to DIUK
- 17 Sept: date of the High Court order
- 30 Sept: transfers take effect (23:59)
- 18 months: time from the LPT in March 2025 to legal finality
Key Points
- High Court approves Part VII transfer of two portfolios to DIUK
- Soteria’s commercial liability book (formerly CIS General) and DLUK’s reinsurance business
- Effective 23:59, 30 September
- Completes the Soteria loss portfolio transfer agreed in March 2025
- DLUK to be deauthorised and liquidated
- Independent expert: Lane Clark & Peacock; overseen by the PRA and FCA
Quote
“We’re delighted to secure High Court approval for the transfer of Soteria’s commercial liability portfolio and DLUK’s reinsurance business to DIUK, demonstrating DARAG’s position as a trusted provider of finality solutions to the UK insurance market…”
— Tom Booth, CEO, DARAG Group
28 September 2026 • • Page 3 • Insurance Business Transfers
JDCC VIEW
This doesn’t make headlines the way a new acquisition does, but it’s the part of legacy work that counts in the end. Economic risk transfer is quick; legal finality is slow and expensive, and DARAG has now reached it for Soteria. Gazette Watch readers have followed DARAG through Ambra, Protector and Domus. This is a reminder that behind every headline deal there’s a finality step still to come. With the Part VII cost debate getting louder, the question for smaller books is whether acquirers will keep taking the court route or settle for reinsurance alone.
MARKET INTELLIGENCE. EDITORIAL PERSPECTIVE. HISTORICAL CONTEXT.
GAZETTE WATCH – YOUR WINDOW ON THE LEGACY, RUN-OFF & REINSURANCE MARKETS.