
Collectible Car Insurer Hagerty Eyes Off Australian Expansion
The Shannons stranglehold on the Australian insurance market for rare, expensive and collectible cars could be nearing an end, with America's Hagerty Insurance eying up the Australasian market.
Speaking during the Concorso d'Eleganza on Lake Como, Hagerty CEO McKeel Hagerty admitted his company had been approached to enter the market there.
'There are a significant number of people who want us to enter Australia,' Hagerty admitted.
'Those requests have come from other insurance companies and the only problem is the resource it would take us to do.
'But Australia would be a place we eventually get to, I think.'
Any move into the Australian market would tread directly on the toes of Shannons Insurance business, with both companies specializing in the car-enthusiast and collector business, rather than mainstream car insurance.
It's a niche, with cars often appreciating in value, with spare parts sometimes incredibly difficult or impossible to source and with valuers needing an encyclopedic knowledge of one-off cars from even a century ago.
Incumbent Australian collectable car insurance firm Shannons is a long-term supporter of both niche ... More and mainstream Australian motorsport, including the Bathurst 1000. Photo:Traditional insurance companies prefer business models they're more familiar with, and often approach companies like Hagerty and Shannons to handle collectible cars for their clients, Hagerty said.
'The big insurance companies think of themselves as department stores and have to sell everything, but we are a boutique and not a department store,' Hagerty said.
'Nine out of the 10 biggest insurance companies in the US partner with us. They are the fiercest competitors and they all have agreements with us.
'The simple reason is that 2% to 3% of their general policies would include a car that we would be interested in, and they don't know what to do with it.
'The whole model of insurance is to handle depreciating assets and we only deal with appreciating assets, so we take a problem away from them and they can keep insuring the cars and houses and buildings they know how to do.'
Hagerty Insurance does the opposite of most car insurers by mainly insuring appreciating assets. ... More Photo: Hagerty Insurance
Hagerty has been making other moves, too, including poaching AT&T marketing wizard Marc Burns for its newly created Senior Vice-President of Brand and Marketing role, and it has a strong track record of beating financial forecasts.
Unlike Shannons, Hagerty runs a growing auctions business, with the Broad Arrow auction house selling more than €31 million in sales, with a 78% clearance rate, at its recent Concorso d'Eleganza sale.
Shannons ran Australia's most interesting car auctions for more than 40 years, but shuttered its Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne showrooms in 2023 after being absorbed by Suncorp.
Shannons, founded by Bob Shannon more than 40 years ago, was absorbed by its long-term corporate partner, Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Limited, in 2000, and has more recently fallen under the Suncorp umbrella.
A long-time favorite of the Australian collectible-car scene, Shannons also supports more than 1,200 car and motorcycle events a year in Australia, and runs the Shannons Club, which it claims is Australia's largest online motoring enthusiast community.
Hagerty does similar things largely in the USA, the UK and Canada, ranging from the highest of the high end events at Concorso d'Eleganza at the Hotel Villa d'Este on Lake Como and the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, to Radwood, Cars and Caffeine and the British Festival of the Unexceptional.
Its Drivers Club magazine is one of the biggest-circulation car magazines in the world.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Rio Tinto net earnings slump 22% in H1 2025
Rio Tinto's earnings fell in the first half of 2025 (H1 2025), hit by lower commodity prices, higher capital spending and tariffs. The mining giant's net earnings plunged 22% to $4.53bn in H1 2025 from $5.81bn in H1 2024. Underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) dropped to $11.55bn from $12.09bn, while net cash from operations dipped 1.9% to $6.92bn. Free cash flow plummeted 31% to $1.96bn due to increased investment, with capital expenditure rising to $4.73bn from $4.02bn. Net debt surged to $14.6bn in H1 2025, nearly triple the $5.08bn reported in the previous year. Tariff costs hit $321m, exacerbated by US duties on Canadian aluminum rising from 25% to 50%. However, Rio Tinto maintained its forecast across various commodities for 2025. Pilbara iron ore shipments are expected to be at the lower end of the guidance range due to cyclone impacts. Bauxite production is projected to be at the higher end of the range, led by Amrun's strong performance, copper at the higher end from Oyu Tolgoi and Escondida, and titanium dioxide slag at the lower end due to market demand. The company is prioritising copper and lithium amid rising demand. Capital investment guidance stays at $11bn for 2025, including the Arcadium lithium project. The effective tax rate is expected to rise to 33% in 2025 from 30%, returning to 30% in 2026. Exploration and evaluation expenses are projected to be 'slightly below' the $1bn guidance for 2025. Rio Tinto CEO Jakob Stausholm said: "Our strong cash flow enables us to maintain our practice of a 50% interim payout with a $2.4bn ordinary dividend, as we continue our disciplined investment in profitable growth while retaining a strong balance sheet. "We are well positioned to generate value from our best-in-class project execution, together with growing demand for our products, now and over the coming decades. We remain on track to deliver strong mid-term production growth, with solid foundations in place and a diverse pipeline of options for the future." "Rio Tinto net earnings slump 22% in H1 2025" was originally created and published by Mining Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Global lead production growth in 2024 driven by key mines
Global lead production reached 4,590.7 kilotonnes in 2024, up by 2.8% over 2023, with Australia, Mexico, Russia, and India contributing 27.8% of the global total. Australia and India were key contributors, driven by the ramp-up of projects such as the Abra Base Metals mine in Australia and India's Sindesar, Zawar, and Rajpura Dariba mines. Mexico's production was boosted by higher grades at Newmont's Penasquito mine, despite a four-month labour dispute earlier in the year while Russia's Ozernoe mine commencement added to growth. In 2025, lead production will be driven by higher output from China, Russia, and India, offsetting declines in Australia and Peru due to scheduled mine closures. China's lead production, the largest globally, will grow slightly by 2.1% in 2025, but its long-term growth will be slow, with a CAGR of 0.5% through to 2030 due to few new capacity additions. Meanwhile, Australia's lead production surged by 11.4% in 2024, reaching 502.5 kilotonnes, driven by projects such as Abra Base Metals and higher grades at South32's Cannington mine. However, growth was tempered by lower output from mines scheduled for closure, such as Potosi/Silver Peak (2025) and Rasp (2026), which are depleting in reserves. In addition, the placement of Century Tailings under care and maintenance following a regional fire in October 2024 further impactedproduction. Future declines in Australia's production are expected, with a CAGR of -1.3% by 2030, primarily due to planned mine closures. In contrast, North American countries, including the US, Canada, and Mexico, will experience growth, with production rising by 29% from 2024 to 2030, driven by new projects such as Hermosa (2027), La Colorada Skarn, and Pine Point (2029). Over the forecast period (2025-2030), global lead production growth is expected to be relatively flat at 0.03%, impacted by mine closures, but offset by new projects such as Bunker Hill, Tala Hamza and Corani. Global lead mine production (kilotonnes), 2010–2030 "Global lead production growth in 2024 driven by key mines" was originally created and published by Mining Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.


Bloomberg
4 hours ago
- Bloomberg
Australia's Home Prices Climb Further as Rental Growth Refuels
Australian home prices climbed for a sixth straight month with every major city reporting gains, while signs of resurgent rents are set to stretch the budgets of households in this segment. The Home Value Index advanced 0.6% in July, property consultancy Cotality said in a statement on Friday. Darwin was once again the top gainer, climbing 2.2%, while the bellwether Sydney market rose by 0.6%