West of Scotland Insurance Office Ltd
Established on December 10 1886 as the West of Scotland Fire Office Ltd, the company changed its name to the West of Scotland Insurance Office Ltd on June 16 1904. The company became a subsidiary of the Commercial Union Assurance Company Ltd in March 1924 and was dissolved on March 3 2005.
Company History
West of Scotland Insurance Office advertisement, 1906
West of Scotland Insurance Office complimentary golf manual, c1929
West of Scotland Insurance Office burglary prospectus
The company was founded by George Macgregor, an employee of the Scottish Union & National Insurance Company. Macgregor noticed that, at the time, none of the country's fire insurance companies had a head office in Glasgow and was confident that, if one was established, it would get good local support.
In 1903, the company extended its business to :
"carry on the business of insurance in all its branches except life assurance."
Initially, the only additional class of insurance undertaken was burglary but, from 1907, the company began offering employers' liability insurance as well. In 1909, the company extended its operations overseas and, in 1914, established the Home and Foreign Re-insurance Company Ltd to absorb reinsurance treaty contracts with German and Austrian companies that had been terminated at the start of the First World War.
By 1929, the company was offering fire, burglary, loss of profits, workmen's compensation, third party, public liability, personal accident, plate glass, property owners' liability, fidelity guarantee and bonds of caution, securities in transit and motor car insurance. In 1975, the company's fire and accident insurance was wholly reinsured with Commercial Union and, by 1981, it had stopped trading.
The company was re-registered as a private company on December 22 1981. The company changed its name to CGU Insurance Ltd on December 15 1998 and was renamed the West of Scotland Insurance Office on October 1 1999.
Key dates
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1886 | The company is established |
| 1904 | Name changes to the West of Scotland Insurance Office |
| 1914 | The company establishes the Home and Foreign Re-insurance Company |
| 1924 | The company becomes a subsidiary of the Commercial Union Assurance Company |
| 1981 | The company ceases trading |
| 1981 | The company is re-registered as a private company |
| 1998 | Name changes to CGU Insurance |
| 1999 | Name changes back to the West of Scotland Insurance Office |
| 2005 | The company is dissolved |
Subsidiaries and constituents*
| Year | Company name |
|---|---|
| 1894 | Scottish Re-insurance Company |
| 1899 - 1901 | Western Fire Insurance Company |
| 1914 | Home and Foreign Re-insurance Company Ltd (sold to Commercial Union in 1914) |
* Please note the first date given is the date of the establishment of the company and the second date is the date the company was acquired or became a subsidiary. Where only one date is given the company was established as a subsidiary of the parent company. Where one date is preceded by a hyphen the date of the establishment of the company is not known.
Head office premises
Glasgow
| Year | Address |
|---|---|
| 1886 - 1890 | 28 Renfield Street |
| 1890 - 1890 | 30 Renfield Street (swapped premises with the City of Glasgow Life Assurance Company in exchange for a share of its fire insurance business) |
| 1890 - c1893 | 30a Renfield Street |
| by 1893 - 1900 | 32 Renfield Street |
| 1900 - 1931 | 131-133 St Vincent Street |
| 1931 - 1958 at least | 145 Vincent Street |
London
| Year | Address |
|---|---|
| 1893 - | 4 Abchurch Yard, Abchurch Lane |
| by 1923 - 1927 | 5 Walbrook |
| 1927 - 1934 | 81 Cannon Street |
| 1934 - 1940 at least | 3 Birchin Lane |
| by 1943 - 1958 at least | 24 Cornhill |
Registered office
| Year | Address |
|---|---|
| by 1960 - 1969 | 24 Cornhill, London |
| 1969 - | St Helen's, 1 Undershaft, London |
Staff and officials
Manager
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1891 - 1928 | George Macgregor (also secretary) |
| 1929 - 1937 | Colin R Prosser (also secretary) |
| 1937 - 1943 | John Henderson |
| 1943 - 1958 | A J Makins (position changed to general manager) |
| 1958 - 1968 at least | F E P Sandilands |
| Position not listed after 1968 | |
Secretary
| Year | Name |
|---|---|
| 1886 - 1914 | George Macgregor (manager from 1891) |
| 1914 - 1937 | Colin R Prosser (manager from 1929) |
| 1937 - 1943 | John Henderson |
| 1943 - 1960 | R K Lochhead |
| 1960 - 1965 | L S Cooper |
| 1965 - 1971 | H T Frost |
| 1971 - 1973 | J Linbourn |
| 1973 - 1977 | D R Cobden |
| 1977 - 1981 at least | G T Spratt |
Directors (1886)
- William Jacks
- Thomas Watson
- Neil Robson
- James Fleming
- James Edward Stoddart
- Duncan Campbell
- Robert Paterson
- James Brown Fleming
Home agencies
- Carlisle (1887)
- Lanark (1887)
- Edinburgh (1887)
- Leeds (1887)
- Leith (1887)
- Manchester (1887)
- Wolverhampton (1887)
- Perth (1887)
- Belfast (1887)
- Cardiff (1887)
- Ayr (1887)
- Dundee (1887)
- Newcastle (1887)
- Aberdeen (1887)
- Halifax (1887)
- Paisley (1888)
- Stirling (1888)
- Bradford (1888)
- Bristol (1890)
- Sunderland (1890)
- Oldham (1891)
- Bolton (1892)
Home branches
- Edinburgh (1887)
- London (1893)
- Liverpool (1895)
- Bristol (1898)
- Manchester (1899)
- Birmingham (1900)
- Carlisle (1923)
- Aberdeen (1925)
- Dundee (1926)
Overseas branches and agencies
- Dublin, Ireland (1890)
- Gothenburg, Sweden (1909)
- Antwerp, Belgium (1909)
- Copenhagen, Denmark (1909)
- Istanbul, Turkey (1909)
- Paris, France (by 1924)
- Brussels, Belgium (by 1924)
- Rotterdam, Netherlands (by 1924)
- Havre, France (by 1924)
- Bordeaux, France (by 1924)
- Alexandria, Egypt (by 1924)
- Cairo, Egypt (by 1924)
- Bombay, India (by 1924)
- Calcutta, India (by 1924)
- Rangoon, Myanmar (Burma) (by 1924)
- Shanghai, China (by 1924)
- Mexico (by 1924)
In the archives
The Aviva archive contains records relating to the running of the West of Scotland Insurance Office between 1886 and 1997. The collection includes board minutes, registers of members, registers of transfers, annual reports and accounts and proposals.
