Redde Northgate, the mobility and automotive services group that includes Bath-based specialist vehicle accident management firm Redde, have accelerated into record territory, driven by a spate of new contract wins and acquisitions.
Pre-tax profits for the year to the end of April came in at a new high for at the group of £178.7m, a 34.7% increase on the previous 12 months, with revenues up 19.8% to a record £1.49bn.
Growth came through higher activity at Redde – the accident management innovator in formerly known as Helphire – from existing and new contracts alongside a managed increase in average hire rates.
The business also acquired Lancashire-based specialist traffic management vehicle providers Blakedale in July last year and temperature-controlled vehicle specialists FridgeXpress, based in Rugby, in May.
The group’s vehicle fleet increased by 3% to 130,000-plus vehicles, driven by growth in Spain and replacement vehicles for insurance contracts, while two large insurance contracts went live in the first half of the year.
Redde Northgate, formed nearly three years ago from the merger of Redde and light commercial vehicle hire business Northgate, has an extensive network and diversified fleet as well as 400,000-plus managed vehicles in more than 100 branches across the UK, Ireland and Spain.
Redde Northgate CEO Martin Ward said: “Our integrated mobility platform has helped to drive growth and offers significant efficiencies for ourselves and customers.
“Vehicle supply is improving but remains below the high levels of customer demand; our financial strength provides an ability to react quickly to supply opportunities as they arise.
“Our acquisitions of two specialist vehicle providers have taken us into new areas and broadened our UK rental customer base and we continue to review other exciting growth opportunities.
“The group fleet is over 130,000 vehicles and multi-year insurer contracts are now at full run-rate.
“Together with our strong pipeline of new business including an additional large leasing company multi-service contract due to go live in the autumn, we are confident in continuing to deliver further stakeholder value.”
