Addison Lee snaps up Green Tomato Cars, Travelhire and Brunel

Addison Lee has acquired London rival Green Tomato Cars, together with its associated brands Brunel and Travelhire, for an undisclosed sum.

The deal takes the combined Addison Lee taxi, private hire and courier fleet to more than 7,500 vehicles. This deal follows Addison Lee’s strong financial results for 2022 in the wake of the acquisition of ComCab London in July 2021, which gave its customers access to private hire, taxi and courier services on one platform.

Founded in 2006, Green Tomato Cars has been a pioneer in offering eco-friendly private hire services in the capital. It initially ran a fleet of 300 Toyota Prius hybrids, and in 2021 announced it was switching its fleet to Volkswagen ID.3 electric cars. Green Tomato Cars focused on business users, while its sister company Travelhire offered more up-market executive chauffeuring services.

Travelhire group acquired Brunel in 2021, following five years of ownership by rental giant Europcar, which purchased the company from the Edwards family in 2016.

Addison Lee has also invested heavily in EVs, adding more than 1,000 VW ID.4s following its commitment in November 2021 to transition its standard fleet to EVs.

Addison Lee CEO Liam Griffin said: “I’m pleased to see Addison Lee unite these great London companies with shared values focused on quality, reliability, and sustainability. The London private hire market is thriving, and this acquisition supports our growth and ability to meet every Londoner’s transport needs.”

Green Tomato Cars was acquired by Transdev in 2012, but was sold to Travelhire group in 2018, with company founder Jonny Goldstone returning as managing director. It is not clear whether Goldstone or Travelhire managing director Joe Bitran will stay with the business under Addison Lee’s ownership.

In an interview with Professional Driver shortly after the Travelhire-Green Tomato Cars merger, Bitran said he had tried to acquire Addison Lee from former owner Carlyle Group, before Carlyle sold the company back to the Griffin family.