Insurance Journal West 2022-09-05 by Insurance Journal

Accepting large workers’ compensation risks. Most classes. All states, all areas, including New York City, Boston, and Chicago. Few capacity and concentration restrictions. Simplified financial structure covers all exposures. EXPECT THE WINNING DEAL ON LARGE WORKERS’ COMPENSATION. Call (877) 234-4450 or visit auw.com to get a quote.

4 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM Contents News Markets& 10 P/C Underwriting Profitability to Worsen as Inflation, Hard Market Persist 12 COVID Impacts Linger in Courtrooms, Often a Disadvantage for Defendants 14 Q2 Commercial P/C Premiums Up 6.1%: CIAB 20 Record-Breaking Pace for U.S. Product Recalls, Says Sedgwick 24 Reinsurance Capital to Drop $40 Billion at Year-End 2022: AM Best Departments 6 Opening Note 16 Figures 18 Declarations 22 People 27 Business Moves ExchangeIdea 41 Ask the Insurance Recruiter: Tools Every Insurance Agency Needs to Recruit Account Managers 42 Real Price of Being an Insurance Customer 44 Recruiting and Retaining Claims Talent in the Candidate’s Market 46 Minding Your Business: Effective Sales Management & Producer Performance 50 Closing Quote: Drilling Down to Access Capabilities WholesalersBetween ReportSpecial 30 Special Report: Senior Care BoomCompetitionExperiencingMarketRevivedAmidHi-Tech 34 Special Report: It’s a Great Time in Surplus Lines 36 Spotlight: 25 Years: The Journey of Cyber Insurance 38 Closer Look: Forged Signatures, Fake Policies? Lawsuits Raise Questions About Captive Insurance Plan September 5, 2022 • Vol. 100 No. 16

Underwriting courage takes practice. For over 50 years, we’ve built a legacy of expertise and market leadership. From Main Street to Wall Street, we optimize solutions across an array of risks. Let’s talk. lexingtoninsurance.com/2022 The bestis PROTECTION EXPERIENCE. Lexington Insurance and Western World, both AIG companies, are U.S.-based surplus lines insurers. AIG is the marketing name for the worldwide property-casualty, life and retirement, and general insurance operations of American International Group, Inc. For additional information, please visit www.aig.com. Products and services are written or provided by subsidiaries or affiliates of American International Group, Inc. Not all products and services are available in every jurisdiction, and insurance coverage is governed by actual policy language. Certain products and services may be provided by independent third parties. Insurance products may be distributed through affiliated or unaffiliated entities. Surplus lines insurers do not generally participate in state guaranty funds and insureds are therefore not protected by such funds. INTENDED FOR LICENSED SURPLUS LINES INSURANCE BROKERS ONLY. Copyright © 2022 American International Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

6 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 Write the Editor: awells@insurancejournal.com Opening Note Andrea Wells Editor-in-Chief CallSUBSCRIPTIONS:(855) 814-9547 or visit ijmag.com/subscribe Outside the US, call (847) 400-5951 Insurance Journal, The National Property/Casualty Magazine (ISSN: 00204714) is published 22 times annually by Wells Media Group, Inc., 3570 Camino del Rio North, Suite 100, San Diego, CA 92108-1747. Periodicals Postage Paid at San Diego, CA and at additional mailing offices. SUBSCRIPTION RATES: $7.95 per copy, $12.95 per special issue copy, $195 per year in the U.S., $295 per year all other countries. DISCLAIMER: While the information in this publication is derived from sources believed reliable and is subject to reasonable care in preparation and editing, it is not intended to be legal, accounting, tax, technical or other professional advice. Readers are advised to consult competent professionals for application to their particular situation. Copyright 202 Wells Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Content may not be photocopied, reproduced or redistributed without written permission. Insurance Journal is a publication of Wells Media Group, Inc.

‘More than a quarter of the United States, including a large patch of the Upper Midwest, will face days with temperatures above 125 degrees and will see almost three times as many days above 103 degrees.’

Turning Up the Heat My home base is in Austin, Texas, and anyone who lives here knows — it’s been an excruciatingly hot and dry summer. Nearly the entire state of Texas is experiencing a severe level of drought — the worst since 2011. And while the state is finally receiving much needed rainfall in late August, it won't be enough to replenish our valuable water

“Across the country, dangerous days — days exceeding the 100°F threshold from the National Weather Service — occur more commonly in the southern half of contiguous United States and impact a greater number of properties in Florida and Texas,” First Street said. “Since warmer air has a higher capacity to hold water, increasing evaporation will result in more humid conditions. Increased average temperatures and humidity have a compounding effect on heat indexes, which make health impacts more likely.”The6th Annual National Risk Assessment report, based on government weather data, third-party data, and computer modeling, found extreme heat will likely be concentrated in some unexpected places. Although parts of the Deep South and Southwest have long felt the heat, the 125-degree days will be seen as far north as Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Wisconsin. Parts of the Eastern Seaboard, including counties in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia, will also experience superheated summer days.

Chairman of the Board Mark Wells | mwells@wellsmedia.com Chief Executive Officer Joshua Carlson | jcarlson@insurancejournal.com ADMINISTRATION / CIRCULATION Chief Financial Officer Mark Wooster | mwooster@wellsmedia.com Circulation Manager Elizabeth Duffy | eduffy@wellsmedia.com Staff Accountant Sarah Kersbergen | skersbergen@wellsmedia.com V.P.EDITORIALofContent Andrea Wells | awells@insurancejournal.com National Editor Chad Hemenway | chemenway@insurancejournal.com Southeast Editor William Rabb | wrabb@insurancejournal.com South Central Editor/Midwest Editor Ezra Amacher | eamacher@insurancejournal.com West Editor Don Jergler | djergler@insurancejournal.com International Editor L.S. Howard | lhoward@insurancejournal.com Assistant Editor Jahna Jacobson | jjacobson@insurancejournal.com Columnists & Contributors Contributors: Steven Earley, Amy Hieatt, Karen Lopez, Jim Sams, Andrew G. Simpson, Kurtis Suhs Columnists: Mary Newgard, Catherine Oak, Barry Rabkin SALES / MARKETING Chief Marketing Officer Julie Tinney | jtinney@insurancejournal.com West Sales Dena Kaplan | dkaplan@insurancejournal.com Romeo Valdez | rvaldez@insurancejournal.com Kelly DeLaMora | kdelamora@wellsmedia.com South Central Sales Mindy Trammell | mtrammell@insurancejournal.com Southeast and East Sales (except for NY, PA, CT) Howard Simkin | hsimkin@insurancejournal.com Midwest Sales Lisa Whalen | (800) 897-9965 x180 East Sales (NY, PA and CT only) Dave Molchan | (800) 897-9965 x145 Advertising Coordinator Erin Burns | eburns@insurancejournal.com Insurance Markets Manager Kristine Honey | khoney@insurancejournal.com Sr. Sales & Marketing Coordinator Laura Roy | lroy@insurancejournal.com Marketing Administrator Alberto Vazquez | avazquez@insurancejournal.com Marketing Director Derence Walk | dwalk@insurancejournal.com DESIGN / WEB / VIDEO V.P. of Design Guy Boccia | gboccia@insurancejournal.com Web Team Lead Josh Whitlow | jwhitlow@insurancejournal.com Ad Ops Specialist Jeff Cardrant | jcardrant@insurancejournal.com Web Developer Terrance Woest | twoest@wellsmedia.com Web Developer Jason Chipp | jchipp@wellsmedia.com V.P. of New Media Bobbie Dodge | bdodge@insurancejournal.com Videographer/Editor Ashley Waldrop | awaldrop@insurancejournal.com ACADEMY OF INSURANCE Director Patrick Wraight | pwraight@ijacademy.com Online Training Coordinator George Jack | gjack@ijacademy.com

The more persistent and more extreme temperatures will have impact everything from health, to wildlife, to electricity costs, to infrastructure and public transport, the report noted.

POSTMASTER: Send Circulation PO Box Northbrook, IL

ARTICLE REPRINTS: Contact (800) 897-9965 x125 or visit insurancejournal.com/reprints

change of address form to Insurance Journal,

60065-9967

Highersupply.temperatures and dwindling water supply might be something we’ll have to get used to. According to a recent study by First Street Foundation, in just 30 years, more than a quarter of the U.S., including a large patch of the Upper Midwest, will face days with temperatures above 125 degrees and will see nearly three times as many days above 103 degrees. After experiencing more than 50 days of triple-digit temperatures in 2022 so far, the thought of that number tripling is quite unsettling.

708,

Dept,

First Street Foundation, which in recent years has analyzed data to show flooding impacts and wildfire risk due to climate change, predicted in its study that the Miami area will feel the most severe shift in temperatures in coming years. Miami-Dade County, which already experiences at least seven days at 103 degrees or higher, will see 34 such days, classified as “dangerous days” by the group.

WHEN YOU KNOW JUST HOW AN INDUSTRY TICKS, YOU CAN DO MORE TO PROTECT IT. TheHartford.com We make it our business to know the business of healthcare. That specialization translates to exceptional service. With expertise in underwriting, risk engineering and claims, we help develop customized product solutions that mitigate risk for mid- to large-size businesses across many industries. The Buck’s Got Your Back.® The Hartford® is The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. and its property and casualty subsidiaries, including Hartford Fire Insurance Company. Its headquarters is in Hartford, CT. 21-ML-918201 © October 2021 The Hartford

Client-focused. Performance-driven. Future-oriented. amwins.com We prize expertise and relationships equally - creating partnerships that deliver and last. With Amwins by your side, you not only get the best opportunities and data-driven insights, you get a direct extension of your team. Your challenges are our privilege. And when you win, we all win. Finding solutions together. 12 countries $26.4B annual premium placements 155+ offices

Projections: A Forward View, was pre sented during an exclusive members only webinar.Michel Léonard, chief economist and data scientist at Triple-I, discussed key macroeconomic trends impacting the property/casualty industry results includ ing underlying growth and replacement costs.Léonard noted insurance growth continues to be constrained by economic fundamentals, with replacement cost increases at multiples of pre-COVID levels and subpar underlying growth.

“P&C underlying growth of 0.35%, while more resilient than the economy’s -0.93%, are both down year-over-year and year to date,” Léonard said, noting that it is too early to determine whether improvements in used auto and construction materials prices are sustainable.

On personal auto, Porfilio said that the 2022 net combined ratio is forecast to be 105.2, 3.8 points higher than 2021, driven primarily by significant deterioration in auto physical damage coverages.

Dave Moore, president of Moore Actuarial Consulting, said the 2022 com bined ratio for commercial auto is forecast to be “W101.4.eareforecasting underwriting losses for 2022 through 2024 due to prior year development and the impact of inflation — both social inflation and economic inflation,” Moore said.

“We would like to see at least another quarter of improvements before fully factoring their impact into homeowners, commercial property, and auto insurance replacement costs,” Léonard said.

Dale Porfilio, chief insurance officer at Triple-I, discussed the overall P&C industry underwriting projections.

Looking at the workers’ compensation line, Kurtz noted that the line’s multi-year run of underwriting profits is expected to continue, although margins are expected to shrink further through 2024.

P/C

The 2022 combined ratio for the prop erty/casualty insurance industry is forecast to be 100.7, a worsening of 1.2 points relative to 2021, driven by significant deterioration in the personal auto line. Loss pressures and a hard P/C market are expected to continue due to inflation, supply chain disruptions, and geopolitical risk, according to the latest underwriting projections by actuaries at the Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) and Milliman.Thequarterly report, Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I) /Milliman Insurance Economics and Underwriting

“For personal auto in total, quarterly direct loss ratios deteriorated rapidly from the pandemic low of 47.5% for Q2 2020 to an average of 72.8% for the most recent three quarters of Q3 2021 to Q1 2022. Recent deterioration has been driven by physical damage coverages, with an average direct loss ratio of 78.6% in the most recent three quarters being the worst in two decades,” he said.

“Underwriting losses are expected to continue as more rate increases are needed to offset economic and social inflation loss pressures,” Kurtz said. For the commercial property line, the industry is seeing strong premium growth and rate increases should help to alleviate some of the pressure from catastrophe losses, he added.

News Markets

Underwriting Profitability to Worsen as Inflation, Hard Market Persist

Jason B. Kurtz, a principal and consult ing actuary at Milliman, said that another year of underwriting losses are likely for the commercial multi-peril line.

10 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

“We forecast 2022 premium growth of 8.5%, lower than the 9.2% growth in 2021, but still strong due to the economic recov ery and a hard market,” Porfilio said. He added that while 2022 catastrophe losses were lower in the first half than in 20202021, they were higher than 2018-2019.

Powering your possible.

Thomas Gmelich

Face masks also make it harder for defense attorneys to “read” the jurors reaction to testimony, said Kathryn “Kamil” Canale, who is also a partner with the Bradley law firm. She said COVID precautions have also forced the defense to use virtual witnesses who testify via videotape. Canale said video testimony doesn’t resonate with jurors.Video depositions present their own problems. Often the defense attorney has to work against poor lighting or awkward angles. Gmelich said in one case, he received a deposition where the witness’ chin was prominently displayed, but obscured the rest of her face. Gmelich said plaintiff’s attorneys follow a predictable script: They try to get a defense witness to agree with a good safety rule. Then they try to get the witness to admit a rule wasn’t followed. He said defense attorneys need to carefully prepare for testimony before trial. Often the extra expense of a jury consultant is a good investment, he added.

At the same time, corporations have cre ated an impossibly high bar for themselves by constantly communicating their dedi cation to protect public safety, he said. If a plaintiff’s attorney presents evidence that any safety rule has been violated — even a rule that is not relevant to the case — jurors may react with exaggerated outrage. Safety measures imposed in court rooms to protect potential jurors from infection have also tilted jury pools toward people who believe in following rules, a personality trait that generally disfavors the defense, Gmelich said. People who dislike masking and strict social distancing rules tend to evade jury duty, leaving only the more fastidious citizens left to serve. Defense attorneys have another common bias to overcome. “Jurors distrust corporations,” said panelist Anne Marie Stoerck, a claim consultant for CNA Insurance. Stoerck said her job duties include sitting through trials and writing daily reports. She said her observations have made her a proponent of using mock juries to test out various arguments before a case goes to trial. They can be expensive, but are often worth the investment, she said. Stoerck said courtroom COVID rules can also make it more difficult for defense attorneys to present their case. She said in one recent trail, she noticed that the plain tiff’s attorneys wore mics so they could be heard through their face masks that are still required in Los Angeles County.

12 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Gmelich said the plaintiff’s bar has honed the skill of inciting jurors’ survival instincts, often called the “reptile brain,” to generate anger toward defendants and inflate verdicts. He said the COVID-19 pandemic has made jurors more mindful of public safety and more concerned about their own health, economic security and employ ment prospects.

‘I think COVID and the orga nization of the plaintiff’s bar has caused jurors to be desensitized to high verdicts and the value of money.’

In cases where there is clearly some liability, defense attorneys should offer the jury a potential amount of damages early in the trial to serve as an “anchor” that can counter the plaintiff’s overzealous demands. “If no anchor is given, the jury is left with just a crazy number and zero,” Gmelich said. Sams is the editor of ClaimsJournal.com, a sister publication to Insurance Journal.

News & Markets

COVID Impacts Linger in Courtrooms, Often a Disadvantage for

Defendants

By Jim Sams Courts have reopened and trials have resumed, but the impacts of COVID-19 continue to linger in the judicial system, a panel of claims litigation experts said during the Combined Claims Conference last month.

For one thing, jurors are far more sympathetic to plaintiffs if there is any indication that safety rules have been ignored, said Thomas P. Gmelich, a partner with the Bradley Gmelich + Wellerstein law firm in Glendale, California.

“I think COVID and the organization of the plaintiff’s bar has caused jurors to be desensitized to high verdicts and the value of money,” he said during a presentation on litigation trends as society emerges from the pandemic. “The numbers are crazy.”

We’ll cover just about anything on earth. And cyberspace too. Conventional to complicated. Traditional to atypical. No matter the complexity, we’ve got you burnsandwilcox.comcovered.

The average premium increase across all lines of commercial business during Q2 was 6.1%, compared with 5.7% during Q1 2022.Asin recent quarters parts, cyber insur ance led the way with average Q2 premium increases of 26.8%. Cyber insurance buyers have seen average premium increases of of more than 25% for five straight quarters. Demand continues to be very strong for cyber insurance, with 85% of respondents noting they had seen an increase, said CIAB.The only other line with a double-digit with no rate relief. In wildfire ainfmiumsquartersseenauto,place.businessrespondentsareas,saidinhardtoIncommercialwhichhas44consecutiveofpreincreases,lationwasalsofactor.Theprice of goods are up in general and inflation is pushing up loss and administrative costs, resulting in higher claims and subsequent pricing pressure. Looking at account sizes, large accounts saw average premiums increase 7.5% compared with 6.2% during Q1. Small and medium accounts held stead at 6.4% and 7.3%, respectively.

And as a Travelers company, our A++ rating* for financial strength and stability provides confidence and security – a diﬀerence few other carriers can match.

Head north.

Northfield oﬀers coverage for hard-to-place business through our appointed Excess & Surplus Lines wholesalers. We provide the advantages that make a diﬀerence in quoting new business and winning it.

Nothing stated herein aﬀects the terms, conditions and coverages of any insurance policy issued by Northfield or its affiliates, nor does it imply that coverage does or does not exist for any particular claim or type of claim under any such policy. The information in this document is provided for general informational purposes and does not constitute an oﬀer to sell or a solicitation. The information is for surplus lines licensees only. Advertising of surplus lines products may be restricted by state law; surplus lines licensees are responsible for compliance with all such laws. Northfield is a U.S. based surplus lines insurer, operating in all states except IA, MA and MO. State law requires notification that Northfield is not licensed in California or New York.

For over 40 years, NORTHFIELD, a Travelers company, has been a home to businesses that don’t fit into the standard lines marketplace.

Visit us northfieldinstoday..com

average 7.2%8.3%,premiumsQ2autoandtorsproperty,CommercialumbrellaQ2increasepremiuminwas(11.3%).direcandofficers,commercialfinishedwithaverageup7.9%,andrespectively.Inflationwasoften

Q2 Commercial P/C Premiums Up 6.1%: CIAB

Hard-to-place business?

14 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM News & Markets LINESSURPLUS&EXCESS

© 2021 The Travelers Indemnity Company. All rights reserved. BNFAD.000B-P Rev. 10-21 * A.M. Best’s rating of A++ applies to certain insurance subsidiaries of Travelers that are members of the Travelers Insurance Companies pool; other subsidiaries are included in another rating pool or are separately rated. For a listing of companies rated by A.M. Best and other rating services, visit travelers.com. Ratings listed herein are current, are used with permission, and are subject to changes by the rating services. For the latest rating, access ambest.com

cited as a driver of recent premium trends in the marketplace, according to the report. Inflation continues to increase property valuations in com mercial property and, according to respon dents, businesses in areas prone to natural catastrophes are seeing high deductibles

The second quarter 2022 marked a full five years of premium increases for across all lines of commercial insurance business, according to the latest report from the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers (CIAB).

$310,000

Degrees125That’sthetemperature,Fahrenheit,thatmorethanaquarteroftheUnitedStateswillexperienceonsomedaysinthesummerintheyear2053,accordingtoastudybyFirstStreetFoundation.Afewcountiesnowfeelthattemperature,buthundredsofcountiesasfarnorthasWisconsinandIllinoiswillbakeintheextremeheatincomingdecades,thankstoclimatechange,thereportsaid.

Figures

The amount a Texas wood crate and pallet manufacturer was fined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for workplace safety violations. OSHA found in a February 2022 inspection that Jacksonville-based M&H Crates Inc. exposed workers to amputation hazards. OSHA determined the company failed to develop, docu ment or use lockout/tagout procedures to prevent sudden machine start-ups. They also said M&H Crates failed to ensure required machine guarding, exposing workers to hazards, including $249,000amputation.

39That’showmanycountsofinsurancefraudBrandenHeywood,30,ofChino,California,wasarraignedonafteraninvestigationfoundheallegedlyactedastheleaderofa“papercollision”ringtocollectmorethan$80,000ininsurancepayouts.“Papercollision”accidentsneveroccur;theperpetratorsusefalsedocumentstocommitfraud.TheamountanIndianametalworkinglubricantscompanyagreedtopaytosettleallegedClearAirActviolations.Inacomplaint,theEnvironmentalProtectionAgencyandtheIndianaDepartmentofEnvironmentalManagementsaidMetalworkingLubricantsemittedmorethan25tonsofhazardousairpollutantsperyear,includingnaphthalene,ethylbenzene,xylene,phenol,andtoluene,inviolationofitsexistingpermit. Underthetermsofthesettlement,thecompanywillpayapenaltyof$155,000totheUnitedStatesand$155,000tothestateofIndiana.

Think again. By constantly looking at opportunities for growth, we’ve become a market-leading specialty insurance group. With over 100 years under our belt, we now have more business lines, more specialty products and more claims handling expertise than ever before. Let our specialists help navigate your business risks. There’s no better time to discover what we can do for you. For smooth sailing, THINK HUDSON. Rated A by A.M. Best, FSC XV HudsonInsGroup.com MANAGEMENT FINANCIALPROFESSIONALLIABILITYLIABILITYINSTITUTIONS LIABILITY MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY PRIMARYTRUCKINGGENERAL LIABILITY & EXCESS LIABILITY GENERAL LIABILITY & PACKAGE PERSONAL UMBRELLA SPECIALTY LIABILITY SURETYCROP

“We were living in ashes. The kids were filthy constantly from that black ash. … We didn’t have any community left. All our friends had either moved to (nearby) Chico or … somewhere across the country. There was nothing left that we loved. There were no trees, no forest.”

“Never in my life have I seen anything quite like this.”

Sexual Harassment Suit

“Everyone deserves to feel safe at work and no one should be pushed out of her workplace by pervasive jokes about sexual violence.”

18 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

“Siskiyou County residents have endured wildfire emergencies over the past three years and protecting their insurance is essential to recovery.”

Declarations

— Alexa Lang, a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) attorney, comments on allegations that SkyWest Airlines violated federal law by subjecting a female parts clerk to sexual harassment. In a lawsuit, EEOC alleges explicit sexual conversations and conduct were a daily feature of the work environment at the overwhelmingly male Parts and Maintenance Divisions of SkyWest’s Dallas operation. Multiple employees and at least one manager made crude sexual comments, including the suggestion that the female employee make money via prostitution, according to the EEOC.

— Grassroots Development sustainability consultant Sydney Glup on a one-of-a-kind construction and research project in Fargo, North Dakota, that uses hemp material to build a house. The walls of the experiment house are built with a raw material called hurd, which is the inner woody core of the hemp plant, chipped into small pieces. Hemp is touted as a healthier alternative to insulation, reducing mold by creating walls that breathe, providing excellent insulating properties and serving as thermal mass, storing heat. The material is also flame resistant.

— Ellie Holden describes the experiences she, her husband, James, and their family suffered after their house was reduced to ashes in the 2018 Paradise, California fire. Unable to find a home in the area for the family of seven, the Holdens looked farther afield for a place that, unlike California, did not seem under constant threat from wildfires, droughts and earthquakes. They found a new home in Vermont.

— California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara in mid-August ordered insurers to preserve residential insurance coverage for 8,500 affected homes follow ing Gov. Gavin Newsom’s emergency declaration as wildfires in Siskiyou County threatened homeowners.

Hemp Homes “You blend the mixture to a consistency, a nice sort of chicken salad, is our joke, consistency.”

Captive Fraud?

— A captive insurance expert comments on alleged fraud schemes led by Ambassador Captive Solutions and its principals. Lawsuits by Lexington Insurance Co., State National Insurance and others allege that the principals forged insurance carriers’ signatures and created thousands of fake insurance policies for youth sports teams and others around the country, using offshore captive cells to provide reinsurance for the bogus policies.

No More Talc “As part of a worldwide portfolio assess ment, we have made the commercial deci sion to transition to an all cornstarch-based baby powder portfolio.”

— Johnson & Johnson said it will stop selling talcbased baby powder globally in 2023, more than two years after it ended U.S. sales of a product that drew thousands of consumer safety lawsuits. It added that cornstarch-based baby powder is already sold in countries around the world. The company faces about 38,000 lawsuits from consumers and their survivors claiming its talc products caused cancer due to contamination with asbestos, a known carcinogen. J&J denies the allegations.

Wildfire Emergencies

Living in Ashes

Philadelphia Insurance Companies is the marketing name for the property and casualty insurance operations of Philadelphia Consolidated Holding Corp., a member of Tokio Marine Group. All admitted coverages are written by Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Company. Coverages are subject to actual policy language. CONTRACTING I ENVIRONMENTAL I EXCESS I HOSPITALITY I MANUFACTURING I REAL ESTATE I RETAIL Your Insurance package should sweeten your chances to succeed—freeing you to grow your business. PHLY Excess & Surplus Solutions offers excess protection for small niches like plumbing, taverns, machine shops, environmental contractors, commercial real estate, vacant properties, manufacturers, and flea markets. Even box makers. PHLY E&S Solutions. Neatly packaged to make a big difference, even in your small niche. GOT A NICHE? CALL 800.873.4552 I PHLY.COM EXCESS & SURPLUS PROTECTION. NOW IN NEAT LITTLE PACKAGES.

U.S. Food and Drug Administration food and beverage recall events increased to 120 in Q2, up 9.1% from Q1. However, the number of impacted units decreased significantly (81.3%) to 27.5 million units.

Highlights from the Q2 recall data: Automotive recall events increased in the second quarter 2022 to 245, following two consecutive quarters of decline.

For a second consecutive quarter, there were a total of 94 pharmaceutical recall events. The number of impacted units fell to their lowest level in over a year, at 20.6 million units in Q2.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had an active Q2, finalizing several standards for fuel efficiency and increasing civil penalties — meaning the automotive industry may soon be liable for millions of dollars in fines.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) chemicals are rising to the top of regulators’ and litigators’ list of harmful substances to target with regulations and lawsuits.Infantfood recalls continue to have a lasting impact on the food and beverage industry, as the FDA and other regula tory agencies examine the causes, poor response times and preventative measures. for food importers. As medical device technology advances, the FDA is releasing guidance to protect devices from cyberattacks. This space will likely remain a focus for the FDA, as will enforcement in the pharmaceutical industry.

insights into how companies can safeguard their reputations and brands.

20 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM News & Markets

U.S. Department of Agriculture food recalls increased to their highest level in more than two years, with 13 events.

While medical device recalls increased 34% (to a two-year high, with 268 events), the number of impacted units fell 96.8% to their lowest level in 10 years (10 million).

Record-Breaking Pace for U.S. Product Recalls, Says Sedgwick

The number of U.S. products recalled this year has already surpassed 1 billion, according to the U.S. product recall index released by Sedgwick’s brand protection division. Only two other years on record have seen more than 1 billion units recalled: 2018 and 2021. In those years, it took a full year to hit that threshold. In 2022, it only took seven months.“Thisis the second consecutive year in which we have seen more than 1 billion units impacted by U.S. product recalls. If the first half of the year is any indication, we should expect 2022 to eclipse all previous years on record for recalled products,” said Amanda Combs, recall advisor in Sedgwick’s brand protection division. “While regulatory agencies may not be back to pre-pandemic work levels, companies can’t relax their focus on product safety. Inspections enforcementandactions are stillindustriesconsumerTheoccurring.”automotive,product,foodandbeverage,medicaldeviceandpharmaceuticalcontinue

The number of consumer product recalls decreased 15.6% in Q2 from 77 events in Q1 to 65. The total number of units recalled also decreased in Q2, but by only 3.5% to 6.7 million units.

to face challenges from increased regulatory scrutiny, as well as geopolitical issues and ongoing public health issues, including COVID-19 and monkeypox. Sedgwick’s brand protection quarterly report provides an in-depth look at the economic, regulatory and legal challenges affecting various industries, as well as

Partner with Prime SPECIALTY LIABILITY SOLUTIONS, PRIMARY & EXCESS > Specialty Liability Solutions, Primary & Excess > Specialty Coverage offered in all 50 States, with same date quotes when needed > General Liability including Professional Liability & Completed Operations/Products > Directors & Officers Liability > Commercial Auto, including Trucking > Property Coverage > Risk Management & Superior Claims Results WITH US, YOU HAVE…. To learn more visit www.primeis.com Contact us at 1.800.257.5590 or info@primeis.com Prime Insurance Company (“PIC”) is an excess and surplus lines insurance company, which is domiciled in the State of Illinois and has its principal place of business in Sandy, UT. Full disclaimer at www.primeis.com/legal. Scan the QR code to learn more 40+ Years of Experience For latest ratings, access www.ambest.com

Jessica Snyder

Michael Smith

22 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM People all over North America, and serves as the agency’s cyber insurance practice leader. He began his career with Arthur Hall Insurance in 2014. Midwest Chicago-based Ryan Specialty appointed three to new senior leadership roles within the Underwriting Managers specialty.

East Arthur Hall Insurance named Dan Mackarevich a principal shareholder. He assumes the title of vice president.Mackarevich joins James Denham, Glenn Burcham, Mark Sammarone, Nicole Grebloskie, Josh Isler and Karen Leary as an agency partner and member of the managing leadership team of the West Chester, Pennsylvania, firm. Mackarevich advises clients consultant Alex Gibson joined Alliant Insurance Services as vice president in its employee benefits group. Gibson’s exper tise encompasses the areas of analytics, strategic planning, HR consulting, employee wellness, pharmacy benefit consulting, and compliance. Prior to joining Alliant, Gibson was an employee benefits consultant with a national insurance brokerage and consulting firm. He also is a musicGrammy-nominatedengineer,producer, and founder of a music production and management company.

South Central Steven Anderson joined the Safety National cyber insurance team as director of Cyber Underwriting. Anderson is based in the company’s Dallas office. With nearly 30 years of industry experience, Anderson has served in various underwriting and product leader positions at global cyber insurance carriers and, most recently, an insure-tech startup.Truist subsidiary McGriff, an insurance broker, announced that Doug Hodo will rejoin the firm as chief strategic growth officer, based in

nashipslargedirectorworkingtheHTexas.odospentpastyearasofrelationforationalbrokerage.

Brian Lillis, chief operating officer, has been with Ryan Specialty andManagersUnderwritingfornineyears,hasservedinvariety of operational, technology, M&A, and finance leadership roles, serving most recently as senior vice president. Eric Quinn, senior vice president, has been with Ryan Specialty Underwriting Managers for two years as vice president of Program Development. Chris Taggart, senior vice president –

National Argo Group International Holdings Ltd., an underwriter of appointedinsurance,specialty SnyderJessica U.S.president,asinsurance.Withalmost

HumanservingRyanDevelopment,OrganizationalhasbeenwithSpecialtyforeightyearsasvicepresident–Resources.

Previously he served more than 25 years at McGriff in Houston, most recently as president of the West Region. Southeast Michael Smith joined the Palomar Insurance Corp. sales team as an specializingexecutiveaccount ment.risktransportationinmanagePalomarInsuranceisheadquartered in Montgomery, Alabama, with offices in Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina. It offers programs for U.S. and interna tional companies. Smith has a background in transportation risk management and is involved in trucking associations in four Southern states.

30 years of industry experience, Snyder joins Argo from GuideOne Insurance where she most recently served as its president and chief executive officer from 2017 through 2022. Prior to GuideOne, Snyder served as senior vice president of commercial and specialty lines at State Auto Insurance. Doug Kovach joined Concert Insurance as senior vice president, underwriting and program management. Kovach has over 30 years of experience in the insurance and reinsurance industries. He joins Concert after 10 years at American Family Insurance Co. Kovach also served in senior underwriting roles placing commercial accounts for national brokers, including Brown & Brown, Willis and Aon.

Greg Delleney, former assistant captives director at the South Carolina Department of Insurance, joined the capital management firm, Risk Partners, as captive account manager.Delleney began working for the SCDOI in 2010. Most recently, he was chief financial analyst and assistant director of captives in the Financial Regulation and Solvency division, according to Captive InsuranceOrlandoTimes.,Florida-based Doug Hodo

West Nevada-based Outsource Insurance Professionals announced senior leadership changes. Martina Seferovic takes over as president and CEO. Prior to this role, Seferovic was the managing director for the past five years. Milos Petrovic becomes chief operating officer. Snezana Obradovic was named chief financial officer. The global knowledge process outsourcing company (KPO) is headquartered in Nevada, with locations in Arizona, Croatia and Serbia, and client throughoutpartnershipstheU.S.,UK and Canada. Alliant ConsultingRetirement , a division of Alliant Insurance Services, hired Kathy Aicher as vice president in its Los Angeles office.Aicher has experience designing and delivering retirement programs. Aicher was previously a partner and senior retirement consultant.

Local expertise with global capabilities. Coverages are underwritten by the following insurance company subsidiaries of Intact Insurance Group USA, LLC: Atlantic Specialty Insurance Company, Homeland Insurance Company of New York, Homeland Insurance Company of Delaware, OBI America Insurance Company, OBI National Insurance Company, located in Plymouth, MN, or The Guarantee Company of North America USA, located in Southfield, MI. With our deep product and industry expertise spanning more than 20 specialized segments, we deliver global solutions to address the unique risks you face. Our inland marine experts have a comprehensive understanding of your construction, transportation, fine arts business and more. Let us tailor a solution for your specialized insurance needs. To learn more, talk to your broker or visit intactspecialty.com

News & Markets

The report explained the 10.7% jump in traditional reinsurance capital in 2021 highlighting substantially improved underwriting returns and strong equity market growth fueling the increase in shareholders equity of reinsurance market participants. In fact, AM Best’s Global Reinsurance Composite reported its lowest combined ratio in five years in 2021 — 96.4 — and equity values soared 17% for the group.The biggest year-over-year jump in capital recorded in the AM Best report was a 15.5% increase in 2019. AM Best’s 2020 report on capital levels explained that even though most reinsurers were underwriting at, or just above, breakeven in 2019, the vast majority of companies had been adversely impacted by mark-to-market unrealized losses from both fixed-income securities and equity holdings toward the end of 2018, which reversed in 2019.

AM Best’s estimate of traditional reinsurance capacity takes into account the allocations by business classification.

Overall, elevated catastrophe losses have been characterized as “earnings events” rather than capital depleting ones in recent years, the report says, noting that many reinsurers’ underwriting returns have been close to breakeven but that capital grew through investment gains and the ability to access affordable debt financing.

AM Best estimates that traditional reinsurance capital will drop by roughly $40 billion to $435 billion at year-end 2022, after hefty jumps recorded in each of the prior three years.

This article first was published in Insurance Journal’s sister publication, Carrier Management.

24 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

AM Best is also considering continued geopolitical turmoil and a potential decline in global GDP for the forecast, the rating agency said in a report, “Dedicated Reinsurance Capital Growth of 2021 May Not Continue.”

The AM Best report also includes a decade-long record of third-party reinsur ance capital levels and a projection that third-party capital overall will stay steady at about $95 billion for 2022, compared to $94 billion in 2021. Even though the downturn in the U.S. equity market has presented capital supply challenges for some insurance-linked securities funds, AM Best says the pullback of traditional reinsurance in catastro phe-exposed markets such as Florida may be creating opportunities for ILS funds.

“With interest rates on the rise and equity markets declining, we do anticipate a rather substantial mark-to-market loss in traditional reinsurance capital levels,” Dan Hofmeister, senior financial analyst, AM Best, said in a video accompanying the report on the AM Best website. Working in the opposite direction, reinsurance capital has been boosted by underwriting results in spite of heightened cat loss activity in the first half of the year, he said. As hurricane season plays out, “if we do see a reversal in these underwriting trends, it could prove to be very problematic for the industry’s capital levels,” he said.

“Since year-end 2018, our estimate has been less than 60% of total shareholders’ equity of the consolidated figures for groups identifying as reinsurance writers,” the report says. A Bit of History

AM Best works in conjunction with Guy Carpenter to estimate the total amount of capital supporting the reinsurance industry. AM Best determines traditional reinsurance capital; Guy Carpenter deter mines third-party capital.

The projected 8.4% decline to $435 billion for 2022 from $475 billion in 2021, following increases of 15.5% for 2019, 8.9% for 2020 and 10.7% in 2021, takes into account both the tailwinds of the under writing market and the headwinds of the capital and investment markets.

The report notes that pure reinsurers with a global reach are rare, necessitating an “incisive analysis” on AM Best’s part to present an accurate picture of capital backing the reinsurance market. Global reinsurers are typically also engaged in businesses such as specialty insurance and large commercial, for example.

Where traditional capacity is lacking, ILS funds can take advantage of significant price increases and tighter terms and conditions, the report says. Putting traditional and third-party capital together, AM Best is estimating a 6.7% drop in reinsurance capital from both sources — the first drop in a decade of figures compiled by the rating agency.

Reinsurance

Capital to Drop $40 Billion at Year-End 2022: AM Best

While the report notes that many reinsurers substantially decreased property exposure through the last renewal cycle, some are still exposed to material amounts of multiyear reinsurance contracts. Those reinsurers that did not manage risk exposures prudently could be exposed to material capital deterioration, AM Best said, referring to a double-whammy of underwriting losses and adverse invest ment market returns in 2022.

UFG Specialty is a growing company with an appetite to match. Whether it’s building partnerships or providing excellent service in the evolving excess and surplus marketplace, we adapt to meet our brokers where they need us most. We pride ourselves on being a responsive carrier that provides innovative solutions for complex risks. At UFG Specialty, we want your tough accounts. For more information, visit ufgspecialty.com. Casualty want your tough accounts.

Puttingmarkel.com customersourfirst. In an ever-changing world, it’s hard to plan for all of life’s uncertainties. At Markel, we specialize in understanding the unique needs of our customers and providing innovative insurance solutions.

Former Washington State Coach Files Wrongful Termination Claim

Former Washington State football coach Nick Rolovich has filed a claim against the university seeking $25 million for wrongful termination after he was fired last year for refusing to get vaccinated against COVID-19. The claim was filed on Rolovich’s behalf with the state’s Office of Risk Management on April 27. Such a claim is a prerequisite for filing a lawsuit against a state agency, said Brionna Aho, spokesperson for state Attorney General Bob Ferguson. A person must wait 60 days to sue after a tort claim is Rolovich’sfiled.attorney, Brian Fahling of Kenmore, did not return a telephone message left at his office. He has previously indicated Rolovich would take legal action, claiming religious discrimination.Rolovich,who is Catholic, was denied a religious exemption from Gov. Jay Inslee’s mandate requiring state employees to get the vaccine. He was fired in October after he had coached just 11 games with the Cougars over two seasons, going 5-6. Assistant coach Jake Dickert was temporarily ele vated to interim head coach and then was named replacementRolovich’safter leading the Cougars to the Sun FahlingBowl.filed a 34-page letter with the university appealing Rolovich’s firing in November. That appeal was denied. At the time of his firing, Rolovich was working under a five-year contract, on which three seasons remained. He was paid $3.2 million per year, the highest public salary in the state.

W2 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM 2022 JM Wilson INS Journal OUTLINES.indd 1 12/6/21 1:11 PM

News & Markets

Francis Okyere, 70, a previously licensed insurance agent in Westlake Village, California, was arrested in relation to a scheme that involved him allegedly stealing multiple victims’ identities and using them to open a fraudulent insurance agency. The victims’ identities were also reportedly used on small business loan applications to fund the agency, known as Cyber Access Insurance Agency.

Former California Insurance Agent Arrested for Theft,

W4 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM Contact us for a quote today: Matt 916.780.7000Matt_Abram@RPSins.comAbram High value, high risk, and hard to place? We have the experts for your Umbrella and Excess risks. © 2022 Risk Placement Services, Inc. RPS43055

The California Department of Insurance began an investigation after a complaint from one of Okyere’s ex-relatives, who alleged he had stolen the identities of several people to open a new insurance agency. The CDI’s reportedlyinvestigationconfirmed that Okyere stole the identities of four victims to open Cyber Access Insurance Agency.

Operating Fraudulent Agency

Okyere’s bail was set at $815,000 and Freeman’s bail is set at $100,000. The case is being prosecuted by the Healthcare Fraud Division of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.

News & Markets

The department’s investigation discov ered Okyere had also applied for a series of Small Business Administration and Paycheck Protection Program loans, the federal program to help businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. The documents related to those loans reportedly showed two of the same stolen victims’ identities had been used to fraudulently secure loan funds for $38,963. Okyere used the same stolen identities when he applied for forgiveness of one of the loans. This is the second time fraud accusa tions have been brought against Okyere, who has previously been convicted of grand theft following another CDI inves tigation, which found he stole $65,186 in insurance premiums from small business owners. The department ordered Okyere to surrender his license in 2019 and he is pending sentencing in that matter.

Okyere was charged with 17 felony counts including identity theft and grand theft by false pretenses. Okyere’s alleged accomplice, Holly Freeman, 40, was also arrested and charged with four counts of felony identity theft for her alleged involvement in the same scheme.

$18M Settlement in Lawsuit over Boy’s Death at California School

District officials didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment on the settlement.Thefamily filed the lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court in 2018. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Theentsparof an 8-yearold boy with Down syndrome who died after falling strappedwhileto a chair in class five years ago have reached an $18 million settlement in their wrongful death lawsuit against a Southern California school district, attor neys said. Lawyers for the family of Moises Murrillo announced the deal during a news conference in the city of La Puente, east of Los Angeles, where he attended Sunset Elementary School. Moises was unsupervised on May 31, 2017 when he fell backwards, striking his head on the floor and fracturing his neck, according to the lawsuit brought by Martin Murrillo and Roberta Gomez. The boy had been taken out of his special adaptive stroller by staff and strapped to a school chair, the lawsuit stated. He went into cardiac arrest and was taken to a hospital, where he died on June 4, 2017 of spinal cord trauma, the court filing said.

News Markets

AM Best Places Credit Ratings of American Reliable in Arizona Under Review AM Best has placed under review with negative implications the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating (Long-Term ICR) of “a” (Excellent) of American Reliable Insurance Co. in Scottsdale, Arizona. American Reliable is a member of Global Indemnity Group LLC. The actions follow the recent announcement that ARIC completed the disposition of its farm, ranch and equine book of renewal business to Everett Cash Mutual Insurance Co. Global Indemnity also announced that it agreed to sell ARIC to ECM. Under the proposed agreement, Global Indemnity will receive roughly $85 million, including the release of capital currently supporting ARIC’s operations. Until ECM acquires ARIC, ECM will be providing Global Indemnity with 100% quota share reinsurance subject to the renewal rights agreement with ECM. The sale of ARIC is expected to close sometime in the first quarter of 2023 and is subject to customary regulatory approvals, according to AM Best.After the deal closes, ARIC will no longer be part of Global Indemnity and will no longer be a member of Global Indemnity’s intercompany pooling agreement, from which its ratings are derived. The under review with negative implications status reflects the antici pated removal of the group rating and the anticipated transfer of risk to ECM from Global Indemnity, according to AM Best.

In addition, the lawsuit said, the district did not have a policy in place to adequately supervise students with spe cial needs like Moises inside and outside of their classrooms.

W6 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Hacienda La Puente Unified School District “failed to provide safe surround ings” and allowed the vulnerable boy “to be unsupervised and unrestrained during his class,” the filing alleged.

W8 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

In May, Walgreens reached a $683 million settlement with the state of Florida in a lawsuit accusing the company of improperly dispensing millions of painkillers that contributed to the opioid crisis.The company also faces litigation in Alabama, Michigan and New Mexico, among other states.

News &

A Walgreens spokesman said the chain is disappointed in the outcome, which he said is not supported by the facts and the law.“As we have said throughout this pro cess, we never manufactured or marketed opioids, nor did we distribute them to the ‘pill mills’ and internet pharmacies that fueled this crisis,” spokesman Fraser Engerman said in a statement. “The plaintiff’s attempt to resolve the opioid crisis with an unprecedented expansion of public nuisance law is misguided and unsustainable. We look forward to the opportunity to address these issues on appeal.”Several drug manufacturers and pharmacies opted to settle with the city previously as part of the case, including opioid makers Allergan and Teva, which agreed to pay $54 million on the eve of closing arguments in the trial, leaving Walgreens as the sole defendant.

Judge Rules Walgreens Contributed to San Francisco’s Opioid Crisis

The ruling did not include a ruling on monetary damages, which will be determined in a future trial. Drug overdose deaths have surged in the country, including in San Francisco. Mayor London Breed declared a state of emergency last year in the Tenderloin neighborhood, saying something had to be done about the high concentration of drug dealers and people consuming drugs in public.Thecity attorney’s office says San Francisco saw a nearly 500% increase in opioid-related overdose deaths between 2015 and 2020 and that on a typical day, roughly a quarter of visits at the Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital Emergency Department are opioid-related.

“Pharmacists were pressured to fill, fill, fill,” he said, “and as a result, Walgreens filled our streets with opioids.”

Deerfield, Illinois-based Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. runs a network of around 9,000 drugstores in the United States. Walgreens and other prescription drug distributors have faced a slew of lawsuits over the opioid crisis.

Afederal judge ruled in mid-August that Walgreens can be held responsible for contributing to San Francisco’s opioid crisis for over-dis pensing opioids for years without proper oversight and failing to identify and report suspicious orders as required by law.

By Juliet Williams

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer ruled that for 15 years, Walgreens dispensed hundreds of thousands of pills, eventually contributing to the city’s hospitals being overwhelmed with opioid patients, libraries being forced to close because of syringe-clogged toilets, and syringes littering children’s playgrounds in San Francisco.

San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu said the pharmacy chain “continually violated what they were required to do under the federal Controlled Substances Act,” failing to track opioid prescriptions, preventing pharmacists from vetting prescriptions and “nor did they see the many red flags of physicians and others who were dramatically over-prescribing.”

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 27

INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Based in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, Lighthouse specializes in personal and commercial insurance for transportation risks with a focus on livery and taxis. The agency also offers personal auto, homeowners and umbrellas, as well as coverages for small businesses, restaurants and contractors.

South Central Truist, BenefitMall Charlotte-based Truist Insurance Holdings has agreed to acquire Dallasheadquartered BenefitMall, a wholesale

Richmond, Virginia-based Hilb Group is a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group, a global investment firm.

National Applied Systems, Tarmika Applied Systems acquired Tarmika, a commercial lines rating solution that streamlines small business insurance. Tarmika will be integrated with Applied Epic and EZLynx. Over time, users can expect embedded commercial lines quoting capabilities powered by Tarmika natively in the management systems. Additionally, Tarmika’s panel of commer cial lines products will be integrated into Ivans Distribution Platform to streamline the submission process through standard ized digital connections to agency-facing systems.Recently, Pie Insurance, an insurtech company specializing in workers’ comp insurance for small businesses, announced a strategic partnership with Tarmika. East Hub Buys Delaware’s KT&D Insurance broker Hub International Limited has acquired KT&D Inc. in Wilmington, Delaware.

Midwest Inszone, First Bosnian Inszone Insurance Services acquired First Bosnian Insurance, its second acquisi tion in the state of Missouri.

KT&D provides multi-line insurance services, including medical malpractice, commercial and personal, and employee benefits coverage. Scott Yerkes, CEO, and Kelly McGovern, president, and the KT&D team will join Hub Mid-Atlantic.

Steven Oakes is president and Ed Timmerman is sales manager. Eastern Insurance Group, headquartered in Natick, Massachusetts, is a subsidiary of Eastern Bank and is licensed to do business in every state, Hilb Group, Lighthouse The Hilb Group acquired Massachusettsbased Lighthouse Insurance Agency.

Cross Insurance, Maine Insurance Agency Cross Insurance racquired Maine Insurance Agency of Portland. The acquisition of Maine Insurance Agency, a fifth-generation family-owned business, expands the coastal region division of Cross.Founded in 1905, Maine Insurance Agency offers insurance for homes, autos, recreational products and small businesses. The agency’s two offices in Portland and Gray will be rebranded under the Cross Insurance name. Cross said it will retain Jeff Steinman, president and CEO, and all personnel affiliated with the agency.Dave Messersmith, president of Cross Insurance-Coastal Region, said the firm plans to continue to expand in the coastal region. Cross acquired three Massachusetts agencies this year: Northern Benefits, Harold Humphrey Agency and Byfield Agency. Cross also opened a Newburyport, Mass,. branch office, further bolstering its presence in the coastal market.

Eastern Insurance, Burns Agency Eastern Insurance Group has acquired the John T. Burns Insurance Agency in Newton, Massachusetts. Family-owned since 1892, Burns Insurance offers personal auto and home insurance from carriers including Arbella, Safety, Plymouth Rock, Hanover, Quincy Mutual and Vermont Mutual. It also offers business and professional lines coverages and life insurance.

First Bosnian Insurance opened in 2005 with the goal of helping the growing com munity of Balkan and Eastern European people coming to America.

Ibrahim Vajzovic and his wife Fazira were able to provide information and coverage to a vastly underserved commu nity that wanted assistance from a native Bosnian speaker. As the community grew, many businesses and commercial truckers were emerging, and First Bosnian Insurance was able to be at the forefront of supporting their insurance needs.

Maine-based Cross owns more than 120 insurance agencies throughout the Northeast and has employees in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York and Florida.

Agency principal Brian Boucher and his staff will join Hilb Group’s New England regional operations and Hilb Group’s transportation practice.

Business Moves continued on page 28

28 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Virtus was founded in 2013. Andrew Gray is CEO. Kemmons Wilson was formed in 1952 to insure Kemmons Wilson’s hotel properties. It is now a full-service agency focused on the hospitality sector. Higginbotham, Holman Higginbotham, a Texas-based indepen dent insurance and human resources firm, acquired Georgia-headquartered Holman and Co., a commercial and personal lines property/casualty insurance and benefits broker.Holman and Co., founded in 1983, is based in Alpharetta. It is led by Bill Holman with his brothers Alan Holman and Bob Holman, who purchased the agency from their father, Penn Holman, in 2021. Holman and Co. serves mid-sized companies and specializes in coverage for the forest products, real estate, food and beverage, manufacturing, distribution and wholesale and construction sectors.

benefits general agency. Truist officials said in a news release that the purchase will bring in an extra $150 million a year for Truist’s wholesale is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Denver Agency

Eric Gordon, Chip McKeever, Katy Hyman Roth and their team will continue to operate from their current location under the direction of Jeff Saunders, head of Gallagher’s U.S. personal lines business, and Jay Eshelman, head of Gallagher Select, its U.S. P/C operations for small businesses.

Through a network of some 20,000 retail brokers, BenefitMall provides employee benefits to more than 140,000 small and medium-sized businesses across theTrcountry.uistisa subsidiary of publicly traded Truist Financial Corp. BenefitMall will become part of Truist's CRC Insurance division, a spokesperson said. Hub, Bubrig Hub International Limited announced that it has acquired the assets of Bubrig Insurance Agency Ltd. Located in Belle Chasse, Louisiana, Bubrig Insurance Agency is an indepen dent agency providing personal insurance solutions, including home, auto, flood, life andBillrecreation.Bubrig,president, and the entire Bubrig Insurance Agency team will join Hub Gulf South. Southeast World Insurance, Consumers Choice Underwriters World Insurance Associates LLC has acquired Consumers Choice Underwriters Inc. of Miramar, Florida. Consumers Choice writes property/ casualty insurance throughout Florida including homeowners, commercial and special event insurance. The agency was founded in 2010 by Maria Pineda and is currently owned by Giovanni Gutierrez. World Insurance Associates, based in Iselin, New Jersey, ranks No. 24 on Insurance Journal’s Top 100 Agencies. Alera, Jowers-Sklar Insurance Alera Group has acquired Jowers-Sklar Insurance, a Georgia-based independent agency specializing in property/casualty insurance in the Southeast. The agency serves Floyd County, Georgia, and the surrounding area, as well as clients in 16 states. It offers business and personal insurance, with specialities in equipment rental, childcare and restau rants.Jowers-Sklar joins Alera Group through Propel Insurance, an Alera Group company headquartered in Tacoma, Wash.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. acquired Denver, Colorado-based Denver Agency. Denver Agency is a personal lines-fo cused insurance agency that serves high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients throughout the U.S. It also offers commercial property/casualty services.

RPS is Arthur J. Gallagher’s U.S. whole sale brokerage, binding authority and programs division. Arthur J. Gallagher, an insurance bro kerage, risk management and consulting services firm, is headquartered in Rolling Meadows, Illinois.

The Jowers-Sklar team will continue serving clients in their existing roles. Alera is headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, and has offices around the country. It was formed in 2017 from the merger of 24 companies.

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.’s Risk Placement Services Inc. acquired Hillsboro, Oregon-based Evergreen Insurance Managers Inc. Dyan Bates, Nancy Schultz and their associates will remain in their current location.Evergreen Insurance Managers is a wholesale insurance broker and managing general agency offering commercial insur ance services for a variety of industries. The team serves clients throughout the Pacific Northwest.

division.Thedeal

West Arthur J. Gallagher, Evergreen Insurance Managers

Business

PCF Insurance, A Insurance PCF Insurance Services acquired A Insurance Agencies in Utah, a personal lines insurance provider specializing in life, home, auto, and business. The firm has offices in Syracuse, Kaysville, and MarriottSlaterville.Lehi,Utah-based PCF is a consultant and insurance brokerage firm offering a broad array of commercial, life and health, employee benefits, and workers’ compensation services.

Moves continued from page 27

Virtus Brokerage, Kemmons Wilson Virtus LLC, a Kansas City-based insurance brokerage and consulting firm, has joined forces with Kemmons Wilson Insurance Group, a Memphis company that specializes in insuring hospitality and hotelThefirms.combined firm will have more than 100 employees and a book of business of more than $250 million in premium and $20 million in revenue, according to the announcement regarding the transaction.

Real Expertise. Real Specialization. Excess & Surplus Products unavailable except through a licensed surplus line broker. Availability varies by state. Policy eligibility is subject to underwriting qualifications and approval by the insurer writing the policy. Insurance products underwritten by eligible surplus lines insurer affiliates of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, One Nationwide Plaza, Columbus, Ohio, 43215-2220, including Scottsdale Insurance Company (unlicensed except in AZ, DE and OH), Scottsdale Indemnity Company (unlicensed in AZ and DE), or Scottsdale Surplus Lines Insurance Company (unlicensed except in AZ and NJ). Scottsdale Surplus Lines Insurance Company is not an eligible surplus lines insurer in CA. Nationwide, the Nationwide N and Eagle, and Nationwide is on your side are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. AM Best A+ (12/2021, The second highest of 16 ratings). Standard & Poor’s A+ (5/2021, The fifth highest of 21 ratings). ©2022 Nationwide. From property and casualty to personal lines, our excess and surplus team specializes in complex and hard-to-place risks with tailor-made solutions that work. AMA+BestFSCXV StandardA+&Poor’s 100companyFortune (12/22/2021) (5/7/2021) Experience our expertise: nationwide.com/experience is on your side Commercial general contractor

Special Report: Assisted Living and Senior Care

Hamilton handles both skilled nursing home and assisted living risks, which Zuccari stresses are very different risks and some carriers will only write one or the other. Skilled nursing cares for patients in facilities; assisted living and senior housing are communities with residents. But when it comes to liability, he feels the

“I think during the pandemic things got shook up. I believe we’ve seen a lot of things leveling off,” Jason Zuccari at Hamilton Insurance Agency in Fairfax, Virginia, told Insurance Journal. Hamilton specializes in insurance and risk manage ment for the senior community. Zuccari, vice president of business development, calls Hamilton a “one-stop shop for insurance in a senior care community.”

Premiums that were going up considerably are moderating in some subclasses and carriers that pulled away are returning and competing with new entrants.Atthesame time, the sector is witness ing a technology explosion that promises to address some of the most difficult claims scenarios.

“Obviously, during the beginning and in the height of the pandemic, we saw a lot of carriers reining back, being a lot more con servative, or just not writing anything at all. But as things have been loosening up, the carriers have gotten back to business as usual,” he said “There’s still a few carriers that don’t write in a senior space anymore, but then others that have been out for years are getting back in.”

30 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

The insurance market for senior care and housing facilities has emerged from the volatile period of the pandemic and is again responsive and competitive.

Senior Care Market Experiencing Revived Competition Amid Hi-Tech Boom By Andrew G. Simpson

The “liability piece” is the bailiwick of James McNitt, healthcare practices leader with specialty broker Risk Placement Services (RPS) in its Chicago-area office. In a recent report, McNitt noted that since summer 2021, many medical professional liability insurers have “made an abrupt change in direction” in underwriting longterm care facilities. After several years of rate increases from 12% to 15%, many long-term care facility premiums are now flat on renewal, although other senior facilities continue to see rate increases. Some MPL insurers are even offer ing two-year rate guarantees to long-term care facilities, according to “RPS.So,whereas there’s a need for rate on certain facilities and groups of facilities, we are seeing compe tition from new market entrants that is keeping that increase down,” McNitt told Insurance Journal. “We had quite a bit of flat renewals and competitive carriers coming in trying to underprice business. There’s a little bit of what I like to call ‘FOMO’ still in existence here — the fear of missing out where carriers are still trying to compete on accounts that, in my opinion, are ones that should not be competed on.”

two sectors are becoming more alike. “The big thing was that assisted living would say, ‘No, we’re not a nursing home.’ But now assisted living facilities are also facing high liability risks and having to learn how to manage them.” He thinks the “liability piece” is the one of the most pressing concerns for all senior care operators.

“It’s a combination of just new parent companies that are entering the space or carriers that exited in the past and are more satisfied with the rate adequacy of the marketplace today,” he added.

“And it’s gotten expensive. You can understand why — you’re driving elderly people and if you look across the board, just auto in general has gone up.”

Auto is the biggest headache. Insurers are taking a much closer look at hired nonowned auto coverage where employees may use their own vehicles to transport assisted living residents to appointments.

In another area, sexual misconduct and abuse claims remain a concern and carriers are now limiting and even excluding this coverage in some policies, RPS reports.

page 32

One of the coverage issues that McNitt says is still in flux is COVID exclusionary language.

“That is something that we still do see for the majority across the board from all of our carriers. It is some sort of airborne pathogen communicable disease, COVIDspecific, exclusionary language. However, some carriers are willing to remove that exclusion for an additional premium,” he noted.Overall, McNitt assesses the current market as one with some challenges but also one where continued on

According to RPS, for the first time many insurers are asking policyholders to share more of the risk through deductibles and retentions. This trend, McNitt believes, helps explain what appears to be an overall drop in claims frequency because “the small stuff“ is being reported less often.

INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Research on the most common senior market professional liability claims (Aging Services Claims Report) by CNA, a leading senior care insurer, shows resident falls and pressure injuries continue to make up about two-thirds of all claims. Other top causes are improper care, failure to monitor, delay in seeking care, resident abuse, and medication errors. Elopement claims are only 1.8% but are the costliest per claim, averaging $360,840.

McNitt describes it as an “opportunistic” market where some established carriers are letting accounts walk rather than underprice them and the new entries are typically professionals with experience in the market and have a “pretty darn good understanding” of what they’re doing.

“That’s something that, five years ago, was thrown in for free,” McNitt noted. However, now claims severity is a major concern. “Those total losses have been pretty brutal and in the past 12 to 18 months, we’ve seen carriers really taking a harder look at that.” He called auto for a senior living facility one of the “most difficult placements in insurance today” because it involves a fragile patient population oftentimes in non-ambulatory situations. There are issues with wheelchair tie downs not being correct and gurneys not being strapped correctly. Also, the non-emergency medi cal transport industry suffers from driver shortages.Zuccariagrees that auto is a big chal lenge, with some states’ liability climates worse than others and driver shortages everywhere. He said carriers are underwriting the individual driver whereas before they’d offer blanket coverage, and they are requiring background checks, which can be irksome in a field with a lot of turnovers.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 31

Technology Boom Risk-reducing technologies that are being introduced at a rapid pace are part of the conversation brokers have with their senior care clients and insurers. These technologies are addressing a number of the most common risks in senior care from inadequate staffing and medication errors to falls and loneliness. Wearables track a resident’s physical condition, heart rate, stress levels and sleep patterns. Virtual assistants help senior living staffs with day-to-day tasks like reminders for appointments, medi cations and meals and answer questions for seniors. GPS devices track residents’ location to prevent elopements. Telehealth services provide video consultations, remote patient monitoring and secure messaging. Alexa-like voice activated devices let families and caregivers remote ly check in on seniors. Machines accurately dispense medications. Caregivers use data from electronic incident reports to optimize care and safety plans. Telehealth services provide quick access to medical teams.Hamilton

he’s still “able to get stuff done.” That is a contrast to two years ago in the middle of 2020, when he felt that there were risks that he called “uninsurable” or where the premium was so high that the insured couldn’t afford it. Since 2020, he thinks the market has been “pretty darn consistent.” He uses the terminology of Goldilocks, “not too hot, not too cold” in his outlook.

“COVID really threw a big curve ball to this industry. I think people are fatigued. I think the stress got to people,” Zuccari said. “Workers and laborers are leaving the industry completely; it’s the stress, the intensity, and the responsibility is hard.”

RPS points out in its report that solving one problem often leads to creating a new one.“That’s insurance, right? Nowhere to hide,” commented McNitt.

Both McNitt and Zuccari see the indus try’s labor shortage as a major risk factor. It is a challenge not only in caregiving but also in transportation.

Telehealth services can raise issues around remote diagnoses and treatment, confusion about where a claim can be brought, licensing of doctors, or missed instructions due to service interruptions.

According to a 2020 claims study by insurer CNA, almost 60% of fall-related claim allegations involve a resident with a prior history of falls and claims where there was a history are more costly.

Skilled nursing facilities are graded on a staffing metric. Facilities that have more medical professionals on staff are presumed to have less adverse medical outcomes. Technology may be able to help here, too. “During COVID, there were facilities that had basically the equivalent of a robotic cat or dog-looking creature that would bring meals to residents. It had artificial intelligence to understand where it was going through the facility and also had the ability for somebody on the other end of it to do the communications. That was a way to bring both a smile and a meal to a fragile patient population, especially during the height of COVID,” McNitt said. Telemedicine took off during the pandemic and remains popular for both diagnosis and screening to determine if an office visit is needed. Among the benefits of telehealth services are its communication capabilities that counter social isolation and loneliness, which are associated with about a 30% increased risk of heart attack or stroke, according to the American Heart Association.

“The loneliness metric was something that was pretty darn stark during COVID,” McNitt recalled. “We saw the ability to bring in a machine that would not just communicate back and forth with them, play music, show a video, et cetera, but also communicate with their family when visitors weren’t allowed. It seemed simple, but it enabled a happier lifestyle for some of these more fragile patients.”

Zuccari has noticed considerable money going in healthcare technology and a believes a “lot of really fascinating compa nies” are on the way. He wonders which firms and technologies will win the race to set the industry standard. “Is it wearable? Is it sensor? Is it infrared?” he queried.

Insurance performs onsite surveys during which a consultant walks the building with the client and notes deficiencies such as a medicine chest on a certain floor being unlocked. Incidents are input into the proprietary risk management system, Servarus, which can issue reports, trends analyses and alerts. Caregivers may be alerted that a patient has fallen multiple times in the past 30 days. “If we don’t figure out a remedy, next time he’s going to go to the hospital,” Zuccari explained. The program also tracks hospital readmissions and lets owners see which of their facilities are having more incidents.

“All of these data points have been able to help reduce claims and falls, and the whole idea is building this culture of awareness. If we see something, we’re going to try to correct it,” Zuccari added.

Better communication leads to happier outcomes. “They’re going to live longer and probably feel better throughout the process and a lot of claims that we do see are a result of just being a disgruntled patient,” the RPS broker said. As much good as technologies are doing, there are downsides. The main one is that they raise cybersecurity risks and insurance costs. Cyber insurance has “gotten super, super expensive,” said Zuccari, while stressing how important it is for an industry that is dealing with HIPAA compliance and people’s medical records.

32 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Special Report: Assisted Living and Senior Care

‘There’s a little bit of what I like to call ‘FOMO’ still in existence here — the fear of missing out where carri ers are still trying to compete on accounts that, in my opinion, are ones that should not be competed on.’

continued from page 31

McNitt is worried that insurance cover ages may be lagging behind healthcare’s digital transformation. Neither MPL nor cyber coverage addresses bodily injury related to a technology glitch, system out age or cyber attack. Wearable technology failures and privacy issues could soon be litigated under MPL, RPS warns.

Technology Helps Seniors Stay at Home Longer implications for the senior housing industry are both immediate and longer term. The discussion, let alone the deci sion, to move to senior living can now be delayed by many. While showing modest improvement, senior housing resident numbers, down since the pandemic, are likely to experience a sluggish recovery not necessarily due to continued pandemic fears, but due to tech-enabled services that families and older adults see as an alternative to moving,” Coughlin wrote recently on the AgeLab site. which may become over-occupied or at full occupancy, which is what they’d like. They don’t want to over-occupy, but they all want to be operating in full occupancy. You can drive through any small town in America and see new senior living facilities being built.”

Jason Zuccari, vice president of business development at Hamilton Insurance in Fairfax, Virginia, which specializes in the senior care market, notes that while staying at home appeals on certain levels, seniors home alone may suffer loneliness and miss out on the benefits of human interaction: “Yes, you have all these different monitoring methods, but remember assisted living is a lower acuity community. The whole purpose of moving there is for socialization and being around other people. So while we have better communication in Zoom, people still like being able to go to dinner with their friends. People still like to have activities to do with their friends.”

“The

Fast forward two months and Sam is at home. He went through rehab and then stayed a month in assisted living. His friends “elder-proofed” his home. He has telemedicine appointments with caregivers; a heart monitoring device; a medical alert device; a device that calls people on voice command and reminds him when to take medications; a doorbell with a camera; and smartphone apps for Uber and meal deliveries. It isn’t all high-tech — he also has a weird-look ing plastic device to help him put on his socks and shoes. Sam loves being home. He is entertaining visitors again and walking to church and the park on his own. It’s all good for Sam and his loved ones. But maybe not so good for the assisted living facility that lost a resident who was paying $6,900 a month. Sam represents the growing aging-at-home movement, which has gained momentum during the pandemic.AnAARP survey found that 76% of older adults want to age in place. In addition to the desire to be at home and near family and friends, there is also an economic incentive. The median cost of assisted living is about $4,500 a month, according to a 2020 Genworth survey. Nursing homes cost more than twice that.Some see this shift affecting the assisted living industry.

Joe Coughlin, who leads the Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab, has written on the potential impact of “virtual” assisted living where technologies make it easier for seniors to stay at home and their loved ones and caretakers to check in with them.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 33INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

anboard.populationallthinkasviewsRiskleaderNIC’saworkforceupwardpandemic,lossesfullyquarterlivingconsecutivehousingpandemic,Occupancy,continuesandInvestment2030.inAccordingpopulationmajorhavestay-in-their-own-homes)call-it-virtual-assisted-living-seniors-can-mit.edu/home-logistics-and-services/blog/(https://agelab.Seniorsstayingathomelongerwillaneffectbutisnotlikelytoputadentintheseniorcareindustry.Theofseniorscontinuestogrow.totheU.S.Census,1in5personstheU.S.willbeover65yearsoldbyAccordingtoJulydatafromtheNationalCenterforSeniorsHousingCare(NIC),demandforseniorhousingtooutweighthesupply.whichfellduringthehasimprovedforalltypesforthelastfourquarters,withassistedshowingthelargestsecondgain.“Thesectorhasnotrecoveredfromoccupancyduringtheheightofthebutthecontinuedoccupancytrenddespiteandsupplychallengesispositivesign,”saidChuckHarry,chiefoperatingofficer.JamesMcNitt,healthcaremarketatinsurancebrokeragePlacementServices(RPS),theat-homemovementapositivedevelopment:“Itherisingtide’sgoingtolifttheboats.TheagingpatientisgrowingacrosstheIlookatitmoreasbeingalternativetothesefacilities,

Eighty-five year old Sam, his family and friends feared this was it. Sam, who lives alone, had fallen again and this time, he fractured his back. Days later as he was lying in the hospital bed wearing a back brace, he asked out loud what everyone had been thinking, “Will I ever go home again?”

By Andrea Wells

There is an abundance of accounts to work on in the surplus lines market today, says Jeffrey McNatt, co-president of AmWins’ brokerage division.

34 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM Special Report: Excess & Surplus Lines

It’s a great time to work in surplus lines, say specialists working in today’s busier than ever market. The excess and surplus lines (E&S) sector is experiencing record growth — again. In the first six months of 2022, premiums topped $31 billion, and premium bearing transactions pushed 2.8 million. According to the 2022 Midyear Report of the U.S. Surplus Lines Service and Stamping Offices released in July, premiums in the E&S sec tor rose 32.4% and transactions were up 9.4% over numbers reported through the same period in 2021. Year-to-year premium grew at the highest percentage rate since the stamping offices began reporting collective data in 2009. Most experts predict continued growth for the market for the rest of 2022 and well into 2023.

It has been the longest hard-market cycle in McNatt’s career. “It’s pushing four years now in so many silos of our business from professional to casualty to property and there’s harder markets inside all of those.” Despite some softening of prices in the casualty space, many sectors continue to see hard market pricing. Aside from the longer dura tion of this hard-market cycle, something else is different — causation, according to Sam Baig, co-president of AmWin’s Brokerage division. “It’s an unusual market cycle because all lines of business are affected and there’s no single event that drove the change,” he said. Past hard-market cycles were driven by signifi cant single-loss events, such as 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. This hard market seems to be lingering thanks to a combina tion of factors that continue to put pressure on underwriting results, he said. They include social inflation and funded litigation efforts, overall higher costs of claims, economic inflationary trends, and lower investment earning potential for insurance companies.

It’s a Great Time in Surplus Lines

As courts have begun to clear their dockets from delays from pandemic closures, insurers are seeing claims that were held in reserves for $100,000 now jump to $1 million or more, he said, adding, “A lot of accounts that we have in casualty, the results are much worse than we probably thought they were.”

For casualty business in particular, Baig added, the longer it takes to settle a claim, “the more you hear about these [larger]Timothverdicts.”yTurner, director and president of Ryan Specialty, and chairman and CEO of RT Specialty, says that while rate is always important, it’s sec ondary to how much business is coming into the surplus lines channel today. “It’s more about the movement of business and the flow into the channel than it is rate,” he said. He agrees that this hard-market cycle has some distinct differences from the past three hard markets. “They were very different in terms of the volume that came into the channel and the amount of capacity we actually had to solve problems and meet those challenges,” he said. “The market is just a lot bigger today than it was in ‘02 and certainly significantly bigger than it was in ‘85 or ‘86.” Drop in the Bucket The rising rate environment is often a time when new capacity enters the market, but those new additions aren’t always permanent players, says Michael Garrison, The Hartford’s head of Navigators Wholesale.Historically, hard-market cycles see the more new entrants launch into the E&S space than at other times, but their expectations sometimes outweigh execution, he told Insurance Journal. “Successful startups must navigate all market cycles, and sustainabil ity comes with the ability to

“The E&S space has had a tremendous year. Just when you think we may have tapped out, you turn around and we continue to grow. The opportu nities are crazy.”

“Speed is such a big factor in our business, if everything else is equal,” said Ryan Specialty’s Turner. “Retailers need help quickly and efficiently, and that help has to be reliable time after time.” It’s a repeat sales business and a relationship business that’s built on mistake-free execution and high level of performance, according to Turner. At the end of the day, it’s a talent business. “Training, developing, mentoring people at every stage of the business, every stage of their careers is a commitment that you make and if you want to be the best wholesaler and underwriting manager, you have to have a serious commitment to recruit ing, training and developing talent,” he said. While talent and relation ships are keys to success so too is technology, according to Kaufman. “I think the top challenge for anyone in insurance — carrier, wholesaler, retailer — is technology,” he said. “I’ve always thought that since I entered our space a long time ago that insurance was so far behind when it came technology, especially the E&S space.”Kaufman, who took over as president of B&W in late 2021, has been leading the way for the firm’s technology overhaul.

Burns & Wilcox has remained a privately owned and family run business since the organi zation was founded in 1969 by Herbert W. Kaufman, Danny Kaufman’s grandfather. “If we were larger and publicly traded or private equity backed, we probably wouldn’t be able to make this kind of investment and roll it out as quickly,” he said. “It’s game changing for us; we’re consolidating over 15 systems to one.” The future story of the surplus lines sector will be one of great efficiency and service for its partners, according to these specialists.

“The industry has been in one of the longest ‘firming’ markets in history,” says Navigator’s Garrison. “Buyers and producers are experiencing fatigue, and we do see a deceleration to the size of rate increases.” Even so there are rising costs that are likely to remain permanently, he added. “As a large construction industry writer, however, we remain concerned with the increasing costs of materials and labor — the latter of which is more likely to be permanent — and the effect on loss scenarios which often take years to manifest and ulti mately resolve,” he said. “The fundamental nature of the jury pool is also changing over time in terms of their general acceptance of large awards and willingness to punish companies for their mistakes.”

Jack Kuhn, president, Westfield Specialty, said the company is entering surplus lines slowly and focusing on just five business units: E&S property; E&S excess casualty; financial institutions; professional liability (including cyber); as well as commercial management liability.

“Our value proposition is pretty simple: it’s focused on bringing in top level talent,” he said. That means bringing in talent and working with wholesale partners who are experts in this space. “The lines that we have entered into, we’ve been bringing in people that have industry recognition and deep relationships with a number of brokers.” So far that strategy is working, Kuhn says. “When I look at our business units, they’re all performing very well.”

“We’re still not even seeing markets willing to write in certain geographies for certain lines of business, which tells us we’re still in the thick of this hard market,” Kaufman told Insurance Journal. He predicts the cycle lasting for at least another 18 months or so given today’s market conditions.

“The surplus lines market is made up of business that has struggled to find a home elsewhere,” said Garrison. “Being successful in the space is contingent on two areas — one, having an appetite to underwrite business in the segment, and two, having the experience and expertise to provide the best probability of a profitable underwriting outcome.”

Kuhn understands profitabil ity is key to being successful, and that key depends greatly on relationships.

Kuhn says while Westfield is new to E&S, its long history in the P/C market keeps the carri er focused on what’s important to grow and be successful in such busy times. “I think some people try to wrap us into being a startup, but we’re not really a startup,” Kuhn said. “We’re just a new division of an existing company that’s been around since 1848.”

There’s no better time to be in E&S right now but the slow road is the right one to take, agreed Danny Kaufman, president of Burns & Wilcox Kaufman. Most new E&S entrants aren’t diving into the property market, he says, and there’s a good reason for that.

The Future: Tech and People Success in today’s busy surplus lines market depends on speed and response time.

“Since April 2020, while in the midst of the pandemic, when everyone else was cutting staff, cutting costs … we actually signed our first agreement with Salesforce to undergo $100 million overhaul of our technology,” Kaufman said. “Our first rollout finally of this new system is next month.” Their goal is simple: To have the best technology in the industry. “Our size and independence mean that we’re nimble enough to make this kind of investment,” he said.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 35INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM effectively underwrite in the most competitive markets,” Garrison said. The challenge with some new players is not their capital. Rather, the challenge is their ability to provide support to the sectors’ wholesale partners, Baig said. “They’re popping up with capital, but they have enormous staffing issues and so you end up with a facility with a lot of capacity, but that’s got two underwriters to service the whole country,” he said. That’s problematic, he says. Even so, the new capacity entering E&S has helped in areas such as the excess casualty and excess D&O space, he added. But overall that help is limited. “It’s an interesting time, because while there is more capacity coming into the market, it’s a drop in the bucket.”Onelegacy carrier that has expanded into the E&S world is Westfield, a 174-year-old super regional property/casualty insurer who joined the special ty market just a year ago.

Kuhn noted that Westfield Specialty will likely end its first 12 months in the E&S sector with more than $250 million in premium.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the cyber insurance market.

Cyber Insurance’s Path to Market Relevance Cyber insurance has explod ed and captured market share exponentially over the past two decades. Initial standalone cyber policies consisted of two levels of protection: first-party coverage for digital asset res toration, business interruption and network extortion; and third-party liability arising from network security and privacy wrongful acts, as well as media liability arising from copyright and trademark infringement. By 2015, the marketplace boasted over 50 cyber insur ance carriers, continually offer ing more lenient terms and conditions with accelerating premium reductions. External vulnerability assessments were no longer an underwriting pre requisite, and cyber insurance applications were reduced to a mere two to three pages. Coverage options broadened to include such cyber risks as: 1) bricking, when malware does not physically damage tangible Journey of Cyber Insurance soundness issues. The primary concern centered around the bank’s ability to safely deliver online banking services amidst the conceivable threat of financial institution fraud exposure and hacking of bank assets. Recommendations set forth included the underlying need for insurance coverage to protect the institution in the event of an unforeseen data attack or fraudulent incident.

launchedinsurance,regulators.financtifiedriskperceivedthenidenbyialCyberto protect against a little-known exposure of inter net fraud, is today the hottest, fastest growing sector of the world’s insurance markets.

Spotlight: Cyber

25 Years: The

While many industry observers view cyber coverage as a surging phenomenon in response to escalating incidence of random attacks, the first cyber policy was envisioned and crafted in 1997 to address a

The MGA’s model was based on the proven approach for underwriting certain at-risk commercial operations based on the concept of Highly Protected Risk (HPR). Construction property carriers designed insurance solutions on engineering-based risk management assessments for commercially installed state-of-the-art sprinkler systems. Under commercial HPR policies, construction engineers would identify property risk and establish guidelines for adherence by the insured. Once the insured implemented system criteria and procedures for meeting certain coverage qualifications, they could be certified as an HPR, with inherent benefits of favorable premium rates and pricing options. Periodic reviews for compliance would be conducted by the engineers for continuation of coverage.

36 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

In 1995, federal bank regu lators and financial regulatory authorities met in Atlanta for an annual fraud conference. As part of the agenda, officials were given a presentation by Security First Network Bank, a licensed bank in the state of Georgia, to introduce its proposed business model as the world’s first internet bank, defined as having no physical branches or brick-and-mortar presence. The presentation via Netscape browser was a straightforward value proposition with drawn images depicting the interconnectivity of various parties engaged in a typical banking transaction.

The Atlanta-based insurance broker for Security First Network Bank was charged with securing insurance to protect the online-only bank from internet risk. At that time, however, coverage for web-driven perils did not exist. Insurance bank underwriters considered such exposures as technology risk, while technol ogy insurance carriers believed the invisible bank risks should be covered within specialty Financial Institutions lines. The insurance broker, Steven Haase, envisioned the need for hacker insurance. He subsequently created Network Risk Management Services LLC (later known as INSUREtrust. com) as a managing general agency (MGA) to launch the first cyber insurance policy at the height of the dot.com era.

Network Risk Management Services, following the HPR playbook, engaged information security professionals and miliary experts to conduct an external vulnerability assess ment against a cyber exposure of insurance applicant’s computer network systems. The company seeking coverage would be required to complete a detailed, multipage insurance application that outlined its risk management

By Kurtis Suhs

Conference attendees, while intrigued, voiced concern about risk management controls, security and financial controls around people, processes and technology. As a condition of binding coverage, the insurance applicant had to immediately remediate any discovered high vulnerabilities and to fix any identified medium vulnerabilities within 30 days of the policy’s effective date.Inessence, security vulner ability scans are where the industry started 25 years ago; an approach that is continuing to be instituted by cyber insurtech platforms today.

Choose a WSIA member to craft cost-effective solutions for complex risks. In fact, it’s so cost-effective that a recent analysis by Conning, Inc. concludes that wholesale distribution does not increase the cost to the insured. That’s a good decision!

MANAGE YOUR RISK BY CHOOSING A WSIA MEMBER.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 37INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM THERE ARE NO BAD IDEAS, JUST BAD DECISIONS. LRISK OW ME D I UM HIGH WSIA MEMBERS ARE INSURANCE PROFESSIONALS DEDICATED TO THE WHOLESALE DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM.

Some decisions are too precarious to take on alone. You need a partner who can help you create the right solution for your client’s risk, while minimizing yours.

Cyber insurance spending for standalone coverage in the U.S. reached nearly $3.1 billion last year, an annual increase of 92% from the prior year, as reported by Fitch Ratings. Exorbitant price points are compounded by greater underwriting scruti ny and often onerous insurance constraints. Most cyber insur ers now require enterprisewide multifactor authentication, written strategy of data-backup processes and a privileged access management tool to protect user credentials, among otherThecriteria.realityis that many organizations and insurance applicants may not qualify in meeting minimum information security requirements or may simply forgo the purchase of cyber insurance due to prohibitive cost barriers.

Suhs, CEO of Cyber Special Ops LLC, is the founder of Concierge Cyber, a membership subscription offering that guarantees emergency response to a cyber attack or data breach incident.

Find a WSIA member at wsia.org/findamember Insurance Journal - half page.indd 2 7/12/21 10:01 AM property but the hardware is rendered useless; 2) business email compromise incidents; and 3) system failure when the insured mistakenly takes their network offline resulting in business interruption loss.

By 2017, private equity firms began investing heavily in cyber insurance MGAs to com pete with traditional insurance carriers following practiced underwriting processes. This new wave of cyber MGAs touted innovative underwriting prowess by offering external vulnerability scanning at the time of application and process verification during the policy period.In2020, the market showed signs of hardening as the frequency and severity of claims were amplified by rampant ransomware attacks, data breaches and money theft arising from business email compromise. Further compli cating matters, organizations had more complex connectivi ty of devices, business partners and third-party providers with respect to both information technology and operational technology.According to a recent report by Sophos, the cyber security firm, 66% of midsize organiza tions worldwide were targets of a ransomware attack last year compared with 37% in 2020. By 2021, the cyber insurance market hit an unprecedented hard market cycle. Today, cyber insurers have restricted their appetite for certain higher-risk industry classes, increased retentions, reduced overall policy limits, incorporated new coinsurance provisions and introduced other exclusions. Cyber insurance premiums have increased anywhere from 25% to 400% over the past year for an insured with or without a cyber claim episode.

While soft market conditions teetered with the prospect of creating an all-risks policy, most cyber risk programs are underwritten on a standalone basis with some limited exceptions for supplemental sublimits and packaged policies in admitted markets.

The carriers argue that White, Ambassador, and associates were involved in at least seven schemes that sold millions of dollars worth of fake policies to youth baseball teams and leagues, to surrogate mothers, to a waste-removal company, and to construction companies.“Theplaintiffs allege that Ambassador and/or White procured and caused the fraud ulent issuance of counterfeit insurance policies, certificates, and invoices,” reads an amend ed complaint in the Lexington suit, filed in 2020 in the Western District of Kentucky. The suit asks the court to bar White and his firms from using the carriers’ names and to turn over profits from the schemes, along with treble damages. White, based in the Louisville area, has been a consultant in the insurance business for a number of years, according to his social postingsmediaand to people who have met him. A 2017 Twitter posting shows him teaching insurance agents at a seminar on captives. He has denied the fraud allegations and has asked the federal court to dismiss the complaints. In court records, White and Ambassador have said the issues stem from contract disputes with the insurance carriers over the use of their names. White and his attorneys did not return phone calls from Insurance Journal. The plaintiffs have called White’s schemes “brazen,” aided by the fact that captive reinsurance programs are “complex, multi-party arrange ments that require specialized expertise and significant underwriting capacity.” At least $11 million in claims have surfaced since the suits were filed, records show.

Industry experts familiar with the cases said they have renewed concerns about how some captive insurance companies are regulated in the U.S. and offshore; how the arrangements are pitched to people seeking alternative risk solutions; and how much this type of “agency captive” structure may lend itself to abuse. “Never in my life have I seen anything quite like this,” said one captive expert who declined to use his name because of involvement with theThecases.cases and the types of problems they allege have received little attention in the insurance industry. “Not many people are aware these issues exist,” said Chris Burand, an insurance industry consultant with Burand & Associates, based in Colorado. “More expe rienced people have caution and concern, and a few have direct experience with these scenarios going sour, but most other people have no idea.”

Forged Signatures, Fake Policies?

It all began, according to the lawsuits, in 2018, when White approached a Lexington and AIG insurance executive with an idea. The plan was for an insurance broker to sell accident, liability and health policies to youth sports leagues. The claims would ultimately be covered by one of the Cayman-based captive cells, acting as reinsurers, similar to an agency captive structure.Thecells weren’t captives in the traditional sense and weren’t part of a non-insurance business: They were part of an umbrella insurance company called Performance Insurance Co. SPC, a segregated portfolio corporation, of which White

Closer

The lawsuits, by Lexington Insurance, an AIG company, as well as State National Insurance and a California youth baseball league, have been churning through the courts for two years and don’t appear to be close to resolu tion.In the latest development, a Texas insurance agency filed a cross-claim in the Lexington suit, arguing it was not part of the scheme but was a victim, just like thousands of policy holders across the country. The scheme was reportedly led by Brandon White, of Kentucky, and his Ambassador Captive Solutions. It allegedly used offshore captive insurance cells to give legitimacy to bogus liability, homeowners, workers' compensation, accident and health policies, according to lawsuit documents and people involved in the cases.

Lawsuits Raise Questions About Captive Insurance Plan

INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

38 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022

Look: Captive Market

By William Rabb Federal lawsuits, includ ing a nationwide class action filed in California, have put a spotlight on a type of captive insurance program, charging its directors with a scheme that involved forged signatures and fake policies.

“I don’t see gross misregula tion here,” he said. “Something like this would eventually, or with due diligence, be caught.”

The alleged Ambassador fraud was eventually discov ered, but not for many months, and not by regulators.

The Ambassador lawsuits have led to some finger point ing in the industry. Some have suggested that regulators in the Caymans and in the states, along with the direct insurance companies, insurance agencies, and the insureds themselves, provided little scrutiny into White’s companies, the wording of the policies or the reinsurance treaties, despite the unconventional captive structure.Inmany cases, understaffed regulatory agencies rely heavily on captive managers’ word, industry experts said. “It’s a faulty model,” one industry insider said. Unlike a conventional captive model, none of business owners were on the boards of the captive companies and weren’t signatories on any of the bank accounts. “They trusted their broker and trusted Brandon White implicitly.”

The plan offered the forged policies through Gagliardi Insurance Agency, based in Pennsylvania, and were purported to be reinsured through a captive cell known as Goldenstar Holdings, affiliated with Ambassador and White, the suit charges. This was dubbed the “Gagliardi scheme” in the court filings. An Ohio company, known as ePremium Insurance Agency, also was named in the suit. Davina was alerted to potential trouble in December 2018, when a emailedadministratorthird-partyforGagliardihim,askingabout a formal TPA agreement on the policies. Davina questioned White about it, but White said it was a “mixup” by the client. On that occasion and at least four others, AIG officials took continued on page 40

“It’s been a record year and it’s been driven by the hard insurance market,” said David Provost, deputy commissioner of Vermont’s Captive Insurance Division. “Insurers are pulling out of some markets; every thing’s tough. So, companies are thinking: ‘If we can’t get the coverage we need, we’ll do it ourselves.’”Vermontwas one of the first U.S. jurisdictions to capitalize on the captive need. In the 1980s it passed laws making it attractive for captive insurance companies to be domiciled there — providing jobs and premium-tax revenue to the state. The push for captives gained steam after the federal Liability Risk Retention Act of 1986 made it easier for at-risk companies to establish their own liability insurance groups.

“Ambassador and White went to great lengths to hide their fraud and were successful in their deceit — until they got caught,” reads the lawsuit complaint by Lexington. After AIG’s captive division vice president, Joe Davina, declined to participate in White’s program in 2018, White and company proceeded anyway, copying and pasting or forging Davina’s signature on documents showing Lexington as the direct insurer, the suit charges. Lexington’s name was used on many fake insurance policies, the 2020 complaint reads. ‘I don’t see misregulationgrosshere.’

Lexington’s involvement was needed because captives are not licensed commercial insurers, which often have higher surplus requirements. A licensed commercial insurer would have to issue the policies, the lawsuits explain. The captives would then pay a fee to Lexington and would reimburse it for any losses from claims.Theproposition was somewhat unusual but not that far-fetched. Captives of a variety of types are, with proper safeguards, considered legitimate solutions for hard-to-insure organizations looking to save money on risk management. The agency cap tive model appears to be more commonly used in offshore domiciles.Foralltypes of captives, the number has grown steadily in recent years. The Insurance Information Institute recorded 3,069 captive companies in the U.S. in 2021, a 14% increase over the year before. States across the country in recent years have begun to compete in efforts to have captives set up shop inside their borders.

INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM wasAmbassadorpresident. Captive Solutions would serve as an intermediary, assisting brokers and dealing with carriers.

Vermont is now number one in the country, with some 620 captives domiciled there in 2021, followed by Utah, Delaware and North Carolina, the I.I.I. reports. And it’s not just in the United States where captives have blossomed. Captives domiciled in Bermuda, Barbados and the Cayman Islands have also grown in recent years, topping 1,500 last year, according to industry reports. It’s not clear how many of those are agency captives, similar in structure to White’s model.

The current captives regulatory head at the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority could not be reached about the authority’s review process for captives, and the former director declined to comment.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 39

Provost acknowledged that regulators do, in fact, depend on a captive’s own business plan, but they also undertake background checks and con duct reviews into companies’ principals and their affiliations.

Some U.S. states, including Vermont, have moved cautiously on agency captives and have only recently begun allowing the practices. Vermont has fewer than five and restricts them to commercial lines only — so White’s practice of insuring sports teams would not have been allowed there, Provost explained.

State National and the insureds didn’t find out about the apparent deception until the Gagliardi agency informed them in October 2020 that the policies were the subject of the Lexington lawsuit in Kentucky.

The lawsuits and some in the industry suggest that the alleged fraud was largely done on the front end, and the perpetrators could have easily produced counterfeit insurance certificates without the aide of Cayman-based captives. But the existence of actual captive cells may have allowed the alleged schemers to show legitimate financial statements and registrations — if anyone hadBrasked.okers, agents and insureds should make extra efforts to verify policies and other doc umentation when approached by people offering captive and other alternative risk solutions, experts say. They should con sider seeking an independent review of the programs, said those familiar with this type of captive arrangement.

40 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

“Agents should not get involved in captives unless they understand the captive’s design at a fairly detailed level, they have an E&O policy that covers them, and they’ve done due diligence on the program that goes far beyond just liking the person selling the captive solution,” said Burand, the insurance consultant. “Few agents have this knowledge and I am learning through my E&O work that quite a few people don’t even know captives and reciprocals are not normal insurance companies.”

The umbrella captive company, Performance Insurance Co., is in the process of being liquidated. CIMA, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority, has taken some action against Performance. In December 2020, CIMA issued a cease-and-desist order, barring Performance from writing any more business, and said it planned to suspend the company’s Class B insurance license.AIGattorneys declined to comment on the litigation.

continued from page 39

“In furtherance of the seven schemes, defendants Ambassador and White forged or caused to be forged the signatures of purported State National executives — at times using signatures for individuals who were never employed at State National — on phony agency and reinsurance con tracts to which State National never agreed,” the lawsuit reads.Four months after that suit was joined, the youth baseball league in California launched its class-action suit against White, Ambassador, Performance Insurance Co., Goldenstar and others. The complaint by Del Obispo Youth Baseball Inc. charges violations of the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. Gagliardi Insurance Services was the broker. The scheme offered accident and health insurance policies, some with million-dollar limits for brain injuries, the suit said. Del Opispo paid more than $64,000 in premiums to Gagliardi for the forged policies, but hundreds, maybe thousands, of other sports teams and leagues throughout the U.S. were also duped with the counterfeit policies, the league alleges. The parent organization for the cells, Performance Insurance Co., had at least 12 segregated cells, records show. In the answer to the com plaint, White’s attorneys wrote: “If plaintiffs sustained any damages (which is expressly denied), all or part of the dam ages alleged in the complaint were caused by the acts and/or omissions of other persons or entities, including plaintiff, for whose conduct defendants are not legally responsible.”

Captive Market

If agents don’t provide ade quate disclosure to clients, they could be creating significant E&O exposure for themselves, heThesaid.assets and liabilities of the Cayman captive cells in the Ambassador program are in the process of being novated, or moved to other captive insurance companies, court records show. Some of the businesses and groups who bought into the allegedly counterfeit policies have been set up with policies backed by legitimate captive reinsurers.

State National and National Specialty entered the fray in September 2020, joining Lexington’s lawsuit. They stated they were also victims of a similar fraud in Texas, known as the “Madera Scheme.” In that arrangement, home owners and liability policies were sold and insurance certificates were issued to thousands of people living in big apartment communities in Texas, communities developed by Madera Residential, the suit charges. The policies and quota-share reinsurance agree ments bore the name of State National, but all were counter feit, the carrier said. Sanford & Tatum agency in Lubbock was named in that lawsuit, but later filed the cross-claim. State National’s imprimatur also appeared on workers’ comp, auto and liability policies sold to Royal Waste Services, Triangle Grading & Paving, and Iron Woman Construction, along with medical coverage for Omega Family Services for surrogacy mom services in California.

White’s word for the apparent miscommunication and did not pursue their concerns until later. Davina could not be reached for comment. White or someone working on his behalf fabricated an email that looked like it came from Davina, tentatively endorsing the TPA plan, the suit contends. The TPA forwarded the fake email to Davina, who again questioned White but took no further action. Months later, in 2019, AIG received an email from a captive cell’s insurance management firm, with a rein surance agreement attached, showing Davina’s signature. Davina emailed back that the document was a forgery.

White later apologized for the “misrepresentation,” and said the forgery did not come from Ambassador. By then, AIG had seen enough. The company filed suit six months later. “White admitted that Davina’s signature on the forged reinsurance agreement was indeed a forgery, but White claimed to be ignorant as to who forged Davina’s signature, or why,” the May 2020 com plaintWhireads.tethen seemed to backtrack, Lexington argues. “Ambassador and White now claimed, for the first time, that White — contrary to all of his earlier statements — witnessed Davina sign the agreement in May 2019 and back-date it to August 2018,” the suit alleges.

Closer Look:

Ask the Insurance Recruiter

Idea Exchange:

Tools

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 41INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

candidate information in Excel or Outlook is an inefficient way to store information.

Email:csgrecruiting.com.asktherecruiter@ By Mary Newgard and principlesadvertisingused for company branding to recruiting.

• Job Boards. You need outlets like CareerbuilderLinkedIn, and ZipRecruiter, etc., but be frugal with how much you invest. Most postings don’t yield a significant return past the 30-day mark. Plus, people are not brand loyal. You do not need to pay to post the same job on every website. Review analytical information from past postings to determine what types of jobs perform best on certain sites.

Do you have trouble finding client service candidates? You are not alone if the answer is an exuberant

Every Insurance Agency Needs to Recruit Account Managers

• Social Media. Do you know Indeed and Glassdoor have social media pages for your company that candidates can visit prior to applying for one of your jobs? If not, you need to get this cleaned up ASAP. Photos and company information give account managers a glimpse into your culture. The more valuable the information, the more likely they are to apply. People will not apply for your jobs if these pages are blank or full of negative reviews.

The cost typically ranges from $350$750/month; it varies by design features and number of users. This is a minimal investment compared to the cost of unfilled jobs or external recruiter fees.

“YES”! From what I’ve seen over the past two years, insurance agencies spend at least 75% of their recruiting time trying to hire CSRs, account managers and account executives.Withthe insurance industry’s labor mar ket being as tight as it is, now is the time to assess your sourcing resources. There are ways to recruit account managers that are different and more effective than those used to recruit producers or managers. I’m sure you’re familiar with the tools listed below. However, the point is less about what they are but how you use them to recruit this type of candidate.

Applicant Tracking System

Advertising Resources

• Email Marketing Software. How do you stay in touch with candidates who applied or interviewed that you didn’t hire? Services like Mailchimp and Constant Contact are a great way to strengthen your pipeline for future hires. Two to three times per year you should send an email to keep in touch. The subject matter can range from Hello, Just Checking In to We Have New Job Openings or What’s In The News At Our Agency. Make a personal connection with people to keep your career opportunities front and center.

Since half of all account managers are sourced by direct application and the other half through referrals and passive recruiting, you need a system to manage candidate information.

• ATS or HRIS System. If you don’t have one, get one ASAP. Storing valuable

Most account managers start their job search online, which makes brand identity and visibility essential to your recruiting success. You can apply the same marketing Newgard is partner and senior search consultant for Capstone Search Group, a national recruiting firm dedicated to the insurance industry.

• CRM. If you make 25-plus hires a year you need a platform that does more than warehouse applications. CRMs function the same way as your agency management system (Epic, AMS360, Sagitta, etc.). You can organize and categorize groups of applicants, run keyword searches, assign prospects to project folders, record interview activity, communicate with candidates through text and email and improve connectivity between HR/talent acquisition and hiring managers. CRMs are the only way for you to build a valuable candidate database.

42 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

An insurance com pany is a portfolio of functional depart ments replete with skilled professionals providing a spectrum of services to getand-keep customers. Unfortunately, few insurers manage most service activities or the entire spectrum of services from the one critically important perspective: the perspective of the customer.

Four Resources Customers Need to Own Insurance

Idea Exchange:

Who in an insurance company “walks in their customers shoes”? Who understands the challenges customers face when purchasing insurance, when requiring service, or when experiencing a loss event and requiring some level of restoration? Who is the “customer’s commissioner” that is responsible for the customer’s point-of-view for all the possible interac tions between the customer and insurance company, and throughout the insurer’s ecosystems?

— Adam Smith

Every insurance professional, regardless of their functional expertise, should be asked to understand what customers regard as the real price of owning insurance. The price is much higher than adherence to customer-centric principles, glazing at CRM systems, putting notations marking the paths of a customer journey taken and yet to be taken, or ticking boxes, any of which offer fleeting — and not well-deserved — self-congratulations of supporting customers.

Technology

By Barry Rabkin

The real price of anything is the toil and trouble of acquiring it.”

Many insurers (I hope) have customer relationship management systems (CRM), systems of engagement (SoE), or a detailed customer journey. Do these or similar cus tomer-centric systems result in an under standing of the perils and pains of the customer experience from the customer’s perspective? Or do these systems merely represent another task to be completed or, as our international colleagues might say, another box to be ticked?

From the perspective of a customer purchasing insurance or consuming service associated with an insurance policy, it is not a one-to-one relationship but rather a one-to-many relationship. In some situations, whether personal or commercial lines insurance, it is a matter of one-to-many-to-many relationships.

encompasses being impacted by the actual application process — including its associated underwriting, pricing and policy delivery components — but also administrative service, billing service and potentially claims service. Getting these services fulfilled sometimes requires a cus tomer to contact people in the insurance home office, field office, insurance agency/ broker firms, third party claim adjudication firms, and at times a mixture of people in all these firms and others (auto repair shops, home/property remediation firms, or healthcare rehabilitation firms) to resolve one service request.

Owning Insurance Is a Multi-Relationship Endeavor for Customers Owning insurance for a customer

Real Price of Being an Insurance Customer

The truth is that the real price customers “

Infrastructure. This includes a custom er having the requisite wired or wireless connectivity to the insurance firm, agency, claim adjuster, or other participant if communications are to be done using computers or mobile devices rather than using telephones, postal mail, or delivery services.Thisalso includes the appropriate devices that can support the communi cation pathways with the insurance firm or the other participants involved before, during and after the policy application, administrative service, billing or claim processes. It also encompasses the ability to access and download the mobile apps (and their updates) that the insurance firm or other participants support to initiate and complete the insurance commerce processes.

In summary, having each of these four resources and the applicable components of each resource, is the real price custom ers pay to conduct insurance commerce. This psychological price can be more than whatever premium the customer pays for the insurance contract.

Knowledge. This includes the knowledge the customer needs to use the mobile app (or set of apps) to conduct commerce with the insurance firm or other participants in the commerce process. This also includes access to the app on the insurance firm portal or the portal of other participants in the commerce process, and, when applicable, use of the insurance firm’s, agent’s or claim adjuster’s web conferencing/communication work space (i.e. Microsoft Teams, WebEx, Zoom, GoToMeeting, Salesforce Slack or Chatter).

Customers also need to access docu mentation easily and quickly to interact with any of the participants of the insurer’s ecosystems who are involved with settling the claim including restoring the customer to a pre-loss event state.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 43

Note that after some degree of normalcy has been achieved after the COVID-19 virus has been resolved by vaccine or treatment, customers also must invest the time to drive to an agent’s office or invest the time to meet with a claim adjudicator, auto repair shop, property remediation firm, or healthcare provider depending on the claim situation.

Rabkin is an insurance industry author and com mentator with nearly four decades of experience and more than 20 years of that as an insurance industry analyst. This is part of a series of articles influenced by and/or excerpted from his book titled “From Stone Tablets to Satellites: The Continued Intimate but Awkward Relationship Between the Insurance Industry and Technology.” The book, published by Wells Media Group, is available at: https://www. ijacademy.com.

INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM pay to conduct insurance commerce, inclusive of consuming services, is not just an outflow of premium payments but an investment of four resources: time; infra structure; knowledge; and documentation. All four resources must be easily, and at times quickly, available at the time of interaction with insurance professionals. Some of the particulars of each resource are time, infrastructure, knowledge and documentation.

Documentation. This includes, depend ing on the insurance commerce situation, having easily and quickly available: the policy number; the claims forms; the claim number; an account number (for a bank account that the claim amount will be deposited); and the agent’s or claim adjuster’s name, phone number, email address, and IM availability (system used, for example, to get and respond to IMs).

Time. This includes the time to identify who to talk to about a request. The time to schedule appointments. The time discussing issues surrounding the policy application or submitted claim. The time to request administrative service such as the time to discuss a billing problem. The time to track the progress of a policy appli cation or submitted claim. And the time to ensure a final resolution has been reached whether about the policy application being accepted or when the claim will be paid.

an engaged and agile claims team is key for effectively serving policyholders in their times of need. However, the industry is continuing to experience an extreme talent shortage.

Open finance and insurance positions reached their highest level on record in June 2022, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Additionally, unemployment within the industry remains low, at just 2.1% in July.

To come out ahead, claims leaders must take a fresh approach to their talent management strategies.

By Karen Lopez Broaden Your Candidate Base Competition for talent is not slowing down. In fact, the Q3 2022 Insurance Labor Market Study, conducted by The Jacobson Group and Aon-Ward, uncovered the demand for claims professionals within property and casualty insurers is at its highest in the study’s 13-year history. Of those planning to add claims staff, roughly two-thirds are most likely to hire experi enced, non-management-level individuals and nearly one-third seek entry-level employees. Successfully attracting new talent to your organization and these vital

Idea Exchange:

44 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Recruiting and Retaining Claims Talent in the Candidate’s Market

The insurance industry is experi encing a reshuffling of talent, an aging work force and ongoing disruption. Its vital insurance organiza tions are exploring their current talent strategies to successfully attract and retain those at the hearts of their organizations: claims professionals.Especiallyduring catastrophe season,

Talent

Providing tools such as soft skills and emotional intelligence training can help them effectively diffuse charged situations and feel more confident in their roles.

Prioritizing retention not only ensures you’re able to meet demands during CAT season, it also creates a bench of well-rounded talent primed to build long-term careers with your company. In addition to recruiting from outside the organization, consider how you can build mid-career claims talent internally. Invest in retaining and developing young talent into more experienced professionals, ready to step into roles left vacant from retirement and attrition. Create formal retention plans for high potential individuals that account for their current needs and future goals. Consider holding “stay interviews” to better under stand what they are looking for in a longterm career and whether they are satisfied with their role and the larger organization. These transparent conversations enable you to uncover individuals’ motivators and what it will take to keep them with your company. For some, this may be in the form of money and bonuses, yet others may be more motivated by flexibility, upward mobility or public recognition. Asking candid questions will enable you to create more tailored retention plans that resonate with individual employees.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 45

operational roles is essential. Appeal to a broader audience by focusing on the human element of claims in your job descriptions, not just the technical specifications. In the current candidate-driven labor market, recruiting success is often dependent on looking for talent in non-traditional places and focusing on transferable skills, rather than specific experience. Access a wider pool of potential talent by tapping into industries outside of insurance that depend on similar core skill sets. For instance, individuals in retail, food service or even banking roles generally have honed their skills in areas such as customer service and problem-solving, which directly contribute to success in claims. Determine which innate skills are necessary for a role and which more technical or process-focused components can be taught on the job, letting this guide your recruitment and selection process.

INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Energize Current Employees

Be intentional in helping employees feel a sense of belonging and camaraderie within your team and organization. Connect individuals with their peers, as well as professionals in other depart ments and levels of the organization.

While claims provides an outstanding springboard for a life-long career in insur ance, entry-level claims roles can be chal lenging. Many young claims professionals spend their days talking with customers who are reacting to high-stress situations or experiencing loss. Be empathetic and actively support your current employees.

An organization’s success is dependent on its talent. By refreshing how your claims department approaches talent acquisition and management, you’ll be better positioned to remain competitive in today’s market. Broadening your talent pool, recognizing the needs of today’s young professionals, and investing in your current internal talent will result in a dedicated and future-ready claims workforce.

Lopez is a client advisor at The Jacobson Group, a provider of talent to the insurance industry. She can be reached at 800-466-1578 or klopez@jacobsonon line.com.

Demonstrate your commitment to their growth and development by pairing high potential individuals with coaches and mentors. These relationships can help broaden an individual’s understanding of your organization and how to position themselves for success in both their current and future roles.

Rethink Retention

Note that younger generations generally desire the ability to make a difference, while staying true to their personal values. They also value opportunity for movement, both upward and laterally. As you strive to recruit young professionals, focus on how you can fulfill their unique needs and provide flexible schedules and remote work opportunities, among other benefits. Share how a role in claims enables them to make an impact, while laying the foundation for a wealth of future opportunities — whether it’s moving more linearly into senior claims management or growing into other areas of the organization. Often, these individuals have had limited exposure to insurance, making it important to help them identify and understand potential opportunities.

• The local economy; and • The markets represented. If performance standards are not set for producers, they will set their own — which most likely will be lower than what management expects.

Idea Exchange: Minding Your Business

Effective Sales Management & Producer Performance

Management can use the performance of the best producer who has ever worked for the firm as a guideline for “top” pro ducer performance. The average property/ casualty commissions per producer of firms in our database is in the range of $200,000 to $400,000. The range is based on the size of the firm. These commissions include “house” accounts and direct-bill commissions, which are not necessarily commissions “handled.”

Well-run firms have $400,000 to $700,000 in commissions per producer. In surveys in which owners are asked what size book they would expect experienced producers to handle after three years in the firm, they report $150,000 to $300,000 in commissions handled, based on the size of the firm. In regards to their expectations for new business produced each year in addition to the books handled, the range is

• Available producer support;

By Catherine Oak They simply need to know that their performance is being monitored and that poor performance will not be tolerated.

Producer Performance

• The competition;

• Sales skills of the producer; • Size and type of accounts in the geographic area;

46 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

What is an acceptable level of producer performance for experienced, “seasoned” producers? It depends on a number of factors, such as:

Who is responsible for sales management in most firms? Often the task falls to the owner or the top producer in the firm. This is not necessarily a good idea, because sales management can take away time from the manager’s own sales efforts. Good producers do not always make good managers. Sales management, as important as it is, does not have to be a full-time job in most firms. If goals are set properly, communicated and monitored, if the right people are hired and developed, and if management will remove any unreason able obstacles to production, producers essentially should manage themselves.

$50,000 to $100,000, based on the size of the firm. For new producers without experience, approximately $80,000 to $100,000 in commissions handled is expected after three years and new business of $25,000 to $40,000 in commissions per year. For new producers with experience (and without existing books of business) $150,000 to $200,000 in commissions handled is expected in three years, with $35,000 to $50,000 in new commissions produced per year.

INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM

Effective weekly sales meetings need to be held so sales activity can be properly monitored. Specific sales activity should include new business produced, lost busi ness, hit ratio for each producer, prospect activity, what referrals have been obtained from new sales, etc. These meetings should provide owner and non-owner production staff with information on markets, sales goals, collection problems and service backlogs.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 47

Target Marketing

Hit Ratios

Producers have egos and need recogni tion. These sales meetings are an excellent time to recognize superior performance, encourage double-teaming and provide support by coaching and training.

continued on page 49

In addition to structuring an effective compensation plan for producers, we rec ommend that owners compensate account managers over and above their salaries for their production efforts. Besides account managers handling the phone calls, mail, claims and/or the renewal process, they often can do a good job of account development of existing accounts. Today, owners realize they cannot afford to pay producers for sales or service work done by account managers. The key to compensation of staff or producers is to pay based on the job performed. This is why many firms have stopped paying commercial producers for personal lines accounts and often have lowered the amount paid to producers for small commercial lines accounts. We recommend that incentives for new business be paid to the service staff. We suggest giving a first-year commission percentage and/or a flat dollar amount per new policy. Usually the firm easily can afford to pay the new commission for account managers on new business, as the amount given is often lower than what the firm would have paid in commission to producers for the same new accounts.

Based on the producer’s own hit ratio and size of account written, it should be determined whether or not the production goal is achievable. The goals should be broken down into monthly quote-to-write activity to make it easier to manage producer performance. Management needs two sales goals for each producer. One goal is the required new business increase in the number of accounts or commissions handled by the producer. The second goal should specify the type of account, as well as the source of the new business to be pursued (such as account development, writing new accounts from referrals, target marketing or direct-mail programs, etc.).

‘To have a successful, growing firm today, proper management of sales and producer performance is critical.’

Another sales management key is man aging the producer’s hit ratio (the number of risks written to the number quoted).

Support Producers

A sales assistant or even a telemarketer can help develop the leads for larger accounts and can target particular indus tries where the producer has some interest or expertise (that is, where they have written at least three of the same type of accounts).Thebest source of new sales is referrals from a producer’s existing accounts, especially in an area of expertise. Referrals should be sought from new accounts for which a difficult renewal has been placed and/or that has had excellent claims service.

Production Goals

To achieve a high level of performance, producers need to target larger accounts, target certain classes of business and write more lines of coverage for each account.

Producers can greatly improve their hit ratio on writing new accounts when they have good marketing/placement support. Some firms today are using a central marketing person or department to help write new medium-size or large commercial accounts. A hit ratio of 20% to 25% is average for commercial lines, but obviously the closer to 100%, the better. In personal lines, the hit ratio is usually 40%

Producers should be involved in the goal-setting process. Each year, every producer (including seasoned producers) should be given a new production require ment, for example 10% to 25% growth, net of attrition, depending on the size of their book.The producer should let management know how this production will be accomplished (for example, the number of quotes and policies that need to be written to accomplish their annual objective).

Sales Meetings

Compensation Well-designed compensation plans make special provisions for above-average performance. This can be in the form of additional commissions for increasing levels of new production, additional perks, bonuses or other incentives. For example, an additional 5% in commissions could be paid per $50,000 in new production after a certain minimum commission goal is met.

Today, many firms pay more commission for new vs. renewal business (such as 40% new and 30% renewal commission).

All producers need time to sell new accounts. In the firms we have worked with that provide support for good producers, there is better productivity and more growth for new production. Producer support can come from these three main 1.areas:Development of leads and appointments; 2. Assistance in marketing/placement; and 3. Servicing of accounts written.

Oak is the founder of the international consulting firm, Oak & Associates based in Sonoma, Calif., and Bend, Ore. The website is www.oakandassociates. com and she can be reached at (707) 936-6565 or by email at catoak@gmail.com.

The above company has made application to the Division of Insurance to obtain a Foreign Company License to transact Property and Casualty Insurance in the Commonwealth of AnyMassachusetts.personhaving any information regarding the company which relates to its suitability for the license or authority the applicant has request ed is asked to notify the Division by personal letter to the Commissioner of Insurance, 1000 Washington Street, Suite 810, Boston, MA 021186200, Attn: Financial Surveillance and Company Licensing within 14 days of the date of this notice.

SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCE JOURNAL | 49INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM Advertisers Index AIGwww.aig.com 5 wwwAmWins.amwins.com 8, 9 Applied Underwriters www.auw.com 2 , 3, 52 Burns & Wilcox www.burnsandwilcox.com 13 Cypress P&C www.cypressig.com FL16 EPIC Brokers www.epicbrokers.com 20 FSLSOwww.fslso.com FL19 GIC Underwriters, Inc. www.gicunderwriters.com FL1 Golden Bear Insurance www.goldenbear.com 15 Hudson Insurance www.hudsoninsgroup.comCompany 17 IICFwww.iicf.org 51 Intact Specialty www.intactspecialty.com 23 IT Risk Managers www.itriskmanagers.com 43 JM wwwWilson.jmwilson.com W4, S2, M2 M.J. Hall & Company www.mjhallandcompany.com W3 Markel Assurance www.markel.com/insurance 26 MGA Systems www.mgasystems.com 11 Monarch E&S Insurance Services www.monarchexcess.com W5 Nationwide Mutual www.nationwide.com 29 One80 Intermediaries www.one80intermediaries.com 45 Pacific Gateway Insurance Services www.pgiainsurance.com W1 Philadelphia Insurance Companies www.phly.com 19 Prime Insurance www.primeis.com 21 RPS - Risk Placement Services www.rpsins.com W4 St. James Insurance Group www.stjamesinsurance.com FL20 Surplus Line Association of California www.slacal.com W6 The Hartford Insurance Group www.thehartford.com 7 Travelerswww.tavelersinstitute.org 14 United Fire Group www.ufgsolutions.com 25 WSIA- Wholesale & Specialty Ins. Assoc. www.wsia.org 37 September 5, 2022 Yosemite Insurance Company 221Dawson Road, 2nd Floor Columbia, SC 29223

September 5, 2022

September 5, 2022 National Trust Insurance Company 9025 River Road Suite 300 Indianapolis, IN 46240

September 5, 2022 Spinnaker Insurance Company 1 Pluckemin Way Ste 102 Bedminster, NJ 07921

The above company has made application to the Division of Insurance to amend their Foreign Company License to transact Property and Casualty Insurance in the Commonwealth of AnyMassachusetts.personhaving any information regarding the company which relates to its suitability for the license or authority the applicant has request ed is asked to notify the Division by personal letter to the Commissioner of Insurance, 1000 Washington Street, Suite 810, Boston, MA 021186200, Attn: Financial Surveillance and Company Licensing within 14 days of the date of this notice.

ZPIC Insurance Company 6100 4th Ave S. Seattle, WA 98108

Idea Exchange: Minding Your Business

continued from page 47 to Hi60%.tratios can be improved greatly when more time is spent initially qualifying the prospect.Keyareas to uncover in the first critical 20- to 30-minute interview are: what is most important to the prospect in the insurance program; what are the politics, price and product the producer is compet ing against; and has the producer built a good rapport after this initial meeting, etc.

Survey forms and collection of copies of existing policies should be completed in the second interview after the prospect has been properly qualified. If the producer hit ratios are improved, the firm’s expenses will be reduced greatly. Sales Management Is Critical To have a successful, growing firm today, proper management of sales and producer performance is critical. Sales management can be easy if a process is established that monitors specific sales activity and performance. Effective sales management not only will reward the owners, now and in the future, but will assist non-owner producers in achieving their goals.

Partnering with the right wholesaler is an investment in increasing the agent’s success rate in placing and retaining accounts while helping the agency grow its footprint in new industry segments. In behavioral psychology, “reframing” involves revisiting a situation, thought or feeling to adjust an associated mindset by positioning the analysis differently. Sometimes we just need to look through a new lens to see a different perspective. It may be worth looking through a new lens and partnering with a wholesale broker who is a specialist rather than just another submission facilitator. Hopefully, this provides a fresh look at the wholesale opportunity. Agents can use the scorecard criteria when reflecting on a client’s specific needs and their agency’s capabilities.

Drilling Down to Access Capabilities

Meticulous Throughout the Relationship. Do they learn the essential aspects of the client’s business and apply that to the

Between andIndustry-Specific,WholesalersAnalyticalTechnicalExpertise.

Amy Hieatt

Managing enterprise risk is crit ical to the long-term viability of businesses today. Can the wholesaler advise on the pros and cons of different funding techniques within the client’s financial capacity? Will they analyze the carrier responses to determine what criteria were used when considering the recommendation? Loss Prevention and Claims Assistance. Given the growth of legal disputes, loss preven tion assistance is a necessity. Can the wholesaler provide loss prevention services and evaluate a carrier’s ability to provide the essential loss prevention services? Does the wholesaler fully understand the carrier’s incident response capabilities and claim adjust ment processes? Credibility Within Standard and E&S Marketplace. Agents often mistake wholesalers as a resource solely for E&S markets when the reality is the standard markets can be an avenue for more complex risks in some

By Steven Earley & cases. Does the wholesaler know the carrier’s submission process, specific appetites and risk criteria well? Extension of Agency’s Capabilities. Given the industry’s talent shortage, can the wholesaler be an efficient, viable way for the agency to outsource more traditional types of accounts to free up staff by taking advantage of scale? When it makes sense for both parties, are there other types of office assistance the wholesaler can provide?

Earley edrisksolutions.com)(Steven.Earley@connectandHieatt (Amy. Hieatt@abrisk.com) are managing directors at Connecamyted Risk Solutions. information provided on the application for accuracy and fit relative to the situation? Do they regularly update carrier ratings and monitor relevant regulatory and developments?legislative Communication With All Stakeholders. Are they proac tive with agents and carriers? Can they assist with proposals and presentations? Do they translate insurance jargon to be readily understood and acted upon? When additional information is needed, is it promptly provided? Timeliness of Delivery and Services. Deadlines are part and parcel of the insurance industry. Can the wholesaler demonstrate a track record of performance while managing obstacles that may occur and still meet deadlines? Consultative Approach. Is their approach transactional, or do they see their role as an extension of the agent, helping to provide recommendations and responding to issues that may arise?

50 | INSURANCE JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 5, 2022 INSURANCEJOURNAL.COM Closing Quote

Historically, wholesale insurance brokers have been viewed through the limited perspective of being solely a transactional facilitator of submissions or an avenue to access additional markets, especially in the excess and surplus (E&S) marketplace. But now more than ever, the complex nature and specific needs of clients indicate this is an outdated view. Retail insurance agents must decide if they will benefit more from a generalist that manages the submission process or a wholesaler backed by experts and industry specialists. If the situation calls for a specialist, the agent should view a wholesaler as a business partner and an extension of theirWhabusiness.tshould constitute the relevant scorecard criteria for a wholesale specialist?

#insurancegivesback Register your Week of Giving volunteer team and sign up for projects at: volunteer.iicf.org IICF Week of Giving October 8–15, 2022 Be a Part of Something Greater Since 1998, IICF has hosted its

lives,

Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF) is a unique nonprofit that unites the collective strengths of the insurance industry to help communities and enrich lives through grants, volunteer service and leadership. Having contributed $42 million in community grants and over 300,000 volunteer hours, to hundreds of charities and nonprofit organizations, IICF continues to reinvest locally where funds are raised for greatest community impact. annual Week of Giving, the largest ongoing volunteer industry. eight days of volunteer projects and virtual, IICF Week of Giving is a culmination of volunteerism throughout the year by the insurance industry.

Through

Helping communities and enriching together.

initiative in the insurance

service, both in-person and

INSURANCE INDUSTRY CHARITABLE FOUNDATION

the

community

Midwest Division Kelly khartweg@iicf.comPhone:Hartweg(773)991-2149 Northeast Division Betsy Phone:Myatt(917) emyatt@iicf.com544-0895 Southeast Division Sarah sconway@iicf.comPhone:Conway(214)228-2910 Western maduncan@iicf.comPhone:Melissa-AnneDivisionDuncan(714)870-1084 UK Phone:WendyDivisionWilder+44(0) 7469 392 453 wwilder@iicf.com

Workers’ Compensation • Transportation – Liability & Physical Damage • Construction – Primary & Excess Liability Homeowners – Including California Wildfire & Gulf Region Hurricane • Fine Art & Collections • Structured Insurance Financial Lines • Aviation & Space • Environmental & Pollution Liability • Property • Warranty Fronting & Program Business • Reinsurance ...And More To Come. MORE TO LOVE FROM APPLIED.® MORE IMAGINATION. ©2022 Applied Underwriters, Inc. Rated A (Excellent) by AM Best. Insurance plans protected U.S. Patent No. 7,908,157. It Pays To Get A Quote From Applied.® Learn more at auw.com/MoreToLove or call sales (877) 234-4450