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Craig A. Payan has been elected to serve as chairman of the board of directors for Itasca, Ill.-based Associated Risk Managers International Inc. Payan is president of PA&T Insurance and Financial Services, an independent insurance agency located in Orland Park, Ill.

Active in the organization for many years, Payan has served on the ARMI board since 2006. Payan is also a past director and president of ARM of Illinois Inc., and a charter recipient of the Accredited Advisor in Insurance (AAI) professional designation.

Payan is a past director of the Independent Insurance Agents of Illinois (IIAI) and past chairman of the organization’s Young Agents Committee, Agency/Company Relations Committee and Technology Task Force. He is a past recipient of the IIAI’s Young Agent of the Year Award and Chairman of the Year Award. In addition, he served as a regional director for the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America’s (IIABA) Young Agents Committee.

Associated Risk Managers International Inc. is a marketing network of more than 250 independent insurance agencies that collectively generate an annual premium volume in excess of $4 billion.

John Spragle has announced his retirement as president of Waterloo, Iowa-based VGM Insurance effective July 1, 2010. Tom Jones is slated to take over as president of the company upon Spragle’s retirement.

Jones has expertise and familiarity with the Durable Medical Equipment industry, one of VGM Insurance’s core markets. He earned the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter and other designations while acquiring knowledge and experience in the areas of insurance company management, sales and claims adjusting.

VGM Insurance specializes in insurance for medical device companies, including liability insurance for this growing industry. VGM Insurance is part of the VGM Group, formed by Van G. Miller and Associates.

VGM and VGM Insurance will host a retirement reception for Spragle on July 1.

XL Insurance appointed Gary S. Kaplan to the newly created position of executive vice president and North America Construction leader. Kaplan, who will be based in New York, joins XL Insurance from Zurich North America Commercial where he served as president of its construction business unit.

During his 15-year tenure with Zurich North America, Kaplan held several senior level positions in underwriting management, operational transformation, and strategic planning. His experience also includes energy, oil and chemical industry underwriting management with The Home Insurance Co. and Industrial Risk Insurers.

Peter Quirk, a national accounts sales consultant in the Lisle, Ill., office of ISO, has been elected president of the Chicago West Suburban chapter of the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriting Society.

Quirk received his CPCU designation in 2007, and joined the Chicago West Suburban chapter board of directors at that time. He replaces Joseph S. Harrington, director of corporate communications at the American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS), who remains on the board as immediate past president.

Succeeding Quirk as vice president is Laurie Pegler, counsel and DLM coordinator for the Property Loss Research Bureau/Liability Insurance Research Bureau, Downers Grove, Ill.

Pegler is a new member of the board, along with Michael Saporito, occupational accident underwriting manager in the Chicago office of Zurich North America. Saporito was elected co-treasurer with responsibility for chapter transactions. He will share the treasurer’s role with previous treasurer Paul Higgins, a consultant in the Chicago office of Ernst & Young, who will continue to have responsibility for tax filings.

Other board members re-elected to their positions include chapter secretary Regina Dienberg, an underwriting director in CNA’s warranty and alternative risks department, and three directors: Lee Balcerak, executive director of property/casualty at Chicago-based EIIA; Claudia Gamache, an Allstate agent based in Lockport, Ill.; and William Snow, principal of The Snow Group, Naperville, Ill.

Western National Insurance Group, headquartered in Edina, Minn., has hired Daniel E. Stein to lead the group’s upcoming entry into surety business.

Stein joins Western National with more than a decade of surety-related underwriting and leadership experience. He began his insurance career at Reliance and most recently managed underwriting and agency relationships for one of Old Republic Surety Company’s largest territories.

Western National Insurance Group is a super regional property/casualty insurance group writing more than $240 million in direct premium in 10 states. The group consists of four active companies: Western National Mutual Insurance Co., Western National Assurance Co., Pioneer Specialty Insurance Co., and Titan Property & Casualty Insurance Co.

Assurance Agency Ltd., based in Schaumburg, Ill., has added Robert Dufkis, to serve clients in the areas of both property and casualty, and employee benefits. Dufkis has 18 years of insurance industry experience, and has worked with Illinois municipalities, educational institutions and public transportation agencies, as well as mid-sized private companies throughout the country.

Prior to joining Assurance, Dufkis was a managing director at Mesirow Financial for six years. Before joining Mesirow, Dufkis held a position as senior vice president in the public sector division of a major regional insurance brokerage firm. He also has served as a senior casualty specialist at Travelers where he managed litigated commercial liability claims for clients.

Chicago-based Aviva North America, part of global insurance and annuities company Aviva plc, has appointed Dan Guilbert to the role of chief risk officer (CRO). Most recently, Guilbert served as chief actuary and risk officer for The Hartford Life Insurance Co. in Connecticut as the culmination of a 14-year career with the insurer.

For Aviva North America, Guilbert will be responsible for bringing together all aspects of risk – Enterprise, Financial, Operation and Regulatory, Life Insurance and Property and Casualty under one function, allowing for an aggregate view across all of the company’s major risk categories. Guilbert will also work closely with Robin Spencer, chief risk officer for Aviva plc.

Aviva North America’s London-based parent company, Aviva plc, serves 53 million customers across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Aviva’s main business activities are long-term savings, fund management, and property and casualty insurance.

Chicago-based CNA Select Risk – which includes excess and surplus (E&S) business, as well as wholesale property accounts – announces growth in its casualty unit with the opening of new locations in New York City and Los Angeles. The two new branches will be housed within existing CNA branch offices.

Sean McPhillips, who recently joined CNA Select Risk as regional assistant vice president, will lead the New York office and focus on developing CNA’s northeast presence. McPhillips has 23 years of casualty insurance experience, mostly as an E&S underwriter. He most recently served as manager of the First Mercury Emerald office in New York City.

Jim Faley, CNA Select Risk’s newly appointed regional assistant vice president, will lead the Los Angeles office. Faley joins CNA with diverse insurance industry experience that includes serving as vice president for XL Re; and, most recently, managing Excess and Umbrella as Western region manager for First Mercury Emerald.

Freedom Specialty Insurance Co. has named Teresa Black as commercial D&O vice president. She has more than a decade of experience underwriting D&O liability insurance for Reliance National, The Hartford and most recently ACE USA.

The Iowa Division of Workers’ Compensation has named Jennifer Gerrish-Lampe and Erica Elliott as new Deputy Workers’ Compensation Commissioners.

Gerrish-Lampe will be joining the division from her current position with the Office of the Iowa Attorney General.

Elliott has previously served the division as a Workers’ Compensation Compliance administrator.

The Illinois Senate has confirmed Mitch Weisz as chairman of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission.

Gov. Pat Quinn appointed Weisz chairman in March and he has served as acting chair since that time. Weisz worked as an attorney concentrating in workers’ compensation for 25 years, and has banking and business experience.

Gov. Quinn also has appointed Daniel Donohoo as commissioner of the IWCC. Donohoo served as the Madison County Recorder of Deeds for 21 years, and operated his own accounting firm for 17 years.

Attorney Carrie E. Cope has moved her Regulatory and Compliance and Specialty Lines Claims practices – with an emphasis on directors and officers liability – to Schuyler, Roche & Crisham P.C., in Chicago. Joining her in the move to Schuyler Roche are associate Danielle Harrison and filing director Audrey Smith.

Cope’s clientele includes insurers, agents, brokers, reinsurers, reinsurance intermediaries, alternative risk insurance groups and third party administrators. She has extensive legal experience in product development, and policy and endorsement drafting for both commercial and personal line insurance policies. A separate but related practice area is in specialty lines claims monitoring and coverage consulting services to the insurance industry.

Fireman’s Fund Insurance Co. named Lauren Bailey vice president of entertainment in commercial insurance. She will manage the direction and priorities for the entertainment business and be accountable for driving profitable growth. Bailey has been at Fireman’s Fund for 25 years and most recently served as a regional underwriting executive in personal insurance.

Topics New York Agencies Workers' Compensation Excess Surplus Underwriting Illinois Property Market Iowa Property Casualty Casualty Directors Officers