Assurant Acquires Safeco Financial Institution Solutions

Assurant, Inc., a provider of specialty insurance and insurance-related products and services, has acquired all of the outstanding capital stock of Safeco Financial Institution Solutions Inc. based in Seattle, Wash., a California corporation and indirect subsidiary of Safeco Corporation.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Assurant is financing the transaction through existing cash resources and expects that the transaction will not be material to its financial position or results of operations.

Safeco FIS is the fourth largest provider of creditor-placed homeowners insurance and direct tracking services for mortgage lenders and servicers nationwide. Safeco FIS will become part of Assurant’s Specialty Property business segment.

In addition to Safeco FIS’s approximate $140 million in annual premiums and fees, the acquisition will add complementary distribution and administrative capabilities to Assurant’s Specialty Property business. In connection with the closing of the transaction, Assurant also entered into a reinsurance agreement with certain Safeco insurance companies.

“This transaction strengthens our market leading position in the creditor-placed homeowners market,” said Robert B. Pollock, Assurant’s president and chief executive office. ” We believe this is an excellent deployment of shareholder capital that will assure long-term profitable growth in our business.”

“The combined strength and capabilities of these two market leaders will benefit both companies’ clients enabling Assurant Specialty Property to meet a wide range of needs in the creditor-placed homeowners tracking and outsourcing arena,” said John Owen, president and chief executive officer, Assurant Specialty Property.

Integration of the Safeco FIS operation into Assurant Specialty Property will begin immediately.

Latest Comments

• May 8, 2006 at 2:11 am

  Big Insurance says:

  They also have been buying up their own stock which is a sign of a strong company getting stronger. I suspect they are working toward being a player by divesting themselves of... read more
• May 2, 2006 at 11:33 am

  Charles says:

  Safeco keeps selling off their assets which have been $$$ makers. I guess they will turn into another Geico/lizard.