Business Moves

Ryan Specialty Group LLC, Kerwick & Curran Inc.

Ryan Specialty Group LLC has reached a definitive agreement to acquire the assets and operations of Kerwick & Curran Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

K&C is a wholesale insurance brokerage with offices in Tarrytown and Melville, N.Y. It was incorporated in 1975 and was one of the Northeast’s first wholesale brokerage operations focusing on real estate, high hazard manufacturing, industrial, retail and construction risks. Today, it serves local, regional and national brokers.

Following the acquisition, K&C will become part of R-T Specialty LLC, the wholesale brokerage unit of Ryan Specialty Group, and will serve to enhance RT Specialty’s New York presence. Ed Berliner and Joe Davis will continue overseeing K&C once merged into RT Specialty.

Howell-Stone Insurance Inc., Rich & Cartmill Inc.

Howell-Stone Insurance Inc., based in Oklahoma City, joined Tulsa, Oklahoma-headquartered Rich & Cartmill Inc., effective Jan. 1, 2018.

The affiliation will combine the strengths of both organizations to allow Rich & Cartmill better opportunity to service clients, the companies said. Leaders say the decision will benefit their customers by being able to provide a higher level of service and provide a greater footprint in the Oklahoma City metro area.

Established in 1957, Howell-Stone Insurance was built on the foundation of industry expertise and superior customer service, passed down from two family generations.

Privately held Rich & Cartmill Inc., founded in 1922, has grown into a Top 100 broker with offices in five states.

Mid-Continent Group, Tank Owner Members Insurance Co.

Tulsa, Oklahoma-based Mid-Continent Group, a member of Great American Insurance Group, has completed a renewal rights agreement with Tank Owner Members Insurance Co. (TOMIC) to acquire TOMIC’s book of business.

The transaction is effective Jan. 2, 2018, for all renewal policies with effective dates of Jan. 1, 2018, and after. The subject business of approximately $9 million of in-force gross written premium represents direct pollution liability policies and assumed reinsurance for underground and above ground storage tanks.

Mid-Continent Group has contracted with PRO Managing General Agents Inc., to assist with the transition of TOMIC policies and producer relationships to Mid-Continent in 2018.

Based in Tulsa, Mid-Continent Group underwrites specialty commercial insurance and contract surety products with an emphasis on general liability for the construction, energy and difficult-to-place industries.

The companies of Mid-Continent Group include: Mid-Continent Casualty Co., Oklahoma Surety Co., Mid-Continent Assurance Co. and Mid-Continent Excess & Surplus Insurance Co.

Higginbotham, Independent Insurance Agents of Plainview

Fort Worth, Texas-based retail insurance broker, Higginbotham, and Independent Insurance Agents of Plainview (IIAP) have merged operations.

With the addition of IIAP in Plainview, Higginbotham now has 27 offices in Texas.

Higginbotham and IIAP are independent insurance firms providing property and liability insurance, life and health insurance, risk management and employee benefit services. IIAP’s nine employees brings Higginbotham’s workforce to 940.

IIAP traces back to 1958 when Joe Morgan and Bill Eaves started Morgan-Eaves Agency in Plainview. It changed hands to Lena Faye Hill and Mark Warren, who managed the business until 2007 when Warren purchased the agency. In 2009, Tyke Dipprey partnered with Warren and his wife Freada to form IIAP.

Warren and Dipprey will continue operating as IIAP with existing staff.

Independent Insurance Agents of Plainview (IIAP) serves more than 2,000 clients with concentration in the farm and agriculture markets.

Wintaai Holdings, Stonetrust Commercial Insurance Co.

Wintaai Holdings Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chou Associates Management Inc., has completed its acquisition of Stonetrust Commercial Insurance Co. (Stonetrust), headquartered in Baton Rouge, La.

Wintaai Holdings, based in Ontario, Canada, acquired Stonetrust from Dhandho Holdings.

Domiciled in Nebraska, Stonetrust is a regional mono-line workers’ compensation company with approximately $70 million in policyholder surplus and approximately $180 million in assets. The company is licensed in 28 states and currently operates in Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi and Nebraska.

Stonetrust is led by President and CEO Michael G. Dileo; no management or personnel changes are expected as a result of the acquisition.

The acquisition is effective Jan. 1, 2018, and has been approved by the Nebraska Department of Insurance.

Wintaai Holdings Ltd. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chou Associates Management Inc., a Toronto-based investment advisory firm.

M. D. Jensvold, LP Risk

Houston, Texas-based wholesale insurance brokerage, M. D. Jensvold Co. Inc., has changed its name to LP Risk, the firm’s owner, Landon Parnell, announced.

This new name reflects the company’s evolving focus, standards of the company and the breadth of products it brings to market. Parnell has been the controlling owner of the company since December 2010.

LP Risk has four offices located in Houston, San Antonio, Dallas and Shreveport, Louisiana.

It specializes in both binding and brokerage business for all types of commercial lines of business. Specialty classes of business represented include oil and gas, transportation, environmental, construction, manufacturing, ocean marine and hospitality.

Seeman Holtz, J & A Insurance, Dash Insurance Agency

Florida-based Seeman Holtz Property & Casualty Inc. has acquired J & A Insurance and More Inc., headquartered in West Palm Beach, Fla.

Led by Jacqueline Estevez and her team, the company has offered comprehensive insurance coverage for more than 15 years through local and national carriers.

The move will strengthen Seeman Holtz Property & Casualty’s foothold in throughout the state of Florida.

In a separate deal, Seeman Holtz Property & Casualty Inc. acquired Dash Insurance Agency, headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Dash Insurance Agency provides full auto and liability insurance products and services in Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, and surrounding areas.

Dash Insurance will be joining the Seeman Holtz Primera Capital team in Texas.

Seeman Holtz Property & Casualty Inc. continues to target high-quality independent agencies for geographic expansion and continued growth throughout the United States.

AmWINS Group, Seacoast Brokers, Trident Claims Management

AmWINS Group Inc., a global distributor of specialty insurance products and services, has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Seacoast Brokers, LLC, a South Carolina-based personal lines specialty MGA that designs, distributes and services surplus lines homeowners’ business throughout the United States, and Trident Claims Management, LLC, a licensed third-party claims administrator which manages claims on all Seacoast-issued policies. The transaction will close following regulatory approval.

Seacoast provides homeowners’ products to insurance agents covering residential properties predominantly for secondary, seasonal, vacation and investment use which are located in catastrophe-prone and/or resort-oriented communities. Seacoast partners with A.M. Best ‘A’-rated insurance companies that specialize in catastrophe property products for the personal lines segment of the industry.

AmWINS Access is a nationwide delegated authority business focused on small commercial property and casualty and personal lines. AmWINS Access provides capabilities and market access as a P&C wholesaler.

David Lavins, senior vice president at AmWINS Group, added the addition of Trident expands its services by adding claims administration capabilities.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Seacoast was formed in 2001 and based in Hilton Head Island, S.C.

Topics Texas Oklahoma