Business Moves

Engle Martin, LMS

Engle Martin & Associates, Inc., an Atlanta-based multi-line insurance claims administration and adjusting company, has acquired the specialty fraternal and not-for-profit services of Litigation Management Services, LLC (LMS).

LMS was founded in 1996. It has specialized in serving the not-for-profit specialty market of national fraternities.

Linda Wright, former general partner of LMS, will retain responsibility for managing and serving her LMS clients. Prior to forming LMS, she was national claims director for Landmark Insurance, an AIG company.

Accordng to John J. Quinn, president of Engle Martin, in addition to maintaining her focus on specialty fraternal accounts, Wright will work on business development in other not-for-profit, high deductible retention accounts.

Engle Martin & Associates, Inc. specializes in independent loss adjusting services and claims administration. The firm has offices in 21 cities throughout the U.S.

Appalachian Underwriters

Tennessee’s Appalachian Underwriters Inc. has opened a San Diego, Calif., satellite office to house its underwriting and executive staff.

George Johnston, a 21 year veteran of the California insurance marketplace and former Arrowhead executive, will head the initiative. The office’s focus will be on writing small accounts geared toward general liability in the residential construction industry, as well as workers’ compensation and surplus specialty lines.

Meadowbrook, U.S. Specialty Underwriters

Meadowbrook Insurance Group, Inc. has agreed to acquire U.S. Specialty Underwriters, Inc. for a purchase price of $23.0 million. The purchase price is comprised of $13.0 million in cash and $10.0 million in Meadowbrook stock, according to the buyer. Total additional shares issued for the $10.0 million portion of the—purchase price were 907,935 shares.

Based in Cleveland, Ohio, USSU is a specialty program manager that underwrites excess workers’ compensation coverage for a select group of insurance companies. USSU has a nationwide network of agents and brokers that service the self-insurance industry. USSU focuses on self-insureds within the healthcare industry and public schools in twenty-nine states.

Meadowbrook President and Chief Executive Officer Robert S. Cubbin said the acquisition provides growth for his company’s fee-based operations and complements its existing public entity excess workers’ compensation program.

Meadowbrook specializes in alternative risk management solutions for agents, brokers, professional/trade associations, and small to medium-sized insureds.

Delos, Naxos

New York-based Delos Insurance Co. launched a new excess and surplus (E&S) lines company, Naxos Insurance Company, which will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Delos. Naxos operations will be managed under terms of an agreement with Delos.

Incorporated and licensed in Delaware, Naxos will immediately move to obtain licenses in several key states with the ultimate goal of obtaining full licensing in all 50 states over the next two years. According to Delos, the rate and form flexibility of the E&S business will allow a more creative and responsive approach to the overall market and will assist in the success of managing their general agents.

Naxos Insurance Co. has an initial capitalization of $20 million and the company will petition A.M. Best for a group financial strength rating.

Lloyd’s

Lloyd’s announced the official opening of its Chinese reinsurance operations at a ceremony attended by a host of dignitaries, including Lloyd’s Chairman Lord Levene; Sir William Ehrman, British Ambassador in Beijing; Andrew Cahn, chief executive of UK Trade & Investment, and a number of representatives from British and Chinese business and government.

According to Lloyd’s, the ceremony included a scene in which Levene and Shanghai Vice Mayor Feng dotted the eyes to complete the painting of a dragon to officially declare the new operation open at its office in the Azia Centre in the Pudong District of Shanghai.

Levene called the occasion “a significant day in Lloyd’s history.”

Lloyd’s received regulatory approval to begin operations for Shanghai – Lloyd’s Reinsurance Company China Limited (LRCCL) – in March. The license enables Lloyd’s to underwrite onshore reinsurance business throughout China. It will provide Chinese insurers with full access to the Lloyd’s market and give Lloyd’s improved access to the rapidly developing Chinese reinsurance market.

Topics China Lloyd's