Personal Lines Profile

Mesirow Financial Insurance Services

Chicago, Ill.

Owner(s)/principal(s): Richard Price, John Harney, Norm Malter

2006 personal lines premium: $22.5 million

No. of personal lines insurers: 10

Mesirow Financial Insurance Services, founded in 1972, serves the local Chicago community and surrounding suburbs as well as all 50 states through its four office locations.

Mary Gould, Mesirow’s managing director, says the agency has tripled its personal lines business with the acquisition of two large agencies. Also, the firm boasts a 5 percent rate of return for in-house referrals.

Gould noted that 20 percent of its sales are for personal umbrellas, and the firm provides real-time comparative quotes for most personal lines business.

The biggest challenge in the homeowners’ market is securing clients with secondary homes in catastrophic states like California and Florida, Gould says. “For auto coverage, the most challenging task is trying to insure clients with less than perfect driving records.”

When it comes to personal lines, Gould says she enjoys most the “diversity of our clients and the products we can offer them.” What she enjoys least is “struggling to place insurance in catastrophic places.”

When asked to name three keys to Mesirow’s success in personal lines, Gould replied: excellent customer service; solid relationships with carriers; and substantial referral business from large lines producers.