Business Moves

Progressive Drive, Homesite

Drive Insurance from Progressive signed a joint marketing agreement with Homesite Insurance Group. The agreement paves the way for a test that will allow selected Drive agents in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Oregon to provide their Drive auto insurance customers quotes for Homesite homeowners, renters and condo insurance policies.

Drive and Homesite will pick about 150 agents in the three states to whom this program will be offered. Drive agents will sign an agency agreement and be appointed by Homesite to become an agent of record owning expiration rights to policies sold.

Further rollout may happen in 2007.

Adirondack Exchange

Adirondack Insurance Exchange is now offering auto, homeowners, package, boat, fire and personal umbrella insurance to New York consumers through independent insurance agents.

Adirondack, an insurance exchange that is managed by Adirondack AIF LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of OneBeacon Insurance Group, is writing only in the New York personal insurance market.

According to Thom McDaniel, president of Adirondack AIF LLC, most of the business going into Adirondack is profitably insured now by members of the OneBeacon group and will transfer over the next several months. OneBeacon’s agents have been appointed as Adirondack partners.

Adirondack Insurance Exchange is headquartered in Williamsville, N.Y. The company is rated A (Exceptional) by Demotech, Inc.

The Premier/Travelers

The Premier Insurance Company of Massachusetts, a Travelers personal lines company, has opened a Concierge Claim center in Woburn, Mass. The center is designed to assist claimants with the car insurance claims process, including obtaining a damage assessment, getting the car to a repair shop and renting a replacement vehicle.

According to the insurer, a typical auto claim repair can take 10 to 11 days, but with ConciergeClaim that length of time can be cut in half.

OneBeacon, QBE-U.S.

Boston-based OneBeacon Insurance Group signed a binding agreement to transfer its Agri book renewal rights and certain OneBeacon Agri assets to QBE the Americas, a wholly owned division of Australia’s QBE Insurance Group Ltd.

OneBeacon Agri provides commercial farm and ranch and commercial agri products primarily in Midwestern and Western states through independent agents. Gross written premiums in 2005 totaled $85.7 million.

OneBeacon expects the sale will close in the third quarter for approximately $32 million.

Lockton, Alexander Forbes

Lockton Inc. will acquire Alexander Forbes International Risk Services, the international brokerage operation of Alexander Forbes Limited. The $170 million transaction is noted to make Lockton the largest independent, privately owned global insurance broker, with $600 million in revenues. The purchase includes Alexander Forbes’ insurance brokerage operations in corporate risk, professional indemnity, property, construction, aviation, marine, energy and specialist business such as political risk and contingency.