Business Moves – East

Cook, Hall & Hyde, Maran Corp. Risk

Two brokerages in the Metro New York region — Cook, Hall & Hyde and Maran Corporate Risk Associates — announced their intention to enter into a merger agreement.

Cook, Hall & Hyde has a staff of 95 professionals who serve nearly 8,000 clients through its offices in East Hampton and Melville, N.Y., and Fair Lawn, N.J. Cook, Hall & Hyde is ranked by Insurance Journal as one of the top 100 privately-held P/C insurance agencies in the U.S.

Based in Southampton, N.Y., Maran Corporate Risk Associates is an agency offering a wide array of insurance products. It has 50 employees.

The new firm will be called Cook Maran & Associates. It will continue to service customers from Eastern Long Island, N.Y., through Southeastern Pennsylvania via its network of offices. Len Scioscia, president of Cook, Hall & Hyde, has been named CEO of the new organization.

CRC|Crump, Preferred Concepts

CRC|Crump has signed an agreement with Preferred Concepts in New York to acquire select assets of the company’s Preferred Brokerage business unit. Terms were not disclosed.

J.C. Sparling, who led Preferred Brokerage, is joining CRC|Crump as a senior vice president and senior property broker.

Preferred Concepts, LLC is an insurance program administrator and wholesale broker. Its divisions include: Preferred Underwriting, specializing in programs; Preferred Brokerage, providing wholesale brokerage for complex P/C risks; Preferred Advantage, offering professional liability products for all risks and for small business risks; ezumbrella.com, an online umbrella liability platform; and SeaFire Insurance Services, which provides P/C programs for the automotive industry.

CRC, based in Birmingham, Ala., is the second-largest wholesale broker in the U.S. The company operates eight wholesale-dedicated brands including CRC Brokerage, CRC|Crump, Southern Cross Underwriters, Tapco Underwriters, 5Star Specialty Programs, Negley & Associates, Hanleigh, and Target Insurance Services.

The Hartford, MassMutual

The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. is selling its retirement plans business to life insurer MassMutual for $400 million in cash, as part of The Hartford’s plan to divest assets and focus on its property insurance business. The deal is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

In late March, The Hartford said it would shut down its annuity business and sell its life insurance operations, as well as the retirement plan and broker-dealer units. The sale is the second of three planned asset disposals for The Hartford. In July, it reached a deal to sell the brokerage business Woodbury Financial Services to American International Group.

Sterling & Sterling, The Hyde Agency

Sterling & Sterling Inc. an insurance brokerage based in Woodbury, N.Y., and The Hyde Agency, a specialty surety bond broker in New York City, formed a joint venture under the name SterlingHyde Group.

This new entity will focus on the placement of multi-million dollar construction insurance and surety bond programs.

Sterling and Sterling employs over 180 insurance professionals, with offices in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Utah and California. It ranks among the top 40 privately held brokerages in the country, with premiums exceeding $450 million.

Integro, Allan Chapman & James

New York-based Integro Insurance Brokers has acquired Allan Chapman & James Insurance Brokers Limited of Colchester, a United Kingdom insurance broker.

Established in 1988, Allan Chapman & James specializes in insurance for the independent film, television and media industry sectors.