People

Patricia Smith has joined InsurBanc, a financial services provider for independent insurance agencies, as vice president of sales and business development. Smith will focus on the needs of independent agencies and develop relationships with them.

Smith joins InsurBanc with more than 17 years of banking experience. Prior to joining InsurBanc, Smith was with GMAC as a business development officer and served as sales director for Liberty Banking in Connecticut.

London-based Hiscox has announced the appointment of Carl Bach within its Global Markets division to spearhead business development operations in the U.S.

Bach will be based in Hiscox’s Manhattan office, working with insurance brokers in the U.S. to increase the flow of business into Hiscox’s London market operation.

Bach joins from ACE where he had spells as president of the UK and Ireland operation and was executive vice president, Global Solutions, providing products and services to U.S. based multinational companies. He was also responsible for ACE’s Foreign Casualty Underwriting Division.

The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (the Big “I”) honored an agent leader for her legislative leadership 2006 at the Big “I” National Legislative Conference and Convention. Sharon Emek of CBS Coverage Group in New York, N.Y. was presented the Sidney O. Smith Award for her work in promoting the legislative goals of the association, including her efforts to extend the federal Terrorism Risk Insurance Act.

Emek is the first woman to earn the Sidney O. Smith Award. She has testified in the debate over a terrorism insurance backstop, not only in her home state of New York, but also before Congress. She also has done media interviews to educate the public and lawmakers on the importance of terrorism coverage. In addition, Emek has been a strong supporter of Insurpac and Big “I” grassroots efforts.

USG Insurance Services Inc., a national wholesale broker of commercial insurance headquartered in Tampa, Fla. appointed Mitchell Aycock as branch manager in Orlando. Aycock joined USG in March 2004 as the sales manager for its newly established Orlando office. He began his career 19 years ago, having spent the majority of his career in specialty lines.

All Risks Ltd., a national independent wholesale broker and managing general agent headquartered in Hunt Valley, Md., announced that Elaine Garner and Julie Arsuaga have joined the firm in its Dallas, Texas, office.

Garner joins All Risks as a broker bringing 20 years of experience in the property/casualty insurance industry, both from a retail and surplus lines background. She most recently worked as a senior marketing representative where she managed medium to large accounts.

Arsuaga joins All Risks as a professional liability broker. She brings 24 years of insurance and related industry experience, the last 11 years working as a senior broker for a multi-state professional liability brokerage firm.

Managing general agent and program manager First Capital-AWIS, LLC has named two new underwriters.

Gerald McCabe is now senior underwriter for the firm’s commercial contractors facility in Naperville, Ill., where he will work to expand the firm’s producer base in the Midwest. He was previously with Kemper and Great American Insurance.

Walter Smart has been named senior underwriter and will assist in underwriting First Capital’s commercial contractors’ program in the Northeast. He was previously with Empire Group.

First Capital has offices in Roslyn Heights, N.Y.; Naperville, Ill.; San Francisco and San Diego, Calif.

Harleysville Insurance, headquartered in Harleysville, Pa., appointed Jenifer L. Rinehart as senior vice president of human resources. She will be responsible for all human resources and training programs for employees and retirees.

Most recently, Rinehart was senior vice president and human resources director for Chubb Insurance’s specialty insurance division. During her 16 years at Chubb, she also served as its corporate chief diversity officer, and she was the human resources leader for the company’s U.K. and Ireland operation based in London and its Southern zone based in Dallas, Texas. Prior to Chubb, she held human resources positions with Bank of America and Equibank.

David Linton has been promoted to vice president of information services at the American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS), a national insurance advisory organization that develops policy forms and manuals used by more than 600 property/casualty insurers throughout the U.S.

Linton came to AAIS in August 2005 as director of information services. Previously, he had been with Metavante Corp., Meadowbrook, Ill., where he was manager of application development for the corporation’s electronic funds group. Prior to that, he was a technical consultant and manager for ICS Advantage, Aurora, Ill., and held positions in programming and marketing positions at PagePath Technologies, Bensenville, Ill.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc. (MMC), the parent company of insurance broker Marsh, has appointed Christine Walton as vice president of public relations. Walton will direct MMC’s global communications strategy, working closely with MMC’s business units on media and public relations.

Prior to joining MMC, Walton worked at UBS AG, where she oversaw media relations and acted as a primary spokesperson for UBS Wealth Management and UBS Global Asset Management (Americas) since 2002. Previously, from 1998 to 2002, she worked at Merrill Lynch & Co., where she held a series of communications positions, culminating as the vice president of media relations for Merrill Lynch Investment Managers in 2000. Prior to her tenure there, she worked as a staff reporter for Bloomberg Business News.