People – West

Calabasas, Calif.-based Topa Insurance Group has promoted Anthony Manzitto to chief operating officer and executive vice president. He was chief underwriting officer.

Manzitto will be responsible for underwriting, human resources, office administration, as well as oversight of the operating entities within Topa Insurance Group.

Manzitto has more than 27 years of experience in insurance and reinsurance. Prior to Topa Insurance Group he was head of U.S. broker casualty treaty reinsurance at SwissRe.

Topa Insurance Group is comprised of Topa Insurance Co., Topa Insurance Services and Dorchester Insurance Co.

Lafayette, Calif.-based Stone Creek Insurance Agency hired three new producers/account managers.

Matthew Johnson has been named a commercial lines broker. He specializes in commercial property and liability policies covering apartments, homeowner’s associations and office buildings.

Johnson has 12 years of experience as an insurance broker/agent. Past positions include commercial account executive and account manager at a Bay area brokerage.

Diana Certantes has been named commercial lines account manager. She will assist the large commercial division of Stone Creek Insurance Agency. Certantes has eight years of insurance experience.

Darla Devlin has been hired as an producer. She has eight years of experience in property/casualty and workers’ compensation. Before Stone Creek she was a customer support manager and project manager at Jopari Solutions Inc., and a client trust accounting specialist at Athens Administrators.

Stone Creek is a brokerage that specializes in property coverage in the Western U.S.

Western Growers has named David Duvall program development director of its insurance services team.

Duvall will be responsible for developing association-based property/casualty solutions for Western Growers members.

Duvall was most recently the Southern California underwriting manager for Safety National Insurance Co. Duvall was previously the regional vice president of the Western region for Patriot National Insurance Group.

Western Growers represents local and regional family farmers growing produce in Arizona, California and Colorado.

San Diego, Calif.-based Barney & Barney has named Hal Dunning, the firm’s chief operating officer, to the additional role of president, a new position at the firm.

Dunning was named COO of Barney & Barney in 2006 and previously served as chief financial officer.

He has 35 years of business and leadership experience. Prior to Barney & Barney Dunning was the Western region general manager and controller of ADS Environmental Systems.

Barney & Barney also recently appointed nine senior executives to principals.

The new principals in the firm’s San Diego, Calif. office are: David Freeman; Richard Hallett; LuAnn McSwiggen and Debora Walker. The new Principals in the firm’s Orange County office are: Amy Fisher; Mike Grant; Stacy Hubbard and Sam Quigley. Allison Barney is a new principal in the firm’s Walnut Creek office.

Barney is director of client services in the Bay area. She has 15 years of experience and was previously employee benefits manager at Standard Insurance Co.

Fisher is director of operations and director of client service in the property/casualty group in Orange County. She has more than 30 years of experience and previously worked for Marsh.

Freeman joined Barney & Barney in 2013 and is director of commercial sales in the commercial P/C group in San Diego. He has more than 20 years of experience and was previously vice president, commercial lines at USI of Southern California Insurance Services.

Grant is director, technology and life sciences practice in Orange County. Grant has 28 years of experience and was previously an owner and technology insurance broker at Costello & Sons Insurance Brokers.

Hallett is director of surety in San Diego. He has more than 11 years of experience and was previously executive underwriter for surety at Arch Insurance Group.

Hubbard is director of client services in Orange County. She has 21 years of experience and was previously an account executive with BB&T Insurance Services.

McSwiggen is director of employee benefits for San Diego. She has more than 24 years of experience and previously worked for Marsh.

Quigley is director of P/C in Orange County. He has more than 14 years of experience and was previously an associate at UBS Financial Services in San Diego.

Walker is director of commercial P/C in San Diego. She has more than 22 years of experience. Previously, she was a directors and officers underwriter for Chubb Group of Insurance Companies.

Barney & Barney is a Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC company. Barney & Barney has offices in San Diego, San Francisco, Walnut Creek and Orange County.