People & Places
W. R. Berkley Corp. has appointed Marlo M. Edwards as president of Verus Underwriting Managers. Edwards succeeds Dale H. Pilkington, who is retiring. Edwards joins Verus with 20 years of experience in the property and casualty insurance industry. She most recently served as a senior vice president and casualty practice leader of U.S. operations for Argo Group where she has been since 2013. Prior to Argo, she worked at Colony Specialty and Chubb. Verus Underwriting Managers is an underwriting manager targeting small to midsize commercial risks in the excess and surplus and specialty insurance markets through appointed wholesale brokers and agents.
W.R. Berkley Corp. appointed Daniel R. Spragg as president of its specialty unit, Berkley Select. Spragg has 30 years of experience in the specialty insurance and insurance consulting industries. He most recently served as founding partner of the insurance and risk advisory practice at the Alvarez & Marsal management consulting firm in Philadelphia for nearly 12 years. Prior to that, he was a chief underwriting officer with Global Indemnity Group and Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty and an assistant regional executive with Fireman’s Fund. Berkley Select offers professional liability insurance products.
Satellite Agency Network Group Inc. (SAN), a Hampton, N.H.-based alliance of independent insurance agencies in the Northeast, has hired Kathy Gray as commercial lines placement specialist. Gray, a licensed broker and notary public, brings more than 25 years of experience in commercial lines to the role, including account management, sales, client service and marketing. Gray joins SAN’s AccessPlus department, where she will be a resource for agents regarding commercial lines. Prior to joining SAN, Gray spent much of her career at a family-run agency in Lexington, Mass., developing her skills in document analysis, relationship development, conflict resolution and problem solving.
Fred C. Church Insurance has hired Ian Lonsdale as an Employee Benefits client executive. The main focus of the Employee Benefits division at Fred C. Church is to serve and support its commercial clients. Over the last eight years, Lonsdale has worked for a variety of brokerages across Greater Boston and Washington D.C., including Marsh & McLennan Agency, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and Lockton Companies. As the agency’s newest Employee Benefits client executive, Lonsdale will be responsible for developing and maintaining strong client relationships. Fred C. Church Insurance is a Lowell, Mass.-based independent agency specializing in commercial, personal and employee benefits risk.
QBE North America, an integrated specialist insurer, has hired Risa Ryan as SVP of Analytics to lead the development and delivery of analytic services. Based in QBE’s New York office, Ryan will be responsible for further strengthening QBE’s analytics strategy for North America and cultivating a team to drive the use of modeling and analysis methods to support business objectives. Prior to joining QBE, Ryan spent most of her career at Munich Re America, holding positions of increasing responsibility, with her most recent role as head of Strategy and Analysis.
Baldwin Krystyn Sherman Partners (BKS-Partners), an insurance brokerage and risk management firm headquartered in Tampa, Fla., has appointed Rich Thompson to managing advisor. Thompson joined BKS-Partners in 2015 as an employee benefits advisor. He is focused on partnering with clients to address risk management and employee benefit needs as they relate to their businesses. BKS-Partners Advisors are eligible to become managing advisors once they have reached book of business commission revenue qualifications. Prior to joining BKS-Partners, Thompson worked at KPMG, where he served as an audit senior.
The Main Street America Group, a super-regional property and casualty insurance company, has tapped Chris Listau, the company’s current president of insurance operations, to succeed Tom Van Berkel as president and CEO. Van Berkel retired on Sept. 30, 2019, after nearly 30 years with Main Street America, based in Jacksonville, Fla. Listau, who joined Main Street America last year following the company’s mutual merger with American Family Insurance, has had a long career in the industry, including 25 years at American Family. Listau joined Main Street America in 2018 and was promoted to president of insurance operations in early 2019. In addition,
Jeff Kusch, Main Street America’s current president of field operations, has been appointed as chief operating officer. As chief operating officer, Kusch will oversee the company’s core insurance functions — including commercial lines, personal lines, bonds, assumed reinsurance, agribusiness, and Main Street America’s claims/integrated customer solutions division. He will remain based at the company’s headquarters in Jacksonville, Fla.
EPIC Insurance Brokers and Consultants has added Dave Tate to its property and casualty operations in Dallas, as a principal. Tate will be responsible for new business development and the design, placement and management of property and casualty insurance programs, providing risk management strategies and solutions for mid-market and large clients. Tate joins EPIC from Marsh, where he specialized in the placement of insurance for businesses with difficult exposures, or difficult historical loss experience, particularly product liability issues and risk challenges in the manufacturing, construction and energy industries.
Geoff Godsey joined Alliant Insurance Services as vice president in Dallas. He will provide a full range of risk and insurance products and services to a growing regional client base. Prior to joining Alliant, Godsey was a commercial producer with a large regional insurance brokerage firm. Godsey also had a 10-year career as a professional cyclist, competing at the highest levels of both domestic and international competition. This includes more than 25 career wins and three Texas state championship titles. Alliant Insurance Services Inc. is headquartered in Newport Beach, Calif.
Tim Flatt has joined Fort Worth, Texas-based independent insurance broker, Higginbotham, as an employee benefits executive vice president. Flatt is opening Higginbotham’s first Midland office, bringing the firm’s single source solution for insurance to Midland’s middle market businesses. Flatt comes from Marsh & McLennan Agency and has a background in pharmaceutical sales, where he first developed an interest in health care insurance.
Alera Group, a national employee benefits, property and casualty, risk management and wealth management firm based in Deerfield, Ill., appointed Sally Prather as its national Employee Benefits Practice leader. Prather’s responsibilities will include the continued development of the organization’s employee benefits practice, including platform expansion and resource coordination. Prior to joining Alera Group, Prather served as vice president at Paychex Insurance Agency. She brings more than 25 years of experience to her role with Alera Group.
National specialty insurance carrier AF Group in Lansing, Mich., named Steve Cooper as president of Third Coast Underwriters and Abel Travis as vice president of Fundamental Underwriters. Cooper currently is president of another AF Group member, United Heartland, a role he will retain.
Travis joined AF Group in 2018 as vice president of Underwriting and Product Innovation. AF Group subsidiaries include Accident Fund Insurance Co. of America, Accident Fund National Insurance Co., Accident Fund General Insurance Co., United Wisconsin Insurance Co., Third Coast Insurance Co. and CompWest Insurance Co.
Marion, Illinois-based independent insurance agency, The Insurance House, hired Curt Mayer as a commercial lines insurance producer and Brittny Reising as a personal lines producer. Mayer has experience with various insurance lines
including commercial, property and casualty, life and commercial health. He worked in the automotive industry prior to joining the agency. Reising has been in the insurance industry for 10 years and will focus on personal lines and farm insurance. She has handled everything from property and casualty insurance to life and commercial insurance.
Cover in San Francisco, Calif., has named Robert Houlihan as chief insurance officer. He becomes part of the management team in the company’s U.S. headquarters. Houlihan has more than 20 years of industry experience. He joins Cover following positions at Progressive and Bristol West. He was most recently with Mercury as chief product officer. Cover is as a nationally-licensed brokerage and managing general agent working with more than 30 insurance companies across the U.S. while also writing its own auto policies in Texas.
Steve M. Brooks has been named president of Armor Insurance Services. Brooks was formerly president of B&B Premier Insurance. Both Armor Insurance Services and B&B Premier Insurance are Acrisure Agency partners. Brooks was an agent and minority owner in The Howard Agency before B&B Premier Insurance. Armor Insurance, which has four offices in California, was formed in 1992. It became part of Acrisure in 2018.
Hobson Insurance in Hobson, Mont., has named Jolene Martin as a customer service specialist in commercial lines and Beth Vincent as a personal lines agent. Martin handles licensing for the agency in 48 states. Vincent assists clients with home, auto, farm and ranch, and recreational vehicle policies. She also handles bonds for the agency and assists in the marketing department. Both Martin and Vincent are new to the insurance industry. Hobson Insurance specializes in national program business.