OneBeacon Joins E&S Property Market

OneBeacon Insurance Group LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd. announced its entry into the excess and surplus lines property business through its new OneBeacon Specialty Property division. Led by Rick Burke, the group will focus on providing solutions for the excess property market.

OneBeacon’s CEO John Cavoores noted, “This represents another great specialty opportunity for OneBeacon. Rick and his team have a long, profitable track record in the E&S property market and I am delighted to welcome them to the OneBeacon team.”

OneBeacon Specialty Property expects to begin writing business this month through its San Francisco headquarters and three satellite offices located in northern New Jersey, Dallas, Texas, and Lenexa, Kansas. Its excess property solutions will be provided primarily through surplus lines wholesalers. This new business will develop a portfolio with attachment points and policy limits tailored to specific business-class and market conditions.

The company has been growing its specialty operations over the past
three years, featuring its wet marine division – International Marine
Underwriters (IMU), Agri business, professional liability division – OneBeacon Professional Partners, Dewar tuition reimbursement and National Farmers Union Insurance, a rural affinity-market business.

These niche businesses now represent 32 percent of OneBeacon’s written premiums.