Marsh McLennan Agency Acquires Virginia’s Rutherfoord Agency

In a move that accelerates its national growth, Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC (MMA), a subsidiary of insurance broker Marsh Inc., has acquired Thomas Rutherfoord, Inc., the country’s 14th largest privately-held independent agency according to Insurance Journal’s Top 100.

Marsh & McLennan Agency said the acquisition makes it the country’s 13th largest insurance agency with annual revenue of $171 million. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Rutherfoord operates in the Southeast and mid-Atlantic region. Established in 1916, the firm has annual revenues of $81 million, more than 300 employees, and 10 offices located from Philadelphia to the Gulf Coast region.

Rutherfoord’s top three executives, Thomas D. Rutherfoord, Jr., chairman, and vice-chairmen Thomas R. Brown and George A. “Shad” Steadman, III, will continue to lead the regional business. All of Rutherfoord’s employees will remain with the firm and join the MMA network.

David L. Eslick, chairman and CEO of Marsh & McLennan Agency, said Rutherfoord has a “wealth of specialized expertise and capabilities and brings us a strong operation in the Southeast and mid-Atlantic region.”

Rutherfoord will be the lead brokerage firm in the mid-Atlantic region and the District of Columbia for Marsh & McLennan Agency.

The firms said that the Virginia-based insurance broker will continue to operate under the Rutherfoord name for the foreseeable future.

Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC was established in 2008 to target mid-sized businesses in the U.S. It has been growing through acquisitions. Last month, it purchased Haake Companies, an $11 million agency in Overland Park, Kansas. Last December, it acquired New Jersey’s The NIA Group, which reported $62 million in revenue.