Core Insurance, Insurance Technology
Business Wire | August 04, 2023
Inszone Insurance Services, a rapidly growing national provider of benefits, personal, and commercial lines insurance, has announced the acquisition of Jackson Insurance Solutions, a well-known insurance agency in Albuquerque, New Mexico. This acquisition is part of Inszone's strategic plan to expand its presence and service offerings in the Southwest region.
Jackson Insurance Solutions, founded by Joshua Jackson in 2010, has been serving the Albuquerque area for over a decade, delivering innovative insurance solutions to both individuals and businesses. Renowned for its unwavering dedication to the local community, the agency is recognized for its commitment to finding effective and affordable insurance solutions for the Albuquerque community.
"I had numerous concerns about my staff's future and the complexities of the merging process," said Joshua Jackson, former owner of Jackson Insurance Solutions. "However, after extensive discussions with Chris, it became clear that our goals were aligned, and merging with Inszone was the perfect path to expedite our growth. I look forward to a future of continued shared success, empowering our clients with even more comprehensive insurance solutions as part of the Inszone family."
With this acquisition, Jackson Insurance Solutions will continue to operate under the Inszone Insurance brand and will remain in its current location. All employees will be retained, ensuring that clients receive the same high-quality service they have come to expect from the agency.
"We are absolutely thrilled to extend a warm welcome to Jackson Insurance Solutions as the newest addition to the Inszone family," said Chris Walters, CEO of Inszone Insurance Services. "New Mexico becoming the 11th state in our ever-growing network marks a significant milestone for us. Jackson Insurance Solutions' stellar reputation in the Albuquerque community perfectly aligns with our commitment to delivering exceptional services. We are excited to leverage their expertise to better serve clients in the Southwest region and ensure a seamless experience as we embark on this exciting new journey together."
Inszone Insurance is expected to announce a number of important acquisitions in the upcoming months as it continues to build its national presence.
About Inszone Insurance Services
Founded in 2002 and headquartered in Sacramento, California, Inszone is a full-service insurance brokerage firm that provides a broad array of property & casualty insurance, along with employee benefits solutions. With a strong, experienced management team, Inszone continues to grow organically, as well as through acquisitions. With 42 locations across California, Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, and Utah, the company is looking to further expand throughout the United States.
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Core Insurance, Risk Management
Businesswire | July 28, 2023
Socotra, the leading provider of modern, cloud-based solutions for technology-driven insurers, today announced that high-risk homeowners provider Annex Risk is processing business with Socotra. Annex Risk has successfully implemented the true cloud-native insurance policy core platform, Socotra Connected Core, and is now live, offering a digitally-forward approach to close critical coverage gaps in coastal Texas, Florida, and the Eastern Seaboard. Annex Risk’s innovative platform combines algorithmic underwriting and capacity, empowering retail agents to quote and bind high-risk homeowners insurance in less than 2 minutes.
“Technology is core to our business, not an enabler - we needed the most modern, continuously improving policy administration system we could find. No-code/low-code platforms were less compelling to us than Socotra’s flexible, API-centric solution,” said Annex Risk Co-Founder Charlie Sido. "Socotra's API-driven platform allows us to configure the entire policy lifecycle natively, while also seamlessly integrating with external solutions for payments, e-signatures and inspections. This flexibility ensures our ability to adapt and scale as the business evolves, while also providing a foundation for future innovation.”
Socotra's cloud-based architecture allows Annex Risk to eliminate significant operational overhead and leverage Socotra's ongoing investments in the platform. This partnership has expedited Annex Risk’s market entry, enabling them to sell their complex product in four states within six months. As a technology startup, Annex appreciates the capital-efficient and self-sufficient nature of Socotra's implementation, allowing them to maintain control and agility while minimizing reliance on third-party consultants.
"We are thrilled to have Annex Risk join our ecosystem of innovative insurance providers," said Dan Woods, CEO of Socotra. "By leveraging Socotra Connected Core, Annex Risk can offer their retail partners a streamlined and digitized experience that sets them apart in the market. Additionally, Socotra's modern underpinnings will future-proof Annex Risk's investment as they continue to grow and evolve their business."
Socotra offers a game-changing alternative to legacy underwriting systems that rely on emails, PDFs and proprietary tools, resulting in quote times that could stretch into days. With Socotra's powerful capabilities, Annex Risk can deliver an instant quote and bind experience, aligning with retail insurance agents’ expectations and setting a new standard in the industry.
About Annex
Annex is a leading provider of homeowners insurance for properties with significant natural catastrophe exposure. Through its partnership with over two thousand retail agents, Annex focuses on closing critical coverage gaps in coastal areas from Texas up the Eastern Seaboard. Annex's sophisticated algorithmic underwriting and capacity enable retail agents to quote and bind high-risk homeowners insurance in less than 2 minutes. With a technology-driven approach, Annex leverages innovative solutions to deliver an exceptional customer experience.
About Socotra
Socotra provides insurance companies with the flexible modern core platform and ecosystem they need to adapt, innovate, and grow their business. By leveraging solutions such as Socotra CorePlus and Socotra Connected Core, insurers can streamline policy administration, enhance digital experiences, and deliver products to market faster. Socotra provides open APIs, a product-agnostic data model, and out-of-the-box capabilities to manage the entire policy lifecycle, making insurance innovation faster, easier, and more affordable.
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Life Insurance, Insurance Technology
PR Newswire | August 29, 2023
LIBRA Insurance Partners (LIBRA), the largest independently-owned life insurance marketing organization (IMO) in the United States, announces a partnership with Highland Capital Brokerage (HCB), a national life insurance and annuity distribution company and a subsidiary of Osaic.
"Highland Capital Brokerage is a formidable organization and we are excited they have selected LIBRA as their strategic partner to help facilitate its growth and expansion initiatives," said William (Bill) Shelow, CLU®, ChFC®, CPCU®, LLIF, president and CEO of LIBRA.
HCB provides risk management strategies and solutions to help financial professionals protect and grow their clients' assets. As a national life insurance, annuity, disability, and longevity planning firm, HCB distributes these solutions across the wealth spectrum to both institutional and independent partners.
"The partnership with LIBRA is an important step in Highland's evolution. Our diversified sales organization will rely on the vast array of carriers and their products to provide risk management solutions to our clients," said Teague Wright, president of Highland Capital Brokerage. "We look forward to taking advantage of the breadth of tools and resources this affiliation makes available."
HCB is comprised of more than 300 employees nationwide with an exceptionally talented and tenured team.
"I have enjoyed having an association in various capacities with Highland Capital Brokerage since its inception. They embody everything that LIBRA and our partners symbolize," said J. Craig Collins, executive vice president and chief relationship officer of LIBRA. "Teague and her senior leadership team have built a first-class organization and will greatly complement the markets we serve and the carriers we represent. Their interest in LIBRA further demonstrates the great value that we bring to our partner firms with our focus on delivering industry-leading tools and resources that support their efforts."
Shelow added, "I believe this affiliation elevates the stature of both organizations."
LIBRA Insurance Partners takes a true partnership approach with each of its valued relationships with the core belief in "the strength of many and power of one." With unique reinsurance ownership opportunities, agent retention programs, business development consulting, live training events and robust sales and marketing resources, the firm provides an unparalleled community of comradery and commitment to the success of each of its shareholders.
By way of partnership, HCB further expands upon its expansive resources and capabilities with direct access to several additional proprietary advanced planning tools and benefits, including:
exclusive facultative underwriting program with RGA Reinsurance Group of America, Incorporated (RGA)
established relationships with an expanded lineup of affiliated carriers and reinsurers
a dedicated medical director
product white papers and benchmarking tools
a proprietary quick quoting and informal processing platform
About Highland Capital Brokerage (HCB)
Highland Capital Brokerage is a national life insurance, annuity, disability, and long-term care distribution company providing point-of-sale support, advanced marketing, and creative estate- and business-planning techniques to financial advisors and insurance professionals. We deliver these services in an efficient, client-focused environment that extends to carrier and product expertise, underwriting negotiation, and complete back-office processing. Highland offers objective access to major insurance carriers, advanced planning support, expertise in risk underwriting, and back-office processing to insurance brokers, financial planners, and various institutions such as banks, wirehouses, and certified public accountant firms. To learn more about Highland Capital Brokerage, visit www.highlandbrokerage.com.
About LIBRA Insurance Partners (LIBRA)
LIBRA Insurance Partners is an insurance marketing organization dedicated to serving independent insurance producers, brokers, and financial institutions. Formerly known as LifeMark Partners and BRAMCO Financial Resources, and through the merger with Insurance Designers of America (IDA) in 2022, the firm exists to leverage strategic relationships, expertise, and innovation to expand life insurance distribution for the benefit of all stakeholders. LIBRA Insurance Partners is dedicated to the ongoing development and enhancement of resources to differentiate partner agencies from the competition. Its firms benefit from robust proprietary service offerings, unparalleled partnership, product expertise, and access to industry-leading technologies and tools, including expansive underwriting support resources. To learn more about becoming a LIBRA partner firm, visit www.LIBRAInsurancePartners.com or call (410) 837-3022.
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