Hartford Acquires Access to ~$200M in Commercial Lines Premium

Hartford has entered into a renewal rights agreement with the Farmers Exchanges to acquire its Foremost-branded small commercial business sold through independent agents.

The Foremost-branded small commercial independent agent book of business, which is sold through more than 5,000 agents and brokers nationwide, has approximately $200M in annual premium as of Dec. 31, 2017. It consists of three primary lines of business underwritten by Foremost Insurance Group: business owner’s policy for property, general liability and umbrella; commercial auto; and workers’ compensation.

“This renewal rights agreement further strengthens Hartford’s market-leading position in small business, and also provides an opportunity to deepen and broaden our distribution network” – Stephanie Bush, Hartford’s head of Small Commercial and Personal Lines.

“This move provides us the flexibility to increase our focus and invest additional resources on the small business segment , which we remain very committed to, through our vast network of Farmers agents” – Sharon Fernandez, head of Business Insurance for Farmers Insurance.

The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. It will not have a material impact on Hartford’s financial results.