York Risk Services Group announcedthe acquisition of Brandon, Miss.-based Quick Cat LLC. Quick Cat providescommercial daily and catastrophe claims services on a nationalbasis and can expand its response capabilities to includeinternational catastrophes when needed. The acquisition willenhance the services and resources York offers to its middle marketaccounts, expand the bench strength of its Specialized LossAdjusting services, offer CAT support for York's TPA operations andprovide a national catastrophic response option. Mike Boleware willcontinue to serve as president of Quick Cat and senior vicepresident of the York Field Services unit. In these roles, he willbe responsible for expanding the Quick Catorganization. 

Willis Global Captive Practiceannounced that it has set up a Willis-owned and managedprotected cell company (PCC) insurance facility inVermont. The new facility, Encore Insurance PCCLtd (Encore) will underwrite U.S. risks andprovide clients with the benefits that come with the operation of acaptive insurance company for those who may lack sufficient premiumvolume or may not wish to operate their own insurance company.Encore will be managed by Willis Management (Vermont) Ltd. which isheaded by David Guerino, Managing Director.

Livegenic announced that the companywas an awardee at Strategy MeetsAction's (SMA) fourth Innovation Awards. The awardswere presented for two categories: the insurer winners and solutionproviders, and recognize leading innovators in insurance. Awardeeswere recognized during the annual SMA Summit held at the MandarinOriental Hotel in Boston on Sept. 20. SMA is a well-known andrecognized organization, dedicated to helping the insuranceindustry modernize, optimize, and innovate to transform into thenext generation of insurers.

Livegenic was recognized for its patented, mobile, real-timevideo platform that helps insurance organizations improve thecustomer experience and reduce claim handling costs by enablingclaims professionals see what the customer sees withoutdisconnecting from the phone call. Livegenic provides a newapproach to reduce claim handling frustrations and improve customerexperience by eliminating delays associated with claimsdocumentation, accelerating claim handling cycle times from 7-14days to 7-14 hours. In addition to claims and first notice of loss,the Livegenic platform also supports solutions for improvingbusiness processes for field documentation, underwriting,supplements and re-inspections.