Republic Companies Acquires Southern States General

Dallas-based insurer Republic Companies Inc. said it has acquired Southern States General Agency Inc. (SSGA) from Chicago-based Unitrin Inc. Terms of the deal were not released.

SSGA provides specialty commercial and personal lines property-casualty insurance products through independent insurance agents in Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas and Mississippi. A spokesman would not provide additional financial information about SSGA, saying the transaction was a private one.

Parker W. Rush, president and chief executive officer of Republic, said the acquisition "is consistent with our objective of being the premier regional carrier for our agents and policyholders. The addition of this fine company to The Republic Group [the holding company] helps us expand our geographic reach and broaden our product offerings."

Republic Companies Inc. provides personal and commercial property-casualty insurance products. In its independent agents segment, Republic distributes these products to individuals and small to medium-size businesses through a network of independent agents primarily in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and New Mexico.

According to National Underwriter's Highline Data Service, Republic reported direct premium written of $621 million in 2006, primarily written in Texas.

Earlier this month, Unitrin said its subsidiary, Trinity Universal Insurance Company, completed its acquisition of Merastar Insurance Company for a cash payment of approximately $47 million. Merastar is based in Chattanooga, Tenn., and specializes in the sale of personal auto and homeowners insurance through employer-sponsored voluntary benefit programs.

Merastar reported direct premium written of $54 million in 2006 according to Highline Data.

Unitrin is a $3 billion financial services company with both property-casualty and life and health insurance business. Among its holdings is Kemper Auto and Home.