Fireman's CEO Announces Expansion, New Agent Focus

NEW YORK--Fireman's Fund intends to become the choice of independent agents throughout the country backed by a significant investment from parent company Allianz and plans to become a major player in the small to mid-size marketplace, the company's president said.

Michael E. LaRocco, president and chief executive officer of the Novato, Calif.-based insurance company, in an interview yesterday, said the company has received the backing of its Munich, Germany-headquartered parent, to expand its product offerings and simultaneously improve its technology platform to make it easier for agents to do business.

"This is an incredibly exciting time at Fireman's Fund," said Mr. LaRocco. "The direction that Fireman's Fund is now taking will make us a much more significant player in the property and casualty marketplace."

Allianz is investing $100 million into Fireman's Fund to expand its product offerings in the personal and commercial lines marketplace, going beyond its high-net-worth customers and niche commercial products and entering the small and mid-size market including auto and homeowners, said Mr. LaRocco.

To facilitate that expansion, Fireman's Fund also plans to improve its ease of doing business with technology improvements, he said, all of this in an effort to improve and deepen its relationship with independent agents.

"We are an independent agent company," said Mr. LaRocco. "We believe in that channel. We believe that is the way we can grow this organization. It is a new day at Fireman's Fund and we are putting together an organization that is going to be able to fully realize the potential of a great brand owned by a great company."

On the technology side, Mr. LaRocco said while the company's technology is good, the aim is to "deliver better technology" and make the independent agent's life "much easier" to place and do business.

That concept is no more important than in the small and mid-size marketplace where Mr. LaRocco acknowledged that one of the keys to profitability is technology efficiency for both the company and agents.

He said agents will not choose to do business with Fireman's Fund if it is difficult to place business and if the costs are not kept low.

"We want Fireman's Fund to be the primary choice for independent agents," he said.

On the product side, the company began last month to roll out its new products, but has no intention of abandoning its commitment to traditional niches including its high-net-worth customers and specialized commercial lines, said Mr. LaRocco. The focus will be expansion of its product reach, but it will do so only when it is fully prepared and committed to doing so.

The expansion strategy is being done on a state by state basis. The company remains committed to its current independent agent partner base but will look to expand that base where it does not have a presence, Mr. LaRocco insisted.

Eleanor Barnard, chief distribution sales and marketing officer for Fireman's Fund, explained that one thing the company will be looking for is to understand from agents what is working and is not.

The company, she said, will also strive to understand the customers it services and make sure it has the right agents in place to access those customers.

When asked why the company is going ahead with this expansion in the middle of this economic crisis, Mr. LaRocco explained that the plan was presented to Allianz during the summer and the United States was one of a few markets the company made such a commitment to. He said the U.S. market, at its core, is seen as a very strong one and Allianz felt this was a good opportunity to make the move.

"A lot of companies, during an economic downturn, though I don't think we have seen one as bad as this, tend to duck and cover and hang on tight. I think that is a mistake," observed Mr. LaRocco.

"We have to be smart and efficient, and do all the right things, but investing in an organization at a time like this is going to allow us, as the [economy] does improve... in six to 18 months, to be positioned to be effective and ready to be that choice for independent agents," he said.