Wells Fargo & Co. has announced that it will exit the personal insurance business and immediately begin winding down marketing and product promotion activity.
The company said in a statement that the decision came after a strategic assessment of the business, which began in early October 2017.
Align strategic goals
"Wells Fargo continually reviews our product and service offerings to ensure they meet our customers' needs and align with the company's long-term strategic goals," said Laurie Nordquist, head of personal insurance. "The decision to exit the personal insurance business reflects these practices, and we will wind down operations in a measured and responsible way for our existing customers."
In December 2015, Wells Fargo announced the sale of its crop insurance business, Rural Community Insurance Services, and its subsidiary Rural Community Insurance Company, to Zurich American Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Zurich Insurance Group. The sale was completed in 2016.
On June 27, 2017, Wells Fargo announced the sale of Wells Fargo Insurance Services USA to USI Insurance Services, a local and national insurance brokerage and consulting firm. In conjunction with the sale of the commercial brokerage business, the remaining personal insurance business became part of Wells Fargo's Consumer Lending division.
On November 9, 2017, Wells Fargo Insurance, Inc. announced that it had signed a purchase agreement with Hub International Limited, a leading global insurance brokerage to sell its crop insurance broker business.
Since 2003, Wells Fargo has offered auto, homeowners, renters and umbrella personal insurance products to consumers. The company said that it anticipates completing the exit process during the first quarter of 2018. Until that time, Wells Fargo said, it will continue to make available its suite of personal insurance products, in addition to servicing and managing customer policies.
Victoria Prussen Spears, Esq., (vspears@alm.com) is associate director of FC&S Legal, editor of the Insurance Coverage Law Report, and senior vice president at Meyerowitz Communications Inc.
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