Montpelier, VT – Gov. Phil Scott announced today that the Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) has licensed Vermont’s 1,100th captive insurance company. AssureCap Indemnity, LLC was licensed as a Sponsored Captive Insurance Company. It was formed by Assurance Agency, Ltd., which was recently named the 41st largest insurance broker in the United States by Business Insurance magazine and is now the largest independent insurance brokerage in Illinois. Assurance creates value by minimizing risk and maximizing health for 6,000 businesses and individuals across the country. Headquartered in Schaumburg, Ill., it is a repeated “Best Place to Work” winner.
Scott said he was proud of the milestone and expects even more good things to come. “We are proud to celebrate this significant accomplishment. As we focus on growing Vermont’s economy we continue to value the role the captive industry has in those efforts, so we are not resting on our laurels. My administration is committed to keeping Vermont at the forefront of serving this industry and keeping Vermont’s reputation as the “Gold Standard” of captive domiciles,” he said.
Assurance Agency, Ltd. President Daniel Klaras said Vermont was an easy choice.
“We know how important it is to be in an environment that has an established track record with proven experience,” he said, “so when we compared experience, governmental support and the state’s long-standing tradition of quality regulation, we knew Vermont was the place to be.”
DFR Commissioner Michael Pieciak agreed and noted that this is a significant milestone in the state’s financial services history. “Vermont’s captive insurance law has been called the ‘gold standard’ by trade press for its consistency in keeping pace with the changing needs of the industry over the past 36 years, and it has been used by other domiciles as a model of regulation,” he said. “Vermont is proud of its reputation in the captive world and we’re happy to welcome AssureCap Indemnity, LLC to the Vermont captive family.”
Michael Maglaras, Principal of Michael Maglaras & Company, advised Assurance on the formation and business plan of AssureCap. Maglaras said, “I like to match the energy of my clients with the energy of the domicile…Assurance Agency and the State of Vermont both maintain a strong commitment to responsiveness and service excellence. For me, as a consultant, Vermont was the natural domicile for this transaction.”
Ian Davis, Director of Financial Services, spoke highly of Vermont’s captive industry. “This achievement reaffirms Vermont’s strong position in the global captive marketplace and is a testament to the hardworking Vermonters that work in this highly specialized industry. As is so often the case, when companies conduct their due diligence, Vermont is the clear choice for domiciling your captive insurance company.”
David Provost, Deputy Commissioner of Captive Insurance at DFR, commented on Vermont’s success. “We have built an industry based on licensing top-quality companies for risk management and risk financing, regulating them in an appropriate manner, and providing excellent service,” he said, “This foundation will serve us well as we look forward to licensing the next 1,100 captives.”
Vermont is the largest captive insurance domicile in the U.S. and the third largest in the world. There are more than 30 states with captive insurance authorizing legislation. Vermont’s captive insurance companies had over $200 billion in assets under management in 2016, the most of any domicile in the world. Vermont is also home to 43 of the companies that make up the Fortune 100 and 15 of the companies that make up the Dow 30.
Captive insurance is a regulated form of self-insurance created by companies or groups of companies as an alternative to traditional insurance and is designed to better manage their own risk. Captive insurance companies are typically used for corporate lines of insurance such as property, general liability, products liability, or professional liability. Growth sectors of the captive insurance industry include professional medical malpractice coverage for doctors and hospitals and the continued trend of small- and mid-sized companies forming captive insurance companies. Vermont has more than 100 captives formed by hospitals and physician groups that have formed captives for professional medical liability.
Captive insurance has existed since the 1960s and has been a part of the Vermont insurance industry since 1981, when Vermont passed the Special Insurer Act. Captive insurance companies are formed by companies or groups of companies as a form of alternative insurance to better manage their own risk. Captive insurance companies are licensed in a state or country and are regulated by that jurisdiction.
For more information on Vermont’s captive industry, visit www.vermontcaptive.com
