Orange County’s largest insurance brokers reported their revenue rose 15% in 2021 combined.
That’s double the 7.1% growth in 2020 and above the 10% seen in 2019.
The biggest jump on this year’s list was a 107% rise to $78.4 million for Irvine’s Burnham Benefits Insurance Services, which climbed six spots to the No. 3 ranking. A year ago, its parent company, BRP Group Inc., acquired Tustin-based Wood Gutmann & Bogart Insurance Services LLC.
“Everyone is pleased with the partnership,” Burnham Chief Executive Kristen Allison said. “From what we hear from carriers and clients, they don’t feel any disruptions.”
Alliant Insurance Services Inc. continues to top the ranking, reporting its OC revenue climbed 15% to $235.7 million in 2021. Companywide, it’s grown to more than $3 billion in annual sales with the help of both organic growth and acquisitions.
“Our financial performance in 2021 resulted from another year of exceptional organic growth,” Alliant Chief Executive Tom Corbett said. “In 2021, our most prominent growth areas aligned with the current high-growth market areas in the technology, biotech and service sectors. Other market areas have remained steady.”
The company recently moved from Newport Beach to new offices in Irvine.
Rounding out the top three is Marsh Risk & Insurance Services/Mercer, which reported a 10% increase in revenue to $118.2 million.
$1.1B in Policies
The Business Journal ranked the 23 largest insurance brokers in the county with a cutoff of $6 million in policies.
The brokers with headquarters or significant operations here combined for nearly $1.1 billion worth of policies in 2021.
Eighteen firms reported revenue increases, including 11 that saw more than 10% growth.
Only two firms reported a decline while five are Business Journal estimates.
The list also counts the number of licensed brokers, support staff and companywide offices, though those figures didn’t affect rankings.
The insurance brokers reported their number of property and casualty producers in OC jumped 9.4% to 452, up from a 3.5% increase last year. They had fallen 8.8% in 2020 and 2.1% in 2019.
A significant grower was the Newport Beach office of San Francisco-based EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants, which more than doubled its P&C producers to 22. It ranked No. 15.
Its OC benefit producers climbed 2% to 282, versus a 12% rise last year.
Employment Growth
Revenue growth outpaced the still-notable increase in OC support staff, which rose 6.3% to 1,840 combined as of August.
A big gainer in staffing was Deerfield, Ill.-based Orion Risk Management. Employment out of the firm’s Newport Beach office jumped 74% to 54.
The largest local increase in support staff was Burnham, which nearly tripled its headcount to 147.
The company is expanding its Irvine office from 21,000 square feet to 25,000 square feet and is also expanding its office in the Inland Empire and opening a new one in San Diego.
Burnham’s CEO Allison noted that claims for mental health have continued to skyrocket.
Also significant, claims related to individuals that delayed ongoing treatment or avoided seeking care altogether, became more severe because of the pandemic.
“You might have conditions that would have been caught earlier. It creates a larger significant problem.”
Burnham in 2020 was acquired by Tampa, Fla.-based BRP Group Inc. (Nasdaq: BRP), which represents over 1.2 million clients across the United States and internationally. BRP’s revenue more than doubled in 2021 to $567.3 million.
Notables
• Kansas City, Kan.-based Lockton Insurance Brokers, which has an Irvine office, said its OC revenue jumped 73% to $20.5 million, good for the No. 16 spot.
• San Francisco-based Woodruff-Sawyer & Co., which also has an office in Irvine, reported OC revenue rose 48% to $37 million. The company ranks No. 12.
• The biggest revenue decline was 6.2% to $37.6 million at Charlotte, N.C.-based McGriff Insurance Services of Orange County, No. 11. The company has an Irvine office.
