Orange County’s insurance brokers grew for the fifth straight year, notching a 13% increase in combined revenue last year.
This week’s Business Journal list features the 23 biggest insurance brokerage firms with headquarters or significant operations in Orange County. They took in $569.6 million in revenue last year that was attributable to their OC operations.
The percentage growth follows a 9% increase in 2013, 7% in 2012, 13% in 2011, and 3% in 2010 after a drop in 2009.
Sixteen of the companies had OC revenue increases, with eight of them notching double-digit gains. Three firms’ revenues dropped, and numbers for the remaining four were unchanged based on Business Journal estimates.
The list includes data such as the number of OC-based property-and-casualty producers and the number of benefits producers, though those don’t affect the rankings.
The listed companies have 2,105 licensed local P&C insurance producers, up about 1% year-over-year, and 249 benefits producers, up 14% year-over-year. They combine for more than 1,300 support staff, up 2%.
n Alliant Insurance Services Inc., the perennial No. 1, had $97.8 million in OC revenue last year. That was up by 35%, or $25.4 million, from the prior year, the biggest dollar-value increase on the list.
The Newport Beach-based firm has 25 P&C producers, down by two, and seven benefits producers, unchanged from a year ago. It has 176 support staff, down 2%.
Alliant President Greg Zimmer said the company’s growth has been fueled by three factors.
“First, we are in the midst of a national acquisition campaign focused on acquiring like-minded companies with a proven success record and a keen eye for future growth,” he said. “Second, we continue to see significant national expansion within our construction services group … Finally, we are proactively hiring influential and experienced brokers who thrive within our dynamic, entrepreneurial corporate culture. We are doing all of this while maintaining our targeted focus on specialization, with professionals who understand every facet of the client’s business and deliver customized insurance and risk-management solutions that meet their shifting needs.”
• Marsh Risk & Insurance Services/Mercer moved up one spot to No. 2 with a 5% revenue increase to $51.8 million. The New York-based firm has 19 P&C producers, 30 benefits producers, and 126 support staff in Orange County, all unchanged from a year ago.
• USI Insurance Services LLC moved up one spot to No. 3 with a 25% increase to $46.7 million. Its OC work force hasn’t changed over the past year and includes five P&C producers, 12 benefits producers, and 116 support staff members.
• BB&T Insurance Services of Orange County/Precept Group slipped two spots to No. 4. It had $38.4 million in 2014 revenue, down by 1% year-over-year.
• Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. passed a couple of companies to land at No. 5 with $34.2 million in revenue. That was up nearly 28% from a year earlier. Orange County operations of the Itasca, Ill.-based company have 14 P&C producers, up by two; 12 benefits producers, up by five; and 46 support staff members, up by two.
• Barney & Barney, a Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC in Aliso Viejo had the highest percentage growth on the list, up by slightly more than 35% to $23.9 million and good for the No. 10 spot.
• Wood Gutmann & Bogart Insurance Brokers had a 21% increase to $22.5 million, landing at No. 11. It has 40 local P&C producers, up 18% from a year earlier, and three benefits producers, down by two. Its support staff grew 9% to 74. The Tustin-based firm is one of 12 on the list with headquarters in Orange County.
Other locally based companies include:
• Irvine-based Burnham Benefits Insurance Services Inc., which had a 25% revenue increase to $17.7 million. The company moved up two spots to No. 12. It’s primarily a benefits firm, with 45 benefits producers—up from 24—and one P&C producer. Support staff headcount at Burnham grew by five to 28.
• Huntington Beach-based Confie Seguros Holding Co. had a nearly 2% decline in its Orange County revenue to $6.8 million, though it remained at No. 21. It has more than 1,600 P&C producers in OC.
Confie, which caters primarily to Latino-Americans, has been rapidly growing its companywide revenue and work force in recent years, thanks in part to strategic acquisitions throughout the U.S.
