Insurance industry executives Michael Price and Kean Driscoll announced the formation of Dellwood Insurance Group, a new nationwide excess and surplus lines insurance holding company.

The new company will be dedicated exclusively to wholesale brokers with an emphasis on small and middle enterprise (SME) risks, according to a media statement.

Price, Dellwood’s chief executive officer, has previously held underwriting and leadership positions with Chubb, AIG, The Hartford, and Arch Insurance Group.

Driscoll, president and chief underwriting officer of Dellwood, started his career as a property treaty reinsurance underwriting, taking successive leadership positions in the Bermuda market, including a role as CEO of Validus before it was sold to AIG, where he held his most recent position as global chief underwriting officer.

According to the media statement, Dellwood is backed by blue-chip companies including RenaissanceRe, PartnerRe, Starr Insurance, and Central Insurance, as well as prominent individual investors including Dominic Addesso, David Delaney, VJ Dowling, Jim Hays, and principals from Stone Point Capital.

Addesso, a former president and CEO of Everest Re Group, will serve as the company’s non-executive chairman.

In the media statement, Addesso noted the proven track records of Price and Driscoll in “building profitable underwriting businesses and successfully managing through varying market cycles.”

“They are extremely well-respected in the P&C industry and the investor group is excited to back them in this venture,” Addesso added.

Said Price, “The P/C industry is at an inflection point, and we are poised to actively participate in the most attractive insurance market conditions in over 20 years. Having access to the intellectual and financial firepower of our strategic investors will serve us and our broker partners well as we navigate the challenging E&S marketplace.”

Noting the recent growth of the E&S market, heightened catastrophe activity and social and economic inflation, Driscoll noted the particular challenges of the inflationary elements of the insurance cycle on the SME segment. “Dellwood’s purpose-built underwriting platform will lead with a full suite of insurance products for the SME commercial market. We are confident that these capabilities matched with disciplined underwriting will appeal to wholesale brokers, who need alternative approaches, particularly for smaller, hard-to-place risks,” he stated.

Price noted that Dellwood is making early investments in technology to streamline underwriting and claims processes. “Competing in the SME segment of the E&S market requires rapid response and strong service capabilities,” he said.

Howden Tiger Capital Markets & Advisory served as Dellwood’s financial advisor and Foley & Lardner served as Dellwood’s legal advisor.

Source: Dellwood Insurance Group