Spot On Insurance Welcomes Dan Maher, Lorenzo Houston, and Brian Allen

Despite – or perhaps because of – the numerous challenges confronting the U.S. during 2020 and 2021, the surplus lines market continues to boom.?According to WSIA, 11 of the 15 states that maintain stamping officers reported double-digit percentage increases in the first six months of 2020, at the height of the pandemic.?June 2021 saw Texas’ stamping office enjoying the largest single month in its 33-year history.?Three of our favorite surplus lines experts join us to discuss the trends and technologies shaping the non-admitted market.

Dan Maher is the COO and Executive Director of the Excess Lines Association of New York (ELANY).?He is a practicing attorney licensed in New York and New Jersey, as well as several federal courts.?Before joining ELANY, Dan served as the Senior Vice President of the Lancer Insurance Company.

Lorenzo Houston is the Manager of the Surplus Lines Department at Insurance Licensing Services of America, Inc. (ILSA).?He served as Compliance Director for top wholesale broker U.S. Risk and as Operations Coordinator for Acentria Insurance before returning to ILSA in 2020.

Brian Allen is also part of the ILSA team.?Building on his leadership roles in both the Surplus Lines and Accounting Departments, he now acts as Special Projects Administrator.?He played a key role in developing CATT?, ILSA’s Surplus Lines Calculator and Tax Tool, and other online tools for brokers and agents.

They join us to discuss the impact of their investments in new technologies.?From ELANY’s shift to cloud-based computing solutions and programmatic filing to the development of surplus lines software such as CATT?, these organizations continue to innovate to help brokers file more efficiently.?Of course, like most innovations in the insurance space, these insurtech solutions sometimes also require regulatory changes.?So Dan, Lorenzo, and Brian also share how they work with regulators and legislators to keep our industry up to date.?Finally, we talk about the importance of cybersecurity for surplus lines and the insurance industry as a whole.

To connect with our guests directly:

→ LinkedIn: Dan Maher, Lorenzo Houston, Brian Allen

→ Website: elany.org, ilsainc.com

And for more great insights from Dan, Lorenzo, and Brian, listen to their Spot On Insurance podcast, The Surplus Line Market: Current Trends & New Resources, releasing on Tuesday, July 20.