Percent of business in Illinois by line:
Commercial: 35% Personal: 65%

Are you currently appointing new agents? Always.

What type of agency is your company looking for? Financially stable agencies with strong systems technologies.

What are your premium volume requirements? 10K per month.

Are you currently doing any niche-marketing program? Yes.

Do you use credit scoring? No.

Do you currently download/upload with your agencies? We will be in early 2003.

What methods do you use to distribute your insurance products? Independent Agents, MGAs.

What do you think makes your company different, or stand out from all the rest in Illinois? Why would an agent want to contract with your company? Competitively priced products, easy to do business with, competitive commission.

If we had agents agree to sell homeowners policies with actual cash value endorsements, would you write more business in southern Illinois? DNA

What are the major ways in which you are interfacing electronically with your agents today? Agents will soon be able to migrate from their auto rating vendor system to our website with the press of a key, then download policy documents instantly.

Are you planning enhancements in these interfaces in the future? Yes. Definitely.

The Agents Council for Technology (ACT) has recently adopted a major statement spelling out the opportunity our distribution system has to move to more effective agent-company interfaces that we are attaching. We would like to get your company's perspective on the section outlined below.

§ Provide agency services that are hosted and available through real-time interaction using the ACORD XML standards.
§ Assist agencies with the implementation and effective utilization of all company applications.
§ Cooperate with vendors creating integrated environments for agents.
§ Provide consumer services agents can integrate into their out-facing services.
§ Develop single-step workflow and make it available to agency multi-company environments (as at least one channel of deployment).
§ Work with agents and vendors to better manage mid to large commercial insurance processes through collaborative computing.
§ Provide information and computing through a variety of channels and devices.
§ Work with agents and vendors to implement computer-based personalized marketing and sales.
§ Develop a business strategy that strengthens your agency business partners and their brands through company and agency use of the Internet.
§ Participate in industry dialogue and the search for common ground.
§ Keep abreast of legislative issues that may affect the use and implementation of technology by agents, companies, and/or vendors.

We are doing # 3, #4, #5, # 9 and #11, right now. We agree with most of the outline.

Additional Comments: American Service Insurance was founded in 1983 as an exclusively non-standard writer. In 1997, the company branched into commercial lines, specifically taxi cabs. The company wrote 75 million in Illinois in 2002. Of that, 2/3 was private passenger and 1/3 was commercial (1/2 taxicabs and 1/2 milk distributors and tow trucks. Loss ratios are in the upper 40s, pure and 85 to 87 combined. The company has had 50 new appointments in Illinois. American Service has a loss control staff of 7 appraisers who are set up in body shops and attempt to see every vehicle that has been involved in an accident within 24 hours. The company has a total of 150 employees. Currently rated B++, the company is attempting to improve to A+ in 2003.