Percent of business in Illinois by line:
Personal : 79% Life & Annuity: 21%

Are you currently appointing new agents? Yes-Selectively.

What type of agency is your company looking for? Professional sales organizations with good financials, loss ratios and agency account payment records, front line underwriting practices, and personal service philosophy.

What are your premium volume requirements? $100,000 per year for first five years. Ultimately look to be #1 or #2 in agency.

Are you currently doing any niche-marketing program? We are generalists and write what our good agents write. We do have an excellent Dentist's Program.

What is your company's most aggressive line of business? Same as above.

Do you use credit scoring? We have recently explored its use, not as an underwriting tool, but to qualify for premium payment plans.

Do you currently download/upload with your agencies? Several I/S projects being tested which include download/upload capabilities.

What methods do you use to distribute your insurance products? Independent agents exclusively.

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? Field underwriting and pricing authority, quality claims service, market stability and access to management.

If we had agents agree to sell homeowners policies with actual cash value endorsements, would you write more business in southern Illinois? We're currently writing business in Southern Illinois with no restrictions.

What are the major ways in which you are interfacing electronically with your agents today? Are you pleased with the results? We are developing web-based applications such as rating, forms and claims reporting systems.