Grange Insurance Names New President of Personal Lines

Grange Insurance has named John Ammendola, an insurance industry veteran with 18 years of property/casualty experience, as its president of personal lines, overseeing $870 million in business.

Ammendola will be responsible for product development, pricing, underwriting management, operations and loss control, Grange said in a statement. Attempts to contact Grange Insurance for comment on the appointment were unsuccessful. Ammendola previously was senior vice president of sales and marketing for Unitrin Corp.'s Kemper Insurance division and held positions with Safeco Insurance Co. and Geico Insurance Co.

In September 2009, Joseph DiMartino was promoted to president of personal lines at Grange Insurance (BestWire, Sept. 23, 2009). In January, Grange named Robert V. James its chief executive officer. (BestWire, Jan. 27, 2010).

The Grange Mutual Casualty Group includes Grange Mutual Casualty Co., Grange Property & Casualty Insurance Co., Trustgard Insurance Co., Grange Indemnity Insurance Co., Grange Insurance Co. of Michigan, Integrity Mutual Insurance Co., and Integrity Property & Casualty Co. In addition to the property and casualty insurance operations, the group also includes a life subsidiary, Grange Life Insurance Co. Grange Mutual Casualty Pool's direct property/casualty business is split approximately 77% personal lines, 20% commercial lines and approximately 3% combined according to BestLink, which provides online access to A.M. Best's Global Insurance & Banking Database. The pool uses a network of independent agents to distribute its insurance products and writes primarily in Ohio and 12 other midwestern and southern states.

Grange Mutual Casualty Pool currently has a Best's Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent).

(By Diana Rosenberg, senior associate editor, BestWeek)