(July 18 – 15:30 ET) – Great-West Life Assurance Company has reached an agreement with The Maritime Life Assurance Company to be its preferred successor carrier on its small group insurance business as as Maritime Life begins to exit that market later this year.
Small groups are those with less than $50,000 in annual premiums. Maritime Life is exiting this segment to focus on its core group insurance markets.
Under the agreement, Maritime Life’s clients will be offered a new group insurance plan with Great-West Life on the renewal date of their current policy with Maritime Life. The transition of business will begin November 1, at the earliest, and is expected to be completed by the end of 2001. The agreement does not constitute a sale of business.
Maritime Life currently has about 1,100 small group clients, with annual premiums of about $25 million. Great-West Life currently has 19,000 small group clients, with annula premiums in excess of $325 million.
“The Canadian small business market is an important one,” says Bob Nicholas, senior vice president of Maritime Life’s group division, “but it is quite a specialized field and the success factors are different from our core markets, which are mid-size and large groups and the Trusteed and Sponsored Markets. We are better positioned to compete successfully in these markets.”
“Through this agreement, we can expand our small group insurance distribution network through Maritime Life producers, and enhance our position in the growing small group insurance market and as the leading group insurer in Canada,” says Jim Grant, executive vice president, group, Great-West Life. “We are very pleased to have the opportunity to offer our services to existing Maritime Life small group insurance clients.”
-IE Staff