Toronto-based Moore-McLean Insurance Group acquires Hallmark Insurance Group of Companies of Markham, Ont.

Toronto-based Moore-McLean Insurance Group Ltd. announced on Friday that it has acquired the assets of Markham, Ont.-based Hallmark Insurance Group and its family of companies.

Beginning Oct. 28, they will form McLean Hallmark Insurance Group Ltd., and McLean Hallmark Financial Ltd. The new firm will have a broad footprint in the Greater Toronto Area, including offices in Toronto, Markham and Mississauga, and also a presence in Kingston, Ont. with the maintenance of the Hallmark Insurance office in that location, Hallmark Insurance said in a press release.

Daryn McLean, president and CEO of Moore-McLean Insurance Group, will serve as president and CEO of the new firm.

“This acquisition will provide us with the scale we need to offer a greater variety of risk management services to our clients,” McLean said in the release. “The Hallmark Insurance Group adds significant expertise and presence in the transportation, aviation and golf course segments, which nicely complements our existing offerings. We will also be in a much stronger position to offer group benefits and financial services to our clients and will build upon Navigators’ very successful digital offering in personal lines.”

The Hallmark Insurance Group includes Hallmark Financial, Navigators Insurance and Ontario Underwriting Services.

John Walters, president of Hallmark Insurance, said that the company is excited to join forces with Moore-McLean and “proud to become part of quality brokerage that is committed to maintaining its independent status. We are confident that this relationship will serve our clients well.”

Walters will remain involved in the new company as a consultant and vice chairman.

McLean Hallmark will have more than 125 employees and write in excess of $110 million in premiums, making it one of the largest independent brokerages in Canada.

Established in 1948, Hallmark Insurance Group has offices in Markham and Kingston. It currently provides a wide range of services to over 10,000 personal and 5,000 organizational clients. Its services include executive risk and directors and officers insurance; errors and omissions; commercial general liability; cyber liability; and employment practices liability for numerous industries, including, among others, aviation and aerospace, construction, mining, transportation, manufacturing and small businesses.

Moore-McLean has been independent and family-owned and operated since its inception in 1975. The firm offers a variety of specialty programs in market segments including professional liability, new car dealers, moving and storage, customs brokers and group personal lines. The firm is a founding member of the Canadian Broker Network, a group of independent insurance brokers across Canada, as well as Intersure Partners, a group of more than 40 insurance brokers and agents from across North America.