Rokstone Agriculture Risk Underwriters has announced the appointment of two senior underwriters to launch a new farm and ranch division.
Joshua Lauth (pictured above left) has been appointed president of Rokstone Agriculture Farm and Ranch, while Michael Theibert (pictured above right) has been named senior vice president.
Prior to joining Rokstone, Lauth served in various agribusiness underwriting and leadership roles at Westfield, most recently as agribusiness region leader.
Theibert also joins Rokstone from Westfield, where he served as small business territory leader. Prior to that role, Theibert held several positions focused on agency automation in farm, small business, personal lines, and middle-market field underwriting.
Rokstone Agriculture Farm and Ranch will offer online quote-and-bind farm owners' insurance combining property, liability and motor coverages. Initially, coverage will be offered in 12 states on a fully admitted basis, with plans to expand nationwide. Rokstone expects the division to reach $35 million in gross written premium in five years.
“There have been increasing areas of automation in other areas of the US market, but often seen as a niche specialty area, farm and agriculture remains underdeveloped and under-serviced,” Lauth said. “We are changing this with the launch of Rokstone Agriculture’s Farm and Ranch division. We are combining market-leading underwriting expertise with award-winning online quote-and-bind experience for straight-through processing, backed by the firepower and significant investment of the global MGA Rokstone.
“I am hugely excited to have the unique opportunity to be part of an organization embracing change, promoting an entrepreneurial spirit, and driving innovation through people, process and technology.”
“We’re delighted to welcome Josh and Michael to Rokstone,” said Tony Lawrence, chief digital distribution officer for Rokstone parent company Aventum. “Agriculture in the US is a very diverse sector. We launched Rokstone Agriculture earlier this year, specializing in livestock risks, and they have had enormous success in just a few months. With the addition of this complementary team, we’re building a true and broad agriculture enterprise. For distribution partners in the US, Rokstone will be a one-stop shop for specialty agriculture risks with a fast and efficient service.”
Rokstone Agriculture Risk Underwriters is the US specialist agriculture division of global specialty reinsurance MGA Rokstone, one of the world’s largest MGAs. Rokstone currently underwrites $750 million in gross written premium across numerous specialty lines.
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