Grange Insurance would like to remind homeowners that not only does Nov. 6 mark the end of daylight saving time, but it is also a good day to begin safeguarding the home from potential hazards as the colder months approach. To help homeowners prepare, Grange Insurance offers a Time-Change Checklist.
Time-Change Checklist:
- Change the batteries in your smoke detectors. Replace the actual unit once every 10 years. According to the National Fire Protection Agency, one-quarter (24 percent) of deaths were caused by fires in properties in which smoke alarms were present but failed to operate.
- Have a certified professional inspect your chimney before use. Even if you haven’t used your fireplace, debris can build up and cause blockages. If you do use your chimney often, creosote, which is highly combustible, can layer in chimney walls and lead to chimney fires.
- Clear your dryer vent and exhaust duct. The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that 15,000 dryer fires occur annually and cause more than $84.4 million in property damage.
- Have your furnace cleaned and inspected, and change the filter. This is especially important for older furnaces, which can develop cracks and leak carbon monoxide.
- Install carbon monoxide detectors in hallways near sleeping areas and change batteries yearly.
“Taking simple precautions like changing smoke detector batteries and clearing dryer vents can save the ones you love,” said Peter McMurtrie, chief claims officer for Grange Insurance. “We encourage you to make these annual changes part of your time change to-do list and educate your family on their importance.”
Atlanta - May 23, 2011 - PointeNorth Insurance Group and Love, Douglas & Pope Inc. have joined forces.
Effective June 1, the company will operate as PointeNorth Insurance Group. The merger is the third transaction of the year for PointeNorth and continues the insurance agency's growth strategy of seeking like-minded partners with complimentary offerings.
Along with 4,000-plus household and business clients, Love, Douglas & Pope brings additional locations in Alpharetta and Carrollton as well as its franchise program to the PointeNorth Insurance Group portfolio. Operating in 47 states, the program targets many types of franchise systems, including fast-casual dining restaurants and dating services. The program will continue under the Love, Douglas & Pope brand.
"With Love, Douglas & Pope's national franchise program, we now have a strong foothold in a new market," said PointeNorth CEO Bill Skeeles. "We also continue to broaden our choice of brokerage and insurance carriers and acquire the talent necessary to effectively operate in an evolving marketplace."
Love, Douglas and Pope is in its 60th year of operation and is one of the oldest agencies in metro Atlanta. In addition to a strong franchise practice, the agency enjoys solid name recognition with its personal, commercial, and life & health programs.
"Our combined talent and market presence make us a very formidable agency in Atlanta and the Southeast," said President Alan Pope.
Pope will serve as Vice President. He joins PointeNorth with other Love, Douglas & Pope principal, Steve Hurst, and key talent, Keven Pope and Russell Finleyson, who will also serve as vice presidents.
"We share the philosophy of being trusted consultants to our clients," Hurst said. "We also share the philosophy that in order to do that, we must be locally owned. We're keeping that local feel while at the same time creating a much stronger agency."
PointeNorth, already one of Georgia's largest locally-owned independent insurers, will now have more than 25,000 clients as well as offices in Atlanta, Decatur, Alpharetta, Carrollton and Peachtree City.
Atlanta – April 1, 2011 – PointeNorth Insurance Group has acquired Hodges & Associates and Smith Insurance Services, creating one of the largest independent insurers in Georgia.
Hodges & Associates is recognized as one of the leading employee-benefit providers in metro Atlanta and will operate as a member of the PointeNorth group of companies. The Marietta-based agency’s BondsPlus subsidiary, Risk Management Continuum division, and employee-benefits practice, were purchased with stock and cash. Effective April 1, Stan Hodges will serve as Senior Vice President of PointeNorth’s Benefit Practice and Sales Manager.
Smith Insurance Services, a Marietta-based agency that offers property, life and casualty insurance products was purchased effective April 1st. Moving forward it will operate as PointeNorth Insurance Group and Ken Smith, its owner will serve as a PointeNorth vice president.
PointeNorth CEO Bill Skeeles said the acquisitions are based on the agency’s ongoing growth strategy. PointeNorth, he said, is actively seeking additional partnerships.
"We're highly interested in partnering with growth-minded independent agencies that add to our capabilities and want to keep their entrepreneurial spirit fully intact," Skeeles said. "We're focused on aggressive growth to better compete against the large national agencies, while, at the same time, maintaining the locally-owned flavor that has always set us apart."
PointeNorth, which is listed in Atlanta Business Chronicle as a "Top 10 Property & Casualty" insurance brokerage by premium dollar value, adds significant employee-benefits expertise with the addition of Hodges & Associates.
"We now have a broader selection of insurance for commercial and personal accounts," Skeeles said. "With Hodges & Associates' expertise, we are instantly positioned in the thick of the employee-benefit market."
Hodges said his agency was focused on expanding smartly, even as much of the insurance industry has drawn back due to the economy.
"This partnership is not one company gobbling up another but rather two companies merging expertise," Hodges said. "We're bringing extensive experience in employee benefits, auctioneer bonds and risk management. And with PointeNorth's well-deserved reputation behind us as one of Georgia's leading independent insurers, our agents will be able to better serve existing clients and attract new ones."
Georgia Tech holds a career combine for football players
Atlanta - February 16, 2011 - By Doug Roberson (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Amid a deluge and howling winds outside, Georgia Tech had a Pro Day of a different kind Tuesday night inside Bobby Dodd Stadium.
But relays were replaced by resumes, stopwatches by handshakes, bench-presses by business cards.
It was a chance for more than 25 of the Yellow Jackets' current and former football players to meet with more than 25 Atlanta business leaders. The goal, like a Pro Day, was to catch someone's eye by showcasing their skills.
"The NFL's a job, just like the business world," wide receiver Tyler Melton said. "You have to sell yourself, and a company has to like you. It has to be a good fit. Getting on a team and getting a job are quite similar."
The event was coach Paul Johnson's idea to help the players connect with Atlanta's rich business environment. He held a few similar sessions while coaching at Navy, and the first event at Tech was held last year. That event focused more on life advice from the leaders to players. This year's had a more practical goal of helping the two sides connect, possibly with internships or jobs. Johnson said he hopes to add another session late this year for the players who will graduate in May or the summer.
Johnson learned long ago that first jobs often are the result of making connections and who you know. His first job came when he was hired as an assistant by his former coach at Avery County (N.C.) High School.
"The CEOs would prefer to hire athletes because they know they have a good work ethic, they have been in a team environment," Johnson said. "It's a win-win for everyone."
With rain and wind as the backdrop in the Letterwinner's Lounge in the north end of the stadium, Melton, who is on schedule to graduate in May with a degree in management, and Robert Hall, who graduated with a degree in management last year, were the first two players to show up. They were prepared. Hall carried several copies of his resume, while Melton sported his 2009 ACC championship ring to use as a conversation-starter.
Echoing Johnson's belief, each discussed how playing a team sport is a positive when it comes to looking for a job: They have learned discipline, they are leaders, they have learned how to work as a team, and they are aggressive.
With the economy still struggling to recover, Hall said the job market has been tight. He has business experience from an internship, but he said he needs more on his resume. Being a collegiate student-athlete -- with practices, games, conditioning, film-study, travel, class-time and homework -- leaves scant opportunities to network.
"I feel like this is a great tool that Georgia Tech has provided for us," Hall said. "From my experience being out there now, it's very hard. It depends upon who you know and the work you put into it."
Soon, more players from each of Tech's classes and business leaders from various industries began to get together, from graduate Austin Barrick and Coca-Cola, to freshman Isaiah Johnson and PointeNorth Insurance Group.
As the attendees ate barbecue, each took a few minutes to stand up and share either what they could do, or what they were looking for.
Tom Fahey, a vice president with United Distributors, Inc., said the skills that athletes learn fit into his businesses' core beliefs: loyalty, honesty, competitiveness and collaboration.
His goal was to swap business cards with a few players or collect some resumes and then start interviewing and possibly hiring them as summer interns later. Though some of the business reps are Tech graduates, they weren't star-crossed fans eagerly looking to hire the first player whose hand they shook. As when the players were being recruited to Tech, the fit needs to be right.
"Hopefully they'll feel a connection to it, a passion for it," Fahey said.
United, which distributes various beverages and is based in Smyrna, hired three Tech football players as interns last summer. Onu Okebie, who is pursuing a career in accounting or financing, was one of those players, and he said the opportunity to work with professionals on that level so early in his career was invaluable. He is following up on contacts made from Tuesday's event in an attempt to find another such opportunity.
Based upon contacts made at the first networking event, Osahon Tongo was able to land a summer internship with CNN's digital marketing department last summer. They were so pleased with his performance the internship turned into a temporary job that lasted several more months. He eventually resigned to pursue a study-abroad program. A rep from CNN was back at Tuesday's event.
Fahey said he returned because he was happy with the performance of Okebie and his teammates.
"These guys are getting life's lessons on the field," he said.
Atlanta - January 31, 2011 – PointeNorth Insurance Group of Atlanta has been named one of Atlanta’s top 10 property and casualty insurance brokers and agents. The listing, compiled by the Atlanta Business Chronicle, ranked companies by premium dollar volume.
PointeNorth offers a broad range of commercial, personal and life products to business and household clients.
"We are very appreciative of our clients, associates and business partners who made it possible for us to strengthen and grow our business," said Bill Skeeles, CEO of PointeNorth Insurance Group. "Our company works every day to offer our clients the highest level of personal service in the industry."
Columbus, Ohio – August, 2010 – PointeNorth Insurance Group of Atlanta has earned Senior Partner status from Grange Insurance, the company’s highest designation. This honor recognizes the best independent agencies that sell Grange products based on their experience, professionalism and superior performance.
With locations in Atlanta, Decatur, and Peachtree City, PointeNorth Insurance Group serves customers in Metro Atlanta and Georgia (call 770-858-7540 for a free quote).
Grange only sells its products through independent insurance agents because they offer the best local insurance counsel, can offer coverage from a variety of companies to find the best fit for each individual, family or business and support the community where they live and work.
"Our view is that customers would rather do business with an independent agent in their community than with a big company website, 800 number or captive agent,” said Bob James, Grange President and CEO. “We believe our independent agent partners – especially our Senior Partners – are people you can trust and count on when needed."
Partnership forms new company, PointeNorth Insurance Group
Atlanta – Dec. 23, 2009 – TRC Stevenson has acquired the property and casualty assets of Merritt-McKenzie, creating one of the largest independently-owned insurance agencies based in the Southeast. The acquisition, effective Jan. 1, 2010, will form a new company — PointeNorth Insurance Group.
Bill Skeeles, CEO of TRC Stevenson, said the purchase of Merritt-McKenzie enables the delivery of new products and services to customers—which now total more than 12,000 businesses and individuals in Georgia. With the combined assets of both firms, he said, PointeNorth Insurance Group is poised for growth—organically and through further acquisitions.
Unlike agencies with a national focus, PointeNorth Insurance Group™ will continue the TRC Stevenson and Merritt-McKenzie tradition of providing locally-focused, one-on-one expertise and service. "Clients will have more product options and other benefits due to our expanded reach," said Skeeles, who becomes chairman and CEO of PointeNorth Group. "Even though we’re a growing company with a new name, our clients will continue to receive the same personal service from the professionals they’ve always known and trusted."
PointeNorth Insurance Group will serve the same types of clients—small to large businesses in the Southeast that need full-service insurance coverage, and individual policyholders primarily in the metro Atlanta area. The agency will also continue to offer the most highly-regarded national and regional insurance brands.
John Langsfeld, president of Merritt-McKenzie, which was previously owned by First Horizon Insurance Atlanta, says he looks forward to providing customers with additional product options, cutting-edge online tools, and carrying the Merritt-McKenzie legacy forward. The company was founded in Atlanta in 1926.
"This relationship makes us stronger and more efficient," said Langsfeld, who becomes president of PointeNorth Insurance, Atlanta. "I’m excited about the possibilities of growing while at the same time staying true to the core principals and strategies we’ve lived by for 83 years."
Starting Jan. 1, PointeNorth Insurance Group’s contact information will be:
1100 Circle 75 Parkway, Suite 140About PointeNorth Insurance Group
Atlanta, GA 30339
Phone: 770.858.7540
Fax: 770.858.7545
PointeNorth Insurance Group™ was formed by the merger of TRC Stevenson and Merritt–McKenzie. With locations in Atlanta, Decatur and Peachtree City, the company provides insurance and financial products to more than 12,000 businesses and individuals throughout Georgia and the Southeast. For more information, visit www.PointeNorthIns.com or www.trcins.com.