January 8, 2003

InsureZone Tripled User Population in 2002 as Number of Approved Agents Increased to More Than 2,500

Nearly $33 Million in Small Commercial Premium Processed To-Date Through InsureZone’s MarketSecure™ Technology Platform

FORT WORTH, Texas (January 8, 2003) – InsureZone, the nationwide “clicks and mortar” insurance agency that enables quick, easy sales of small commercial insurance through a variety of channels, announced today that it closed out 2002 with more than 2,500 agents across the nation approved to submit business using the advanced single-entry, multiple-company interface (SEMCI) its XML-based MarketSecure™ technology platform supports.

That represents a threefold increase in the number of agents approved to use InsureZone’s Web-enabled programs since Dec. 31, 2001. Nearly $33 million in small commercial premium has been quoted by InsureZone since the launch of MarketSecure in October 2001.

“We’ve built a strong, scalable platform with all the flexibility and functionality to deliver fast, accurate quotes on small commercial insurance,” said J. Russell “Rusty” Reid, InsureZone’s president and CEO. “It certainly bodes well for the future that, with each passing month, more and more agents study the small commercial options available to them, and then decide to align with us.”

InsureZone has developed separate product lines tailored to insurance distributors’ differing needs. Each serves as a gateway to small commercial products from highly rated national carriers such as AIG, CNA, The Hartford and Zurich North America Small Business. One is designed for smaller and rural agencies that need a lifeline to additional markets, the other for larger independent and bank-owned brokerages and agency clusters interested in finding a more efficient way to process their small commercial business.

Through InsureZone, agents can obtain quotes and bind coverage within one business day – (within minutes for some carriers) – on Businessowners Policy (BOP), Workers’ Compensation, Commercial Auto and Umbrella Liability. Other offerings include Directors and Officers (D&O), Builders’ Risk, Errors and Omissions (E&O), Employment Practices Liability (EPLI) and Bonds as well as some packages. Currently, more than 1,900 small-business classes are available, and there are no practical limits on the number of additional classes the system can support.

InsureZone’s MarketSecure technology solution powers an easy-to-complete online application, which seamlessly sorts through some 1,200 possible questions to present only the ones required to qualify a particular risk. The risk is then mapped against the underwriting appetite for each of InsureZone’s eight standard carriers. Wherever a fit occurs, a quote is generated.

The lineup of carriers available to any given agency can be expanded or abbreviated almost at will, making MarketSecure an all-in-one solution both for large brokerages that want to streamline their small commercial processing, and for carriers that want to provide a single-source Web interface to their appointed agents. It can also support a tiered model in which one carrier is positioned as a preferred provider, and the rest as backup providers on risks that fall outside the first company’s appetite.

“Since the beginning, our number-one objective in this enterprise has been to squeeze time and cost out of the process of underwriting small commercial insurance,” Reid says. “MarketSecure succeeds beautifully in doing just that for both the carrier and for the agent.”

About InsureZone
InsureZone's AgentSecure™, BrokerSecure™ and SBSecure™ divisions make it possible for small-business owners nationwide to quickly and easily purchase insurance from their most trusted source, using any style of transaction they prefer - from a traditional face-to-face encounter across an insurance agent's desk, to a completely automated online experience with little or no human intervention. An independent insurance agency, InsureZone partners with other agents and brokers, as well as financial institutions and Web portals, to provide small-business customers with multi-channel access to multiple quotes and insurance products from top-rated carriers. The InsureZone solution also includes a Web-enabled Customer Contact Center that delivers personalized, expert advice in real time from licensed agents using instant callback, real-time online chat, e-mail or fax. InsureZone is powered by the scalable, XML-based MarketSecure™ technology platform. For more information, visit www.insurezone.com, or call 1/866-INSZONE (467-9663).

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