RICHFIELD, Ohio, Sept. 22, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — National Interstate Insurance Company was named the 2015 Insurance Company of the Year by Captive Review magazine at their annual US Captive Service Awards. The company also received a ‘highly commended’ ranking in the Customer Care in the Group Captive Management category. This year 74 companies, the largest number ever, competed for these esteemed awards which recognize excellence and innovation in the captive insurance marketplace over the last year.

National Interstate, including its subsidiary Vanliner Insurance Company, was selected by a panel of judges who noted in their remarks that they were “impressed by National Interstate’s commitment to captive insurance and the variety of captive classes it works with,” and also “how it evolved an insurance company (Vanliner) it acquired five years ago into an established producer of group captives serving a specific market niche.”

“We are very proud to once again receive one of these prestigious awards, and are especially honored to be recognized as the Insurance Company of the Year for 2015,” said Dave Michelson, President and Chief Executive Officer of National Interstate. “Since introducing our first program in 1995, we have grown our alternative risk transfer (ART), or captive, component to well over 400 members, encompassing more than 25 unique products and representing over 50% of our annual gross premiums written. Our expertise in a variety of ART structures, including both group and large account captives, allows National Interstate to bring the alternative risk value proposition to a variety of underserved insurance markets.”

“We attribute our successful ART growth to the unique captive “DNA” we have developed and infused into all aspects of our business,” added Tony Mercurio, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of National Interstate. “For example, as recognized by the US Captive Services Awards judges, we applied this captive DNA to Vanliner Insurance Company, a market leader in moving and storage insurance, who only offered traditional insurance prior to our acquisition in 2010. Using our proven model, we launched several group captives designed specifically for best-in-class moving and storage companies. Just five years later, Vanliner boasts approximately 100 members in three different group captive programs, in addition to several large account captives. Top-notch moving and storage companies now have multiple ART options to choose from which can help them stabilize and potentially lower their cost of risk.  This success story demonstrates our passion for launching and managing innovative ART solutions that meet the unique needs of our customers, while also positioning all of the National Interstate companies for future growth in the niche markets we seek.”

Refer to the September issue of Captive Review for the complete article on the 2015 US Captive Service Awards.

For more information on National Interstate’s ART programs, contact Chris Mikolay, Vice President National Accounts, at 800-929-1500 x1407, or [email protected].

About National Interstate

An Insurance Experience Built Around You

National Interstate Insurance Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of National Interstate Corporation, is a specialty property and casualty insurance company with a niche orientation and focus on the transportation industry. We differentiate ourselves by offering insurance products and services designed to meet the unique needs of targeted insurance buyers. Products include insurance for passenger, moving and storage, and truck transportation companies, alternative risk transfer, or captive, insurance programs for commercial risks, specialty personal lines consisting of insurance products focused primarily on recreational vehicle owners, and transportation and general commercial insurance in Hawaii and Alaska. National Interstate and its insurance subsidiaries, which include Vanliner Insurance Company and Triumphe Casualty Company, are rated “A” (Excellent) by A.M. Best Company. Founded in 1989, we are headquartered in Richfield, Ohio with operations in Kapolei, Hawaii, and Fenton, Missouri.