Business Moves

KKR, Mitchell

KKR & Co., a private-equity firm, agreed to buy Mitchell International Inc. from Aurora Capital Group, a Los Angeles-based private-equity firm, in a transaction valued at more than $1 billion, including debt.

Mitchell, based in San Diego, provides claims processing technology to insurance companies and collision repair facilities.

Aurora bought Mitchell for an estimated $500 million in 2007, with General Electric Pension Trust co-investing in the purchase. The company previously was owned by private-equity firm.

The companies expect the buyout to close by the end of the year.

American Family, Homesite Group

Madison, Wis.-based American Family Insurance agreed to acquire direct homeowners insurer, Homesite Group Inc.

The acquisition of Homesite, a direct writer of homeowners, renters and condominium insurance based in Boston, will be finalized by the end of the year, pending regulatory approval. American Family is acquiring Homesite for an anticipated $616 million.

The move strengthens American Family’s position in the marketplace by complementing its strong exclusive agent network with direct channel options to serve a different customer segment. Agents will remain the company’s primary distribution channel, said Jack Salzwedel, American Family chairman and CEO.

The purchase is the second time in less than a year that American Family has acquired a direct property/casualty insurance company. American Family purchased non-standard auto insurer Permanent General Cos. at the end of 2012.

Homesite is privately owned by multiple entities and individuals. Owners include Alleghany Corp., Metalmark Capital through its management of the Morgan Stanley Capital Partners funds and The Plymouth Rock Co. Inc.

Homesite was founded in 1997 and offers products in 46 states and the District of Columbia. The company is the 24th largest homeowners’ insurer in the U.S., with 2012 written premium of $548 million.

Eagleview, Mobise

EagleView Technologies, an aerial imagery technology company, has acquired all of the assets of Mobise Inc., a software company focused on bringing desktop workflow to mobile applications.

Mobise, a Redmond, Wash.-based company is known in the assessment community for Mobise Appraiser, a mobile application that extends the power of desktop appraisal to mobile devices for easy field review and workflow. The app provides the ability for users to consult and modify data while in the field, eliminating the need to re-key data and in turn, increasing accuracy for all types of field inspection. The added capacity to capture and edit floor plans, photos and notes directly from the field while integrating them into a relational database such as Pictometry CONNECT, has made Mobise Appraiser of great interest to assessment offices throughout the nation.

VeriClaim, Property Claims Services

T&H Global Holdings LLC (T&H), a specialized provider of insurance claims services to insurance carriers, insurance brokers, corporations and public entities, announced that its VeriClaim subsidiary has acquired Property Claims Services Inc. (PCS), a provider of loss adjusting and claims handling services to the property/casualty insurance market.

Based in Dallas, Texas, PCS specializes in both property and liability claims services including adjustments, investigations, appraisals and surveys.

T&H is majority owned by Flexpoint Ford, LLC, a leading private equity firm specializing in the financial services and healthcare sectors.

Progressive

In 2013, Progressive Insurance plans to open nine new service centers across the country, for a total of 63 service centers nationwide.

Progressive will open several new locations nationwide in 2013: Silver Spring, Md.; Malvern, Pa.; South Plainfield, N.J.; Pasadena, Calif.; La Vista, Neb.; Westwood, Mass.; Dayton, Ohio; Sacramento, Calif.; and Baton Rouge, La.

MAXIMUS

MAXIMUS, a provider of government services worldwide, launched of operations under two separate two-year contracts with the California Division of Workers’ Compensation to provide independent medical review and independent bill review services.

The combined value of both contracts is estimated to be up to $40 million over the two-year period.

Under the Independent Medical Review contract, MAXIMUS professionals will provide independent medical reviews of denied authorization requests or payments for medical services. The reviews are provided by a team of independent professional staff. Under the Independent Bill Review contract the company will provide review services for payment disputes between providers and claims administrators.