Auto-Owners Opens N.D. Office

Lansing, Mich.-based insurer Auto-Owners Insurance Co. will be opening a claims and underwriting office in Fargo, N.D., according to Insurance Commissioner Jim Poolman.

The new operation will house underwriting functions, claims, and marketing responsibilities for North Dakota and South Dakota. Auto-Owners plans to start with approximately 25 jobs and will expand operations in 2004 adding positions during that time.

The offices will be located in the Goldmark Office Park in Fargo, and the company plans to take occupancy in December.

The company has named Michael Baker as vice president of the new Fargo office. Baker will also directly manage the underwriting activities of the branch. He is currently director of the company’s White Bear Lake, Minn., marketing unit. The company will be hiring in the near future for positions in the Fargo office.

Auto-Owners Insurance Company, whose corporate headquarters are located in Lansing, Michigan, was founded in 1916.