I’m a hometown native, born in Sarasota Memorial - apart from the years I spent away at college, I’ve never really left. My wife, Jen, is a Sarasota native as well. We’re raising 3 boys here in Lakewood Ranch, where hopefully 1, 2 or all 3 might see the dream of being insurance agents someday! 😉
Education – College and Insurance (via a Captive Agency)
I went to UCF in Orlando and studied both engineering and finance. At the time that seemed like an odd pairing, but both have come together nicely in many ways operating an insurance agency, analyzing policy arrangements and problem-solving for risk aversion.
Out of college, I opened an Allstate agency and ran it for several years. I learned the business there and am not sorry I did it, but a captive agency can only ever offer one company’s policy. In Florida that’s a real limit on how much you can help somebody. Florida’s a coastal, hurricane-prone State where the same house yields wildly different pricing across carriers, and also, which carrier wants your house can change from one year to the next. As a captive agent, when the single company you represent doesn’t want the house, the conversation is over; you can’t shop it or check the market…you have no other options.
So in 2011 I left and opened this independent insurance agency - The Insurance Man and Company!
What Being Independent Changes
We represent dozens and dozens of insurance companies – nearly all the ones actively writing in Florida. That means when the market moves, we can move you with it instead of watching your renewal climb and having nothing to offer.
It also means nobody here has a quota on a particular company’s product. We shop your home & auto insurance across the market, present options, and transparently relay the best findings.
The engineering half of my education shows up in how I read a policy. The number on the front page of a quote is the easy part. The endorsements section is where the actual coverage lives, and it’s the part almost nobody is taught to read. A quote that quietly dropped ordinance and law, screened enclosure coverage, or personal property replacement cost isn’t a lower premium at all - it’s less insurance at claims time, and it can hurt!
Credentials and Coverage Area
I’m a licensed Florida insurance agent (license #P034754) with over 20 years in the business. Along with the rest of the agents here, we have close to 300 years combined total industry experience. The agency is licensed statewide, and we have customers from end-to-end across Florida. Our office is at 62 Sarasota Center Blvd, open Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 4:30.
Why I write these guides
Most of what’s published about Florida insurance is either a sales pitch or a rewrite of somebody else’s pitch – template after template across agency websites. The questions people actually ask mostly don’t have a straight answer online written by someone who does this work. Questions like - Why did my premium jump? Do I really need flood if I’m not in a high-risk flood zone? What’s a wind mitigation inspection actually looking for?
So I write them myself, from what I see in this market every week. If you have a question that isn’t answered here, call and ask me.
Call (941) 312-5771 - my direct extension is 102.
Guides I’ve written
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