(March 16, 2021) - Lisa K. Lounsbury, CAE, AAI, AIS, president and chief executive officer of Big I New York, issued the following statement today in response to an insurance ciricular letter published by the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS). The letter, Insurance Circular Letter No. 5 (2021), explained the department's expectation that New York-regulated insurance companies make the diversity of their leadership a business priority and a key element of their corporate governance.
"We applaud the New York State Department of Financial Services for working closely with the insurance industry to advance diversity, equality, and inclusion, at the leadership level in the insurance industry. The training, development, recruitment, and retention of diverse talent is critical to supporting the DFS's goal.
"While the industry has made progress in this space, we believe that there is more work to be done, and have made an ongoing commitment to promoting diversity and inclusion. We believe independent insurance agents can be powerful advocates for equality, and inclusion. In 2020, Big I NY launched our Inclusion Task Force, charged with empowering diverse voices and promoting the diversity of New York's independent insurance agent community. We look forward to working with insurance industry partners and the NSYDFS to continue this important work."
About Big I NY
Big I New York exists to fulfill the educational, political, and business interests of our more than 1,750 agencies and their 13,000 plus employees.
Our members are independent insurance agents and brokers, which means they can provide consumers with a choice of products from more than one insurance company and in turn give consumers unrivaled service, and the best auto, homeowner, and business coverage to meet their changing needs. In addition, most Big I New York members proudly identify themselves as Trusted Choice® agents and brokers, a national consumer brand uniting more than 21,000 independent agencies across the United States.
For more information, go to www.trustedchoice.com or www.biginy.org.