| Eastern Bank’s insurance group today announced that it had acquired the assets of a full-service insurance agency in Newburyport.
Eastern Insurance Group LLC’s acquisition of Chase and Lunt Insurance Agency LLC is the 38th one yet for the insurance subsidiary.
“We are excited to welcome the Chase and Lunt Insurance Agency employees and customers to the Eastern Insurance family,” Hope A. Aldrich, president and CEO of Eastern Insurance, said in a statement.
Chase and Lunt’s staff of 28 employees, including its president, James J. Howlett III, became Eastern employees today. Howlett joined Eastern as the executive vice president and regional director of the North Shore and Southern New Hampshire. Eastern will rebrand Chase and Lunt’s office in Newburyport over the next six to 12 months and has plans to continue to expand in the North Shore and New Hampshire.
In a statement announcing the deal, Eastern touted Chase and Lunt’s 180 years of service to its customers and numerous industry accolades, including the MAIA Five Star Designation (2009-2016), Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America’s Best Practices Agency (2013-2016) and American Training Vendor of the Year (2015). Chase and Lunt has also repeatedly been recognized by Newburyport Daily News as Best Insurance Agency (2007-2016) and as the Best Business for Customer Service (2011-2016) among all businesses.
“We are proud of what we have built in providing the best property and casualty insurance programs for the people and businesses of Newburyport and the North Shore of Massachusetts,” Howlett said. “Similar to the philosophy of Chase and Lunt, Eastern has a deep commitment to clients, employees and the community. This will serve all constituents well as we expand our services and product offerings to our clientele.”
