Inszone Insurance Services, a national provider of commercial, personal, and benefits insurance, has acquired Advice Insurance Agency, Inc., a move the company said will strengthen its personal lines offerings, particularly in auto insurance.
Advice Insurance Agency was founded by Steve McCulloch in 1992 and was officially incorporated on April 10, 2008. Over more than three decades, the agency built a reputation for reliable, dedicated customer service, with auto insurance accounting for more than 90% of its business.
After 34 years in the industry, McCulloch decided it was time to step back and transition toward retirement, prompting a search for a partner that could elevate the experience for his existing clients.
"Inszone seemed very enthusiastic about partnering," said McCulloch, founder of Advice Insurance Agency. He said research into the company showed it offered products he previously lacked access to, including life insurance and a wider variety of preferred and non-standard carriers, and that partnering with a larger company would give his customers far more options.
As part of Inszone, Advice Insurance Agency's clients will gain access to a broader range of insurance carriers, including new options for commercial auto, life insurance and wider business coverages.
"Steve has built a wonderful, dedicated agency over the last three decades," said Chris Walters, CEO of Inszone Insurance Services. He said the agency's expertise in auto insurance was a strong addition to the Inszone team, and that the company looked forward to providing McCulloch's clients with an expanded range of insurance solutions as he transitions toward retirement.
The deal is one of dozens Inszone has completed as part of a rapid acquisition strategy. According to the company, Inszone has grown from 25 employees to more than 900 since its founding in 2002, completing more than 130 acquisitions along the way. Separately, data tracked by OPTIS Partners shows Inszone ranked among the three most active broker buyers in the United States in 2025, alongside BroadStreet Partners and World Insurance Associates, with the three firms together accounting for 19.4% of the 695 broker M&A transactions recorded that year. OPTIS also found that private equity backed and hybrid buyers drove 73% of all deals industry-wide.
Inszone itself has received private equity backing, from BHMS Investments since 2020 and Lightyear Capital since 2023, alongside capital funding from Ares Capital Corporation. That capital has supported a strategy focused heavily on succession planning, with Inszone frequently acquiring independent agencies whose owners, like McCulloch, are approaching retirement without an internal successor in place.
The acquisition also lands at a favorable moment for personal auto insurers and agencies. After four consecutive years of rate increases between 2021 and 2024, the US personal auto line posted a net combined ratio of 95.3 in 2025, its most profitable post-pandemic result, according to the Insurance Information Institute. Average full-coverage premiums fell 6% nationally in 2025 following a 46% rise between 2022 and 2024, with policy shopping activity hitting record highs as consumers took advantage of a more competitive market. That said, the recovery has been uneven by state, with some markets, including New Jersey, still recording double-digit premium increases.
For agencies with a heavy concentration in personal auto, like Advice Insurance Agency, that stabilizing backdrop makes the timing of a sale to a larger platform particularly relevant, offering continuity for policyholders as carriers compete more actively for market share after several difficult years.
