White Plains, NY – October18, 2001 |  Direct Response Corporation (DRC), the holding company for the Response Insurance group of direct-to-the-consumer auto insurers, announced it had closed on its acquisition of most of the assets of Fireman’s Fund Direct auto insurance.

The purchase, which took place on October 5th, includes a call center located in Earth City, MO; the Warner Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company; licenses in 40 states; and the personal auto book of business written by Warner Insurance through Fireman’s Fund Direct in 30 of those states. Terms of the purchase were not released.

As a result of the acquisition, the Response Insurance group has policyholders in 34 states. Those states represent more than 82% of the U.S. auto insurance market and include virtually all of the largest states. Response also has approval to write in five additional states, but in which the Company has yet to market. When taken together, these 39 states represent nearly 86% of the auto insurance market.

“With this acquisition, Response is now in every market we want to be in to offer our services coast-to-coast and expand our strategic alliances with partners nationwide,” said Mory Katz, President & Chief Executive Officer of DRC and Chairman of the subsidiary Response Insurance group of insurance companies. “We are now well on our way to building Response into the best national auto insurer in the country.”

Response Insurance is a national auto insurance company focusing on insuring safe, responsible drivers. The Response Insurance group’s parent company, Direct Response Corporation, was formed in 1996. DRC and its Response subsidiary companies are headquartered in White Plains, NY and have offices in Suisun City, CA, and Melville, NY. Direct Response Corporation also owns Connecticut Life & Casualty Insurance Company, a Meriden, CT headquartered insurer. In addition, it owns an interest in Direct-Link Insurance Services, a leading acquirer of personal lines agencies, that has its headquarters in Pacific Palisades, CA and its Agency Operations Center in Toronto, Canada.

Fireman’s Fund Direct was formed in 1997 as the direct insurance arm of Fireman’s Fund Insurance, a Novato, CA-based company that was founded in 1863.