HDI Global business insurance

Overview

HDI Global is the corporate and specialty insurance arm of Germany's Talanx Group. In the U.S. it insures mid-size and large companies through brokers. The NAIC files its U.S. companies under the name "Hannover Group," after Hannover Re, the reinsurer Talanx controls. That group was ranked No. 73 among U.S. business insurers by 2025 commercial lines direct premiums written, with $1.07 billion, based on NAIC market share data, about 0.22% of the national commercial market. It does not rank in the national top 10 in any single line. Other liability (general and excess casualty) is the largest line at $386.9 million, and property makes up much of the rest: fire, inland marine and allied lines.

The group has four U.S. insurers:

• HDI Global Insurance Company (Chicago): the main admitted carrier. It is licensed in all 50 states, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
• HDI Global Select Insurance Company: a second admitted carrier, bought in 2023 to enter surety and to front for partners.
• HDI Specialty Insurance Company: an Illinois surplus lines insurer that writes excess and surplus lines business nationwide.
• Glencar Insurance Company: owned by Hannover Re rather than HDI Global. It writes niche program business through Glencar Underwriting Managers.

The three HDI companies are wholly owned by HDI Global SE of Hannover, Germany, part of Talanx (Frankfurt: TLX), which is majority-owned by the mutual HDI V.a.G. Shadi Albert became CEO of HDI Global US on July 13, 2026. HDI sells through brokers, not to business owners directly.

History

HDI was founded in 1903 as an employer's liability association for the German iron and steel industry, and moved its headquarters to Hannover in 1919. In 1966, it set up the business that became Hannover Re as its in-house international reinsurer. Talanx records that it founded companies in the U.S. between 1978 and 1983. Talanx took over the Gerling Group's companies in 2006, went public in 2012, and created the specialty insurer HDI Global Specialty SE in 2018.

U.S. milestones:

• 2018–2019: Hannover Re launches Glencar Insurance Company as a primary platform for U.S. program business. AM Best rated it A+ in February 2019.
• 2019: HDI begins selling equine mortality and major medical cover. In 2023, it adds a nine-person equine team in Lexington, Kentucky.
• 2021: HDI Global Specialty, Griffin Highline and Craig Landi form Falcon Risk Holdings, an MGA for financial and cyber lines that uses HDI capacity.
• 2023: HDI Global Insurance Company buys Indiana Lumbermens Insurance Company from Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual (closed November 30, 2023). The goal was its licenses and its U.S. Treasury listing, which allow HDI to write surety bonds. The company was renamed HDI Global Select and moved its domicile to Illinois in 2024.
• 2024: HDI Global Select begins fronting Hallmark Financial's aviation business on June 1. A partnership with Aerospace Insurance Managers (AIM) follows, and in January 2026 AIM extended HDI-backed general aviation cover to California, bringing it to 48 states.
• 2026: under the Xcelerate29 strategy, HDI calls the U.S. "a central lever for growth." Jim Clark, U.S. CEO for 23 years, steps down in June. Shadi Albert, previously president of W. R. Berkley's Vela Insurance Services, takes over on July 13.

The deals since 2024 have added U.S. companies and partners. Control has not changed: Talanx still owns HDI Global, and Hannover Re still owns Glencar.

Business insurance products

HDI's U.S. underwriting now runs in two units:

• Long-tail lines: excess casualty, primary casualty, construction, environmental, life sciences, multinational business and cyber. Bruce Griffin leads the unit.
• Specialty lines: architects and engineers professional liability, equine, and delegated-authority business. Bevan Greibesland leads the unit, which is adding credit and political risk, aviation, surety and mining.

In June 2026, HDI hired Amy Shinkman, formerly of the Export-Import Bank of the U.S., to build a Washington-based credit and political risk business.

Property is a large part of the book. Fire, allied lines and inland marine total about $390 million of 2025 premium. For companies with foreign operations, HDI can coordinate local policies through its global network, which covers more than 175 countries. HDI Global Select gives HDI a Treasury-listed carrier for U.S. surety bonds, a line it is still building out, and acts as a fronting carrier for partners. AIM sells HDI-backed general aviation hull and liability cover for small aircraft, hangars, FBOs, airports and flight schools. Glencar focuses on small to mid-sized programs, mainly property and casualty, with workers' comp and commercial auto mostly written to support other lines.

Who it insures

HDI Global's core buyers are mid-size and large companies, industrial firms and multinationals, especially in construction, life sciences and other technical industries. Its specialty units serve Architect and engineer insurance, horse owners and breeders, general aviation, and financial institutions and public bodies that need trade and political risk cover. Smaller businesses usually meet HDI indirectly, through an MGA or a program such as AIM, Falcon or a Glencar program, where the program administrator sets the appetite. HDI's U.S. business is built around brokers rather than direct sales to small businesses.

How to buy

Ask your broker. HDI Global US works with retail brokers on admitted business and with wholesale and surplus lines brokers on HDI Specialty placements. Delegated-authority partners such as AIM write HDI paper under their own brands. HDI's July 2026 reorganization was meant to move underwriting, claims and service teams closer to brokers and clients, and the new CEO has promised "responsive underwriting." There is no online quoting. Multinational buyers should ask how local policies are issued and serviced in each country before they bind.

Claims

HDI handles claims with its own adjusters; its equine unit, for example, has two adjusters in Lexington, Kentucky. Report losses through your broker and to the notice address in your policy. For program and MGA business, claims may run through the program administrator, and Glencar reviews each program's claims handling before it signs on. Check the declarations page to see which company issued the policy, because HDI Specialty and Glencar policies are handled differently from HDI Global Insurance Company policies.

Financial strength and ratings

In December 2025, AM Best affirmed the A+ (Superior) financial strength rating, with a stable outlook, of HDI V.a.G.'s rated subsidiaries, including HDI Global Insurance Company, HDI Global Select and HDI Specialty. In July 2026, trade press reported that HDI Global carries an AA- (Very Strong) rating from S&P, also stable. Glencar was rated A+ by AM Best when it launched in 2019.

The U.S. companies do not publish separate results. HDI Global as a whole reported a 90.7% combined ratio for the first half of 2026, down from 91.6% a year earlier, with insurance revenue of €5.0 billion. Talanx reported record first-half 2026 net income of €1.50 billion and a Solvency II ratio of 246%.

Strengths and weaknesses

HDI brings the balance sheet of a large German group and a 175-country network to U.S. buyers. In the U.S. it is a mid-sized player that is rebuilding its leadership and adding specialty lines. A new CEO and a new structure in 2026 mean underwriting appetite and contacts are still settling.

• Strengths: A+ (Superior) from AM Best (affirmed December 2025) and AA- from S&P. Global program capability for multinationals. Specialist niches such as equine, architects and engineers, and credit and political risk. Admitted and surplus lines companies plus a Treasury-listed carrier for surety.
• Weaknesses: New CEO and new organization in mid-2026 after a 23-year leader left. Built for broker-placed mid-size and large accounts, with no direct or online option for small businesses. Surety and credit and political risk are still being built out in the U.S. Much of the growth comes through MGAs, where claims and service may sit with a third party. The U.S. companies publish few results of their own.

How to contact HDI Global