Dan F. Merritt
Special Auto Program Claims Manager
Mr. Merritt joined Midlands Management of Texas in August 2008 and serves the Company as Special Auto Program Claims Manager. He leads all aspects of the Special Auto Program claims arm including day to day management of the department, litigation management, vendor control and works hand in hand with the product and marketing departments to insure the best possible results for the company and business partners. Mr. Merritt has 20 years of insurance experience, primarily but not limited to personal lines. Mr. Merritt’s background started in the T.P.A. arena as an outside all-lines casualty adjuster handling G.L. and commercial auto and trucking claims for Crawford & Company. Mr. Merritt has since served in various key management/supervisory roles within the non-standard auto market. Most recently Mr. Merritt was the South Central Regional Claims Manager for Gainsco Insurance Company.
Gary R. Levan
Special Auto Program Manager
Mr. Levan joined Midlands Management Corporation in August 2008 and serves the company as the Special Auto Program Manager in their Midland Management of Texas, Inc. General Agency. Mr. Levan has over thirty years of experience in the property and casualty business serving in a variety of key executive and management positions at both national and regional insurance companies. During his career he has an opportunity to develop knowledge and expertise in underwriting, operations, marketing, product development/design and pricing. He began his insurance career as a liability claim’s adjuster for Dairyland Insurance Company eventually moving into operations where he assumed the role of Underwriting Manager for their Texas Non-Standard Auto Program. Following Dairyland, an opportunity presented itself with Ranger Insurance Company where he assumed the responsibility for the management of operations and underwriting for their non-standard auto program in 12 states, ultimately being promoted to the Vice-President of Marketing and finally the Profit Center Manager for the auto program nationwide.
After working with two managing general agencies in Texas in the capacity of General Manager for their auto and property programs he accepted a Senior Executive Underwriting position with Interstate Fire and Casualty (Fireman’s Fund) where he developed and implemented non-standard auto programs in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas, a commercial auto program in Louisiana and Texas and homeowner programs in Arkansas (standard), Georgia, Tennessee and Texas. As a result of relationships that developed while at Interstate Mr. Levan accepted a position of General Manager at Alpha Indemnity Services Inc. where he developed and managed the general agencies non-standard auto and property programs. Most recently Mr. Levan partnered with GAINSCO Auto Insurance where he served in the position of General Manager and Product Manger for their Texas non-standard standard auto product developing, pricing and successfully introducing it to the marketplace.
With the broad based knowledge and expertise as well as contacts Mr. Levan has acquired in his many years in the property and casualty business, he gives Midlands an experience and successful insurance veteran to assist in current and future business partnerships. Mr. Levan has a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Texas at Austin.
Ray Speir
Special Auto Program Marketing Manager
Mr. Speir's joined Midlands Management of Texas, Inc. in August 2008 and serves the Company as Special Auto Program Marketing Manager. Mr. Speir has over 35 years of insurance experience; his career has encompassed all aspects of the insurance industry through which he has developed many skills and areas of expertise pertinent to this position. As both primary and contributing developer of several profitable, successful programs, he has developed an above average understanding of underwriting principles and their application to program profitability while maintaining competitive positions within the marketplace. Past commercial underwriting duties include being designated as a Named Underwriter with Lloyds.
