BROWN & BROWN, INC. - Annual Report: 2021 (Form 10-K)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021

or

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from to

Commission file number 001-13619

BROWN & BROWN, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (386) 252-9601

Registrant’s Website: www.bbinsurance.com

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒

Note - Checking the box above will not relieve any registrant required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act from their obligations under those Sections.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act:

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No ☒

The aggregate market value of the voting common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant, computed by reference to the price at which the stock was last sold on June 30, 2021 (the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter) was $12,475,231,637.

The number of shares of the Registrant’s common stock, $0.10 par value, outstanding as of February 18, 2022 was 282,215,614.

BROWN & BROWN, INC.

ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K

FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2021

INDEX

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Disclosure Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Brown & Brown, Inc., together with its subsidiaries (collectively, “we,” “Brown & Brown” or the “Company”), makes “forward-looking statements” within the “safe harbor” provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended, throughout this report and in the documents we incorporate by reference into this report, including those relating to the potential effects of the COVID-19 pandemic (“COVID-19”) on the Company’s business, operations, financial performance and prospects. You can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “intend,” “estimate,” “plan” and “continue” or similar words. We have based these statements on our current expectations about potential future events. Although we believe the expectations expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and the reports, statements, information and announcements incorporated by reference into this report are based upon reasonable assumptions within the bounds of our knowledge of our business, a number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements, whether oral or written, made by us or on our behalf. Many of these factors have previously been identified in filings or statements made by us or on our behalf. Important factors which could cause our actual results to differ, possibly materially from the forward-looking statements in this report include but are not limited to the following items, in addition to those matters described in Part I, Item 2 “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”:

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Assumptions as to any of the foregoing, and all statements, are not based upon historical fact, but rather reflect our current expectations concerning future results and events. Forward-looking statements that we make or that are made by others on our behalf are based upon a knowledge of our business and the environment in which we operate, but because of the factors listed above, among others, actual results may differ from those in the forward-looking statements. Consequently, these cautionary statements qualify all of the forward-looking statements we make herein. We cannot assure you that the results or developments anticipated by us will be realized or, even if substantially realized, will result in the expected consequences for us or affect us, our business or our operations in the way we expect. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements made herein are made only as of the date of this filing, the Company does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or correct any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that subsequently occur or of which the Company hereafter becomes aware.

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PART I

ITEM 1. Business.

General

Brown & Brown is a diversified insurance agency, wholesale brokerage, insurance programs and service organization with origins dating from 1939 and is headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida. The Company markets and sells insurance products and services, primarily in the property, casualty and employee benefits areas. We provide our customers with quality, non-investment insurance contracts, as well as other targeted, customized risk management products and services. We primarily operate as an agent or broker and therefore do not assume underwriting risks. An exception is the activity in The Wright Insurance Group, LLC (“Wright”), in which we operate a write-your-own flood insurance carrier, Wright National Flood Insurance Company (“WNFIC”). WNFIC’s underwriting business consists of policies written pursuant to the National Flood Insurance Program (“NFIP”), the program administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”), excess flood and private flood policies which are fully reinsured, thereby substantially eliminating WNFIC’s exposure to underwriting risk, as these policies are backed by either FEMA or a reinsurance carrier with an AM Best Company rating of “A” or better. We also operate a capitalized captive insurance facility (the "Captive") for the purpose of having additional capacity on a quota sharing basis, currently focused on property insurance for earthquake and wind exposed properties underwritten by certain managing general agents. The Captive buys reinsurance, limiting, but not eliminating the Company's exposure to underwriting losses.

The Company is compensated for its services primarily by commissions paid by insurance companies and to a lesser extent, by fees paid directly by customers for certain services. Commission revenues are usually a percentage of the premium paid by the insured and generally depend upon the type of insurance, the particular insurance company and the nature of the services provided by us. In some limited cases, we share commissions with other agents or brokers who have acted jointly with us in a transaction and we recognize commissions net of any commissions paid to other intermediaries. We may also receive from an insurance company a “profit-sharing contingent commission,” which is a profit-sharing commission based primarily on underwriting results. Fee revenues are generated by: (i) our Services segment, which provides insurance-related services, including third-party claims administration and comprehensive medical utilization management services in both the workers’ compensation and all-lines liability arenas, as well as Medicare Set-aside services, Social Security disability and Medicare benefits advocacy services, and other claims adjusting services, (ii) our National Programs and Wholesale Brokerage segments, which earn fees primarily for the issuing of insurance policies on behalf of insurance carriers, and (iii) our Retail segment for fees received in lieu of commissions. The amount of our revenues from commissions and fees is a function of several factors, including continued new business production, retention of existing customers, acquisitions and fluctuations in insurance premium rates and “insurable exposure units,” which are units that insurance companies use to measure or express insurance exposed to risk (such as property values, sales and payroll levels) to determine what premium to charge the insured. Insurance companies establish these premium rates based upon many factors, including loss experience, risk profile and reinsurance rates paid by such insurance companies, none of which we control.

As of December 31, 2021, our activities were conducted in 331 domestic locations in 44 states, and 20 international locations in Canada, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands.

Segment Information

Our business is divided into four reportable segments: (i) the Retail segment, (ii) the National Programs segment, (iii) the Wholesale Brokerage segment and (iv) the Services segment. The Retail segment provides a broad range of insurance products and services to commercial, public and quasi-public entities, and to professional and individual customers, as well as non-insurance warranty services and products through our automobile dealer services (“F&I”) businesses. The National Programs segment, which acts as a managing general agent (“MGA”), provides professional liability and related package products for certain professionals, a range of insurance products for individuals, flood coverage, and targeted products and services designated for specific industries, trade groups, governmental entities and market niches, all of which are delivered through a nationwide network of independent agents, including Brown & Brown retail agents. The Wholesale Brokerage segment markets and sells excess and surplus commercial and personal lines insurance, primarily through independent agents and brokers, as well as Brown & Brown retail agents. The Services segment provides insurance-related services, including third-party claims administration and adjusting services, comprehensive medical utilization management services in both the workers’ compensation and all-lines liability arenas, as well as Medicare Set-aside services and Social Security disability benefits advocacy services.

The following table summarizes (i) the commissions and fees generated by each of our reportable operating segments for 2021, 2020, and 2019 and (ii) the percentage of our total commissions and fees represented by each segment for each such period:

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The majority of our operations are in the United States. In addition, we operate retail operations based in Ireland, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, a wholesale brokerage operation based in England and a managing general agent operation in Canada. These operations generated $78.0 million, $35.1 million and $17.7 million of revenues for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. We do not have any material foreign long-lived assets.

See Note 16 to the Consolidated Financial Statements and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” for additional segment financial data relating to our business.

Retail segment

The Retail segment provides a broad range of insurance products and services to commercial, public and quasi-public, professional and individual insured customers, and non-insurance services and products through our automobile dealer services (“F&I”) businesses. Significant lines of coverage and capabilities are:

No material part of our retail business is attributable to a single customer or a few customers. During 2021, commissions and fees from our largest single Retail segment customer represented 0.5% of the Retail segment’s total commissions and fees.

As of December 31, 2021, our Retail segment employed 6,301 employees. Our Retail segment has physical locations in 42 states and Ireland, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. In connection with selling and marketing of insurance coverages, we provide a broad range of related services to our customers, such as risk management strategies, loss control surveys and analysis, consultation in connection with placing insurance coverages and claims processing.

National Programs segment

As of December 31, 2021, our National Programs segment employed 2,842 employees. The National Programs segment specializes in the development and management of insurance program business, often designed for niche, underserved markets. Our largest National Programs segment customer represented approximately 7.6% of the segment’s total commissions and fees. We offer program management expertise for insurance carrier partners across numerous lines of business, which can be grouped into five broad categories as detailed below:

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Professional programs. Professional liability and related package insurance products are tailored to the needs of professionals in the following areas: dentistry, legal, eyecare, insurance, financial, physicians and real estate title professionals. Professional liability programs also offer supplementary insurance-related products to include weddings, events, medical facilities and cyber liability.

Personal Lines programs. Personal lines programs offer a variety of insurance products to personal lines consumers including homeowners and personal property policies; residential earthquake; as well as private passenger automobile and motorcycle coverage.

Commercial Lines programs. Commercial programs serve a broad segment of industries with our Core Commercial offering. Specific industries and market niches are served by our specialty programs including automotive aftermarket, professional and amateur sports, motor sports, special events and the entertainment industry; commercial transportation and trucking; forestry; manufactured housing; and workers’ compensation.

Public Entity programs. Public entity programs range from providing fully insured programs to establishing risk retention insurance pools, and excess and facultative specific coverages, including administration of various insurance trusts for cities, counties, municipalities, school boards, special taxing districts and quasi-governmental agencies.

Specialty programs. Specialty programs include flood insurance, commercial difference-in-conditions (earthquake), all-risk commercial property, collateralized risk, coastal property programs including wind, lender-placed solutions, sovereign native-American nations and parcel insurance.

Wholesale Brokerage segment

As of December 31, 2021, our Wholesale Brokerage segment employed 1,594 employees. Our Wholesale Brokerage segment markets and sells excess and surplus commercial insurance products and services to retail insurance agencies (including Brown & Brown retail offices). The Wholesale Brokerage segment represent various U.S. and U.K. surplus lines insurance companies. Additionally, certain offices are also Lloyd’s of London correspondents. The Wholesale Brokerage segment also represents admitted insurance companies for purposes of affording access to such companies for smaller agencies that otherwise do not have access to large insurance company representation. Excess and surplus insurance products encompass many insurance coverages, including personal lines, homeowners, yachts, jewelry, commercial property and casualty, commercial automobile, garage, restaurant, builder’s risk and inland marine lines. Difficult-to-insure general liability and products liability coverages are a specialty, as is excess workers’ compensation coverage. Wholesale brokers solicit business through mailings and direct contact with retail agency representatives. During 2021, commissions and fees from our largest Wholesale Brokerage segment customer represented approximately 1.4% of the Wholesale Brokerage segment’s total commissions and fees.

Services segment

As of December 31, 2021, our Services segment employed 974 employees and provided a wide range of insurance-related services.

Below are brief descriptions of the capabilities within the Services segment.

Social Security Advocacy. Social Security advocacy assists individuals throughout the United States who are seeking to establish eligibility for coverage under the federal Social Security Disability program and provides health plan selection and enrollment assistance for Medicare beneficiaries. We work closely with employer sponsored group life, disability and health plan participants to assist disabled individuals in receiving the education, advocacy and benefit coordination assistance necessary to achieve the fastest possible benefit approvals. In addition, we provide second injury fund recovery services to the workers’ compensation insurance market.

Claims Administration. Claims administration provides third-party administration (“TPA”) services for commercial and personal property and casualty, medical, vocational, and professional liability insurance markets on a nationwide basis, providing claims adjusting, administration, subrogation, litigation and data management, claims investigations services, claim investigations, and audit services to insurance companies, self-insureds, public municipalities, insurance brokers and corporate entities. We source claims activity from various Arrowhead programs in our National Programs segment, as well as from third parties.

Medicare Secondary Payer compliance and Medicare Set-Aside. Medicare secondary payer compliance and Medicare set-aside provides statutory compliance services, conditional payment negotiation and resolution, structured settlements/annuity funding, professional administration and a post-settlement durable medical equipment and pharmacy program administration.

Self-Insured Trust Administration. Self-insured trust administration provides TPA services for government entities and self-funded or fully-insured workers’ compensation and liability plans and trusts including claims administration and a dedicated subrogation recovery department.

Workers’ Compensation and Liability Plan Administration. Workers’ compensation and liability plan administration provides claims administration, cost containment consulting services for secondary disability and subrogation recoveries, certified and non-certified medical management programs, access to medical networks, case management, utilization review services and risk management services such as loss control.

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In 2021, our five largest contracts represented approximately 19.4% of fees revenues in our Services segment.

Competition

The insurance intermediary business is highly competitive, and numerous firms actively compete with us for customers and insurance markets. Competition in the insurance business is largely based upon innovation, knowledge, understanding of terms and conditions of coverage, quality of service and price. A number of firms and banks with substantially greater resources and market presence compete with us.

A number of insurance companies directly sell insurance, primarily to individuals or small enterprises, and do not pay commissions to third-party agents and brokers. In addition, the internet and startup technology companies continue to be a source for direct placement of personal lines or small business insurance. We have our own technology capabilities to also serve single-line and small businesses. While it is difficult to quantify the impact on our business from individuals or small businesses purchasing insurance over the internet, we believe this risk would generally be isolated to personal lines customers with single-line coverage, or small businesses that do not have a complex insurance program, which represent a small portion of our overall Retail or National Programs segments.

Regulation, Licensing and Agency Contracts

We and/or our designated employees must be licensed to act as agents, brokers, intermediaries or third-party administrators by regulatory authorities in the locations in which we conduct business. Regulations and licensing laws vary by individual state and international location and are often complex.

The applicable licensing laws and regulations in all states and international jurisdictions are subject to amendment or reinterpretation by regulatory authorities, which in most cases have broad discretion as to the granting, revocation, suspension and renewal of licenses. We endeavor to monitor the licensing status of our employees, but the possibility exists that we and/or our employees could be excluded or temporarily suspended from carrying on some or all of our activities in a particular jurisdiction in addition to being subjected to fines.

Human Capital

At December 31, 2021, the Company had 12,023 employees. We have agreements with our sales employees and certain other employees that include provisions: (i) that protect our confidential information and trade secrets, (ii) that restrict their ability post-employment to solicit the business of our customers, and (iii) prevent them from hiring of our employees for a period of time after separation from employment with us. The enforceability of such agreements varies from state to state depending upon applicable law and factual circumstances. The majority of our employment relationships are at-will and terminable by either party at any time; however, the covenants regarding confidential information and non-solicitation of our customers and employees generally extend for a period of at least two years after cessation of employment.

None of our employees are subject to a collective bargaining agreement and we consider our relations with our employees to be good.

Our Guiding Principles

The cornerstones of our organization's guiding principles are people, performance, service and innovation. We believe in doing what is best for our customers, communities, teammates, carrier partners and shareholders—always. We understand that every successful team thrives on the diversity of talent, thought, experience, character and work ethic. Our ability to continue to serve our customers and communities is dependent on the effective recruitment and enhancement of the most qualified teammates. We are an equal opportunity employer built on meritocracy, meaning our people have the opportunity to rise according to their merits and individual initiative.

Culture

At Brown & Brown, we have a culture built on integrity, innovation, superior capabilities, discipline and meritocracy. We are committed to doing what is best for our customers, which drives our sales results and is a crucial component in our Company's strategy. As a lean, highly competitive, decentralized growth and profit-oriented sales and service organization, we think of ourselves as a team, so we have teammates—not employees—and leaders—not managers. Our teammates are our greatest resource, and by challenging, empowering and rewarding them, our teams are driven to achieve extraordinary results.

Nearly a quarter of our Company is owned by our teammates, which we believe cultivates a unique ownership culture. We strive to provide multiple opportunities for teammates to share in the ownership of Brown & Brown and to create personal wealth, including through our employee stock purchase program, our 401(k) plan, and long-term equity grants. We estimate that more than 60% of our teammates own stock in our Company, establishing an ownership mindset that influences how we operate, including how we invest in our business and the work we do for our customers.

Our Team

At Brown & Brown, our goal is to provide our teammates with careers, not just jobs, which is why a vast majority of our teammates are full-time teammates. In addition, we also employ regular part-time teammates and seasonal/temporary teammates.

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Full-time teammates work at least a 30-hour workweek for an indefinite period of time and are generally eligible for all employment benefits provided by the Company. Part-time teammates work less than a 30-hour workweek for an indefinite period of time; depending on the average hours worked per week, they may be eligible for limited employment benefits as specified in terms of the particular employment benefit plan or policy. Seasonal/temporary teammates are hired as an interim replacement to temporarily supplement our workforce or assist in completing a specific project, other than those supplied under contract by an outside agency; employment assignments in this category are typically of limited duration.

Teammate Recruitment, Education and Development

Our Company focuses on recruiting and developing the most capable teammates with diverse backgrounds and experiences. We actively recruit at all offices and levels of our organization. We have seen high success when building our team with recent college graduates, mid-level professionals with experience outside the insurance industry and seasoned insurance professionals who desire to elevate their careers. Leveraging our strong relationships with several key colleges and universities, we are committed to recruiting and developing talent through our college intern program. In addition to individual recruitment, we focus on building our team by completing high-quality acquisitions. In 2021, we grew our team by approximately 635 new teammates through the acquisition of 19 companies that we believe fit culturally and make sense financially.

We believe that supporting and encouraging continued education will help to ensure that we remain at the forefront of developing trends in an ever-changing industry. We are committed to investing heavily in our teammate education and development through Brown & Brown University ("BBU"), the Brown & Brown Education Assistance Program and our Peer Partnership Program.

Brown & Brown University: BBU is one of the pillars of our educational program and helps set us apart from our competitors. Through a rigorous internal training program, BBU offers comprehensive sales, technical, academic and leadership skill-building courses for new producers, office leaders and teammates throughout our organization.

The Brown & Brown Education Assistance Program provides tuition reimbursement and student loan repayment assistance to our teammates, as well as scholarship opportunities for teammates' dependent children entering college through the National Merit Brown & Brown Scholarship. In 2021, the Company was proud to award 10 students with $5,000 annual scholarships for four years.

Our Peer Partnership Program was established during the COVID-19 pandemic to help teammates connect with others from across the organization. Partners were hand-selected based on their preferences and partnership goals using data collected from participating teammates, including work function, tenure, hobbies and interests. The program encourages making new and expanding existing networks, experiencing our culture through different perspectives and learning more about our Company, other locations and teams.

Teammate Benefits

Brown & Brown offers a wide variety of benefits—from medical and dental coverage, to short-term and long-term disability, to life insurance and 401(k) plan—through the Teammate Benefits program, as we believe the overall well-being of our teammates and their families comes first. We believe our competitive benefits help to set us apart in recruiting and retaining high-quality talent.

In 2021, there were no widespread layoffs or pay reductions as a result of the pandemic. Instead, our Company's leadership has remained committed to preserving its talented teammates and focusing on engagement and results produced during these extraordinary times. Our Company has encouraged flexible work arrangements to accommodate the evolving future of the work landscape and the needs of our teammates. Additionally, teammates affected by the COVID-19 pandemic have had the opportunity to apply for financial assistance through our Brown & Brown Disaster Relief Foundation.

Teammate Engagement

To better understand our Company's strengths and growth opportunities, we gather anonymous feedback from the entire Brown & Brown team on at least an annual basis. We are committed to actively listening and amplifying our teammates' well-being, satisfaction and engagement at work, and are proud that, this year, 92% of our teammates say Brown & Brown is a Great Place to Work®.

We believe these results stem from our commitment to putting the health and well-being of our teammates and their families first and instilling a culture in which teammates have the opportunity to rise according to their merits. By valuing and supporting these priorities as an organization, we believe our Company will continue to be driven by positive, engaged and productive teams, and retain the most talented teammates.

Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging

We believe that having a team diverse in thought, experience, skill and work ethic results in teammate empowerment. An empowered team is what helps to positively impact our customer service and community involvement. As part of our strategy, we continue to evolve and

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build out our Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging ("DIB") task force, which was established in 2020 and is composed of eight teammates and leaders with different backgrounds, work experiences and skill sets. The mission of the task force is to collect ideas, thoughts and stories that will help develop a strategic framework promoting diversity, inclusion and belonging across our teams. The task force is overseen and guided by our chief people officer and general counsel.

Our DIB task force spent the last year evaluating our Company's current strengths and opportunities for development by initiating teammate surveys, listening sessions, group focus sessions and training modalities, including a course focused on understanding and managing unconscious bias that was assigned to all teammates as a learning opportunity. In 2021, the task force appointed a DIB Leader who serves as a dedicated resource for the team, and established a DIB motto—The Power to Be Yourself—which was created and voted upon by our teammates.

Our Company will continue to encourage teammate feedback while further cultivating an inclusive environment that reinforces a sense of belonging for our teammates. In addition, our DIB task force has established various Teammate Resource Groups ("TRG"s), teammate-led groups founded around one identity. Each TRG will meet internally, empower one another, host events, and is expected to make recommendations on how our Company can improve policies, impact recruitment and continue to be a strong part of the community. As a way to offer teammates flexibility to observe any day during the year to recognize their culture or heritage, in 2021, our task force introduced an additional floating holiday known as Culture Day.

Brown & Brown does not tolerate discrimination in any form concerning any aspect of employment. The Company has an established policy that recruitment, hiring, transfers, promotions, terminations, compensation and benefits practices be without regard to race, color, religion, absence of religious affiliation, national origin, ethnicity, age, disability, perception of disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, gender orientation, marital status, service in our armed forces, veteran status in our armed forces, political activity or political party affiliation. In addition, the Company tracks the representation of women and underrepresented racial and ethnic minorities because we know diversity helps us build better teams and improve our customer experience. Our gender and minority data are presented periodically to our board of directors. We are proud of our efforts in this area to date and continue to strive to diversify our workforce further and strengthen our culture.

Teammate Health and Safety

The safety and well-being of all Brown & Brown teammates and customers are of utmost importance. Throughout 2021, we continued to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic by carefully executing our business continuity plan and prioritizing the health and well-being of our teammates and the welfare of our customers, carrier partners and shareholders. The Brown & Brown team demonstrated resiliency in a time of uncertainty, and through “The Power of WE,” has navigated this uncharted territory with minimal interruption to our business. We know we must remain prepared to deal with the ever-evolving COVID-19 pandemic, as well as any future pandemics. Our response has formed the basis for preparedness if another dangerous and contagious disease should arise.

Our COVID-19 task force continues to address the situation and implement plans for communicating to our teammates and stakeholders, providing beneficial resources to teammates and keeping health and safety top of mind. Throughout 2021, our task force met regularly to discuss strategic decisions and other issues related to the pandemic, including following local, state and federal regulations. Periodically, we surveyed teammates to identify areas of concern and improvement in our response plan and determine vaccination status and views. Below is a summary of specific policies, procedures and efforts taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.

Hybrid Workforce Models

Since March 2020 when the Company quickly implemented a telecommuting protocol in response to COVID-19, remote work has provided an important layer of safety when and where necessary. As health conditions improved, and safety measures expanded to maintain safe work environments, hybrid workforce models have been embraced by some teams and continue to help maintain flexibility within our workforce. Hybrid Workforce Models help reduce headcount working in an office.

Return to the Workplace

We continue to maintain a formal return-to-the-workplace (“RTTW”) program with the goal of ensuring the safety of our teammates and customers as we operate our physical locations in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local health department guidelines. As part of this program, we deliver the following measures:

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Long-Term Implications of the Pandemic

Our Company's leadership team has considered the possibility that the current pandemic or another pandemic could last for an extended period of time measured in years rather than months. The primary risk associated with this possibility centers around the economic consequences to our customers. We believe this risk is at least partially mitigated by our decision to maintain a diverse geographic footprint, with more than 350 locations that serves a broad customer base across many different industry sectors.

We regularly re-evaluate the long-term impact of the pandemic on our infrastructure. As part of our focus on delivering profitable growth over the long term, we are creating a roadmap that accounts for the future of work, including alternatives to our traditional office model, including permanent "work anywhere" arrangements for certain teammates, office hoteling and smaller workspaces. Depending on the approach that we take to future workspace planning, infrastructure costs may decrease, but may be offset by increases in technology to support off-site teammates.

Vaccine Response

Although we are not mandating vaccinations for teammates, we have strongly encouraged and educated our teams on the benefits vaccination for their health and safety, and the health and safety of their families, teammates, customers and carrier partners. If teammates decided to receive the vaccine, we provided flexibility to receive the vaccine during work hours and to take care of side effects, if present. In addition, we have strategically solicited anonymous surveys to combat vaccine hesitancy and show the results of teammates who have received the vaccine with no issues.

Teammate Health and Well-being

Brown & Brown's top priority is the total well-being of our teammates. Total well-being at Brown & Brown means physical, emotional, social and financial health and wellness. We know that healthy teammates provide better support to their families, communities and customers, which results in our continued success as a Company. We encourage teammates to stay active, maintain a healthy work-life balance, volunteer in their local communities and prioritize their mental and physical health. This includes regular communication with teammates about the pandemic's impacts and, when necessary, biweekly headlines and information focused on physical, mental and financial wellness. In addition, our chief executive officer has continued to release biweekly video updates to connect with all of our teammates and encourage the importance of health and well-being.

In 2021, we announced the creation of a Mental Health Allies group, which consists of a group of teammate volunteers that are ready to serve as points of contact for our mental health resources, as well as a support system for our teammates. Allies complete Mental Health First Aid Training offered by National Council for Behavioral Health. These teammates are available to listen impartially, without judgment, and support teammates while also raising awareness around the importance of mental health and wellness. Mental Health Allies are not diagnosticians or emergency providers, but rather conduits who may assist teammates find the appropriate resources in a time of need.

We continue to engage our team of employed health care professionals to provide critical and timely guidance on the physiological and psychological implications of COVID-19. We also provide access to public COVID-19 resources through our website portal to benefit individuals and businesses coping with challenges resulting from the pandemic. Our Operation Remote Work ("ORW") initiative—launched in 2020 to provide support and resources for our new way of working—continues to connect teammates throughout our Company and provides an opportunity to listen and engage with others through internal live streams with teammates. Through this initiative, we provide many resources to help teammates and leaders overcome challenges related to both work and home life.

To assist those who have found themselves in financial hardships due to the pandemic, we continue to provide deeply discounted services and products through our Brown & Brown $avings Center to both teammates and the public.

Across all Brown & Brown locations, we intend to provide a safe environment for teammates and office visitors. The Company has formal workplace safety guidelines that apply to all of our teammates and facilities, with some offices establishing even more specific procedures for conduct. These guidelines cover, among other things, hazardous and unsafe work areas and conditions, cellphone usage, travel, attire, communication protocols for closures and emergencies and our workers' compensation benefits.

In 2021, the Company had no work-related fatalities and 24 injuries or occupational diseases, as determined based on the number of claims made under our workers’ compensation policy, excluding claims that were closed and for which no payment was made.

Our new campus in Daytona Beach, Florida, completed in 2021, was designed with teammates in mind. Open floorplans encourage regular movement and interaction among our teammates, promoting a productive, collaborative work environment. Offices and workstations are equipped with ergonomic furniture and sit-stand desks, intentionally selected to support teammates' physical health.

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Additionally, the Company has a formal policy against violence in the workplace. This policy prohibits any form of weapon from being carried or maintained in our Company's offices and prohibits teammates from making threats or engaging in violent activities. Under our policy, any teammate who believes they have been a victim of violence, threats of violence, intimidating conduct or has heard jokes or offensive comments about a violent occurrence must report such actions immediately to their team leader or another member of our Company's leadership team. In addition, any teammate who believes they or another teammate may be in imminent danger of violence must notify local law enforcement officials immediately.

Mental Health

From the top down, we regularly promote the importance of prioritizing mental health. Our chief executive officer regularly addresses his passion for maintaining a positive mental health state in his communications with our teammates. Our Company encourages individuals to engage in activities that promote good mental health and, when needed, to seek out help from friends, teammates, family and medical professionals.

Many of the services readily available to Brown & Brown teammates are bundled under the Company’s Employee Assistance Program. These include no-cost, confidential support services such as access to mental health counselors, a 24/7 crisis hotline, coaching, wellness activities, a library of videos on demand and more. Additionally, the company’s crisis hotline offers Advocate for Me, a service that provides one-on-one consultation with mental well-being case navigators, therapists and psychiatrists, alongside other programs, like Mindfulness Meditation.

In addition to connecting teammates throughout the Company, our OWR includes interactive webinars led by on-staff board-certified psychiatrist, to discuss mental and physical well-being topics. We have also continued our Small Bites sessions that enable teammates to connect with guest speakers from inside and outside of our company on a wide range of business and personal interest topics.

Available Information

We are subject to the reporting requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and its rules and regulations. The Exchange Act requires us to file reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. We make available free of charge on our website, at www.bbinsurance.com, our Annual Report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act and the rules promulgated thereunder, as soon as reasonably practicable after electronically filing or furnishing such material to the SEC. These documents are posted on our website at www.bbinsurance.com and may be accessed by selecting the “Investor Relations” link and then the “SEC Filings” link.

The SEC maintains a website that contains reports, proxy statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. These materials may be obtained electronically by accessing the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

The charters of the Audit, Compensation and Nominating/Governance Committees of our board of directors as well as our Corporate Governance Principles, Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and Code of Ethics-CEO and Senior Financial Officers (including any amendments to, or waivers of any provision of any of these charters, principles or codes) are also available on our website or upon request. Requests for copies of any of these documents should be directed in writing to: Corporate Secretary, Brown & Brown, Inc., 300 North Beach Street, Daytona Beach, Florida 32114 or by telephone to (386)-252-9601.

Information About Our Executive Officers

Set forth below is certain information concerning our executive officers as of February 22, 2022. All officers hold office for one-year terms or until their successors are elected and qualified.

J. Hyatt Brown. Mr. Brown was our chief executive officer from 1993 to 2009 and our president from 1993 to December 2002, and served as president and chief executive officer of our predecessor corporation from 1961 to 1993. He was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1972 to 1980, and speaker of the house from 1978 to 1980. Mr. Brown served on the board of directors of International Speedway Corporation, a publicly held company, until 2019. Mr. Brown is a member of the board of trustees of Stetson University, of which he is a past chairman, and the Florida Council of 100. Mr. Hyatt Brown’s sons, J. Powell Brown and P. Barrett Brown, are employed by us as

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president and chief executive officer, and as executive vice president and president – Retail segment, respectively. His son, J. Powell Brown, has served as a director since October 2007.

J. Powell Brown. Mr. Brown was named chief executive officer in July 2009. He has been our president since January 2007 and was appointed to be a director in October 2007. Prior to 2007, he served as one of our regional executive vice presidents since 2002. Mr. Brown was previously responsible for overseeing certain or all parts of all of our segments over the years, and worked in various capacities throughout the Company since joining us in 1995. Mr. Brown has served on the board of directors of WestRock Company (formerly RockTenn Company), a publicly held company, since January 2010. He is the son of our chairman of the board, J. Hyatt Brown, and brother of our executive vice president and president – Retail segment, P. Barrett Brown.

P. Barrett Brown. Mr. Brown was appointed as an executive vice president and the president of our Retail segment in January 2020. He previously served as a senior vice president from 2014 until January 2020 and as a regional president in the Retail segment from September 2015 until January 2020. Mr. Brown joined the Company in 2000 and has served in various roles, including as the profit center leader and an account executive in our Tampa, Florida retail office, as the profit center leader and an account executive in our Orange, California retail office, and as an account executive in our Phoenix, Arizona retail office. He has also overseen certain aspects of  “Brown & Brown University,” a training program offering technical and sales courses for new producers, office leaders, and other groups within the organization. He is the son of our chairman of the board, J. Hyatt Brown, and brother of our president and chief executive officer, J. Powell Brown.

Stephen M. Boyd. Mr. Boyd was appointed as an executive vice president and the president of our Wholesale Brokerage segment in January 2021. Mr. Boyd became a senior vice president of the Company in May 2015 and from October 2019 until January 2021, served as our senior vice president of technology, innovation and digital strategy. Between July 2013 and October 2019, he served as president and chief operating officer of Arrowhead General Insurance Agency, Inc. (Arrowhead), one of our subsidiaries. Mr. Boyd joined Arrowhead in 1995 and has served in various roles, including as president of Arrowhead’s Commercial division and Arrowhead’s chief information officer.

Julie L. Turpin. Ms. Turpin was appointed as an executive vice president in May 2021. She became our chief people officer and a senior vice president in March 2020. From August 2012 until March 2020, Ms. Turpin served in various roles at Brown & Brown Absence Service Group (formerly The Advocator Group), one of our subsidiaries, from August 2012 until March 2020, including as its chief executive officer from January 2014 until March 2020, its chief operating officer from August 2013 until January 2014, and its vice president of operations from August 2012 until August 2013. Before joining Brown & Brown Absence Service Group in August 2012, Ms. Turpin served as the chief operating officer of GCG Risk Management Consultants LLC, an insurance brokerage firm she co-founded in Bannockburn, Illinois, from February 2009 until March 2012. She has previously held operational leadership positions with Marsh U.S.A., Inc., Forrest Company Realty, Inc., and NRG Energy, Inc.

Robert W. Lloyd. Mr. Lloyd has served as our general counsel since 2009 and as executive vice president and corporate secretary since 2014. He previously served as vice president from 2006 to 2014, chief litigation officer from 2006 until 2009 and as assistant general counsel from 2001 until 2006. Prior to that, he worked as sales manager and marketing manager, respectively, in our Daytona Beach, Florida retail office. While working in a sales role, Mr. Lloyd qualified for the Company’s top producer honors (Tangle B) in 2001. He has also earned his Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) and Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) designations. Before joining us, Mr. Lloyd practiced law and served as outside counsel to the Company with the law firm of Cobb & Cole, P.A. in Daytona Beach, Florida. Mr. Lloyd is a Rotarian; a member of the board of trustees of Daytona State College, immediate past chairman of the Daytona Beach Regional Chamber of Commerce; a member of the Florida Chamber board of governors, secretary and director of the Council on Aging of Volusia County; a member of the national board of directors of the University of Florida Foundation; vice president of the Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Statuary Fund Inc.; and a member of the advisory board of the Central Florida Council - Boy Scouts of America.

K. Gray Nester II. Mr. Nester was appointed as an executive vice president in October 2021. He became our chief information officer and a senior vice president in February 2021. From December 2019 until February 2021, Mr. Nester served as the chief information officer for our Retail segment. Prior to that, he held a variety of information technology roles as a senior vice president of BB&T Insurance Services from February 2010 until December 2019, including business information officer, IT group services manager, and IT services manager. From February 2004 until February 2010, Mr. Nester was an MIS director for BB&T with responsibility for the information technology needs of various BB&T business lines during that time. He previously served as an information technology director for Fox-Everett.

J. Scott Penny. Mr. Penny has been our chief acquisitions officer since 2011, and he serves as director and as an executive officer for several of our subsidiaries. He served as a regional president from 2010 to 2014 and regional executive vice president from 2002 to July 2010. From 1999 until January 2003, Mr. Penny served as profit center leader of our Indianapolis, Indiana retail office. Prior to that, Mr. Penny served as profit center leader of our Jacksonville, Florida retail office from 1997 to 1999. From 1989 to 1997, Mr. Penny was employed as an account executive and marketing representative in our Daytona Beach, Florida office.

Chris L. Walker. Mr. Walker was appointed president of our National Programs segment in 2014. He served as regional executive vice president from 2012 to 2014. Mr. Walker is responsible for our National Programs segment. He has also served as chief executive officer of Arrowhead since 2012. He has been involved with Arrowhead’s business development strategies, product expansion, acquisitions and the overall operations and infrastructure since joining the organization in 2003. Prior to that, he served as vice chairman of Aon Re. Mr. Walker’s insurance career began with the reinsurance intermediary E.W. Blanch Co., where he ultimately served as chairman and CEO of E.W. Blanch Holdings. He previously served as chairman of the Brokers and Reinsurance Markets Association.

R. Andrew Watts. Mr. Watts joined the Company as executive vice president and treasurer in February 2014, and was appointed chief financial officer effective March 4, 2014. Prior to joining the Company, he had served as global head of customer administration for Thomson

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Reuters since 2011, and from 2008 to 2011, he acted as chief financial officer for multiple segments within the Financial and Risk division of Thomson Reuters. Prior to 2001, Mr. Watts was the chief financial officer and co-founder of Textera, an internet startup company, and worked as a senior manager with PricewaterhouseCoopers for nine years. Mr. Watts earned a Public Accountancy (CPA) license from Illinois and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Illinois State University. Since June 2018, he has served as a director of New Planet Energy Development, LLC, a privately held green energy company, and since January 2020, he has served on the board of trustees of the Museum of Arts & Sciences, Inc., a not-for-profit corporation in Daytona Beach, Florida. He was previously the chairman of the board for Surflight Theatre from January 2013 through February 2014 and served on that board from July 2012 until February 2014. He was previously the chairman of the board for Make-A-Wish Foundation of New Jersey from 2005 through 2007 and served on that board from 2000 through 2007.

ITEM 1A. Risk Factors.

Our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows are subject to, and could be materially adversely affected by, various risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, those set forth below, any one of which could cause our actual results to vary materially from recent results or our anticipated future results. We present these risk factors grouped by category, and the risks factors contained in each respective category are presented in order of their relative priority to us.

Risks Related to the COVID-19 Pandemic

THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND THE RESULTING GOVERNMENTAL AND SOCIETAL RESPONSES, THE SEVERITY AND DURATION OF COVID-19 (INCLUDING THROUGH ANY NEW VARIANT STRAINS OF THE UNDERLYING VIRUS). THE EFFECTIVENESS AND ACCESSIBILITY TO VACCINES, THE PACE AND RATE AT WHICH VACCINES ARE ADMINISTERED, ACTIONS TAKEN BY GOVERNMENTAL AUTHORITIES IN RESPONSE TO COVID-19, AND THE DIRECT AND INDIRECT IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE U.S. ECONOMY AND THE GLOBAL ECONOMY, MAY MATERIALLY AND ADVERSELY AFFECT THE COMPANY’S BUSINESS, LIQUIDITY, CUSTOMERS, INSURANCE CARRIERS AND THIRD PARTIES.

In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus, COVID-19, surfaced. Since then, COVID-19 has spread across the world, and has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization. The global outbreak of COVID-19 continues to rapidly evolve. The COVID-19 pandemic has created significant volatility, uncertainty and economic disruption, which could further adversely affect our business and may materially and adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. The extent to which COVID-19 impacts our business will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted with confidence, including the ultimate geographic spread and severity of COVID-19; the duration of the pandemic; the effectiveness and roll-out of vaccinations against COVID-19; society's willingness to receive the vaccinations; business closures, travel restrictions, social distancing and other actions taken to contain and treat COVID-19; the effectiveness of actions taken to contain and treat the virus; the impact of the pandemic on economic activity; the timing and effectiveness of government stimulus programs; the extent and duration of the effect on customer demand and buying patterns; and any impairment in value of our tangible or intangible assets which could be recorded as a result of weaker economic conditions. In addition, if the pandemic continues to create disruptions or turmoil in the credit or financial markets, or impacts our credit ratings, it could adversely affect our ability to access capital on favorable terms and continue to meet our liquidity needs, all of which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted.

As the COVID-19 pandemic and any associated protective or preventative measures continue to spread in the United States and around the world, we may experience disruptions to our business, including:

We cannot predict the impact that COVID-19 will have on our customers, insurance carriers, suppliers and other third-party contractors, and each of their financial conditions; however, any material effect on these parties could adversely impact us. Even after the COVID-19 outbreak has subsided, we may experience materially adverse impacts to our business as a result of the virus’ global economic impact. Further, COVID-19 may affect our operating and financial results in a manner that is not presently known to us or that we currently do not consider as presenting significant risks to our operations.

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Additionally, should any key employees become ill from the coronavirus and unable to work, the attention of the management team could be diverted.

These and other disruptions related to COVID-19 could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Further, the potential effects of COVID-19 also could impact and, in some cases, magnify many of our risk factors described in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. However, as the COVID-19 situation is unprecedented and continuously evolving, the potential impacts to our risk factors remain uncertain. Additionally, any potential effects of COVID-19 may lag behind the developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Risks Related to Our Business

SIGNIFICANT INFLATION COULD ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR BUSINESS, RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITION.

Inflation can adversely affect us by increasing our costs, including salary costs. Significant inflation is often accompanied by higher

interest rates. Any significant increases in inflation and interest rates could have material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

OUR INABILITY TO RETAIN OR HIRE QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES, AS WELL AS THE LOSS OF ANY OF OUR EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OR OTHER KEY EMPLOYEES, COULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT OUR ABILITY TO RETAIN EXISTING BUSINESS AND GENERATE NEW BUSINESS.

Our success depends on our ability to attract and retain skilled and experienced personnel. There is significant competition from within the insurance industry and from businesses outside the industry for exceptional employees, especially in key positions. If we are not able to successfully attract, retain and motivate our employees, our business, financial results and reputation could be materially and adversely affected.

Losing employees who manage or support substantial customer relationships or possess substantial experience or expertise could adversely affect our ability to secure and complete customer engagements, which would adversely affect our results of operations. Also, if any of our key employees were to join an existing competitor or form a competing company, some of our customers could choose to use the services of that competitor instead of our services. While our key employees are generally prohibited by contract from soliciting our employees and customers for a two-year period following separation from employment with us, they are not prohibited from competing with us.

In addition, we could be adversely affected if we fail to adequately plan for the succession of our senior leaders and key executives. The succession plans and employment arrangements we have in place with certain key executives do not guarantee that the services of these executives will continue to be available to us. The loss of our senior leaders or other key employees, or our inability to continue to identify, recruit and retain such personnel, could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

OUR GROWTH STRATEGY DEPENDS, IN PART, ON THE ACQUISITION OF OTHER INSURANCE INTERMEDIARIES, WHICH MAY NOT BE AVAILABLE ON ACCEPTABLE TERMS IN THE FUTURE OR WHICH, IF CONSUMMATED, MAY NOT BE ADVANTAGEOUS TO US.

Our growth strategy partially includes the acquisition of other insurance intermediaries. Our ability to successfully identify suitable acquisition candidates, complete acquisitions, integrate acquired businesses into our operations, and expand into new markets requires us to implement and continuously improve our operations and our financial and management information systems. Integrated, acquired businesses may not achieve levels of revenues or profitability comparable to our existing operations, or otherwise perform as expected. In addition, we compete for acquisition and expansion opportunities with firms and banks that may have substantially greater resources than we do. Acquisitions also involve a number of risks, such as diversion of management’s attention; difficulties in the integration of acquired operations and retention of employees; increase in expenses and working capital requirements, which could reduce our return on invested capital; entry into unfamiliar markets or lines of business; unanticipated problems or legal liabilities; estimation of the acquisition earn-out payables; and tax and accounting issues, some or all of which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows. Post-acquisition deterioration of operating performance could also result in lower or negative earnings contribution and/or goodwill impairment charges.

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A CYBERSECURITY ATTACK, OR ANY OTHER INTERRUPTION IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND/OR DATA SECURITY AND/OR OUTSOURCING RELATIONSHIPS, COULD ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR BUSINESS, FINANCIAL CONDITION AND REPUTATION.

We rely on information technology and third-party vendors to provide effective and efficient service to our customers, process claims, and timely and accurately report information to carriers and which often involves secure processing of confidential sensitive, proprietary and other types of information. Cybersecurity breaches of any of the systems we rely on may result from circumvention of security systems, denial-of-service attacks or other cyber-attacks, hacking, “phishing” attacks, computer viruses, ransomware, malware, employee or insider error, malfeasance, social engineering, physical breaches or other actions, any of which could expose us to data loss, monetary and reputational damages and significant increases in compliance costs. An interruption of our access to, or an inability to access, our information technology, telecommunications or other systems could significantly impair our ability to perform such functions on a timely basis. If sustained or repeated, such a business interruption, system failure or service denial could result in a deterioration of our ability to write and process new and renewal business, provide customer service, pay claims in a timely manner or perform other necessary business functions. We have from time to time experienced cybersecurity incidents, such as malware infections, phishing campaigns and vulnerability exploit attempts, which to date have not had a material impact on our business.

Additionally, we are an acquisitive organization and the process of integrating the information systems of the businesses we acquire is complex and exposes us to additional risk as we might not adequately identify weaknesses in the targets’ information systems, which could expose us to unexpected liabilities or make our own systems more vulnerable to attack. In the future, any material breaches of cybersecurity, or media reports of the same, even if untrue, could cause us to experience reputational harm, loss of customers and revenue, loss of proprietary data, regulatory actions and scrutiny, sanctions or other statutory penalties, litigation, liability for failure to safeguard customers’ information or financial losses. Such losses may not be insured against or not fully covered through insurance we maintain.

We cannot entirely eliminate all risk of improper access to private information, and the cost and operational consequences of implementing, maintaining and enhancing further system protections measures could increase significantly as cybersecurity threats increase. As these threats evolve, cybersecurity incidents will be more difficult to detect, defend against and remediate. Any of the foregoing may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and reputation.

RAPID TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE MAY REQUIRE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES AND TIME TO ADEQUATELY RESPOND TO DYNAMICS, WHICH MAY ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR BUSINESS AND OPERATING RESULTS.

Frequent technological changes, new products and services and evolving industry standards are influencing the insurance business. The internet, for example, is increasingly used to securely transmit benefits and related information to customers and to facilitate business-to-business information exchange and transactions.

We are continuously taking steps to upgrade and expand our information systems capabilities, including how we electronically interact with our customers and insurance carriers. Maintaining, protecting and enhancing these capabilities to keep pace with evolving industry and regulatory standards, and changing customer preferences, requires an ongoing commitment of significant resources. If the information we rely upon to run our businesses was found to be inaccurate or unreliable or if we fail to effectively maintain our information systems and data integrity, we could experience operational disruptions, regulatory or other legal problems, increases in operating expenses, loss of existing customers, difficulty in attracting new customers, or suffer other adverse consequences.

Our technological development projects may not deliver the benefits we expect once they are completed or may be replaced or become obsolete more quickly than expected, which could result in the accelerated recognition of expenses. If we do not effectively and efficiently manage and upgrade our technology portfolio regularly, or if the costs of doing so are higher than we expect, our ability to provide competitive services to new and existing customers in a cost-effective manner and our ability to implement our strategic initiatives could be adversely impacted.

WE DERIVE A SIGNIFICANT PORTION OF OUR COMMISSION REVENUES FROM A LIMITED NUMBER OF INSURANCE COMPANIES, THE LOSS OF WHICH COULD RESULT IN ADDITIONAL EXPENSE AND LOSS OF MARKET SHARE OR A MATERIAL DECREASE IN OUR PROFIT-SHARING CONTINGENT COMMISSIONS, GUARANTEED SUPPLEMENTAL COMMISSIONS OR INCENTIVE COMMISSIONS.

For the year ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, no more than 5.0% of our total core commissions was derived from insurance policies underwritten by one insurance company. Should this insurance company seek to terminate its arrangements with us or to otherwise decrease the number of insurance policies underwritten for us, we believe that other insurance companies are available to underwrite the business, although some additional expense and loss of market share could result.

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BECAUSE A SIGNIFICANT PORTION OF OUR BUSINESSES ARE CONCENTRATED IN FLORIDA, CALIFORNIA, MASSACHUSETTS, GEORGIA, NEW YORK, AND MICHIGAN, ADVERSE ECONOMIC CONDITIONS, NATURAL DISASTERS, OR REGULATORY CHANGES IN THESE STATES COULD ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR FINANCIAL CONDITION.

A significant portion of our businesses are concentrated in Florida, California, Massachusetts, Georgia, New York, and Michigan, where for the year ended December 31, 2021, we derived approximately 18%, 11%, 8%, 7%, 7%, and 6% of our annual revenue, respectively. We believe the current regulatory environment for insurance intermediaries in these states is no more restrictive than in other states. The insurance business in the U.S. is primarily a state-regulated industry, and therefore, state legislatures may enact laws that adversely affect the insurance industry. Because our business is concentrated in the states identified above, we face greater exposure to unfavorable changes in regulatory conditions in those states than insurance intermediaries whose operations are more diversified through a greater number of states. In addition, the occurrence of adverse economic conditions, natural or other disasters, or other circumstances specific to or otherwise significantly impacting these states could adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. We are susceptible to losses and interruptions caused by hurricanes (particularly in Florida, where we have 52 offices and our headquarters, as well as in Texas, where we have 25 offices), earthquakes (including in California, where we have 31 offices), power shortages, telecommunications failures, water shortages, floods, fire, extreme weather conditions, geopolitical events such as terrorist acts and other natural or human-made disasters. Our insurance coverage with respect to natural disasters is limited and is subject to deductibles and coverage limits. Such coverage may not be adequate or may not continue to be available at commercially reasonable rates and terms.

OUR CORPORATE CULTURE HAS CONTRIBUTED TO OUR SUCCESS, AND IF WE CANNOT MAINTAIN THIS CULTURE, OR IF WE EXPERIENCE A CHANGE IN MANAGEMENT, MANAGEMENT PHILOSOPHY, OR BUSINESS STRATEGY, OUR BUSINESS MAY BE HARMED.

We believe that a significant contributor to our success has been our corporate culture as a lean, highly competitive, decentralized growth and profit-oriented sales and service organization. As we grow, including from the integration of employees and businesses acquired in connection with previous or future acquisitions, we may find it difficult to maintain important aspects of our corporate culture, which could negatively affect our profitability and/or our ability to retain and recruit people of the highest integrity and quality who are essential to our future success. We may face pressure to change our culture as we grow, particularly if we experience difficulties in attracting competent employees who are willing to embrace our culture. In addition, as our organization grows and we are required to implement more complex organizational structures, or if we experience a change in management, management philosophy or business strategy, we may find it increasingly difficult to maintain the beneficial aspects of our corporate culture, such as our decentralized sales and service operating model, which could negatively impact our future success.

We face a variety of risks in our services segment, including our third-party claims administration operations, that are distinct from those we face in our insurance intermediary operations.

Our Services segment, including our third-party claims administration operations, face a variety of risks distinct from those faced by our insurance intermediary operations, including the risks that:

If any of these risks materialize, our results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

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DUE TO INHERENT LIMITATIONS, OUR SYSTEM OF DISCLOSURE AND INTERNAL CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES MAY NOT BE SUCCESSFUL IN PREVENTING ALL ERRORS OR FRAUD, OR IN INFORMING MANAGEMENT OF ALL MATERIAL INFORMATION IN A TIMELY MANNER.

Our management, including our chief executive officer and chief financial officer, does not expect that our disclosure controls and internal controls and procedures will prevent all error and fraud. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within the Company have been detected. These inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision-making can be faulty and that breakdowns can occur simply because of error or mistake. Additionally, controls can be circumvented by individual acts of some persons, by collusion of two or more people, or by management override of a control.

There can be no assurance that the design of any of our systems of controls will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions.

CERTAIN OF OUR EXISTING SHAREHOLDERS HAVE SIGNIFICANT CONTROL OF THE COMPANY.

At December 31, 2021, our executive officers, directors and certain of their family members collectively beneficially owned approximately 16.6% of our outstanding common stock, of which J. Hyatt Brown, our chairman of the board, and his sons, J. Powell Brown, our president and chief executive officer, and P. Barrett Brown, our executive vice president and the president of our Retail segment, beneficially owned approximately 15.8%. As a result, our executive officers, directors and certain of their family members have significant influence over (i) the election of our board of directors, (ii) the approval or disapproval of any other matters requiring shareholder approval and (iii) our affairs and policies.

WE HAVE OPERATIONS INTERNATIONALLY, WHICH MAY RESULT IN A NUMBER OF ADDITIONAL RISKS AND REQUIRE MORE MANAGEMENT TIME AND EXPENSE THAN OUR DOMESTIC OPERATIONS TO ACHIEVE OR MAINTAIN PROFITABILITY.

We have operations in Bermuda, Canada, Cayman Islands, Ireland and the United Kingdom. In the future, we intend to continue to consider additional international expansion opportunities. Our international operations may be subject to a number of risks, including:

Risks Related to Legal, Compliance and Regulatory Matters

CHANGES IN DATA PRIVACY AND PROTECTION LAWS AND REGULATIONS, OR ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH SUCH LAWS AND REGULATIONS, COULD ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL RESULTS.

We are subject to a variety of continuously evolving and developing laws and regulations globally regarding privacy, data protection and data security, including those related to the collection, storage, retention, handling, use, processing, disclosure, transfer and security of personal data. Significant uncertainty exists as privacy and data protection laws may be interpreted and applied differently from country to country and may create inconsistent or conflicting requirements. These laws apply to transfers of information among our affiliates, as well as to transactions we enter into with third-party vendors. For example, the European Union adopted a comprehensive General Data Privacy Regulation (“GDPR”) in May 2016, which replaced the former EU Data Protection Directive and related country-specific legislation. The GDPR became

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fully effective in May 2018 and requires companies to satisfy new requirements regarding the handling of personal and sensitive data, including its processing, protection and the ability of persons whose data is stored to correct or delete such data about themselves. Failure to comply with GDPR requirements could result in penalties of up to 4% of worldwide revenue. Complying with the enhanced obligations imposed by the GDPR may result in significant costs to our business and require us to revise certain of our business practices. Additionally, a judgement by the Court of Justice of the European Union on Schrems II has made cross border data transfers to organizations outside of the European Economic Area more onerous and uncertain. In addition, legislators and regulators in the U.S. have enacted and are proposing new and more robust privacy and cybersecurity laws and regulations in light of the recent broad-based cyber-attacks at a number of companies, including but not limited to the New York State Department of Financial Services Cybersecurity Requirements for Financial Services Companies and the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018. Some states provide right of action for data breaches or for collection of certain categories of personal information without consent, which may result in increased litigation.

These and similar initiatives around the world could increase the cost of developing, implementing or securing our servers and require us to allocate more resources to improved technologies, adding to our IT and compliance costs. In addition, enforcement actions and investigations by regulatory authorities related to data security incidents and privacy violations continue to increase. The enactment of more restrictive laws, rules, regulations or future enforcement actions or investigations could impact us through increased costs or restrictions on our business, and noncompliance could result in regulatory penalties and significant legal liability.

IMPROPER DISCLOSURE OF CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION COULD NEGATIVELY IMPACT OUR BUSINESS.

We are responsible for maintaining the security and privacy of our customers’ confidential and proprietary information and the personal data of their employees. We have put in place administrative, physical, procedures and technological safeguards designed to protect the security and privacy of this information; however, we cannot guarantee that this information will not be improperly disclosed or accessed. Disclosure of this information could harm our reputation and subject us to liability under our contracts and laws that protect personal data, resulting in increased costs or loss of revenues.

OUR BUSINESS, RESULTS OF OPERATIONS, FINANCIAL CONDITION AND LIQUIDITY MAY BE MATERIALLY ADVERSELY AFFECTED BY CERTAIN ACTUAL AND POTENTIAL CLAIMS, REGULATORY ACTIONS AND PROCEEDINGS.

We are subject to various actual and potential claims, regulatory actions and other proceedings, including those relating to alleged errors and omissions in connection with the placement or servicing of insurance and/or the provision of services in the ordinary course of business, of which we cannot, and likely will not be able to, predict the outcome with certainty. Because we often assist customers with matters involving substantial amounts of money, including the placement of insurance and the handling of related claims that customers may assert, errors and omissions claims against us may arise alleging potential liability for all or part of the amounts in question. Also, the failure of an insurer with whom we place business could result in errors and omissions claims against us by our customers, which could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. Claimants may seek large damage awards, and these claims may involve potentially significant legal costs, including punitive damages. Such claims, lawsuits and other proceedings could, for example, include claims for damages based upon allegations that our employees or sub-agents failed to procure coverage, report claims on behalf of customers, provide insurance companies with complete and accurate information relating to the risks being insured or appropriately apply funds that we hold for our customers on a fiduciary basis. In addition, given the long-tail nature of professional liability claims, errors and omissions matters can relate to matters dating back many years.

Our business, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity may be adversely affected if, in the future, our insurance coverage proves to be inadequate or unavailable, or if there is an increase in liabilities for which we self-insure. Our ability to obtain professional indemnity insurance in the amounts and with the deductibles we desire in the future may be adversely impacted by general developments in the market for such insurance or our own claims experience. In addition, regardless of monetary costs, these matters could have a material adverse effect on our reputation and cause harm to our carrier, customer or employee relationships, or divert employees and management resources.

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OUR BUSINESS PRACTICES AND COMPENSATION ARRANGEMENTS ARE SUBJECT TO UNCERTAINTY DUE TO POTENTIAL CHANGES IN REGULATIONS.

The business practices and compensation arrangements of the insurance intermediary industry, including our practices and arrangements, are subject to uncertainty due to investigations by various governmental authorities. Certain of our offices are parties to profit-sharing contingent commission agreements with certain insurance companies, including agreements providing for potential payment of revenue-sharing commissions by insurance companies based primarily on the overall profitability of the aggregate business written with those insurance companies and/or additional factors such as retention ratios and the overall volume of business that an office or offices place with those insurance companies. Additionally, some of our offices are parties to supplemental commission agreements with certain insurance companies, which provide for commission rates in excess of standard commission rates to be applied to specific lines of business, such as group health business, and which are based primarily on the overall volume of business that such office or offices placed with those insurance companies. Various state legislatures may adopt new laws addressing contingent commission arrangements, including laws prohibiting such arrangements, and addressing disclosure of such arrangements to insureds. Various state departments of insurance may also adopt new regulations addressing these matters which could adversely affect our results of operations.

WE COMPETE IN A HIGHLY REGULATED INDUSTRY, WHICH MAY RESULT IN INCREASED EXPENSES OR RESTRICTIONS ON OUR OPERATIONS.

We conduct business in each of the 50 states of the United States of America and are subject to comprehensive regulation and supervision by government agencies in each of those states. The primary purpose of such regulation and supervision is to provide safeguards for policyholders rather than to protect the interests of our shareholders, and it is difficult to anticipate how changes in such regulation would be implemented and enforced. As a result, such regulation and supervision could reduce our profitability or growth by increasing compliance costs, technology compliance, restricting the products or services we may sell, the markets we may enter, the methods by which we may sell our products and services, or the prices we may charge for our services and the form of compensation we may accept from our customers, carriers and third parties. The laws of the various state jurisdictions establish supervisory agencies with broad administrative powers with respect to, among other things, licensing of entities to transact business, licensing of agents, admittance of assets, regulating premium rates, approving policy forms, regulating unfair trade and claims practices, determining technology and data protection requirements, establishing reserve requirements and solvency standards, requiring participation in guarantee funds and shared market mechanisms, and restricting payment of dividends. Also, in response to perceived excessive cost or inadequacy of available insurance, states have from time to time created state insurance funds and assigned risk pools, which compete directly, on a subsidized basis, with private insurance providers. We act as agents and brokers for such state insurance funds and assigned risk pools in California and New York as well as certain other states. These state funds and pools could choose to reduce the sales or brokerage commissions we receive. Any such reductions, in a state in which we have substantial operations could affect the profitability of our operations in such state or cause us to change our marketing focus. Further, state insurance regulators and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners continually reexamine existing laws and regulations, and such reexamination may result in the enactment of insurance-related laws and regulations, or the issuance of interpretations thereof that adversely affect our business. Certain federal financial services modernization legislation could lead to additional federal regulation of the insurance industry in the coming years, which could result in increased expenses or restrictions on our operations. Other legislative developments that could adversely affect us include: changes in our business compensation model as a result of regulatory developments (for example, the Affordable Care Act); and federal and state governments establishing programs to provide health insurance or, in certain cases, property insurance in catastrophe-prone areas or other alternative market types of coverage that compete with or completely replace, insurance products offered by insurance carriers. Also, as climate change issues become more prevalent, the U.S. and foreign governments are beginning to respond to these issues. This increasing governmental focus on climate change may result in new environmental regulations that may negatively affect us and our customers. This could cause us to incur additional direct costs in complying with any new environmental regulations, as well as increased indirect costs resulting from our customers incurring additional compliance costs that get passed on to us. These costs may adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition.

PROPOSED TORT REFORM LEGISLATION, IF ENACTED, COULD DECREASE DEMAND FOR LIABILITY INSURANCE, THEREBY REDUCING OUR COMMISSION REVENUES.

Legislation concerning tort reform has been considered, from time to time, in the United States Congress and in several state legislatures. Among the provisions considered in such legislation have been limitations on damage awards, including punitive damages, and various restrictions applicable to class action lawsuits. Enactment of these or similar provisions by Congress, or by states in which we sell insurance, could reduce the demand for liability insurance policies or lead to a decrease in policy limits of such policies sold, thereby reducing our commission revenues.

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Risks Related to Our Indebtedness and Financing

IF WE FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE COVENANTS CONTAINED IN CERTAIN OF OUR AGREEMENTS, OUR LIQUIDITY, RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITION MAY BE ADVERSELY AFFECTED.

At December 31, 2021, we believe we were in compliance with the financial covenants and other limitations contained in each of the credit agreements that govern out debt. However, failure to comply with material provisions of our covenants in these agreements or other credit or similar agreements to which we may become a party could result in a default, rendering them unavailable to us and causing a material adverse effect on our liquidity, results of operations and financial condition. In the event of certain defaults, the lenders thereunder would not be required to lend any additional amounts to or purchase any additional notes from us and could elect to declare all borrowings outstanding, together with accrued and unpaid interest and fees, to be due and payable. If the indebtedness under these agreements or our other indebtedness, were to be accelerated, there can be no assurance that our assets would be sufficient to repay such indebtedness in full.

CERTAIN OF OUR AGREEMENTS CONTAIN VARIOUS COVENANTS THAT LIMIT THE DISCRETION OF OUR MANAGEMENT IN OPERATING OUR BUSINESS AND COULD PREVENT US FROM ENGAGING IN CERTAIN POTENTIALLY BENEFICIAL ACTIVITIES.

The restrictive covenants in our debt agreements may impact how we operate our business and prevent us from engaging in certain potentially beneficial activities. In particular, among other covenants, our debt agreements require us to maintain a minimum ratio of Consolidated EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization), adjusted for certain transaction-related items (“Consolidated EBITDA”), to consolidated interest expense and a maximum ratio of consolidated net indebtedness to Consolidated EBITDA. Our compliance with these covenants could limit management’s discretion in operating our business and could prevent us from engaging in certain potentially beneficial activities.

OUR BUSINESS, AND THEREFORE OUR RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITION, MAY BE ADVERSELY AFFECTED BY FURTHER CHANGES IN THE U.S. CREDIT MARKETS.

The failure of any lender under our revolving credit facility (which matures in 2026) could adversely affect our ability to borrow on that facility, which over time could negatively impact our ability to consummate significant acquisitions or make other significant capital expenditures. Tightening conditions in the credit markets in future years could adversely affect the availability and terms of future borrowings or renewals or refinancing.

We also have a significant amount of trade accounts receivable from some insurance companies with which we place insurance. If those insurance companies were to experience liquidity problems or other financial difficulties, we could encounter delays or defaults in payments owed to us, which could have a significant adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

WE ARE SUBJECT TO RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH THE CURRENT INTEREST RATE ENVIRONMENT AND TO THE EXTENT WE USE DEBT TO FINANCE OUR INVESTMENTS, CHANGES IN INTEREST RATES WILL AFFECT OUR COST OF CAPITAL AND NET INVESTMENT INCOME.

As of July 2017, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) has urged banks and institutions to discontinue their use of the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) benchmark rate for floating rate debt, and other financial instruments tied to the rate after 2021. To help with the transition, the Federal Reserve Board and New York Fed have commissioned the Alternative Reference Rates Committee (“ARRC”), composed of a diverse set of private-sector entities that have an important presence in markets affected by USD LIBOR and a wide array of official-sector entities, including banking and financial sector regulators, as ex-officio members. The ARRC has recommended the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) as the best alternative rate to LIBOR post discontinuance and has proposed a transition plan and timeline designed to encourage the adoption of SOFR from LIBOR. On March 5, 2021, the ICE Benchmark Administration, which administers LIBOR, and the FCA announced that all LIBOR settings will either cease to be provided by any administrator, or no longer be representative immediately after December 31, 2021, for all non-U.S. dollar LIBOR settings and one-week and two-month U.S. dollar LIBOR settings, and immediately after June 30, 2023 for the remaining U.S. dollar LIBOR settings.

As of December 31, 2021, the Company’s primary exposures are debt instruments referencing LIBOR-based rates which include the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the “Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement”) term loan balance of $246.9 million outstanding and matures in October 2026, as well as the term loan credit agreement (the “Term Loan Credit Agreement”) which had an outstanding balance of $240.0 million and matures in December 2023. As such, any potential effect of any such event on our cost of capital, interest rate exposure and net investment income cannot yet be determined. In addition, any further changes or reforms to the determination or supervision of LIBOR may result in a sudden or prolonged increase or decrease in reported LIBOR, which could have an adverse impact on the market value for or value of any LIBOR-linked securities, loans, and other financial obligations or extensions of credit held by or due to us and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The Company is currently evaluating the transition from LIBOR as an interest rate benchmark to other potential alternative reference rates, including, but not limited to, SOFR. Currently, it is anticipated that the new benchmark for our USD borrowings will be SOFR. The shift to SOFR from LIBOR is complex and may adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity and cash flows.

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Risks Related to Our Industry

OUR CURRENT MARKET SHARE MAY DECREASE AS A RESULT OF DISINTERMEDIATION WITHIN THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY, INCLUDING INCREASED COMPETITION FROM INSURANCE COMPANIES, TECHNOLOGY COMPANIES AND THE FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY, AS WELL AS THE SHIFT AWAY FROM TRADITIONAL INSURANCE MARKETS.

The insurance intermediary business is highly competitive and we actively compete with numerous firms for customers and insurance companies, many of which have relationships with insurance companies or have a significant presence in niche insurance markets that may give them an advantage over us. Other competitive concerns may include the quality of our products and services, our pricing and the ability of some of our customers to self-insure and the entrance of technology companies into the insurance intermediary business. A number of insurance companies are engaged in the direct sale of insurance, primarily to individuals, and do not pay commissions to agents and brokers. In addition, and to the extent that banks, securities firms, private equity funds and insurance companies affiliate, the financial services industry may experience further consolidation, and we therefore may experience increased competition from insurance companies and the financial services industry, as a growing number of larger financial institutions increasingly, and aggressively, offer a wider variety of financial services, including insurance intermediary services.

In addition, there has been an increase in alternative insurance markets, such as self-insurance, captives, risk retention groups and non-insurance capital markets, and we cannot be certain that such alternative markets will provide the same level of insurance coverage or profitability as traditional insurance markets.

CHANGES IN CURRENT U.S. OR GLOBAL ECONOMIC CONDITIONS MAY ADVERSELY AFFECT OUR BUSINESS.

If economic conditions were to worsen, a number of negative effects on our business could result, including declines in insurable exposure units, declines in insurance premium rates, the financial insolvency of insurance companies, or the reduced ability of customers to pay. Also, if general economic conditions are poor, some of our customers may cease operations completely or be acquired by other companies, which could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. If these customers are affected by poor economic conditions, but yet remain in existence, they may face liquidity problems or other financial difficulties that could result in delays or defaults in payments owed to us, which could have a significant adverse impact on our consolidated financial condition and results of operations. Any of these effects could decrease our net revenues and profitability.

OUR BUSINESS, AND THEREFORE OUR RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND FINANCIAL CONDITION, MAY BE ADVERSELY AFFECTED BY CONDITIONS THAT RESULT IN REDUCED INSURER CAPACITY.

Our results of operations depend on the continued capacity of insurance carriers to underwrite risk and provide coverage, which depends in turn on those insurance companies’ ability to procure reinsurance. Capacity could also be reduced by insurance companies failing or withdrawing from writing certain coverages that we offer to our customers. We have no control over these matters. To the extent that reinsurance becomes less widely available or significantly more expensive, we may not be able to procure the amount or types of coverage that our customers desire and the coverage we are able to procure for our customers may be more expensive or limited.

QUARTERLY AND ANNUAL VARIATIONS IN OUR COMMISSIONS THAT RESULT FROM THE TIMING OF POLICY RENEWALS AND THE NET EFFECT OF NEW AND LOST BUSINESS PRODUCTION MAY HAVE UNEXPECTED EFFECTS ON OUR RESULTS OF OPERATIONS.

Our commission income (including profit-sharing contingent commissions and supplemental commissions) can vary quarterly or annually due to the timing of policy renewals and the net effect of new and lost business production. We do not control the factors that cause these variations. Specifically, customers’ demand for insurance products can influence the timing of renewals, new business and lost business (which includes policies that are not renewed), and cancellations. In addition, we rely on insurance companies for the payment of certain commissions. Because these payments are processed internally by these insurance companies, we may not receive a payment that is otherwise expected from a particular insurance company in a particular quarter or year until after the end of that period, which can adversely affect our ability to forecast these revenues and therefore budget for significant future expenditures. Quarterly and annual fluctuations in revenues based upon increases and decreases associated with the timing of new business, policy renewals and payments from insurance companies may adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Profit-sharing contingent commissions are special revenue-sharing commissions paid by insurance companies based primarily upon the profitability, and to a lesser extent may have provisions for volume and/or growth of the business placed with such companies generally during the prior year. Over the last three years these commissions generally have been in the range of 3.0% to 3.5% of our previous year’s total core commissions and fees. Due to, among other things, potentially poor macroeconomic conditions, the inherent uncertainty of loss in our industry and changes in underwriting criteria due in part to the high loss ratios experienced by insurance companies, we cannot predict the payment of these profit-sharing contingent commissions. Further, we have no control over the ability of insurance companies to estimate loss reserves, which affects our ability to make profit-sharing calculations. Supplemental commissions are paid by insurance companies based upon the volume of business that we place with them and are generally paid over the course of the year. Any decrease in their payment to us could adversely affect our results of operations, profitability and our financial condition.

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WE ARE EXPOSED TO INTANGIBLE ASSET RISK; SPECIFICALLY, OUR GOODWILL MAY BECOME IMPAIRED IN THE FUTURE.

As of the date of the filing of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the 2021 fiscal year, we have $4.7 billion of goodwill recorded on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. We perform a goodwill impairment test on an annual basis and whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of our goodwill may not be recoverable from estimated future cash flows. We completed our most recent evaluation of impairment for goodwill as of November 30, 2021 and determined that the fair value of goodwill exceeded the carrying value of such assets. A significant and sustained decline in our stock price and market capitalization, a significant decline in our expected future cash flows, a significant adverse change in the business climate or slower growth rates could result in the need to perform an additional impairment analysis before the next annual goodwill impairment test. If determined that a future write-down of our goodwill is necessary, the appropriate adjustment would be recorded which could result in material charges that are adverse to our operating results and financial position. See Note 1-“Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” and Note 4-“Goodwill” to the Consolidated Financial Statements and “Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting.”

Additionally, the carrying value of amortizable intangible assets attributable to each business or asset group comprising the Company is periodically reviewed by management to determine if there are events or changes in circumstances that would indicate that its carrying amount may not be recoverable. Accordingly, if there are any such circumstances that occur during the year, we assess the carrying value of our amortizable intangible assets by considering the estimated future undiscounted cash flows generated by the corresponding business or asset group. Any impairment identified through this assessment may require that the carrying value of related amortizable intangible assets be adjusted.

There have been no impairments recorded to either goodwill or amortizable intangibles for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019.

ITEM 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments.

None.

ITEM 2. Properties.

We own our executive offices, which are located at 300 North Beach Street, Daytona Beach, Florida 32114, as well as certain other office buildings in the Daytona Beach area. We lease offices at each of our other 351 locations. Our operating leases expire on various dates and generally contain renewal options and rent escalation clauses based upon increases in the lessors’ operating expenses and other charges. We expect that most leases will be renewed or replaced upon expiration. We believe that our facilities are suitable and adequate for present purposes, and that the productive capacity in such facilities is substantially being utilized, taking into consideration the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the needs of a more remote workforce. From time to time, we may have unused space and seek to sublet such space to third parties, depending on the demand for office space in the locations involved which could be impacted by certain of our employees working remotely from our offices. In the future, we may need to purchase, build or lease additional facilities to meet the requirements projected in our long-term business plan. See Note 15 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information on our lease commitments.

ITEM 3. Legal Proceedings.

We are subject to numerous litigation claims that arise in the ordinary course of business. We do not believe any of these are, or are likely to become, material to our business.

ITEM 4. Mine Safety Disclosures.

Not applicable.

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PART II

ITEM 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities.

Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbol “BRO”.

On February 18, 2022, there were 282,215,614 shares of our common stock outstanding, held by approximately 1,512 shareholders of record.

Sales of Unregistered Securities

In connection with certain acquisitions, the Company issued 106,586 shares of Company common stock on February 2, 2021 and 78,176 shares of Company common stock on December 1, 2021, to the owners of the businesses acquired. The issuances were made in reliance upon the following exemptions or exclusions from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”): Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act and Regulation D promulgated under the Securities Act and the recipients of the shares represented that they were accredited investors and/or sophisticated investors.

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

Under the authorizations from the Company’s board of directors, shares may be purchased from time to time, at the Company’s discretion and subject to the availability of stock, market conditions, the trading price of the stock, alternative uses for capital, the Company’s financial performance and other potential factors. These purchases may be carried out through open market purchases, block trades, accelerated share repurchase plans of up to $100.0 million each (unless otherwise approved by the board of directors), negotiated private transactions or pursuant to any trading plan that may be adopted in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 of the Exchange Act. On July 18, 2014, the Company’s board of directors authorized the repurchase of up to $200.0 million of its shares of common stock, and on July 20, 2015, the Company’s board of directors authorized the repurchase of up to an additional $400.0 million of the Company’s outstanding common stock. On May 1, 2019, the board of directors approved an additional repurchase authorization amount of $372.5 million to bring the total available share repurchase authorization at that time to approximately $500.0 million.

During 2021, the Company repurchased 1,811,853 shares at an average price of $45.57 for a total cost of $82.6 million under the current share repurchase authorization. At December 31, 2021, the remaining amount authorized by our board of directors for share repurchases was $323.6 million. Under the authorized repurchase programs, the Company has repurchased approximately 18.5 million shares for an aggregate cost of approximately $673.9 million between 2014 and 2021.

The following table presents information with respect to our purchases of our common stock during the three months ended December 31, 2021.

Performance Graph

The following graph is a comparison of five-year cumulative total shareholder returns for our common stock as compared with the cumulative total shareholder return for the NYSE Composite Index, and a group of peer insurance broker and agency companies (Aon plc, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co, Marsh & McLennan Companies, and Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company). The returns of each company have been weighted according to such companies’ respective stock market capitalizations as of December 31, 2016 for the purposes of arriving at a peer group average. The total return calculations are based upon an assumed $100 investment on December 31, 2016, with all dividends reinvested.

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ITEM 6. Reserved.

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ITEM 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

General

Company Overview

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with our Consolidated Financial Statements and the related Notes to those Financial Statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. In addition, please see “Information Regarding Non-GAAP Measures” below, regarding important information on non-GAAP financial measures contained in our discussion and analysis.

We are a diversified insurance agency, wholesale brokerage, insurance programs and services organization headquartered in Daytona Beach, Florida. As an insurance intermediary, our principal sources of revenue are commissions paid by insurance companies and, to a lesser extent, fees paid directly by customers. Commission revenues generally represent a percentage of the premium paid by an insured and are affected by fluctuations in both premium rate levels charged by insurance companies and the insureds’ underlying “insurable exposure units,” which are units that insurance companies use to measure or express insurance exposed to risk (such as property values, sales or payroll levels) to determine what premium to charge the insured. Insurance companies establish these premium rates based upon many factors, including loss experience, risk profile and reinsurance rates paid by such insurance companies, none of which we control. We also operate a capitalized captive insurance facility (the "Captive") for the purpose of having additional capacity to sell property insurance for earthquake and wind exposed properties. The Captive buys reinsurance, limiting, but not eliminating the Company's exposure to underwriting losses and revenues are recognized as net retained earned premiums over the associated policy periods.

We have increased revenues every year from 1993 to 2021, with the exception of 2009, when our revenues declined 1.0%. Our revenues grew from $95.6 million in 1993 to $3.1 billion in 2021, reflecting a compound annual growth rate of 13.2%. In the same 28-year period, we increased net income from $8.1 million to $587.1 million in 2021, a compound annual growth rate of 16.5%.

The volume of business from new and existing customers, fluctuations in insurable exposure units, changes in premium rate levels, changes in general economic and competitive conditions, a health pandemic, and the occurrence of catastrophic weather events all affect our revenues. For example, level rates of inflation or a general decline in economic activity could limit increases in the values of insurable exposure units. Conversely, increasing costs of litigation settlements and awards could cause some customers to seek higher levels of insurance coverage. Historically, we have grown our revenues as a result of our focus on net new business and acquisitions. We foster a strong, decentralized sales and service culture which enables responsiveness to changing business conditions and drives accountability for results.

The term “Organic Revenue,” a non-GAAP measure, is our core commissions and fees less: (i) the core commissions and fees earned for the first 12 months by newly-acquired operations; (ii) divested business (core commissions and fees generated from offices, books of business or niches sold or terminated during the comparable period); and (iii) the period over period impact of foreign currency translation, which is calculated by applying current year foreign exchange rates to the same period in the prior year. The term “core commissions and fees” excludes profit-sharing contingent commissions and guaranteed supplemental commissions, and therefore represents the revenues earned directly from specific insurance policies sold, and specific fee-based services rendered. “Organic Revenue” is reported in this manner in order to express the current year’s core commissions and fees on a comparable basis with the prior year’s core commissions and fees. The resulting net change reflects the aggregate changes attributable to: (i) net new and lost accounts; (ii) net changes in our customers’ exposure units; (iii) net changes in insurance premium rates or the commission rate paid to us by our carrier partners; and (iv) the net change in fees paid to us by our customers. Organic Revenue is reported in “Results of Operations” and in “Results of Operations - Segment Information” of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. In connection with the Captive, we will recognize revenue starting in 2022 on a net retained earned premiums basis in a manner consistent with core commissions and fees. Beginning in 2022 we will no longer exclude guaranteed supplemental commissions from core commissions and fees and therefore they will be a component of Organic Revenue. We anticipate presenting certain prior periods accordingly so that the calculation of Organic Revenue compares both periods on the same basis. Guaranteed supplemental commissions are a small and increasingly more stable source of revenue that are highly correlated to core commissions, so excluding them provides no meaningful incremental value in evaluating our revenue performance.

We also earn “profit-sharing contingent commissions,” which are commissions based primarily on underwriting results, but which may also reflect considerations for volume, growth and/or retention. These commissions, which are included in our commissions and fees in the Consolidated Statement of Income, are accrued throughout the year based on actual premiums written and are primarily received in the first and second quarters of each subsequent year, based upon the aforementioned considerations for the prior year(s). Over the last three years, profit-sharing contingent commissions have averaged approximately 3.0% of commissions and fees revenue.

Certain insurance companies offer guaranteed fixed-base agreements, referred to as “Guaranteed Supplemental Commissions” (“GSCs”) in lieu of profit-sharing contingent commissions. GSCs are accrued throughout the year based on actual premiums written. Over the last three years, GSCs have averaged less than 1.0% of commissions and fees revenue.

Combined, our profit-sharing contingent commissions and GSCs for the year ended December 31, 2021 increased by $14.1 million over 2020. This increase was the result of recent acquisitions and qualifying for certain profit-sharing contingent commissions and GSCs in
2021 that we did not qualify for in the prior year.

Fee revenues primarily relate to services other than securing coverage for our customers, as well as fees negotiated in lieu of commissions, and are recognized as performance obligations are satisfied. Fee revenues are generated by: (i) our Services segment, which provides insurance-related services, including third-party claims administration and comprehensive medical utilization management services in both the workers’ compensation and all-lines liability arenas, as well as Medicare Set-aside services, Social Security disability and Medicare

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benefits advocacy services, and claims adjusting services; (ii) our National Programs and Wholesale Brokerage segments, which earn fees primarily for the issuance of insurance policies on behalf of insurance companies; and (iii) our Retail segment in our large-account customer base, where we primarily earn fees for securing insurance for our customers, and in our automobile dealer services (“F&I”) businesses where we primarily earn fees for assisting our customers with creating and selling warranty and service risk management programs. Fee revenues as a percentage of our total commissions and fees, represented 27.4% in 2021 and 26.1% in 2020.

For the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, our commissions and fees growth rate was 16.9% and 9.3%, respectively, and our consolidated Organic Revenue growth rate was 10.4% and 3.8%, respectively.

Investment income consists primarily of interest earnings on operating cash, and where permitted, on premiums and advance premiums collected and held in a fiduciary capacity before being remitted to insurance companies. Our policy is to invest available funds in high-quality, short-term fixed income investment securities. Investment income also includes gains and losses realized from the sale of investments. Other income primarily reflects legal settlements and other miscellaneous revenues.

Income before income taxes for the year ended December 31, 2021 increased by $138.7 million over 2020, as a result of net new business, acquisitions we completed since 2020, and management of our expense base, partially offset by an increase in the change in estimated acquisition earn-out payables.

Information Regarding Non-GAAP Measures

In the discussion and analysis of our results of operations, in addition to reporting financial results in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), we provide references to the following non-GAAP financial measures as defined in Regulation G of SEC rules: Organic Revenue, Organic Revenue growth, EBITDAC and EBITDAC Margin. EBITDAC is defined as income before interest, income taxes, depreciation, amortization, and the change in estimated acquisition earn-out payables ("EBITDAC"). EBITDAC Margin is defined as EBITDAC divided by total revenues. We view these non-GAAP financial measures as important indicators when assessing and evaluating our performance on a consolidated basis and for each of our segments because they allow us to determine a more comparable, but non-GAAP, measurement of revenue growth and operating performance that is associated with the revenue sources that were a part of our business in both the current and prior year. We believe that Organic Revenue provides a meaningful representation of our operating performance and view Organic Revenue growth as an important indicator when assessing and evaluating the performance of our four segments. Organic Revenue can be expressed as a dollar amount or a percentage rate when describing Organic Revenue growth. We use Organic Revenue growth in determining incentive cash compensation and as a performance measure in our equity incentive grants for our executive officers and other key
employees. We use EBITDAC Margin for incentive cash compensation determinations for our executive officers. We view EBITDAC and EBITDAC Margin as important indicators of operating performance, because they allow us to determine more comparable, but non-GAAP, measurements of our operating margins in a meaningful and consistent manner by removing the significant non-cash items of depreciation, amortization, and the change in estimated acquisition earn-out payables, as well as interest expense and taxes, which are reflective of investment and financing activities, not operating performance.

These measures are not in accordance with, or an alternative to the GAAP information provided in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. We present such non-GAAP supplemental financial information because we believe such information is of interest to the investment community and because we believe they provide additional meaningful methods of evaluating certain aspects of our operating performance from period to period on a basis that may not be otherwise apparent on a GAAP basis. We believe these non-GAAP financial measures improve the comparability of results between periods by eliminating the impact of certain items that have a high degree of variability. Our industry peers may provide similar supplemental non-GAAP information with respect to one or more of these measures, although they may not use the same or comparable terminology and may not make identical adjustments. This supplemental financial information should be considered in addition to, not in lieu of, our Consolidated Financial Statements.

Tabular reconciliations of this supplemental non-GAAP financial information to our most comparable GAAP information are contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K under “Results of Operation - Segment Information.”

Acquisitions

Part of our business strategy is to attract high-quality insurance intermediaries and service organizations to join our operations. From 1993 through the fourth quarter of 2021, we acquired 580 insurance intermediary operations.

Critical Accounting Policies

Our Consolidated Financial Statements are prepared in accordance with GAAP. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. We continually evaluate our estimates, which are based upon a combination of historical experience and assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. These estimates form the basis for our judgments about the recognition of revenues, expenses, carrying values of our assets and liabilities, of which values are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

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We believe that of our significant accounting and reporting policies, the more critical policies include our accounting for revenue recognition, business combinations and purchase price allocations, intangible asset impairments, non-cash stock-based compensation and reserves for litigation. In particular, the accounting for these areas requires significant use of judgment to be made by management. Different assumptions in the application of these policies could result in material changes in our consolidated financial position or consolidated results of operations.

Revenue Recognition

The majority of our revenue is commissions derived from our performance as agents and brokers, acting on behalf of insurance carriers to sell products to customers that are seeking to transfer risk, and conversely, acting on behalf of those customers in negotiating with insurance carriers seeking to acquire risk in exchange for premiums. In the majority of these arrangements, our performance obligation is complete upon the effective date of the bound policy, as such, that is when the associated revenue is recognized. In some arrangements, where we are compensated through commissions, we also perform other services for our customer beyond binding of coverage. In those arrangements we apportion the commission between binding of coverage and other services based on their relative fair value and recognize the associated revenue as those performance obligations are satisfied. Where the Company’s performance obligations have been completed, but the final amount of compensation is unknown due to variable factors, we estimate the amount of such compensation. We refine those estimates upon our receipt of additional information or final settlement, whichever occurs first.

To a lesser extent, the Company earns revenues in the form of fees. Like commissions, fees paid to us in lieu of commission, are recognized upon the effective date of the bound policy. When we are paid a fee for service, however, the associated revenue is recognized over a period of time that coincides with when the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefit of our work, which characterizes most of our claims processing arrangements and various services performed in our property and casualty, and employee benefits practices. Other fees are typically recognized upon the completion of the delivery of the agreed-upon services to the customer.

To a much lesser extent, the Company will earn revenues starting in 2022 in the form of net retained earned premiums in connection with the Captive, in which the majority of underwriting risk is reinsured and a small portion is retained by the Company. These premiums are reported net of the ceded premiums for reinsurance and recognized evenly over the associated policy periods.

Management determines a policy cancellation reserve based upon historical cancellation experience adjusted in accordance with known circumstances.

Please see Note 2 “Revenues” in the “Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements” for additional information regarding the nature and timing of our revenues.

Business Combinations and Purchase Price Allocations

We have acquired significant intangible assets through acquisitions of businesses. These assets generally consist of purchased customer accounts, non-compete agreements, and the excess of purchase prices over the fair value of identifiable net assets acquired (goodwill). The determination of estimated useful lives and the allocation of purchase price to intangible assets requires significant judgment and affects the amount of future amortization and possible impairment charges.

In connection with acquisitions, we record the estimated value of the net tangible assets purchased and the value of the identifiable intangible assets purchased, which typically consist of purchased customer accounts and non-compete agreements. Purchased customer accounts include the right to represent insureds or claimants supported by the physical records and files obtained from acquired businesses that contain information about insurance policies, customers and other matters essential to policy renewals of delivery of services. Their value primarily represents the present value of the underlying cash flows expected to be received over the estimated future duration of the acquired customer relationships. The valuation of purchased customer accounts involves significant estimates and assumptions concerning matters such as cancellation frequency, expenses and discount rates. Any change in these assumptions could affect the carrying value of purchased customer accounts. Non-compete agreements are valued based upon their duration and any unique features of the particular agreements. Purchased customer accounts and non-compete agreements are amortized on a straight-line basis over the related estimated lives and contract periods, which typically range from 3 to 15 years. The excess of the purchase price of an acquisition over the fair value of the identifiable tangible and intangible assets is assigned to goodwill and is not amortized.

The recorded purchase prices for all acquisitions include an estimation of the fair value of liabilities associated with any potential earn-out provisions, where an earn-out is part of the negotiated transaction. Subsequent changes in the fair value of earn-out obligations are recorded in the Consolidated Statement of Income as a result of updated expectations for the performance of the associated business.

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The fair value of earn-out obligations is based upon the present value of the expected future payments to be made to the sellers of the acquired businesses in accordance with the provisions contained in the respective purchase agreements. In determining fair value, the acquired business’s future performance is estimated using financial projections developed by management for the acquired business, and this estimate reflects market participant assumptions regarding revenue growth and/or profitability. The expected future payments are estimated based on the earn-out formula and performance targets specified in each purchase agreement compared to the associated financial projections. These estimates are then discounted to a present value using a risk-adjusted rate that takes into consideration the likelihood that the forecast earn-out payments will be made.

Intangible Assets Impairment

Goodwill is subject to at least an annual assessment for impairment, measured by a fair-value-based test. Amortizable intangible assets are amortized over their useful lives and are subject to an impairment review based upon an estimate of the undiscounted future cash flows resulting from the use of the assets. To determine if there is potential impairment of goodwill, we compare the fair value of each reporting unit with its carrying value. The Company may elect to first perform a qualitative assessment to determine whether it is more likely than not that a reporting unit is impaired. If the Company does not perform a qualitative assessment, or if it is determined that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit exceeds its carrying amount, the Company will calculate the fair value of the reporting unit. If the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying value, an impairment loss would be recorded to the extent that the fair value of the goodwill within the reporting unit is less than its carrying value. Fair value is estimated based upon multiples of EBITDAC, or on a discounted cash flow basis.

Management assesses the recoverability of our goodwill and our amortizable intangibles and other long-lived assets annually and whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of such assets may not be recoverable. Any of the following factors, if present, may trigger an impairment review: (i) a significant underperformance relative to historical or projected future operating results, (ii) a significant negative industry or economic trend, and (iii) a significant decline in our market capitalization. If the recoverability of these assets is unlikely because of the existence of one or more of the above-referenced factors, an impairment analysis is performed. Management must make assumptions regarding estimated future cash flows and other factors to determine the fair value of these assets. If these estimates or related assumptions change in the future, we may be required to revise the assessment and, if appropriate, record an impairment charge. We completed our most recent evaluation of impairment for goodwill as of November 30, 2021 and determined that the fair value of goodwill exceeded the carrying value of such assets. Additionally, there have been no impairments recorded for amortizable intangible assets for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020.

Non-Cash Stock-Based Compensation

We grant non-vested stock awards to our employees, with the related compensation expense recognized in the financial statements over the associated service period based upon the grant-date fair value of those awards. During the performance measurement period, we review the probable outcome of the performance conditions associated with our performance awards and align the expense accruals with the expected performance outcome.

During the first quarter of 2021, the performance conditions for approximately 1.2 million shares of the Company’s common stock granted under the Company’s 2010 SIP and approximately 22,000 shares of the Company’s common stock granted under the Company’s 2019 SIP were determined by the Compensation Committee to have been satisfied relative to performance-based grants issued in 2018 and 2020. These grants had a performance measurement period that concluded on December 31, 2020. The vesting condition for these grants requires continuous employment for a period of up to five years from the 2018 grant date and four years from the 2020 grant date in order for the awarded shares to become fully vested and nonforfeitable. As a result of the awarding of these shares, the grantees will be eligible to receive payments of dividends and exercise voting privileges after the awarding date, and the awarded shares will be included as issued and outstanding common stock shares and included in the calculation of basic and diluted net income per share.

During the first quarter of 2022, the performance conditions for approximately 1.3 million shares of the Company’s common stock granted under the Company’s 2010 SIP and approximately 22,000 shares of the Company’s common stock granted under the Company’s 2019 SIP were determined by the Compensation Committee to have been satisfied relative to performance-based grants issued in 2019 and 2021. These grants had a performance measurement period that concluded on December 31, 2021. The vesting condition for these grants requires continuous employment for a period of up to five years from the 2019 grant date and four years from the 2021 grant date in order for the awarded shares to become fully vested and nonforfeitable. As a result of the awarding of these shares, the grantees will be eligible to receive payments of dividends and exercise voting privileges after the awarding date, and the awarded shares will be included as issued and outstanding common stock shares and included in the calculation of basic and diluted net income per share.

Litigation and Claims

We are subject to numerous litigation claims that arise in the ordinary course of business. If it is probable that a liability has been incurred at the date of the financial statements and the amount of the loss is estimable, an accrual for the costs to resolve these claims is recorded in accrued expenses in the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements. Professional fees related to these claims are included in other operating expenses in the accompanying Consolidated Statement of Income as incurred. Management, with the assistance of in-house and outside counsel, determines whether it is probable that a liability has been incurred and estimates the amount of loss based upon analysis of individual issues. New developments or changes in settlement strategy in dealing with these matters may significantly affect the required reserves and affect our net income.

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RESULTS OF OPERATIONS FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2021 AND 2020

The following discussion and analysis regarding results of operations and liquidity and capital resources should be considered in conjunction with the accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements and related Notes. For a comparison of our results of operations and liquidity and capital resources for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, please see Part II, Item 7 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 23, 2021.

Financial information relating to our Consolidated Financial Results is as follows:

NMF = Not a meaningful figure

Commissions and Fees

Commissions and fees, including profit-sharing contingent commissions and GSCs for 2021, increased $441.4 million to $3,047.5 million, or 16.9% over 2020. Core commissions and fees in 2021 increased $427.3 million, composed of (i) $261.3 million of net new and renewal business, which reflects an Organic Revenue growth rate of 10.4%; (ii) $170.1 million from acquisitions that had no comparable revenues in the same period of 2020; (iii) a positive impact from foreign currency translation of $1.2 million; and (iv) an offsetting decrease of $5.3 million related to commissions and fees revenue from business divested in the preceding 12 months. Profit-sharing contingent commissions and GSCs for 2021 increased by $14.1 million, or 16.2%, compared to the same period in 2020. This increase was the result of recent acquisitions and qualifying for certain profit-sharing contingent commissions and GSCs in 2021 that we did not qualify for in the prior year.

Investment Income

Investment income decreased to $1.1 million in 2021, compared with $2.8 million in 2020. The decrease was primarily due to lower interest rates as compared to the prior year.

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Other Income, Net

Other income for 2021 was $2.7 million, compared with $4.5 million in 2020. Other income consists primarily of legal settlements and other miscellaneous income.

Employee Compensation and Benefits

Employee compensation and benefits expense as a percentage of total revenues was 53.6% for the year ended December 31, 2021 as compared to 55.0% for the year ended December 31, 2020, and increased 14.0%, or $200.5 million. This increase included $70.7 million of compensation costs related to stand-alone acquisitions that had no comparable costs in the same period of 2020. Therefore, employee compensation and benefits expense attributable to those offices that existed in the same time periods of 2021 and 2020 increased by $129.8 million or 9.2%. This underlying employee compensation and benefits expense increase was primarily related to: (i) an increase in staff salaries attributable to salary inflation; (ii) an increase in accrued performance bonuses; and (iii) an increase in producer compensation associated with revenue growth.

Other Operating Expenses

Other operating expenses represented 13.2% of total revenues for 2021 as compared to 14.0% for the year ended December 31, 2020. Other operating expenses for 2021 increased $37.0 million, or 10.1%, from the same period of 2020 growing slower than revenues. The net increase included: (i) $40.2 million of other operating expenses related to stand-alone acquisitions that had no comparable costs in the same period of 2020; (ii) increased data processing costs as we invest in our business to drive future growth; (iii) slightly higher variable operating expenses, including travel and entertainment and meeting-related expenses; partially offset by (iv) non-recurring legal costs and the write-off recorded in 2020 of certain receivables in one of our programs where it was determined the collectability was in doubt and which did not recur in 2021.

Gain or Loss on Disposal

The Company recognized net gains on disposals of $9.6 million in 2021 and $2.4 million in 2020. The change in the net gain on disposal was due to activity associated with sales of businesses or portions of businesses. Although we are not in the business of selling customer accounts, we periodically sell an office or a book of business (one or more customer accounts) that we believe does not produce reasonable margins or demonstrate a potential for growth, or because doing so is in the Company’s best interest.

Amortization

Amortization expense for 2021 increased $11.1 million to $119.6 million, or 10.2% over 2020. This increase reflects the amortization of new intangibles from businesses acquired within the past 12 months, partially offset by certain intangible assets becoming fully amortized.

Depreciation

Depreciation expense for 2021 increased $7.0 million to $33.3 million, or 26.8% over 2020. Changes in depreciation expense reflect the addition of fixed assets resulting from business initiatives, net additions of fixed assets resulting from businesses acquired in the past 12 months, partially offset by fixed assets which became fully depreciated.

Interest Expense

Interest expense for 2021 increased $6.0 million to $65.0 million, or 10.2%, from 2020. The increase is due to higher average debt balances from increased borrowings associated with the issuance of bonds in September 2020, partially offset by the decrease in interest rates associated with our floating rate debt balances.

Change in Estimated Acquisition Earn-Out Payables

Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 805-Business Combinations is the authoritative guidance requiring an acquirer to recognize 100% of the fair value of acquired assets, including goodwill and assumed liabilities (with only limited exceptions) upon initially obtaining control of an acquired entity. Additionally, the fair value of contingent consideration arrangements (such as earn-out purchase price arrangements) at the acquisition date must be included in the purchase price consideration. The recorded purchase price for acquisitions includes an estimation of the fair value of liabilities associated with any potential earn-out provisions. Subsequent changes in these earn-out obligations are required to be recorded in the Consolidated Statement of Income when incurred or reasonably estimated. Estimations of potential earn-out obligations are typically based upon future earnings of the acquired operations or entities, usually for periods ranging from one to three years.

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The net charge or credit to the Consolidated Statement of Income for the period is the combination of the net change in the estimated acquisition earn-out payables balance, and the interest expense imputed on the outstanding balance of the estimated acquisition earn-out payables.

As of December 31, 2021, the fair values of the estimated acquisition earn-out payables were reevaluated and measured at fair value on a recurring basis using unobservable inputs (Level 3) as defined in ASC 820-Fair Value Measurement. The resulting net changes, as well as the interest expense accretion on the estimated acquisition earn-out payables, for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 were as follows:

For the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, the fair value of estimated earn-out payables was reevaluated and increased by $34.2 million for 2021 and decreased by $11.8 million for 2020, which are charges and credits respectively, net of interest expense accretion, to the Consolidated Statement of Income for 2021 and 2020.

As of December 31, 2021, the estimated acquisition earn-out payables equaled $291.0 million, of which $78.4 million was recorded as accounts payable and $212.6 million was recorded as other non-current liabilities. As of December 31, 2020, the estimated acquisition earn-out payables equaled $258.9 million, of which $79.2 million was recorded as accounts payable and $179.7 million was recorded as other non-current liabilities.

Income Taxes

The effective tax rate on income from operations was 23.0% in 2021 and 2020.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS — SEGMENT INFORMATION

As discussed in Note 16 “Segment Information” of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, we operate four reportable segments: Retail, National Programs, Wholesale Brokerage and Services. On a segmented basis, changes in amortization, depreciation and interest expenses generally result from activity associated with acquisitions. Likewise, other revenues in each segment reflects net gains primarily from legal settlements and miscellaneous income. As such, in evaluating the operational efficiency of a segment, management focuses on the Organic Revenue growth rate and EBITDAC margin.

The reconciliation of total commissions and fees included in the Consolidated Statements of Income to Organic Revenue, a non-GAAP financial measure, including by segment, and the growth rates for Organic Revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021 are as follows:

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The reconciliation of total commissions and fees included in the Consolidated Statements of Income to Organic Revenue, a non-GAAP financial measure, including by segment, and the growth rates for Organic Revenue for the year ended December 31, 2020, by segment, are as follows:

The reconciliation of income before incomes taxes, included in the Consolidated Statement of Income, to EBITDAC, a non-GAAP measure, and Income Before Income Taxes Margin to EBITDAC Margin, a non-GAAP measure, for the year ended December 31, 2021, is as follows: