GENESEO, Ill., August 14, 2026 — Hanford Insurance has once again been recognized as a Best Practices Agency, placing it among an exclusive group of the nation’s highest-performing independent insurance agencies.
The Best Practices Agency designation is awarded to participants in the Best Practices Study, a comprehensive analysis of the business practices, financial results and operational performance of leading independent insurance agencies across the United States.
More than 1,190 independent agencies were nominated during the current study cycle. For the 2026 study year, only 300 agencies qualified for and maintained the prestigious Best Practices Agency designation.
“We are honored to once again be recognized as a Best Practices Agency,” said Robbie Rushing, operations manager at Hanford Insurance. “This distinction reflects the dedication of our entire team and our commitment to serving our clients with integrity, personalized guidance and dependable service. For more than 170 years, Hanford Insurance has continued to grow and adapt while remaining focused on the people, businesses, farms and communities that place their trust in us.”
Since 1993, the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America—also known as the Big “I”—and Reagan Consulting, an Atlanta-based management consulting firm, have partnered to identify and benchmark the country’s leading independent insurance agencies across seven revenue categories.
Best Practices Agencies are selected every three years through a highly competitive nomination and qualification process. To earn the designation, an agency must rank among the top performers within its respective revenue category.
Participating agencies must submit detailed financial and operational information for annual review to maintain their Best Practices status throughout the three-year study cycle. The 2026 study year represents the second year of the current cycle.
Hanford Insurance traces its history to 1855, when James Manning Hosford founded an insurance agency in Geneseo, Illinois. Today, Hanford Insurance is an independent agency serving thousands of clients across several states. With offices in Geneseo, Erie, Prophetstown, Port Byron and Orion, the agency provides personal, business, farm, employee benefits, life and Medicare insurance solutions through relationships with more than 50 insurance carriers.
About Reagan Consulting
Founded in 1993, Reagan Consulting provides merger and acquisition advisory, capital raising, valuation, growth consulting, perpetuation planning and industry research services to the nation’s leading insurance brokerages.
About the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America
Founded in 1896, the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America—the Big “I”—is the nation’s oldest and largest national association of independent insurance agents and brokers, representing approximately 25,000 agency locations. Big “I” members are trusted insurance advisers who provide consumers with access to property, casualty, life, health, employee benefits and retirement products from a choice of insurance companies.