About Us
Our Office History.
For over 60 years, we have provided risk management, and financial products and services to corporations, institutions and individuals throughout the world.
What Makes Us Different
We take a pro-active approach to the management and servicing of your account with:
- tailor-made programs shaped to your needs, not to the needs of a representative peer group
- pre-implementation services such as contract reviews, exposure analysis, and professional wrap-up feasibility studies
- the skill and knowledge to develop innovative new products to address wrap-up issues and exposures as they arise
- large investment in technology to allow rapid transfer of vital information to clients and wrap-up markets
- in-house wrap-up professionals acting as your committed advocates
We have vast resources that enable our team of professionals to deliver innovative solutions to our clients. By utilizing the experience and creativity of top-level insurance experts in conjunction with the firm’s worldwide resources, your Alera Group Las Vegas is able to provide sophisticated products and service unparalleled in the insurance industry.
Our Mission
Every client is important to us. Whether a single individual or multimillion dollar corporation, each is assured of receiving the most competent insurance analysis and placement available.
The insurance industry is continuously evolving. Our resource capabilities provide us with the tools necessary to keep our clients informed regarding regulatory issues and current events that can affect our clients’ bottom line. We utilize the most efficient technological methods available that align with the needs of our clients. Our professionals have real time access to the most current news and business intelligence available. These management tools allow us to maintain the highest level of client service.
Our vision is guided by a commitment to understanding, anticipating and meeting our clients diverse and changing needs.
We consider it both a privilege and a pleasure to represent our clients. Our goal is to maintain relationships that extend well beyond the realm of an insurance broker. Our unwavering dedication to integrity, professionalism and service ensures that Alera Group maintains its position as the pre-eminent insurance broker.
Meet Our Team
Lance Sullivan
Benefits Consultant
Lance provides employers with the best in employee benefits, strategizing innovative and collaborative solutions to control long-term health care costs.
After earning a BS in Education from Montana State University, Lance began a career in employee benefits spanning over twenty-nine years, starting in October of 1992 in Billings, Montana, and continuing to Wyoming, South Dakota, Florida, and Nevada.
Lance was originally an Air Force veteran from Montana, as well as a Miami Dolphins fan that loves to hike, read and experience new adventures. He and his wife Cynthia (Cyndee) have three children: A 27-year-old son that lives in California, a 26-year-old daughter in Florida, and a 20-year-old son that goes to college in Indiana.
Russell Swain
Managing Partner
Running one of Nevada’s oldest insurance agencies requires a professional team rich in local history and experience in the insurance industry. The management of Alera Group brings generational insurance experience and long-time Nevada residents together in one leadership team.
According to Russ, the insurance business runs in the family. He grew up learning about insurance and the surety business from his father, Russell E. (Rusty) Swain, and was given a chance to officially join the firm in 1979 when he joined George L. Brown Insurance just after graduating from high school. He joined the Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company as an underwriter trainee in 1981 and worked for the FFIC until 1983. Swain returned to the operation to work with his father and became the firms’ principal five years later, in 1988. Swain became company president in 2002 and has continued to lead the agency to additional years of steady growth and a notable reputation. Swain assisted personally in the successful merger of both the Holmes Insurance group in 2000 with GLB and Atkin & Prater Insurance in 2004, which would come to be known as GLB Insurance Group of Nevada before joining the Alera Group Las Vegas. Russ is currently a Managing Partner of the firm.
Swain obtained his Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) designation in 1997. A respected member of the insurance field, Swain served as President of the Independent Agents of Southern Nevada from 1990-91 and served as the State President of the NIIA from 2007-08, along with many other committees and service commitments in his industry.
Among his numerous efforts in the community, Swain is held in high regard for his continued work with the Las Vegas Rotary Club, where he has been an active member since 1994. He was President of the Rotary Club’s “25 Club” in 1995 and served on the Board of Directors for several terms. He was honored by being elected the President of the Las Vegas Rotary Club and served in that role from 2008-09. He also served as President of the Executive Development Association in 1997. Swain is also a member of the Nevada Contractors Association, the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, and the Better Business Bureau.
In his free time, Swain enjoys hiking, snow skiing, boating, motorcycles, bird hunting, ATV’s, and spending time with his family.
Estel Tarwater
Account Manager
Estel Tarwater, a licensed Insurance Professional comes to Alera Group | Las Vegas with more than 30 years’ experience as a large Group Sales and Client Service professional. Estel has managing group insurance products, benefits administration and assisted small business with Human Resource administration. Estel has worked for the largest managed care company in Nevada with Sierra Health Services Inc. ,and Health Plan of Nevada. In addition, Estel managed her own insurance agency that provided small businesses with group health and life insurance products and Human Resource administration. Estel graduated Rancho High School and attended the University of Phoenix concentrating in Business Administration. Estel is fluent in Spanish and has managed over 400 group open enrollments meetings for many small and large businesses in the Las Vegas valley relating to benefits administration.
Kelly Torres
Commercial Lines Account Executive
Kelly Torres is a commercial lines account executive in the Construction/Wrap-up department. She is responsible for the day-to-day management and marketing of the majority of construction/wrap-up projects and municipalities handled in the Las Vegas office. Her duties include marketing prospective business, negotiating contract terms and premiums with underwriters on behalf of the client, and communicating with the client on a daily basis. She is also responsible for creating and maintaining policy records, preparing and presenting proposals, issuing certificates, updating policy information, premium accounting, compiling loss runs and status reports and maintaining the credibility of essential insurance information throughout the entirety of a wrap-up. Kelly has over 30 years of experience in the insurance industry with the majority being in construction related business. She has been a licensed agent since 1982 and holds Accredited Customer Service Representative (ACSR) and Construction Risk Insurance Specialist (CRIS) designations.
EXPERT EDUCATION
Events and Webinars
Employee Benefits
When Captive Insurance Makes Sense
In this session, our experts will talk about how captives work, the advantages and disadvantages and what you need to know to determine whether they make sense for your organization.
November 21, 2024 at 01:00 pm CT | Virtual
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Employee Benefits
Q4 Compliance Update
Alera Group's quarterly employee benefits compliance roundup will help you stay current on the latest national regulatory developments impacting employers.
December 3, 2024 at 01:00 pm CT | Virtual
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THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
Insights
Employee Benefits
Webinar Preview: ‘When Captive Insurance Makes Sense’
As healthcare costs — including those for pharmacy — have continued to skyrocket, the urgency to control healthcare and pharmacy spend has elevated as well, and Captives have surged in popularity. Alera Group's webinar on Captive Insurance will help you determine whether forming or joining a Captive is right for you.
November 7, 2024
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Employee Benefits
Are You Prepared to Comply With the New Mental Health Parity Final Rule in 2025?
On September 9, 2024, the DOL, IRS and HHS released a final rule for the Requirements Related to the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA Final Rule). The MHPAEA Final Rule is similar to the proposed rule released on July 25, 2023, with some marked differences. While the MHPAEA Final Rule is effective as of November 22, 2024, the requirements become enforceable at different times. Most apply to plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2025, with other requirements becoming enforceable for plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2026.
October 25, 2024
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Legal Alert: IRS Adjusts Health Flexible Spending Account and Other Benefit Limits for 2025
On October 22, 2024, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Revenue Procedure 2024-40, which increases the health flexible spending account (FSA) salary reduction contribution limit to $3,300 for plan years beginning in 2025, an increase of $100 from 2024.
October 23, 2024
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