Former Tennessee insurance commissioner Julie Mix McPeak has joined Root Insurance in a leadership role. She is the Ohio-based InsurTech’s Senior Deputy General Counsel as of Sept. 1.

McPeak is well known among insurers. She served as commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance from January 2011 through late 2019, and was president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners in 2018. Previously, McPeak was also the Executive Director of the Kentucky Office of Insurance, the company noted.

Most recently, McPeak was part of the global law firm Greenberg Traurig, P.A. in the firm’s Insurance Regulatory and Transactions Practice.

McPeak will technically be working for Root Inc., Root Insurance’s parent company.

Root General Counsel Jon Allison said that McPeak will bring to the company “a wealth of knowledge of the regulatory landscape as well as a nationally recognized legal mind,” something important as the company nears being able to offer car insurance in all 50 states. McPeak will report to Allison.

Root, which launched in 2015, bills itself as the nation’s first licensed insurance carrier that functions entirely through mobile use. The company uses telematics and smartphone-related technology to reward good drivers with cheaper insurance rates.

Root secured a $350 million venture capital financing in September 2019, and is a rumored candidate for an initial public offering.

Root is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, with renters insurance available in Arkansas, Missouri, Ohio, Georgia, Kentucky, Nevada, Tennessee, and Utah, and auto insurance currently available to drivers in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Source: Root