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Morris & Reynolds: Proud History Meets

By Jason Mata, PIAM, CPII, CPIM, DAE

Florida agency blends old-fashioned values with a keen eye on the future.

 Thu, June 16, 2020
A city at dawn
A city at dawn
With Miami roots that go back more than a century, the Reynolds family has owned and operated Morris & Reynolds Insurance since 1950; thus 2020 marks the firm’s 70th anniversary. Despite taking direct hits from monster storms like 1992’s Hurricane Andrew and navigating the Great Recession, the agency continues to serve the insurance needs of its community under the leadership of Bob Reynolds, the third generation of his family to own and operate the agency.

Bob believes the longevity of his firm is rooted in an old-fashioned work ethic that his grandfather and agency founder, E.H. Reynolds, instilled from the outset, along with his team’s passion to provide clients reliable service and results while embracing modern tools and technology. “My grandfather would come home after a 12- or 14-hour day at work with two briefcases, sit down at the dinner table, loosen his tie, roll up his sleeves, and continue working while eating,” Bob explains. “That work ethic, along with building and enthusiastically educating an incredible team of dedicated people who are passionate about everything they do for our clients, is fundamental to why we continue to grow and thrive after 70 years in business.”

E.H. Reynolds, who grew up on a farm in upstate Vermont, was attending law school in Washington, D.C., when he was offered a job at a public utility in sunny south Florida and thus left the snow behind forever. Miami was a frontier seaport town at the turn of the last century, and his experiences purchasing land from the Seminole and Miccosukee Indian tribes, authoring Florida’s first workers compensation law, and working with visionary businessman Henry Flagler made for a fascinating life.

In 1950 “E. H.” opened his agency, E. H. Reynolds Insurance, in downtown Miami and began offering home, auto, business, life, and health insurance. His foundational principles, each of which remains integral to the firm today, were offering his clients reliability, peace of mind, competitive costs, and trusted insurer choices.

In 1953, E.H.’s son, Douglas H. Reynolds, CPIA, joined the agency after serving in the U.S. Army, where he attained the rank of captain. In 1954 the agency’s name was changed to E. H. Reynolds & Son Insurance as Douglas worked in the firm while finishing his studies at the University of Miami.

Nineteen fifty-eight was a busy year for the agency and family as Douglas purchased the business from his father and moved its offices to Coral Gables, where the agency would be based for nearly three decades. It was also in 1958 that Douglas merged his business with a local agency owned by Edwin Morris and changed its name to Morris & Reynolds Insurance.

In 1983, Robert (Bob) D. Reynolds joined Morris & Reynolds and, like his father before him, did so while completing his studies at the University of Miami, where he majored in finance and began his lifelong study of insurance. After graduation, Bob continued his education by earning professional designations: Certified Insurance Counselor, Certified Professional Insurance Agent (for which he has attained life member status), Associate in Insurance Services, Associate in Automation Management, and Associate in Underwriting. Today, Bob continues to find tremendous value in education and supports that passion by serving as a professor of insurance and risk management at the University of Miami.
A city at dawn Bob is justifiably proud of the business and team he’s led for nearly four decades. Many of the firm’s professionals have been with the agency for decades, and it’s easy to see why Bob and his wife, agency vice president Julianne, see them as part of the Morris & Reynolds family.

“Our incredible team of professional people is what makes Morris & Reynolds so special,” Bob says. “These are creative, caring, passionate people whom in many cases I’ve been honored to work with for 10, 20, 30, or more years and who share my dedication to relentlessly produce world-class results for our clients.”

As the insurance industry has changed dramatically over the decades, the team at Morris & Reynolds has continued its evolution by expanding the agency in both size and scope. Today the firm is one of the largest and oldest agencies in Florida. It offers its clients solutions for all of the risks they face, including personal and commercial lines, employee benefits, and individual insurance from leading insurers and brokers.

Morris & Reynolds also attributes the firm’s success to its company partners of insurers and brokers. “Our relationships with Halcyon Underwriters and Hull & Company date back decades,” Bob notes. “Their creativity, market access, and business acumen are second only to the wonderful quality of their people.”

As the firm celebrates its seventh decade in business, what does the future of Morris & Reynolds look like? If you ask Bob Reynolds, it will be more of that same hard work and dedicated client advocacy that his grandfather valued so many years ago, along with embracing modern digital tools and processes to serve its clients.

Such old-fashioned values never seem to go out of style, and at Morris & Reynolds, they are not only the firm’s foundation but also an essential key to its bright future in sunny south Florida.

The author
Jason Mata, PIAM, CPII, CPIM, DAE
is business development specialist
and compliance officer at Maitland,
Florida-based Halcyon Underwriters,
a division of Hull & Company, LLC.
This content is strictly informational and should not be used as specific advice on insurance products, legal, accounting, and/or tax related matters. Insureds should always contact the appropriate licensed professional for their insurance, legal, accounting, or tax needs.

Contact Us


Halcyon Underwriters

Attn: Compliance Dept.
555 Winderley Place Ste. 420
Maitland, FL 32751

Telephone
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Fax
(407) 660-0525


Should you wish to file a customer service issue, compliment or complaint, you may do so by emailing
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