The Hartford Announces Sale of Omni Insurance Group

HARTFORD, Conn., July 19 -- The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. , one of the nation's leading providers of investment and insurance products, today announced a definitive agreement to sell its non-standard property and casualty subsidiary, Omni Insurance Group, to Independent Insurance Investments, Inc. (4i's), a portfolio company of Inverness Partners II, for approximately $100 million.

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"The Hartford's purchase of Omni in 1998 enabled the company to successfully enter the non-standard auto insurance market," said David Zwiener, president and chief operating officer of The Hartford's Property and Casualty Operations. "Today, The Hartford has the capacity to meet its customers' needs through its enhanced Dimensions auto program. This agreement is a win-win for both parties; Omni will be able to thrive in a pure-play, non-standard organization and The Hartford will continue to focus on its core classes of business. We look forward to working with 4i's on a successful transition."

The transaction is expected to close by the fourth quarter of 2006, subject to regulatory approval and other required consents. The Hartford expects the sale will result in an after-tax realized capital gain due to a tax benefit that will be recognized at closing. The after-tax gain is not expected to be material to results of operations. UBS Investment Bank acted as the financial advisor to The Hartford in this transaction. Current Omni insurance policies will remain in force.

Independent Insurance Investments, Inc. is a rapidly growing non-standard auto insurance specialist. 4i's was acquired in December 2004 by Inverness Partners II in a transaction backing management led by Bill Lockhorn, chief executive officer and a director of 4i's. Upon completion of the transaction, Inverness, together with its limited partners, will have approximately $100 million of equity capital invested in 4i's.

The Hartford, a Fortune 100 company, is one of the nation's largest financial services and insurance companies, with 2005 revenues of $27.1 billion. The Hartford is a leading provider of investment products, life insurance and group benefits; automobile and homeowners products; and business property and casualty insurance. International operations are located in Japan, Brazil and the United Kingdom. The Hartford's Internet address is http://www.thehartford.com/.

Some of the statements in this release should be considered forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These include statements about our future results of operations. We caution investors that these forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results may differ materially. Investors should consider the important risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ. These important risks and uncertainties include those discussed in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, our 2005 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the other filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We assume no obligation to update this release, which speaks as of the date issued.

  Contact(s): Media
              Joshua King
              860-547-2293
              joshua.king@thehartford.com

              Shannon Lapierre
              860-547-5624
              shannon.lapierre@thehartford.com

              Investors
              Kim Johnson
              860-547-6781
              kimberly.johnson@thehartford.com

              Greg Schroeter
              860-547-9140
              gregory.schroeter@thehartford.com

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