Amica Mutual Insurance Co. says it plans to move its 56-employee service center here to larger quarters and to add 23 employees at the center by June.


The big Lincoln, R.I.-based insurer has leased about 12,000 square feet of office space at 12310 E. Mirabeau Parkway, in the Pinecroft Business Park, and will move its western service center there on April 1, says Jeff Teece, a manager at the center.


The service center currently is located in about 8,000 square feet of office space at 501 N. Riverpoint Blvd. near downtown. The center is one of two Amica operates nationally and handles between 600 and 700 calls a day from all over the country, Teece says. The other center is located in Rhode Island.


He says the center here is expected to have 85 employees eventually. The growth is occurring because Amica is adding policyholders, he says.


Were headquartered back East, but found a need to expand in this time zone, Teece says, adding, We have a pretty good labor pool with qualified candidates here.


Most employees at the western service center here are associate national service representatives who handle telephone service calls for claims, roadside assistance, claim-related rentals, and auto glass repair and replacement programs.


They will handle any type of calls one of our branches would receive, says Vincent Burks, senior assistant vice president for Amica, in Lincoln. The insurance lines Amica offers include, auto, homeowners, boat, life, and personal liability.


Burks says the expanded service center here also will enable the company to redirect initial claims calls for faster service in times of disaster.


He declines to discuss the pay range for employees here, but says Amica is well-known for its benefits package, which includes medical, dental, and life insurance, as well as a pension and savings plans.


Amica says it has more than 3,100 employees, more than 1.1 million policies in force, and more than $3.5 billion in assets. The company operates 40 offices throughout the U.S., including a regional branch office in Bellevue, Wash.


Amica is doing very well when it comes to growth, Burks says.


The company, which was founded in 1907, opened its Spokane service center in 2000.


Contact Mike McLean at (509) 344-1266 or via e-mail at mikem@spokanejournal.com.