Charles H. Ogburn Named Non-Executive Chairman of Crawford & Company

ATLANTA, Jan. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Crawford & Company (NYSE: CRDA; CRDB) announced today that Charles H. Ogburn, a Company Board member and executive director at international investment firm Arcapita Inc., has been named non-executive chairman of the Board of Directors, effective Jan. 1, 2010.

In another, previously announced development, Thomas W. Crawford, former president and chief executive officer of Crawford & Company, stepped down as chairman, effective Dec. 31, 2009.

Ogburn was elected to the Crawford Board in February 2009, bringing a wealth of international business experience to the Company. Arcapita is a leading international investment firm with locations in Bahrain, London, Singapore and Atlanta. Ogburn is responsible for Arcapita's corporate investment line of business.

"With his background in international business, financial expertise and perspective, Charlie has proven to be an invaluable member of our Board during the past year," Jeffrey T. Bowman, Crawford's president and chief executive officer, said. "I am looking forward to working with him more closely as we continue to transform Crawford and solidify our position as the largest independent claims provider in the world."

Before joining Arcapita, Ogburn spent more than 15 years at the investment banking firm The Robinson-Humphrey Company Inc., most recently as senior managing director and co-head of investment banking. He also previously was an attorney with the law firm of King & Spalding.

Ogburn is a director of Caribou Coffee Company, a member of the Society of International Business Fellows and a member of the Duke University Islamic Studies Committee. He also is a director of the Atlanta Venture Forum and a trustee of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Foundation. He graduated from Duke University and earned his law degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law.

Tom Crawford retires after 40-plus years in insurance industry

Mr. Crawford has served on the Board since September 2004, when he was named president and CEO of Crawford. He retired from his executive role and became chairman of the Board at the end of 2007. While leading the company, Mr. Crawford was awarded the prestigious Turknett Leadership Character Award in February 2007. His service as president, CEO and chairman fulfilled a three- to five-year commitment he made when he joined Crawford.

"Crawford has benefited greatly from the expertise and insight Tom Crawford brought to us through his 40-plus years in the insurance industry," Bowman said. "His expectation of excellent performance in everything we do helped establish a strong foundation for continued operational success. On behalf of our Board and executives, I'd like to thank Tom for his successful leadership both as our chief executive and chairman."

Before coming to Crawford, Mr. Crawford founded and served as chairman of The Bodie Group Inc., a company specializing in individual and corporate coaching. He previously served as president of Retail Distribution for Prudential Financial and chairman and CEO of the Prudential Property and Casualty Co. He also was founder and CEO of Southern Heritage Insurance in Atlanta, which GEICO purchased in 1991.

Mr. Crawford began his career in 1965 with Allstate Insurance in his hometown of Roanoke, Va., and later held several officer positions at CNA Financial Group in Chicago, Ill., before founding Southern Heritage.

About Crawford

Based in Atlanta, Georgia, Crawford & Company (www.crawfordandcompany.com) is the world's largest independent provider of claims management solutions to the risk management and insurance industry as well as self-insured entities, with a global network of more than 700 locations in 63 countries. The Crawford

System of Claims Solutions(SM) offers comprehensive, integrated claims services, business process outsourcing and consulting services for major product lines including property and casualty claims management, workers' compensation claims and medical management, and legal settlement administration. The Company's shares are traded on the NYSE under the symbols CRDA and CRDB.

SOURCE Crawford & Company