Zurich strengthens leadership in underwriting and claims
Alex Morgan has been appointed to Head of Retail in Underwriting and will be returning to Australia from Singapore, where he is currently the Head of Specialty for Commercial Insurance for Zurich’s Asia Pacific region. He will start in his new role in May and brings almost 17 years insurance experience having spent time as a Chief Underwriting Officer in Singapore, China and Japan, working as both an underwriter and a broker in the UK and Australian markets.
Tim Plant, CEO General Insurance said: “As we continue to respond to a rapidly changing SME insurance market, this role will be critical in maintaining our strong underwriting discipline while delivering premium solutions to meet the evolving needs of our customers and brokers.”
Zurich has also bolstered its claims leadership team with two new appointments:
James Dimitriou has been appointed to Head of Claims, General Insurance, and will be responsible for strategic, operational, financial and stakeholder responsibilities within General Insurance Claims operations. The role will support front line claims teams to deliver on strategy, business plans, and results.
James brings a wealth of operational and technical expertise to the role and will join Zurich in late January 2020, based in Melbourne. He is currently Executive Manager for Commercial & Specialty Short Tail Claims at IAG.
This follows the recent leadership appointment of Catherine L’Estrange as Head of Casualty & Specialty Claims.
Catherine joined Zurich Sydney in November 2019 and is responsible for Accident & Health, Financial Lines, Liability, Marine, Travel and Workers Compensation claims. Catherine brings more than 20-years experience in general insurance managing commercial claims and operations in Australia and Asia Pacific across all lines of business.
Catherine started her career in private practice and then had senior roles across various brands such as Lawcover, GIO, ACE, QBE and Minter Ellison Flex. Catherine is also an NMAS Accredited Mediator.
Tim Plant, CEO General Insurance said: “we’re fortunate to have such high calibre leaders joining us, who each bring deep experience and capability to our business. These appointments reflect the commitment we have at Zurich to strengthen our position in the commercial intermediated market, by delivering a first class claims experience and underwriting expertise to both our brokers and customers.”
ENDS
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Zurich Financial Services Australia is a life insurance, commercial insurance and investments specialist that has been participating in the Australian market since 1920. Since its acquisition of OnePath Life from ANZ in 2019, the organisation provides life insurance to more than 1.5 million Australian customers under both the Zurich and OnePath Life brands. Further information about Zurich Financial Services Australia is available at www.zurich.com.au.
Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) is a leading global multi-line insurer founded more than 150 years ago, which has grown into a business serving more than 82 million customers in more than 200 countries and territories, while delivering industry-leading total shareholder returns. Reflecting its purpose to ‘create a brighter future together,’ Zurich offers protection services that go beyond traditional insurance, to support its customers in building resilience. Since 2020, the Zurich Forest project supports reforestation and biodiversity restoration in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest. The Group has more than 65,000 employees and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd (ZURN) is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange and has a level I American Depositary Receipt (ZURVY) program, which is traded over-the-counter on OTCQX. Further information is available at www.zurich.com.