Aspen begins push into UK regions

Aspen Insurance UK, a subsidiary of global (re)insurer Aspen Insurance Holdings, has announced that its UK regional platform is now fully operational and providing new insurance and risk management products for selected brokers and their clients in the UK market.

The platform, called Aspen Risk Management, will write business through a network of regional offices and has already established a presence in Birmingham and Bristol with plans to open further offices in due course, including Glasgow, which will open in February 2011.

In preparation for opening its Glasgow office, Aspen has hired, Duncan Leask as Head of Underwriting Scotland, Neal Robb as deputy head of underwriting and Craig Provan as head of risk management.

Aspen Risk Management, led by Kevin Pallett and Geoff Crisp, has made a number of senior appointments to date. These include Paul Hurdle as underwriting director, Sue McCall as head of claims, Gary Duncombe as head of risk management and Brian Garner as head of operations. The company has already recruited a team of 26 professionals in total, including a claims team based in London, and expects to hire more people as the business continues to develop.

Each office in Aspen's new regional network will offer a range of property, casualty and specialty insurance products supported by a risk management proposition. The service will be distributed through a select panel of brokers.