Pen Underwriting secures new multiyear fleet capacity deal with Zurich

Pen Underwriting has announced it will expand its long-term strategic partnership with Zurich to add “expanded and enhanced” multiyear capacity for its specialist fleet insurance offerings.

The deal, effective from January 2026, will see Zurich provide the capacity for the MGA to underwrite over £350m of premium in the next five years, with the aim of expanding its portfolio to “support other industries that have specialist fleet risks that would benefit from Pen’s underwriting expertise”.

Previously, Zurich’s partnership with Pen focused on supporting the MGA’s specialisms of hazardous goods, tankers and environmental industries, including fuels and oils, chemicals, industrial cleaning and hazardous waste transportation.

The new agreement will see that partnership expand to Pen’s broader fleet risk portfolio, particularly regarding passenger transport risks such as bus, coach and minibus fleet cover.

Beyond the broadened fleet risk cover, the firm said the new deal would enable “enhanced levels of delegated underwriting and claims authority”, in turn improving its “speed of response, broker service and customer outcomes”.

Capacity commitment

Adam Shefras, managing director of hazardous goods and environmental industries at Pen, said: “Not only are we absolutely delighted to secure Zurich’s ongoing capacity commitment in support of hazardous and other bulk liquid fleet risks across the UK, but to be broadening out that partnership to encompass Pen’s other key fleet specialisms.

“The bus, coach and minibus sector is another highly specialist market, with limited participating insurers, where Pen offers long-held underwriting expertise, which we can now bring to more brokers and more clients.

“Pen’s longevity in these trades, combined with our lasting strategic collaboration with Zurich and high levels of underwriting and claims authority, means we are ideally placed to provide sustainable solutions and responsive service in sectors that have the potential for complex and catastrophic claims.”