People

Managing general agency and surplus lines wholesaler U.S. Risk Insurance Group Inc. named Terri Haselden vice president and manager of the Dallas Commercial Underwriting Department.

Haselden, an experienced underwriter with more than 20 years of insurance industry experience, also will have functional responsibility for all MGA binding authority for all U.S. Risk field operations. Her responsibilities include maintaining the division’s current book of business, as well as developing new markets. She will be based in Dallas.

Prior to joining U.S. Risk, Haselden was an underwriting manager with Unitrin Business Insurance in Dallas, where she built, staffed and grew a new commercial lines underwriting profit center. Haselden also has held a senior underwriting manager position with Safeco Insurance Companies and a senior underwriting position with Philadelphia Insurance Company.

U.S. Risk Insurance Group Inc. also named Jeff Hicks a senior underwriter in its commercial underwriting department. Hicks will specialize in transportation, property and casualty lines, primarily in Texas, but will have additional opportunities to provide coverage in nearby states such as Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Arkansas.

Most recently, Hicks was a senior commercial underwriter for the East Texas territory of Unitrin Business Insurance. Prior to that position, he spent nine years as a commercial and personal insurance underwriter with Auto Owners Insurance Company.

Luis A. Vázquez was named manager of Commercial Lines and Quality Assurance for Quirk & Company, an insurance wholesaler headquartered in San Antonio. In addition to Quality Assurance and regulatory compliance, Vázquez’s focus will be on the growth of the Commercial Lines division.

Vázquez brings over 15 years of surplus lines experience having held positions in auditing, international risk placement, and management of a premium finance company. Most recently, he has forged the road for the new Quality Assurance division of Quirk & Company.

Dallas-based McQueary Henry Bowles Troy L.L.P. (MHBT) announced that Jacqueline Benavidez joined its Austin office as client wellness coordinator. Working with the firm’s Austin, Dallas and Fort Worth offices, in this role, Benavidez will assist MHBT clients in developing, promoting and evaluating their workplace wellness programs. She will consult with MHBT clients on program selection, incentives and implementation, as well as help with coordination of wellness events, employee communications and evaluation of client aggregate health risk and claims reports.

Prior to joining MHBT, Benavidez served as a nutritional educator and personal consultant with HealthWealth Inc.

BMS, a reinsurance intermediary based in Philadelphia, has appointed James T. Buysse as CEO of its North American operations, BMS Intermediaries Inc.

Buysse has 25 years of experience in the reinsurance industry. He began his reinsurance career at Towers Perrin Reinsurance in 1979. In 1993, he joined Greg Fester as president and CEO of U.S. operations. After Greg Fester was acquired by Benfield Ltd. in 1998, Buysse spent nine years in various senior management positions. He left Benfield early in 2007 to form his own reinsurance intermediary, Buysse and Associates Inc.

Swantner & Gordon Insurance Agency, based in Corpus Christi, Texas, named Howard Cantwell as bond department manager. He will oversee all Swantner & Gordon bond accounts.

Cantwell has 35 years experience in the bond insurance industry, beginning his career in 1973 with Continental Insurance’s Regional Surety office in Dallas, and was later promoted to manager of its New Orleans office. He also served in various management positions at CNA before being promoted in 2003 to assistant vice president, overseeing 10 offices that covered the entire Southeast.

San Antonio-based SWBC Insurance Services promoted Doug Barnes to vice president – Commercial Division and Joy Larson to vice president of Operations.

Barnes has been with SWBC since 2001. He began as a senior account executive, with an emphasis on property and casualty coverage for commercial accounts. Barnes holds a Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) designation and is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in business administration.

Larson began her career at SWBC as operations manager. She also holds a Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) designation.

Farmington Hills, Mich.-based Burns & Wilcox hired Honesto Rebueno as an underwriter in company’s Houston office.

Rebueno has more than 30 years experience in writing property and casualty coverage, particularly large commercial property. He has held various underwriting positions at both retail and wholesale agencies and has experience working for major insurance carriers, including The Travelers Insurance Co., Home Insurance/Zurich North America and AIG-Lexington Insurance Co. Rebueno earned a bachelor’s degree in management from San Beda College in Manila, Philippines. He also attended the College of Insurance in New York and Houston Baptist University.

Aon Corp. named Andrew Appel CEO of Aon Re Global and chairman of Aon Consulting. Appel served previously as CEO of Aon Consulting. He replaces Ted T. Devine, who recently was appointed president of Aon Risk Services.

Aon Re Global also appointed Robert J. Cooney as managing director of Aon Capital Markets and vice chairman of Aon Re Global in Bermuda.

Cooney previously served as a director of Max Re from its formation in July 1999 and as president and CEO from September 1999 to October 2006. He also has held various senior management positions at XL Capital Ltd, including president and CEO of XL Insurance Ltd. and executive vice president of XL Capital Ltd.

Topics USA Texas Underwriting Reinsurance Property Casualty Aon