Gallagher’s Pen Underwriting Agrees to New Capacity Deal With Aviva

Pen Underwriting, the London-based managing general agent and Arthur J. Gallagher subsidiary, announced a new multi-year strategic partnership with Aviva in support of its personal lines and property owners’ business, which will see Aviva providing capacity for over £100 million (US$113.7 million) in premium per annum.

Under the terms of the deal, Aviva will provide 100% capacity across these business lines within Pen’s personal lines division from April 1, 2023 for risks placed with Pen via both coverholders and brokers.

The agreement will utilize Pen’s capabilities as a virtual insurer in not only underwriting and distribution but also insight and pricing, risk and governance and claims handling. By empowering Pen with delegated underwriting, pricing and claims authority, the agreement will benefit Pen’s distribution partners, as well as end customers, in a number of ways – including prompt decision-making, enhanced trading efficiencies and bringing new products more quickly to market, while providing first-class security on a long-term basis.

This deal builds on Aviva’s existing partnership with Pen where it currently provides reinsurance capacity for its personal lines business. With this new announcement, Pen will benefit from Aviva’s position as a leading general insurer in the UK, with a strong brand, broad scale and extensive customer and broker insight across its business. Previously, Aviva has outlined its plans to grow the personal lines business by targeting profitable segments of the market and this announcement is part of that strategy.

“This is an absolutely fantastic deal for all stakeholders, combining the power of the Aviva brand with that of Pen and bringing together two parties with a shared vision of ambitious, sustainable growth,” commented Jennifer Martin, chief underwriting officer for Pen Underwriting.

“To have secured long-term capacity for our personal lines and property owners’ business so many months ahead of inception is a huge endorsement of the quality we have built within Pen and our professional approach to capacity management,” Martin added. “Together with Aviva, we have created long-term certainty for brokers, coverholders and their customers alike.”

“This deal builds on our strategy to target and invest in profitable segments of the personal lines insurance market and grow our business by choosing specialist provides to partner with,” according to Jon Santer, managing director, Personal Lines Broker a, Aviva.

About Pen Underwriting

Pen Underwriting is a multi-class, multi-territory managing general agent (MGA) that operates as a virtual insurer, meaning it can fulfil all the typical functions of an insurance company — from underwriting, sales & distribution, pricing & analytics, product innovation, risk & governance through to claims handling — other than the provision of insurance capital.

Pen Underwriting has five divisions — International & Financial Lines, Specialty Lines, Public Sector, SME & Personal Lines and Manchester Underwriting Agencies Management (MUM) — offering a wide and growing range of specialisms from e-Solutions and delegated authorities for volume business through to specialty products with individual underwriting for hard-to-find placements.

Source: Pen Underwriting

Topics Underwriting A.J. Gallagher