Ameritas' new SVP, chief actuary, underwriting; Maryland gets new insurance commissioner: Career moves

August 25, 2024 3:13 PM

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Ameritas names senior vice president, chief actuary and underwriting

Ameritas announced Jennifer Wooster has been named senior vice president, chief actuary and underwriting. Wooster, who was most recently vice president, actuarial, will oversee the financial arm of the group division including leading actuarial and underwriting. Wooster has been a group actuarial associate at the company since 1997.

Kelly Wieseler, executive vice president, group division, said in a statement: "She has helped the group division grow through her financial management expertise; disciplined leadership approach; and straightforward, effective coaching. She built the compensation system into a consistent and effective tool for helping our sales team grow."

Markel appoints marine and energy liability director

Markel announced the appointment of Grant Smith as director of marine and energy liability, international specialty. Smith will lead the marine and energy liability team, and be responsible for driving sustainable and profitable growth initiatives.

Tom Hillier, managing director, international specialty, at Markel, said in a statement: "When we established the Specialty practice within our International Wholesale business last year, we set out ambitious goals for our Marine & Energy Liability team, centered on the delivery of sustainable, profitable growth and establishing ourselves as a leader in the market in terms of underwriting and service. I'm therefore delighted to welcome Grant on board to lead our Marine & Energy liability team. I'm confident his background and experience will position him to lead the team to deliver on our ambitious goals for this class of business and provide a superior service proposition to our clients and brokers."

Chubb appoints head of North America casualty for major accounts

Chubb announced the appointment of Lyndsey Christofer as executive vice president, head of North America casualty for major accounts. Christofer will oversee the strategic direction and management of the real estate and hospitality, construction, environmental, medical risks and excess casualty business units.

Matt Merna, SVP, Chubb group and division president of North America major accounts, said in a statement: "Lyndsey's exceptional leadership and deep industry insight across diverse sectors make her the ideal choice for this pivotal role at Chubb. Her expanded portfolio, now including environmental, medical, and excess casualty, reinforces our commitment to delivering superior solutions in an increasingly complex casualty landscape."

Maryland gets new insurance commissioner

Marie Grant has been appointed Maryland Insurance Administration Commissioner and will take office on October 1, pending confirmation by the state's senate, Governor Wes Moore announced. Grant succeeds interim commissioner Joy Hatchette.

Grant is currently assistant secretary for health policy at the Maryland Department of Health. She is an attorney and state and federal policy expert with nearly 20 years of experience in strategy and regulation in both the public and private sector, focusing on insurance and health care payment.

The previous commissioner, Kathleen Birrane, resigned on June 30.

Lara appoints and reappoints members of California insurance governance groups

California insurance commissioner Ricardo Lara has appointed or reappointed members of several state boards with different insurance governance functions in the state.

Timothy Hyamn was appointed to the California Insurance Guarantee Advisory (CIGA) Board of Directors. Bryan Little was appointed to the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) Governing Committee. Michael Golden and Nona Tirre Mirande were reappointed to the California Automobile Assigned Risk Plan (CAARP) Advisory Board. Ophir Bruck, Stephanie Chan, and Thomas Connell Wilson were reappointed to the California Organized Investment Network (COIN) Advisory Board.

Canopius hires Mills for casualty role

Global specialty lines reinsurer Canopius has hired Steve Mills as head of casualty in the U.S. Mills joins from Ledgerbrook, an MGA tech startup where he served as president of excess and surplus (E&S) lines.

Mills has more than 30 years experience in the industry, including underwriting in multiple lines of business. At Canopius, he will develop E&S primary casualty and excess casualty process for the company's trading partners.

Vermont lobbying group chooses new board members

The Vermont Captive Insurance Association (VCIA), an insurance industry lobbying group, has elected new board members for the 2024-25 term. VCIA re-elected Joe Carter of United Educators and Gail Newman of Bright Horizons. VCIA also elected Julie Bordo of PCH Mutual Insurance Company, Aaron Ciullo of Marsh Captive Solutions, and Brenda Stewart of AIG.

Newman will chair the board and Carter will be vice chair. The group also elected Jason Palmer as board treasurer and Melinda Young as board secretary.

EagleView hires Cooke for growth role

Aerial imagery provider EagleView has hired Courtney Cooke as VP of Enterprise Growth. Cooke has more than 20 years of experience in property and casualty insurance, including various roles at State Farm from 2002 to 2018. She has also served in sales and business development roles at insurtech startups and insurance recruiting firms.

Boston Mutual Life promotion

Boston Mutual Life Insurance announced Marie Lackey as vice president of workplace solutions, central region. Lackey, who will handle strategic oversight for several states, started working at the company in 2018 as senior regional sales director for the southeastern region.