Ecclesiastical hires first UK insurance commercial director

Ecclesiastical has appointed Kevin Simmons as its first commercial director for the UK general insurance division.

In his newly created role, Simmons will be responsible for loss and profit, including the development of Ecclesiastical’s strategy and broker relationship management.

He joins Ecclesiastical from QBE where he was manager of the real estate division. Prior to that he was at Zurich Insurance in a similar role.

Ecclesiastical deputy group chief executive Jacinta Whyte said the role of commercial director had been created to provide underwriting and business development leadership, as the insurer refocuses its efforts on building an underwriting-led specialist business.

“Kevin is one of those rare insurance professionals whose experience spans technical, sales and marketing roles combined with proven senior leadership,” Whyte said.

“His broad overview of the market, combined with his in-depth understanding of how the UK insurance market is evolving, will make Kevin a key player in Ecclesiastical’s future.”