John Seaton to boost MMA commercial lines as underwriting director.
Broker-only MMA Insurance has appointed former Norwich Union director John Seaton as underwriting director in an effort to expand its commercial lines business.
Historically, MMA operated solely from Reading. But last year it opened a small office in Manchester that only writes commercial insurance.
Seaton, a 50-year-old commercial lines specialist who was underwriting, pricing and product director at NU before retiring in April, will look to grow the commercial unit in Manchester and beyond.
He said: “The Manchester office was the first tangible signal of a change in philosophy. I’m considering how we can build on that operation by extending our underwriter numbers in Manchester and considering whether we should open up similar units in the UK. Running alongside that, I’m also considering our current underwriting strategy in terms of whether there are other classes of business.”
The Reading resident added that he is looking forward to dealing with brokers, as well as a shorter commute then his days travelling to London while working with NU.
He also knows a number of the senior staff at MMA, including chief executive Garry Fearn, who he worked with at NU predecessor Commercial Union.
He said: “When I decided to retire from Norwich Union, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. I had a number of offers fairly quickly from a number of insurers in the market, and then the opportunity her arose.”
Fearn added: "John’s appointment is very timely as we continue to develop and strength our commercial lines business. His vast underwriting experience will be of strategic importance to us and his arrival sends out a strong message to the market of our future intentions.”
