Diary of an Insurer: Rokstone’s Jimmy Heaton

Monday

I’m up at 4am to head down to London and kick off another busy and exciting week.  Spending the first day of the week at the new Aventum offices is no hardship; after grabbing a coffee from the in-house barista, I’m at my desk by 8am and catching up with my colleagues from across the business.  

Part of the beauty of having all my Aventum colleagues in one place is the chance to work closely for the benefit of clients – by 9am I’ve already passed across a risk to the commercial professional indemnity team, whose cover, distribution, and risk appetite is complementary to that of the D&O team.

First on the agenda is a catch-up with my colleague Charlie Hassell to set the priorities for the week ahead.  This week we have some placements for a large multi-national charity, a new start-up gambling operator, a UK industry body, and a large family trust.

The afternoon is spent working on submissions and collaborating with the marketing team.  They are a vital resource.  We discuss plans for the the British Insurance Brokers’ Association annual conference and upcoming business travel to support our broker partners.  It’s then back to Euston for the trip back North.

Tuesday

After breakfast I catch up on emails and admin before walking my daughter to primary school.

Much of the day is spent catching up with brokers and dealing with our wide range of quotation requests. In such a volatile market with constantly evolving risk exposures for our clients across the UK, Europe and the Caribbean, constant dialogue is vital to bringing sustainability and ensuring we are a reliable and consistent partner. 

For example, in the UK we’re responding to evolving needs because of changes to the UK Employment Rights Act and Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act.

Working from home days are great. As much as I love being down in the office and part of a vibrant team, on days when I’m free of all other distraction I can ensure that every broker receives a quick response to submissions and that I give carriers the quality time they deserve.  

Wednesday

After the usual breakfast and school run routine, I catch up with both Charlie and the Rokstone senior leadership team.  

I then get into the main work of the day – responding to submissions and writing the wide range of D&O and FI risks we’ve received from our international broker partners.

I spend the rest of the morning planning for tomorrow’s D&O Academy session.  Increasingly popular, we now have 70 to 100 attendees at these bi-monthly sessions. This week we’ll be joined by brokers from the UK, Isle of Man, Bermuda and Gibraltar. 

The aim is to demystify the intricacies of D&O and arm them with the knowledge and insights to broker D&O policies with confidence and expertise. This week we’re looking at tech sector risks.

During lunch I head out for a run. Then I catch up with our carrier partners. We recently launched a D&O and PI combined facility for financial institutions, so we discuss progress with this, amongst the many other things going on in our vibrant market.

Thursday

I’m up at 4am and back down to London.  As well as the D&O Academy session this afternoon I’m meeting with representatives from the Appalachian State University who are here to learn about Rokstone’s underwriting approach as part of their London Market Tour. It’s great to expose students to Lloyd’s and the London market and how an MGA operates.

The 90-minute D&O Academy session was a great success.  We had 20 guests in the room and another 60 joined us online.  Lots of questions, lots of great feedback, and for me personally lots of satisfaction in playing a part in elevating expertise across the industry.

The long journey home awaits, and a much-needed early night.

Friday

School run done, I spend the morning catching up with a range of brokers discussing renewals, new business opportunities, gaps in the market and emerging trends.

Research is a huge part of my role. It’s key to ensuring we constantly align with the needs of our partners around the world and keep evolving a sustainable yet competitive offering.  

Friday is a great day to review the huge amount of data and insight we generate thanks to our broad underwriting authority – vital to staying ahead of our peers when it comes to predicting changes in the market and deploying capacity quickly yet sustainably.

I end the day with Thai boxing. I volunteer and train a class for teenagers every Friday evening alongside my own training sessions. 

Thai boxing is a huge part of my life and I think it’s important to give something back to the community, helping the next generation develop with confidence and respect for themselves and others.