Update: CSAA announces leadership change; Hippo hires chief claims officer

August 22, 2023 6:44 AM

Commuters exit London Waterloo railway station after arriving in London, UK, on Monday, May 15, 2023. The upcoming batch of jobs data, due on Tuesday, May 16, is likely to show price pressures in the economy remain way too high for the Bank of England to tolerate. Photographer: Jason Alden/Bloomberg — Commuters exit London Waterloo railway station after arriving in London on May 15, 2023.

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CSAA Insurance Group announced that Tom Troy, president and CEO, will resign. The change is effective immediately but Troy will stay on until Sept. 15 to facilitate the transition. Mike Zukerman, who is the current executive vice president and chief legal officer for the company, has been named the interim president and CEO by the board.

"While we regret his departure and Tom leaves very big shoes to fill, we respect his decision to take the next step in his career and we wish him nothing but the best. At the same time, we have tremendous leadership bench strength as we work to enhance our valued relationships with AAA clubs and the utmost confidence in Mike to lead the organization as we work to identify permanent leadership," said Mary Hennessy, chair of the board of directors, in a statement.

Hippo, a home insurance provider, announced Peter Piotrowski as its chief claims officer. Previously, Piotrowski served as the chief claims officer at Vault, as well as executive positions at The Hanover, AIG and Chubb. He will oversee Hippo's claims services technology.

Chief Underwriting Officer Chris Donahue, said in a statement: "Peter has built his career on an award-winning, customer-centric approach. He's led multiple teams recognized for delivering an exceptional customer experience, providing some of the highest levels of service in the industry, and making it easy for customers to resolve even the most complex claims."

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance (BHSI) announced the promotion of Jean-Francois Leandri to global risk control officer. Leandri joined the company in 2020 as a risk engineering manager and has two decades of experience. Leandri will report to the chief underwriting officer, property & marine at BHSI, Dean LaPierre.

"Our risk engineering expertise is integral to our ability to provide superior technical risk underwriting to our customers," said Dean in a statement. "Jean-Francois' leadership will ensure a consistent level of excellence in the risk control function that is foundational to our sustainable, long-term underwriting, worldwide."

Zurich Resilience Solutions has expanded its sustainability services team in the U.S. to add Jessica Balsam as its head of climate solutions and Elise White as director of workforce resilience services. The ZRS sustainability services team works with business risk related to ESG including climate adaptation and mitigation, supply chain and cyber risks. The two will report to Lisa Leftwich, head of sustainability Services for ZRS.

"Building on Zurich's strong risk engineering and technical expertise, we created ZRS to help companies become more resilient amid a dynamic risk environment," said Tom Fioretti, head of North America Zurich Resilience Solutions, in a statement. "Zurich has been delivering Risk Engineering for 75 years, and we will continue to invest in innovative risk services that also reflect Zurich's sustainability commitment."

Foresight Commercial Insurance, a workers' compensation insurer, announced a new underwriter. Cori Walker will work directly with broker partners across 17 states. Walker will be joining three other underwriting hires including Patrick Lambert, Javier Verduzco and Joanne Ziegler who joined earlier this summer.

"Cori brings deep industry experience and industry relationships in the Southern California workers' comp market. I look forward to working with her to build on the great momentum Foresight has in the region," said David Fontain, CEO and co-founder of Foresight in a press release.

BrokerTech Ventures hires Emily Schultz as its new managing director. Schultz, along with other managing partners, will lead early-stage investments, innovation, capital and the accelerator.

Dan Keough, Holmes Murphy chairman & CEO and BTV co-CEO, said in a press release: "Emily comes to us with deep and diversified experience in not only operations, but also in the startup and entrepreneurial space. Her understanding of our business and her strong awareness of the benefits of innovation in the industry make her the perfect fit for this role."