Best’s News & Research Service - February 26, 2018 09:56 AM (EST)
W.R. Berkley Appoints President of Berkley Mid-Atlantic Group
GREENWICH, Conn. //BestWire// - W.R. Berkley Corp. has appointed John F. Kearns as president of Berkley Mid-Atlantic Group, a Berkley company. He succeeds Susan Grady, who will work on expanding the company’s regional small commercial footprint.
Kearns brings 40 years experience in property/casualty. Most recently, he was executive vice president of sales, marketing and underwriting for a major insurance group, Berkley said in a statement.
Berkley Mid-Atlantic Group offers commercial property/casualty coverage to businesses in Delaware, Kentucky, Washington D.C., Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. It focuses on small commercial and middle-market accounts.
The professional liability market is ripe for hardening, probably in the next eight to 12 months, W.R. Berkley Chief Executive Officer W. Robert Berkley said recently, as claims are rising in a market in which rates have been headed in the wrong direction for some period of time (Best’s News Service, Jan. 31, 2018).
Operating entities of W.R. Berkley Corp. currently have a Best’s Financial Strength Rating of A+ (Superior).
Shares of W.R. Berkley Corp. (NYSE: WRB) were trading at $69.72 on the morning of Feb. 26, up 0.98% from the previous close.
(By Renée Kiriluk-Hill, associate editor, BestWeek: Renee.Kiriluk-Hill@ambest.com)