Markel taps Arch/JLT vet to turbo-charge its W&I in-house offering

Markel has tapped a veteran of Arch Insurance, Marsh and JLT Specialty to build out its warranty and indemnity (W&I) desk to hit a $30 million gross written premium target by 2025.

Bryan Dressler (pictured) steps in to become head of W&I for professional and financial risk (PFR) division at unit  Markel International.

"This latest appointment plays an integral role in the organisation's strategy to develop market-leading offerings in niche sectors," management said in its statement.

Dressler will build out the W&I team to focus on UK and EEA-domiciled SMEs with equity values up to $300 million. The goal: underwriting up to $30 million of gross written premium (GWP) in the field by 2025.

Dressler brings a long-ish list of short-ish tenures to the post. He last served two and half years as assistant vice president for transactional risk insurance products at Arch Insurance. His professional profile shows a short stint as VP at Marsh, nearly five years at JLT Specialty plus a spin in the Aon brokerage.

Markel International divisional managing director of PFR David Sawyer said: “ Markel International's wholesale division has been supporting coverholders in the W&I market since 2014 and manages a portfolio of circa $75 million. With the wealth of knowledge and experience that we’ve gathered in these eight years, now feels like the perfect time to build out an in-house offering, and with Bryan onboard, we have a market-leading individual to execute this plan.”

Sawyer elaborated: “Bryan has a number of years’ experience as an underwriter and broker, with a strong track record in managing in-house insurance offerings. With his cross-functional skillset, we are confident that he will be able to deliver a sustainable long-term offering for customers in the W&I market.”

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