BHSI expands into Australasian commercial hull market

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance (BHSI) has extended its presence by entering the commercial hull market in Australasia, and appointing Jake Hesson as its new underwriting manager for marine.

Hesson has over 20 years of experience in the insurance industry, specialising in marine hull and liabilities. Most recently, he was the regional manager for marine specialty risks, focused on marine hull, liability, and protection and indemnity (P&I), at QBE in Sydney.

In his new role, Sydney-based Hesson will expand BHSI’s marine product portfolio, and build new commercial hull relationships.

Commenting on the expansion and appointment, BHSI Australasia president Mark Lingafelter said: “We are pleased to further extend the range of specialty products BHSI can now offer to our customers and brokers across Australia and New Zealand. All backed by our ongoing commitment to skilled underwriting, our strong commitment to service, and our ‘claims is our product’ philosophy.”

Dimitry Zilberud, head of marine at BHSI in Australasia, added: “Jake comes to BHSI with exceptional marine expertise and local market knowledge experience.”

The Australasian hull market expansion and marine appointment follow BHSI’s leadership appointment to boost its transactional liability underwriting capabilities and the release of Berkshire Hathaway Inc’s financial results for the second quarter and the first half of 2022.