New appointment marks 3 years of Real Estate trading

Covéa Insurance has further strengthened its Real Estate offering with the appointment of Richard Heathcote to the role of Regional Lead Underwriter in the insurer’s Leadenhall office.

Richard had previously held the role of Senior Technical Underwriter at Covéa Insurance, and was fundamental in creating the Real Estate product when it launched in 2014. He has a strong technical underwriting background with over 25 years’ experience having previously worked at Axa.  This appointment gives brokers even better access to key decision-makers who can support their business on a local level.

In the three years since the Real Estate team was established in the insurer’s London office, the team has grown significantly and continued to exhibit strong, profitable growth focusing on specialist real estate brokers.

Gareth Roberts, Branch Manager, London commented;

“Over the past three years, the Real Estate team in London has established itself as a valued partner in the market.  We have built our reputation around face to face communication which has helped secure strong relationships with the brokers we trade with, enabling us to deliver a dedicated service to each of them.  Richard’s appointment shows our continued investment in our Real Estate proposition, his expertise in the sector will complement the excellent skills we already have in the team and give brokers immediate access to another decision-maker within the division”.

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About Covéa Insurance

Covea Insurance Plc is the UK underwriting business of leading French mutual insurance group Covéa, who are number 1 for property and liability insurance in France, generating over 17.4 billion Euros in premiums in 2019.  

Covéa Insurance looks after the insurance needs of over 2 million policyholders; delivering financial reassurance through its Standard & Poor’s ‘AA- stable’ rating, as a guaranteed subsidiary of Covéa. 

The company offers motor, household, protection, pet, mid and high net worth insurance and a range of commercial insurance products, through a range of distribution channels.

Employing over 1900 people, Covéa Insurance has a strong people and service ethos.  It holds ServiceMark accreditation with Distinction for its Personal Lines operation and its Commercial & HNW Claims teams, as well as Chartered Insurer status for its Commercial business.  Covéa Insurance is signatory to the HM Treasury Women in Finance Charter and the insurance Inclusivity Pledge and has been named one of the top 75 employers in West Yorkshire & the Humber.

Recently, Covéa Insurance has been named as the Best Place to Work in Digital (Large Organisations) at the Digital Technology Leaders Awards and as the Best Employer at the Yorkshire Financial Awards.  They were also recipients of the High Net Worth Product of the Year Award at the Insurance Times Awards, the Staff Empowerment Award at the Diversity & Inclusion in Insurance Awards, and the Diversity Award at the British Insurance Awards.