UK Club takes roles to Newcastle
City already home to marine underwriters and shipping lawyers
International Group affiliate ‘looking to pool of P&I talent’ in NorthStandard’s hometown
UK Club is set to open an office in Newcastle, making it only the second International Group affiliate with a substantial British presence outside London.
Britannia, London Club, Shipowners’ Club, Steamship Mutual and West of England all remain concentrated in the capital, with any geographical links implied by their names purely historic.
The north eastern city is the hometown of the old North of England P&I, which was founded in 1860.
It remains the main operational base of NorthStandard following the merger between North and Standard in 2023.
UK Club has openly admitted that it is “looking to capitalise on the city’s impressive pool of graduate and existing P&I talent”.
Other attractions are likely to include office space at rents far cheaper than those prevailing in London, as well as lower salaries for support staff.
UK Club’s northeast team is led by senior underwriting director Emma Liddell and senior claims executives Julie Pichler and Andrew North.
It is recruiting for another senior claims executive role, which is open to candidates from either London or Newcastle.
Chief operating officer Lisa Gibbard said: “Investing in our Newcastle office also enables us to participate more actively in the region’s diverse maritime industry, complementing our networks in London and internationally.”
The UK P&I Club, which is managed by Thomas Miller, is the third-largest marine mutual in the IG, with over 250m gt of owned and chartered entries.
Its combined ratio for the 2024/25 policy came in at 116%, up from 107% the year before.
It recently announced the launch of a fixed premium product geared towards smaller tonnage, branded as UK Fixed.
This article first appeared in Lloyd's List, a sister publication of Insurance Day
