management team

The management team of Munich Re Holding Company (UK) and Munich Re Underwriting oversee activities of the Watkins group of companies and are driven to set industry standards in service and performance.

Mark Watkins
Group Chief Executive Officer
Mark Watkins is the CEO of Munich Re Holding Company (UK) Limited, whose companies manage the Watkins Syndicate and related service companies. He co-founded the syndicate in 1977 and was Active Underwriter for the Syndicate from 1989 to 2001. Mark is a Fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute and a Chartered Insurer.

Rod Grande
Managing Director
Rod Grande originally trained as an auditor with Andersen. He joined the Lloyd’s market in 1985 and has been Managing Director of Munich Re Underwriting Limited since 1996, as well as being a director of Munich Re Holding Company UK Limited. In addition to being a Chartered Accountant, he is a Chartered Insurer and has a Masters degree in Business Administration.

Tim Coskun
Risk and Compliance Director
Tim Coskun is a Chartered Accountant, having qualified in 1991 with Neville Russell. After working for the Serious Fraud Office, he joined the Regulatory Division of the Corporation of Lloyd’s in 1993 where he worked in a number of different roles. Tim joined Munich Re Underwriting Limited in January 2001 as Compliance Officer and Company Secretary and was appointed a Director of the Company in October 2001. He has been a member of the General Insurance Standards Council Disciplinary and Enforcement Panels and is currently a member of the Lloyd’s Enforcement Panel.

Oliver Crabtree
Joint Active Underwriter
Oliver Crabtree has many years of marine insurance experience having spent 10 years in the UK company market before joining a Lloyd’s syndicate in 1989. Oliver joined Munich Re Underwriting Limited in 2001 as Joint Active Underwriter. As well as being a director of Munich Re Underwriting, he is also a non-executive director of Groves, John and Westrup.

Nick Gray
Finance Director
Nick Gray joined Ernst & Young in 1988 and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1991. He entered the Lloyd’s Market in 1994 and was appointed as Finance Director of Munich Re Underwriting Limited in 1996. He is a member of the LMA Finance Committee and is Chairman of its Lloyd’s Taxation sub-group.

Dominick Hoare
Joint Active Underwriter
Dominick Hoare started working in the Lloyd’s market in 1985 as a graduate trainee with the Willis Group. He joined Watkins in 1994 as an Energy Underwriter. He was appointed as a director of Munich Re Underwriting Limited in 1997. He is currently the Joint Active Underwriter for Watkins in addition to his role as Group Energy Underwriter. Dominick is a past Chairman of both the Joint Rig Committee and the Energy Committee of the International Union of Marine Insurers.

Alison Maxwell
Claims Director
Alison Maxwell has worked in the Lloyd’s market for 25 years and has been with the Syndicate since 1986. Prior to joining the Syndicate she worked as a claims broker for two Lloyd’s brokers. Alison is a member of the Joint Marine Claims Committee, Claims Focus Group (CFG) and is a member of the organising committee for the Lillehammer Energy Claims Conference.

Adrian McCourt
Head of Risk Management
Captain Adrian McCourt joined the Syndicate in March 2003 having spent time in commercial shipping fleet management, port operations and risk auditing including flag state inspections. Adrian has also consulted across various marine disciplines including offshore energy, mega yachts and casino cruise ships in China. He has carried out training ashore and afloat including periods at Dalian Maritime University in China. Prior to this, he had a seagoing career in tankers, including LNG and VLCCs, passenger and freight vessels, taking his first command in 1985.

Paddy Riordan
Service Company Controller
Paddy Riordan started working at Lloyd’s in 1977 after graduating from university with an Economics degree. After 15 years as a reinsurance broker, he first joined the Syndicate in 1994 and has held diverse positions ranging from Deputy Excess of Loss Underwriter to Operations Director. In his current role as Service Company Controller, his primary focus is the efficient operations of the service company network.