Berkshire Hathaway targets surety with hire

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance (BHSI) plans to target the contract surety market and has hired an executive from Zurich to spearhead its push.

The company has hired Geoff Delisio as senior vice president, surety, reporting to David Bresnahan, executive vice president, BHSI. Delisio joins BHSI from Zurich where he was senior vice president, surety.

“Our credit quality and willingness to take on significant contracting exposure will get us off to a fast start in the surety marketplace. Along with a strong balance sheet, we bring to the table the trust and integrity long associated with the Berkshire Hathaway brand, values that resonate positively with our customers and brokers," Bresnahan said.

“With Geoff on board, we will be building a multi-disciplinary team of surety underwriting, claims and legal professionals to serve the needs of our construction customers and brokers for the long term.”

The company said BHSI's new contract surety capabilities will complement its builder's risk and construction casualty risk appetite, rounding out its offerings for the construction industry.