Alan Wilson and Paul Jennings became joint managing directors of the ‘A’ rated, 100 million GT North of England P&I club 18 September 2009 following the retirement of Rodney Eccleston after 21 years at the helm.
Club chairman Albert Engelsman congratulated former deputies Wilson and Jennings on their appointments, which mirror the successful joint leadership role played by Eccleston and Peter Crichton for 18 years until Crichton’s retirement in 2006.
Wilson joined North in 1981 after qualifying as a chartered accountant with Binder Hamlyn. He was appointed finance manager and company secretary in 1988 and subsequently became finance director of the club’s new wholly-owned management company, North Insurance Management Limited (NIML) in 2000.
Jennings joined the former Newcastle P&I Association in 1984 after completing a law degree. He subsequently became North’s marketing and underwriting manager when the two clubs merged in 1998 and, two years later was appointed underwriting director of NIML. He was promoted along with Wilson to joint deputy managing director in 2006.
In 1988 he and Crichton became the P&I industry’s first joint managing directors, since when they took North from one of the smallest to one of the strongest members of the International Group of P&I clubs. Under the 18 years of their joint management, the club grew from 5 million GT to 62 million GT and a full ‘A’ rating from Standard and Poor’s – the highest rating currently held by a P&I insurer. In the past three years Eccleston has steered North to over 100 million GT, including 80 million GT owned tonnage.
“Two years ago the club’s directors set a target of increasing owned tonnage in the medium term to 10% of the world’s owned fleet and, in the longer-term, to a minimum of 12.5%,” said Jennings. “Under Rodney’s stewardship we have already met our medium-term objective and, during the next few years, Alan and I will do everything in our power to achieve those longer-term goals.”
North currently insures a global fleet of 3750 ships entered by a total of 350 member groups. The club is based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK with regional liaison offices in Hong Kong, Piraeus and Singapore.