David Hayward, the chief claims officer of AXIS Insurance, a division of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited, will retire in March 2020 and will be succeeded by Michael Baumel, current head of North American claims, AXIS said in a statement.
According to the company, following the six-month transition period, Mr. Baumel will assume the chief claims officer role. He will join the AXIS Insurance leadership team and report directly to the company's chief executive officer, Peter Wilson.
Mr. Hayward will retire from AXIS following a career that has spanned more than 30 years, with the past 17 years spent at AXIS.
"Dave's contributions to AXIS cannot be understated. He has played a fundamental role in shaping our claims management strategy and he conceptualized and implemented many of the approaches that have helped us establish a claims function that is widely recognized as one of the best in the specialty insurance industry," said Mr. Wilson. "We have a great successor in Mike. During his more than four years with AXIS, Mike has established himself as a respected leader, a trusted partner to our clients, and an individual who embodies our commitment to delivering exceptional service."
Mr. Baumel has held multiple roles in claims and in underwriting throughout his career, both in the United States and in Europe, including serving as senior vice president for excess casualty claims at ACE and multiple claims vice president positions at CNA.
He began his insurance career at GE, where he served as a global claims special services leader. Prior to entering the insurance industry in 1999, Mr. Baumel practiced law in Chicago for 10 years, mostly as a public prosecutor. Mr. Baumel graduated from DePaul College of Law in 1989.
"This is a bittersweet moment for me. I have no doubt that Mike will be a tremendous chief claims officer. Therefore, my decision to retire is made that much easier because I know that I'll be leaving our claims team in such capable hands," said Mr. Hayward. "We have a tremendous claims team, and I take great pride in the work that we've done to build a leading claims function. I look forward to seeing the practice continue to flourish under Mike's leadership."
Learn more: www.axiscapital.com; www.axiscapital.com/insurance.
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].