Jobs on the way at The North of England P&I Club

Jun 14 2010 by Chris Knox, The Journal

ONE of the world's biggest marine insurance firms is hoping to create 125 jobs in Newcastle after adding £17m to its turnover and starting work on the 16,000sqft extension of its Quayside headquarters.

The North of England P&I Club, which is celebrating its 150th anniversary, has benefited from a tough year in shipping, with a slowdown in marine activity resulting in fewer payouts to its customers.

This helped the company to increase its turnover from £189m to £206m in the 12 months to February 20, 2010, which helped it to recover a profit of £19.9m after reporting a £6.2m loss last year after the worldwide recession affected some of its more risky investments.

The firm has since moved towards more safer options such as Government-backed bonds and gilts and said it is well positioned to grow its profits further.

In the last year it has seen a 3.5% increase in worldwide membership to 400, which represents 15 million tonnes of international shipping and 10% of all worldwide tonnage.

The company is currently in the process of adding an extra 16,000sqft to its 24,000 head office on the Quayside, which it said would provide enough space to increase its 180-strong workforce to over 300 when work is completed in April next year.

Although the firm said that it was likely to see an increase in claims as its members begin to recover from the downturn, it said that its profits would be maintained by a mixture of increased uptake and its decision to increase premiums by 5%.

There are also plans to open an office in Tokyo this year to complement the firm’s sites in Athens, Hong Kong and Singapore, which employ 27 staff.

Joint managing director Paul Jennings said: “While we continue to emphasise quality, not quantity, we have a clear target to increase the size of the club, recognising that members can benefit from consequent economics of scale as well as from the lower volatility that comes from a larger book of business.

“Although we expect claims to go up over the coming years, we feel confident about our expansion plans and the fact that our reserves will be protected by a larger membership.”

The company opened a new chapter in its 149-year history last year when managing director Rodney Eccleston stepped down after 21 years to make way for his deputies Alan Wilson and Paul Jennings.

The pair, who are aiming to grow the firm’s global market share from 10% to 12.5% by 2014, said they were also considering a base in the Middle East due to an increase in business in the area.

Mr Wilson said: “A reduction in shipping movements has actually allowed us the scope to grow our business. Our members have also accepted the increases to our premiums and realise we are going in the right direction.

“We are extremely pleased to be celebrating our 150th year at a time of significant expansion.”