Insurer opens its largest European site outside of London in Yorkshire

Business insurer QBE has this week officially launched its new office in Leeds, reinforcing its UK regional broker strategy.

Situated at West Village, Wellington Street, the move reflects a £3.6m investment.

The new Leeds office is the largest European site for the global insurer outside of London with more than 450 employees based there, representing a 40% growth in the Yorkshire hub’s headcount since 2022.

Most people based in the Leeds office support QBE’s technology, claims and finance capabilities, following the recent opening of centres of excellence across these disciplines.

The business has had a presence in Leeds for over 20 years following its acquisition of Iron Trades in 2000.

QBE International CEO Jason Harris said: “We are excited to be moving our people to such a prestigious location that is in tune with our commitment to sustainability, modernisation ambitions and focus on employee wellbeing.

“The next chapter in our Leeds story includes expanding our underwriting capability, working with more local brokers to support even more businesses in the region.

“Leeds is one of the UK’s fastest growing cities with a diverse economy and an exceptional talent base.

“Over the last five years, we have set up centres of excellence here for robotics, claims and finance while building out our operations and people teams here.

“From Leeds we are leveraging local talent to support our business across Europe enabling us to consistently deliver great service, helping businesses get back on their feet more quickly.”

QBE says it has been developing its UK regional business for the past two years.

QBE head of trading Leeds, Janine Wood, added: “Brokers were clear about what they wanted, to be able do business on their doorstep with decision makers who understand the local market and the challenges local businesses are contending with.

“Our response was to grow our regional network of underwriters authorised to write different sizes and ranges of cross class products across most industries.

“What we’re offering Leeds is the technical expertise, wide appetite, flexible solutions and empowered local underwriting the second largest financial services centre in the UK deserves.”