Ansvar Insurance has appointed Jason Hammond (pictured) as its next chief executive officer, as part of a planned leadership transition at the Australia-based specialist commercial insurer.
Hammond will take up the role on March 10, succeeding CEO Warren Hutcheon, who is retiring after about 12 years in the position. Hammond has more than 25 years’ experience in the insurance industry, including senior leadership roles at QBE Insurance. His background includes commercial lines and broker distribution, sectors in which Ansvar is active through its focus on care, community, education, and faith-based organisations.
Helen Thornton, chair of Ansvar’s board, said the appointment is intended to align with the insurer’s current strategic settings in these specialist markets. “The board is delighted to welcome Jason Hammond to Ansvar. His leadership approach, purpose-driven mindset, and strong commercial acumen make him the right person to guide the next chapter of our strategy. Ansvar exists to support organisations that protect vulnerable people and communities, and Jason brings a clear commitment to that mission. We are confident he will continue to build on our strengths and support our people, partners, and customers with stability and ambition,” Thornton said.
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Hammond said he plans to focus initially on engagement with employees, intermediaries, and clients. “I am honoured to join Ansvar at such an important moment in its story. Ansvar has a long and respected history serving specialist sectors such as care, community, education, and faith. I am looking forward to listening, learning, and getting to know our people, brokers, customers, and partners. Ansvar has strong values and deep technical capability, and I am excited to support the team as we continue to strengthen our specialist offering and deliver for the organisations who rely on us,” he said. The board has acknowledged Hutcheon’s role in developing Ansvar’s position in Australia’s specialist commercial insurance segment over more than a decade.
The leadership change follows a period in which Ansvar has maintained a strong emphasis on structured community investment alongside its core insurance operations. In 2025, the GoodCompany Awards named Ansvar one of Australia’s Top 40 Best Workplaces to Give Back. The listing was based on the insurer’s corporate giving activities, including charitable donations, staff volunteering, sponsorships, and other community initiatives. A central component of these activities is the Community Education Program (CEP), established in 1994.
Through the CEP, Ansvar provides grants to charities and not-for-profit organisations working with young people, including projects focused on skills, education access, and related support. Since inception, the program has distributed more than $15 million to over 300 organisations across Australia. In the 2025 CEP round, Ansvar allocated $300,000 across 13 recipient organisations. One of the beneficiaries was the National Centre for Childhood Grief (NCCG), which delivers services to bereaved children and their families. Ansvar states that its purpose is to grow in a way that enables it to continue funding such programs, linking business scale with the level of support it can provide to community organisations.
Ansvar has also been highlighted in trade media for initiatives in risk solutions and product development. In 2024, Insurance Business included Ansvar in its 5-Star Insurance Innovators list, which profiles insurers and intermediaries that have implemented new tools, products, or distribution approaches. For Ansvar, one of the initiatives referenced was its Risk Maturity Assessment Online (RMA Online) platform, used with clients to assess and develop risk management practices. For brokers and risk managers in Ansvar’s target sectors, these developments indicate an ongoing focus by the insurer on combining traditional risk transfer with advisory and risk management tools.
The CEO transition occurs against a backdrop of unchanged financial strength assessments from AM Best. On July 2, 2024, AM Best affirmed Ansvar’s Financial Strength Rating of A- (Excellent) and Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of “A-” (Excellent), with a stable outlook on both ratings. The agency said the ratings reflect Ansvar’s balance sheet strength, which it assessed as “very strong,” together with marginal operating performance, a limited business profile, and appropriate enterprise risk management. The analysis also incorporates rating uplift linked to ownership, integration, and support from Ecclesiastical Insurance Office plc, part of the Benefact Group.
AM Best reported that Ansvar’s balance sheet strength is supported by its risk‑adjusted capitalisation, as measured by Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), and that this capitalisation is expected to remain at least at the very strong level over the medium term. The agency also pointed to the insurer’s capital management policies and access to financial support in maintaining its regulatory solvency and capital position. For intermediaries and institutional buyers in the Australian market, Hammond’s appointment, the continuation of the Community Education Program and innovation initiatives, and the affirmed AM Best ratings collectively outline the operating context in which Ansvar will pursue its specialist insurance strategy in the near term.
