Willis has appointed Tony Simm (pictured above) as head of facultative for Europe and GB, extending his remit to oversee facultative reinsurance solutions across multiple territories and lines of business.
The move places Willis’ facultative reinsurance platform at the center of its regional reinsurance strategy, as clients navigate a softer but still complex risk-transfer market.
Simm previously served as head of facultative for GB within Willis’ direct and facultative division. He has two decades of industry experience, having held senior reinsurance broking roles at Gallagher Re and Guy Carpenter.
During his tenure leading the GB facultative team, Simm oversaw an expansion in November 2025 that added three senior hires across property, casualty and retrocession lines. Fiona Kerr, formerly at Aon, was appointed head of UK property; David Watson was promoted to lead the North America and retro team; and James Kelly joined as a casualty producer.
At the time, Simm said the appointments reflected a commitment to “investing in exceptional talent,” highlighting the team-building approach he now brings to the wider European remit. Those hires predate the latest promotion and form part of Willis’ earlier efforts to deepen its facultative reinsurance bench in London.
In his new role, Simm will be responsible for setting the growth strategy for the Europe and GB facultative teams, developing broking talent, and strengthening relationships with cedants and reinsurers.
The appointment consolidates Willis’ GB and European facultative operations under a single leadership structure. Simm will report to Garret Gaughan, global head of direct and facultative at Willis.
The promotion comes as facultative reinsurance continues to gain traction as a strategic tool for cedants rather than a purely transactional top‑up. In a 2024 global survey by WTW’s facultative reinsurance unit, 86% of senior P&C insurance executives said facultative reinsurance was a key part of their strategy for managing risk, capacity, capital and appetite, while 68% expected to buy more cover over the following two years.
More recently, Gallagher Re’s 2026 global facultative report has described a market entering a softer phase, driven by abundant capital, expanding carrier appetite and improved technical results across many reinsurance classes.
For Willis, aligning Europe and GB under one head of facultative reinsurance is likely intended to help clients navigate those conditions with more consistent placement strategies and access to a broader range of reinsurance capacity.
Gaughan said: “Tony has been an exceptional asset to our facultative business, and the expansion of his role reflects both his leadership and our strategic priorities.” He added that Simm’s experience and client focus will support the firm’s ability to serve cedants and drive growth across Europe and GB.
Simm said: “This alignment enables us to collaborate more effectively across territories, respond faster to market dynamics and leverage the full breadth of our talent.” He added that he looks forward to building on existing foundations and delivering for clients of Willis’ facultative reinsurance and wider reinsurance operations.
