Education

Paul Grehan

Friday, 30th July 2021

I’m a Senior Underwriter at Gard and my role involves underwriting ship owners P&I, charterers liability covers, defence cover and hull and machinery risks.

I first started in P&I at another IG Club in 2011 as a Deputy Underwriter. After some in-house training and having gained some practical experience, I decided I wanted a more in depth understanding, especially in areas that I wasn’t involved with day to day such as claims handling and loss prevention.

There are lots of courses available for marine insurance and general insurance, but I wanted something focussed on P&I and defence covers, as well as the way business is transacted within the International Group P&I Club system. The P&I Q covers this nicely and gives a basic overview of the maritime industry and of other marine insurance covers, which provides context.

I found participating in the course very good – there is a lot to learn but I managed to fit the study around my work and family life without too much impact as I did a lot of the reading during my daily commute.

The course certainly helped improve my understanding of P&I, and whilst there is always more to be learned in our industry it can give candidates who are starting out in P&I a solid foundation. The knowledge gained has helped me in my role over the years and I still occasionally refer to the study texts to refresh on particular topics.

It is important to find time to complete some practice questions before sitting the exams, especially if you have not sat an exam for a while. Also, it’s helpful to speak with experienced colleagues about areas you may be unsure of, they often have interesting stories of cases that can help you understand the application of the course content.

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