Hiscox Bermuda has expanded its US property catastrophe team with the appointment of Bill Lazzaro as vice president — Underwriting.Reporting to Bevis Tetlow, senior vice president at Hiscox Bermuda, Mr Lazzaro joins from Aon Benfield where he held a variety of roles over the last nine years, most latterly as director leading reinsurance placement teams with a focus on property treaty reinsurance for US clients.Mr Lazzaro has a degree in physics from Middlebury College and became an Associate in Reinsurance from the Insurance Institute of America in 2007.He also earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 2010.Commenting on Mr Lazzaro’s appointment, Damien Smith, underwriting director for Hiscox Bermuda, said: “We continue to grow our capabilities in the US property catastrophe space where market conditions remain favourable.“The challenge is to make sure we continue to meet the changing needs of our US buyers and Bill Lazzaro, with his in-depth knowledge of the US market, will help us maintain our competitive edge and reputation as a provider of high quality reinsurance.”Mr Lazzaro added: “Coming from a broking background I am well aware of what sets the high quality reinsurers apart from the competition in this changing marketplace.“To stay relevant, reinsurers must adapt and offer not only competitive risk transfer products but real innovation in terms of risk analysis and the ability to offer alternative products in partnership with the capital markets for example.“Hiscox Bermuda has built on its London heritage to quickly become a major player in the US property catastrophe market and I am looking forward to contributing to its current and future success.”