LSM celebrates fourth straight win as NIBA Specialty Insurer of the Year

Liberty Specialty Markets (Liberty or LSM) has been awarded the 2024 Specialty Insurer of the Year by the National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA), marking the fourth consecutive year the insurer has earned this recognition.

The accolade is based on the annual Broker Market Survey, which collected feedback from 1,000 brokers who assessed insurers on various factors, including product range and service standards.

Specialty Insurer of the Year

“This year Liberty marks 25 years of operations in Australia, and over that time we’ve grown into a billion-dollar insurer spanning more than 20 commercial product lines. Receiving NIBA’s recognition in this milestone year is truly special for our team,” said Mike Abdallah, who leads Liberty Specialty Markets in the region.

Liberty Specialty Markets first received the recognition during a challenging market.

“We initially started receiving this market recognition in 2021 during a hardening insurance market in Australia, where brokers were finding it increasingly difficult to secure coverage for clients and valued Liberty’s long-term perspective and consistent quality service,” Abdallah said.

He added that being acknowledged again as market conditions shift underscores the strength of the company’s relationships with brokers and clients.

“To keep being recognised as Specialty Insurer of the Year four years later in very different market conditions further demonstrates the efforts of our team in building valued and sustainable relationships with brokers and clients through the market cycles,” he said.

Liberty Specialty Markets initiatives

Liberty now has over 400 employees across Australia, with offices in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, and Adelaide, and insures more than 20,000 businesses.

The past year has seen Liberty provide coverage for a range of significant projects, including:

• the construction of the country’s largest battery energy storage system
• directors and officers insurance for nearly 50% of ASX-listed mining and energy companies
• product recall cover for approximately a third of items sold in major retailers Coles and Woolworths
• insurance for personal accident and corporate travel for 20 television and stage productions
• workers’ compensation for over 500,000 employees through its excess workers’ compensation product
• insurance for $1.6 billion worth of rice transportation
• coverage for the construction of Australia’s largest solar farms in New South Wales
• the $5 billion Western Harbour Tunnel project in Sydney
• liability and financial risk coverage for 13,000 small businesses

“We’re delighted to be supporting the Australian economy in so many different ways, and sincerely thank the broker community for their ongoing trust and support,” Abdallah said.

NIBA Convention 2024

The NIBA Convention, held this year under the theme “Beyond the Status Quo,” challenged brokers to embrace innovation and adapt to the evolving insurance landscape.

Approximately 800 attendees participated in the event, which featured over 20 sessions addressing topics such as the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in insurance, updates from regulatory bodies, and strategies for managing complex client relationships.