Tom Meyer, who chairs Lockton Re's global specialties division, is preparing to exit the firm, according to multiple senior market sources. He's expected to work out his notice before moving on, and more than one source said the plan is for him to go back into underwriting rather than stay on the broking side of the business. Where exactly he lands hasn't been settled yet - one person close to the situation said Meyer is still weighing his options.
For a US audience watching Lockton Re's rapid build-out over the past couple of years, the move is interesting. The reinsurance intermediary has been on something of a hiring spree stateside, and any senior departure in its specialty ranks, even one based in London, tends to ripple through a business that increasingly straddles both sides of the Atlantic.
Meyer isn't a new face in the market. He joined Lockton Re in March 2025 from Gallagher Re, where he'd been managing director of the specialty division. Before that stint, he spent roughly six years at Chord Re, working his way up to chief executive after starting there as chief underwriting officer. Earlier in his career, he held senior underwriting posts at Aspen, including chief underwriting officer of Aspen Bermuda and head of specialty reinsurance at Aspen Re, a background that fits with sources' expectation that he'll head back toward underwriting rather than another broking seat.
Lockton Re's global specialties division which covers niche and complex classes for cedants, is run day to day by Martin Stephenson, who came over from what was then known as Guy Carpenter to take the marine and energy chairmanship back in 2020. Lockton Re has not yet commented on Meyer's departure.
The exit lands at a moment when Lockton Re's leadership bench has been reshuffled fairly often. In January, the firm named Robert Bisset as CEO of its North American business and promoted Nick Durant to global vice chairman, moves tied to a platform that's grown to more than 500 people across two dozen locations. On the specialty side specifically, Lockton Re has also brought in outside talent to build out newer practices, including James Dickerson's hire to lead its global legacy and retrospective reinsurance solutions team earlier this year.
None of that directly explains why Meyer is leaving. But it's a reminder that specialty and legacy reinsurance broking has become a genuinely competitive hiring ground over the last two years, with Aon, Gallagher Re, Guy Carpenter and Lockton Re all trading senior people back and forth. Meyer's own arrival at Lockton Re followed the same pattern in reverse - he came in from a rival broker to succeed Paul Upton, who moved up to chairman of the specialty unit at the time.
For US reinsurance buyers and cedants who deal with Lockton Re's specialty desk, the practical impact of one executive's exit is usually limited in the short term, broking teams tend to be built several layers deep precisely so a single departure doesn't disrupt renewal cycles. But it's another data point in a broking market where senior specialty talent keeps moving, and where the destination is increasingly the underwriting side rather than a rival brokerage.
Lockton Re had not replied to provide comment on the departure by the time this went to press. Insurance Business has reached out to the company for further comment on Meyer's next move.
