Hood Group has appointed Paul Paddock as chief executive officer. The hire closes a leadership transition that began with a private equity-backed management buyout less than two years ago.
Paddock joins from Post Office Insurance, where he served most recently as interim chief executive. He spent close to nine years there across roles that included director of product and pricing, deputy chief executive, and head of travel and protection insurance. Before that, he held senior roles in insurance product, commercial and pricing at Holiday Extras for nearly eight years.
His appointment follows a concentrated period of change at the Southend-on-Sea-based affinity specialist. Simon Hood stepped down as chief executive in November 2025 after nearly 30 years leading the business and moved into a non-executive director role. Gary Duggan joined as interim executive chairman and Paul Pestell as chief financial officer around the same time.
In October 2024, Hood Group completed a £10.7 million management buyout backed by Connection Capital. The buyout earmarked capital for growth in direct and B2B insurance distribution, as well as investment in technology and data.
Paddock's background puts him close to the disciplines affinity distribution depends on most. Product design and pricing accuracy determine whether a scheme generates sustainable margin or erodes it. Hood Group's retail and financial services brand partners have limited in-house expertise in both areas, and pricing errors compound quickly across a large customer base. A chief executive who has run those functions at scale signals that Hood Group intends to compete on proposition quality rather than volume alone.
The business has moved quickly on partnerships since the buyout. In April 2026, Hood Group and Allianz Partners announced a tie-up to expand travel insurance capacity for affinity clients across major retail and household brands. (AC) Two months later, Morrisons launched pet and travel insurance through Hood Group in the supermarket's first move into financial services.
Gary Duggan, interim executive chairman at Hood Group, said Paddock's background across product, pricing, and customer propositions made him well placed to lead the business.
Paddock said Hood Group had built a strong reputation over four decades with clear relationships across the affinity and partnership market.
"I look forward to working with the team to build on those foundations, develop our capabilities and identify new opportunities for sustainable growth," he said. "Technology, data, product innovation and service will remain central to that ambition."
