Meet the Team

David started his career in insurance with the Sun Alliance Group from school and gained ACII before joining Provincial Insurance in 1973, where he was responsible for a team of underwriters and sales force in East Anglia. In 1996, David founded DOA to deliver a personal underwriting service in niche market sectors, underpinned by close partnerships with a panel of carefully selected Insurance Intermediaries. David is also a founding member of the Managing General Agents Association (MGAA).

Matthew Oliver joined DOA in 1996 at the age of 17 selling Travel Insurance via carbon copy pads. He would later go on to build and head up the Travel and Health team where he nurtured key partnerships to evolve the department to where it is today. The travel broker base has over 5000 users with products by AXA partners which is now a long-standing relationship. With 26 years of knowledge, Matt continues to innovate and push the boundaries of what is possible in all areas of DOA.

Phillip Oliver joined the business in 2000, having completed an Advanced GNVQ in Business studies at College, winning both Business Plan of the year and leaving with Distinction. Phillip then studied Business and Finance with the Open University whilst assisting David with the growth of the business. Phillip completed his degree within 5 years whilst working full time, achieving a 2.1 qualification before moving on to become a member of the Chartered Insurance Institute, where Phillip continues his professional development. Phillip joined DOA Underwriting Ltd as a Director in 2015, responsible for all commercial lines including niche schemes.

Damien started his insurance career in 1997 as a trainee broker at an established and well respected Lloyd’s broker where he was involved in all aspects of commercial property, liability, D&O and PI sales and broking to direct clients.  Having had a passion for winning new business and learning about the diversity and challenges of professional clients he decided to focus on the PI and Fin Pro sector.  Damien joined DOA in 2002 focusing on Fin Pro and rapidly grew the department and recruited some great people who are still part of the team today.  Damien was appointed as a Board Director of DOA in 2015 still responsible for all things Fin Pro including the exclusive asbestos contractors scheme.

Jonny joined DOA in 2008, working in Accident & Health whilst developing knowledge of the insurance industry. In 2012, he began launching online quote & buy schemes building key relationships with brokers. Later developing DOA’s very own systems in-house, improving the users journey whilst accessing a high level of granular data.

Jack joined DOA in 2024 as Head of Travel responsible for growth of the Travel portfolio, focusing on the full development cycle for both new and ongoing Travel projects. Jack brings a wealth of experience having worked at AXA Insurance, AXA Partners, and Direct Line Group in many different roles, including, as Travel Underwriter for DOA back in 2010. Jack’s role has evolved to now being Head of Personal Lines focusing on identifying and bringing to market other Personal Lines products in our ongoing mission to expand DOA’s reach and helping more brokers and clients find the right insurance for their needs.

Karen joined the DOA in April 2008 overseeing the accounts for the Travel department which she did part time. After many years of dedication and hard work, Karen is now the Team Leader of the Travel department. Karen’s day to day role includes helping the DOA travel team hit their targets and supporting them to achieve their goals.

Binny started working in DOA in 2014 as a full stack developer. In 2023, he has been promoted to be the Head of Tech and Innovation team where he oversees the use of technology throughout the tech team, including its development and implementation along with IT infrastructures, IT systems and stakeholder management.

Andy joined DOA in August 2007 with a background in running his own businesses in manufacturing, engineering, and retail, as well as accountancy and sales experience. Andy’s role was to support building the Financial Professions department and focus on providing high-quality service to brokers and underwriters. He is currently managing a team of eight professionals controlling £20M GWP of PI and MLP premiums, while also overseeing PI claims and helping brokers and insured in times of litigation.

Steve Knight has over 30 years of insurance experience, with 20 years focused on professional indemnity and directors’ and officers’ liability. He joined DOA in 2014 as a Senior Underwriter, responsible for managing the newly launched AXA PI Binding Authority. Steve’s current responsibilities include underwriting the AXA facility, handling new enquiries and renewals, mentoring team members, and serving as a referral point for our broker and insurer contacts. He has contributed to the growth of the financial professions team’s knowledge of PI and D&O and the overall account.

Neil started with DOA in 2014 as our Claims Manager. Neil’s main responsibility was to review all DOA claims and to set up a department which would be autonomous with our underwriting department and to offer a bespoke service for our brokers, offering assistance on claims matters and to be the go between them and the insurers. This is to make the claims journey for DOA policyholders effortless. Over the past several years, Neil’s efforts have concentrated in keeping a streamlined claims service for our policyholders and offering claims expertise when needed.

John started at DOA in 2013 as an assistant underwriter. At the time, John knew nothing about underwriting as he came from a broker background. After a successful start at DOA, John got promoted to a package underwriter. John is now the head of new business for the DOA commercial department. His role includes overseeing the commercial department finding new business, strategies, partnerships as well as being an expert underwriter himself.

Leanne joined the DOA family in 2009 where she began her career at the company as a Commercial Underwriter, where she was responsible for underwriting new business and renewals. Over the years, Leanne has taken on increasing levels of responsibility and is now the Head of Underwriting Support. Leanne is responsible for underwriting on existing business and overseeing the team that supports the underwriters. Leanne has played a vital role in the growth of the Commercial department, which has seen earnings increase by over 25 times.

Alex joined DOA in 2016 as a Compliance Administrator undertaking day-to-day compliance duties. Alex is now the Head of Compliance & Operations and is responsible for overseeing and delivering a robust compliance programme across the business, including implementation of all high-level regulatory requirements, overseeing business operations, monitoring, and reporting to the board. Alex has delivered a number of crucial projects to date including the GDPR, Brexit, Product Governance, Consumer Duty, PCI-DSS, Cyber Essentials as well as an office move!

Caron joined the DOA family in 2022 as the finance team leader. Caron’s responsibilities include monitoring credit control and broker and insurer payments. Caron oversees the accounts team including approving holidays, appraisals, recruitment, compliance, processes and procedures and then reporting to the directors monthly. Caron has undertaken significant clearance of outstanding legacy issues on uncollected commissions and unpaid policies.

Tina is a skilled HR professional who joined DOA in 2021. She manages recruitment, employee relations, training, and development. Tina has accomplished many things like building and shaping the HR function, improving employee engagement, introducing an Employee Engagement Survey, implementing a new benefit program, and creating new roles. She also initiated a Sports and Social Committee.