Broker Expo 2026 Countdown Q&A: Casus Underwriting’s Stewart Croker

Can you give us a short preview as to the insights you will be looking to share as part of your participation at Broker Expo 2026?

Construction is our focus, so, for us, the Expo is really about having useful conversations with brokers about the opportunities they’re seeing and how we can help them place more construction business.

We want brokers to come and see us with real risks, questions and opportunities. Whether they already trade with Casus or are interested in working with us, we’ll be there to talk about our appetite, our approach and where we can genuinely add value.

The strapline for Broker Expo 2026 is “one day out of the office could create real opportunities”. From past experience, what advice would you give attendees to maximise the value of their time?

Have a plan, but don’t overplan it.

Know the people you definitely want to see and, if you have particular risks or opportunities you want to discuss, bring them with you. But leave enough time for the conversations you weren’t expecting: quite often, they’re the ones that create the opportunity.

And speak to people. It sounds obvious, but an Expo isn’t the day to stand at the edge of the room answering emails.

Given the current state of the insurance broking market, which buzzword or phrase are you expecting to hear most repeated at Broker Expo in 2026?

AI will undoubtedly get plenty of airtime, but I suspect ‘appetite’ will still be one of the most important words in the room.

For brokers, knowing who genuinely wants to look at a risk, and being able to get to the right person quickly, remains incredibly valuable. Technology can improve the process, but clarity of appetite and access to underwriters still matter.

What broking/insurance innovation has most impressed you in the past 12–18 months, and why?

Probably seeing AI and automation move from something everyone talks about to something businesses are beginning to use in genuinely practical ways.

For me, the opportunity isn’t about removing the human element from broking or underwriting. It’s about taking away repetitive administration, improving how information is captured and presented, and giving people more time to do the things technology can’t replace – understanding the risk, exercising judgement and building relationships.

The Broker Expo sees the formal launch of The Insurance Academy. If you were to offer a lesson for the next generation of broking professionals, what would the subject be?

Learn how to understand a risk, not just how to process one.

Systems, products and technology will continue to change, but the ability to ask good questions, understand what the client actually needs and explain a risk properly to an underwriter will always be valuable.

And don’t underestimate relationships. Insurance is still very much a people business.

Seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Tom Brady owns a small stake in Birmingham City Football Club. If you could enlist a famous superstar to invest in your business, who would it be and why?

Warren Buffett.

He understands insurance, the importance of disciplined underwriting and the value of taking a long-term view.

I think he’d understand what we’re trying to build at Casus – a specialist business with a clear focus, strong relationships and an ambition to build something sustainable, rather than simply chasing short-term growth.

Birmingham is the setting of the TV show Peaky Blinders. Who in the insurance industry would you describe as having played a blinder over the last 12 months?

I’m going to avoid picking one individual, and say independent brokers.

There’s a lot of change in the market, consolidation, technology, insurer appetite and changing client expectations, but good independent brokers continue to demonstrate the value of knowing their clients properly, providing advice and maintaining strong insurer relationships.

That ability to stay close to the client while adapting to everything else going on around them deserves recognition.

As we look forward to 2027, what gives you the greatest grounds for optimism that next year is going to be a good year to be an insurance broker?

Because clients are unlikely to need less advice.

Risks are becoming more complex, businesses are changing quickly and the insurance market isn’t always straightforward to navigate. That creates a real opportunity for good brokers who understand their clients, know their markets and can bring the two together.

Technology should make good brokers more efficient, but I don’t think it diminishes their value. If anything, the more complex the world becomes, the more valuable good advice becomes.

Join the debate: Sign up to attend the Broker Expo on 8 October at the Birmingham NEC