TravelCard has appointed Michael Storozhev as Chief Underwriting Officer, and he starts in the role today.

Mr Storozhev joins from Cover-More where he was GM Strategic Underwriting AUNZ and Head of Global Insurance Products and Underwriting at Cover-More Group since November 2021.

He has also worked in the actuarial teams at IAG and RACQ.

TravelCard says his joining the business comes at a “pivotal moment” as the company prepares to relaunch in Australia.

“He shares our vision for how travel insurance can be better and is customer-centric to his core,” CEO Peter Klemt said.

“As Chief Underwriting Officer, he will be responsible for underwriting and pricing and he will also be leading the charge on our innovation agenda in travel insurance and beyond.”

Mr Storozhev says the resurgence in international travel since Australia’s borders reopened has highlighted the need for travel insurance to better meet traveller’s needs and expectations.

“There is a huge opportunity in the travel insurance space for a new market entrant to shake things up and I can’t wait to drive a unique customer experience with TravelCard’s real-time travel insurance proposition,” he said.

As reported last month TravelCard plans to resume travel insurance sales after the business entered exclusive negotiations for an underwriting arrangement with Guild Insurance.

The business has been in “hibernation” since October 2020 in response to the pandemic, with activities restricted to servicing in-force policies and claims.

There will be a soft launch for TravelCard at the Steadfast Convention from March 26-28 in Perth. The annual Steadfast event is the largest general insurance conference in Australia.

TravelCard says it will stick to its “broker-first” distribution strategy and will look at other channels, including direct sales, at a later stage.