Zurich broadens Claims capabilities to support Construction business

Zurich U.S. has announced key enhancements to its Specialty Claims structure to support the growth of its Construction business. The move creates a new role, Head of U.S. Construction, Energy and Marine Claims and deepens alignment between Claims and Zurich’s market-facing teams serving construction customers and brokers in a time of rapid change.

“Construction is a highly specialized market. Customers and brokers need insurance providers with the experience, flexibility and claims capabilities to respond effectively when complex issues arise,” said Keith Daly, Chief Claims Officer for Zurich U.S. “By bringing our construction-related claims professionals into closer alignment, we are strengthening our market focus, deepening collaboration with our Construction colleagues and enhancing the support we provide to customers navigating increasingly complex risks.”

Zurich’s U.S. Construction business is experiencing growth driven in part by unprecedented global demand for digital infrastructure. U.S. data center construction starts reached $77.7 billion in 2025, up 190% year over year, according to ConstructConnect’s February 2026 Data Center Report. It predicted 2026 could surpass 2025’s record growth.

Nick Alberts named Head of U.S. Construction, Energy and Marine Claims

At the center of the realignment, Zurich has named Nick Alberts as Head of U.S. Construction, Energy and Marine Claims, effective July 1. Alberts brings 17 years of Zurich Claims experience to the newly created role, including leadership of Latent and Environmental Claims teams handling technical and complex matters. An accomplished Claims leader and attorney, Alberts is known for a collaborative style that will be instrumental in strengthening partnerships with Zurich’s Construction business as it continues to grow.

Additionally, three key Claims roles connected to Zurich’s Construction business now report directly to Alberts: Head of Marine and Energy, Head of Construction Defect and Head of Construction Professional Liability.

“This realignment is strategic,” added Daly. “With coordination and support from more than 200 construction-focused claims colleagues, it strengthens Zurich’s ability to provide better Claims outcomes for our construction customers.”

Alberts will work with Zurich’s U.S. Head of Construction Tobias Cushing and Kelly Kinzer, Global Head of Construction & Surety, to help ensure Claims capabilities remain closely aligned with the needs of Zurich’s construction customers, brokers and market-facing colleagues.

Those needs are evolving. Five years ago, the average value of a data center project in Zurich Construction’s Builders Risk portfolio was $150 million. Today it exceeds $3 billion. Yet project timelines have not grown substantially.

Cushing expressed the importance of strong claims service and monitoring drivers of loss.

“Claims is the most important part of being an insurance company, as it’s when we fulfill our promise to the insured and help workers and policyholders recover from losses,” Cushing said. “Collaboration between claims, risk engineering and underwriting teams is key to delivering data-based insights to help prevent losses and inform contractors where to invest to protect their people and projects.” 

Zurich has had a distinct Construction vertical for more than 25 years, known for innovative approaches to helping contractors and owners manage property, casualty and professional liability risks on job sites. Recent notable initiatives include the launch of Data Center Project Guard, an enhanced Builders Risk solution that builds in optional weather parametric and operational property coverage to address phased handovers that are increasingly common with campus-style data centers. Zurich Construction also introduced a vehicle telematics program to enhance construction fleet safety and offers camera-enabled safety coaching on job sites.

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