March 2009 > home > My life in insurance

David Allaway

Why this real tennis player and broker with Richard Thompson asks: ‘Anyone for tennis?’

What attracted you to insurance?
I started out playing professional rugby and then county cricket until, after a series of injuries, I realised I was made out of paper! When it came to changing careers, I wasn’t so much attracted to insurance as to the company. Richard Thompson specialises in insuring fine art and antiquarian books, which have always been a personal interest. There are also opportunities to work across the company, which appealed to me. I trained as a broker and now cover new business, client relationships and marketing.

Describe your average working day
I’m only in the office once or twice a week as I spend most of my time visiting antiquarian book clients in the UK and Europe and developing commercial business. When I am back in the office, I catch up with my colleagues on the broker side. I’m also heavily involved in the Antiquarian Booksellers Association.

What’s the score with real tennis?
Growing up, I went to one of the few schools with a real tennis court — the courts are indoors and feature a number of markings and galleys where you can hit the ball to win points. My dad also played real tennis, so when I left school I realised it was a good way to spend time with him and, over the years, it’s become my winter sport. It’s a more tactical game than lawn tennis; it’s still a fairly quick, physical sport, but then that obviously depends on who the player is!

What are the similarities between insurance and real tennis?
I certainly get to meet interesting characters in antiquarian books and real tennis! It’s often a talking point with clients. We actually insure the Real Tennis Professional Association and hope to insure the Tennis and Rackets Association’s fine art assets at Queen’s this year with Hiscox.

Do you have any big games coming up?
Frustratingly, I’ve got a shoulder injury from playing cricket and I’m about to have an operation so it’s unlikely I’ll get back on the court until next season. As a sportsman, I’m reasonably competitive, but ultimately I play real tennis for pleasure.