CII names new chairs for its broking and claims societies

The Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) has today (17 January 2023) announced the appointment of a series of new chairs to two of its specialist communities – the Society of Insurance Broking (SIB) and Society of Claims Professionals (SOCP).

The new SIB chair is Laura Hancock, who is also director of underwriting agency YuTree Insurance – she will replace Kevin Hancock, who is YuTree’s managing director.

Meanwhile, Ashton West, non-executive director of law firm’s Weightmans and director of Fidu Consultancy, will succeed Sue McCall as chair of SOCP.

Tim Groves, programme development and partnerships manager at the CII, said: “The society boards are dedicated and passionate about serving and supporting as many members in their sectors as possible.

”I know Laura Hancock and Ashton West will build on the great work undertaken by Kevin Hancock and Sue McCall, while also bringing new and fresh ideas to how we can best serve our members.”

Chair appointments are made on a biennial basis – every two years – plus or minus six months.

Natural progression

Laura Hancock brings significant previous board experience to her new role, having worked on Biba’s board for more than eight years in several roles including board director, deputy chair, main board director and most recently as committee member for the Anglia region.

Hancock has also spent more than eleven years working as a director at Yutree Insurance.

She said: “Having completed a long stint on the board of the Biba, this is a natural move for me which will see me able to continue championing and supporting brokers under the auspices of the CII.

“It is an honour to have been given this opportunity and I will work tirelessly to ensure that I make a difference to the work that the wider CII do and to the individuals in the broking community that this board seeks to support.”

Meanwhile, West brings 15 years of experience serving as the chief executive of the Motor Insurer’s Bureau between April 2003 and June 2018.

He also has just over five years as a non-executive director of the Insurance Fraud Bureau and currently chairs the board of trustees for The Road Safety Trust.

West said: “Having served as a board member on the Society of Claims Professionals for the last two years, I was honoured to be nominated as the new chair by my fellow board members. It is an exciting time to be a part of the CII’s specialist claims community board.

“All of the board members bring a wealth of different experience and are passionate about finding ways to add value to our members who work in the claims profession and we look forward to sharing more on this shortly.”