Fiesty British broker leader Andrew Paddick has taken on the might of the combined UK insurance industry and the Government, and won. Mr Paddick, Director-General of the Institute of Insurance Brokers – a body he set up himself – has successfully overturned a plan to make the General Insurance Standards Council (GISC) the paramount regulatory body for the British industry.

Under a plan sponsored by the Government, brokers were to be registered with the GISC and submit to its rules. The Insurance Brokers Registration Council was disbanded and insurers were instructed to refuse to deal with brokers who were not registered with the GISC. But Mr Paddick’s IIB successfully appealed to the Competition Commission Appeals Tribunal.

Now he has announced the formation of an alternative regulator, which will make rules for the good conduct of brokers. It will have disciplinary powers and the ability to impose penalties, and will basically follow the old Insurance Brokers Registration Council rules.