British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) CEO Steve White has announced his retirement after serving 10 years and becoming the longest-serving person in the role in the group’s 47-year history. 
 
Mr White told the annual conference he will leave in the second half of the year “with a heavy heart but also huge pride at what we have built at BIBA”, announcing his decision in a speech that also set out some of the key issues facing brokers.  
 
BIBA says Mr White has delivered on his promise of “both sitting down and listening to members and their issues, and then standing up and speaking out on them”. 
 
At the same time, he has also strengthened the group’s financial position governance structure and made BIBA the “go to place” for brokers, politicians, media and the regulator on issues related to the sector, a statement says. 
 
“The BIBA Board and its members are very grateful to Steve for steering the business steadily and successfully through what has latterly been choppy waters,” Chairman Jonathan Evans said. 
 
The annual conference, which hosts more than 8000 attendees, concludes today in Manchester. This year’s theme was Rising to the Challenge. 
 
Mr White raised issues including the unacceptably heavy regulatory burden faced by brokers and the need for government action on the “too high” 12% insurance premium tax. 
 
“At the very least, it should be frozen and not raised for the remainder of this Parliament,” he said. “We also call for an insurance premium tax exemption to apply to property insurance premiums for impaired high-rise multi-occupancy buildings that await or are undergoing remediation.”  
 
Mr White called for greater industry diversity, with research showing that less than 16% of those who hold key senior management functions in broking businesses are women, and encouraged the sector to embrace new technology, including the potential of artificial intelligence. 
 
“We should consider AI as a tool that humans have invented to enable us to work better and following the Government’s recently published White Paper on the subject, this will inevitably become an increasingly important focus for us all,” he said.  
 
Mr White also told the conference BIBA has called for the Government to legislate for a basic level of public liability insurance to be compulsory for e-scooters, and to introduce a regulatory framework. 
 
BIBA says its board has formed a sub-committee to determine the process in selecting a new CEO.