Sedgwick national executive loss adjuster Bob Richards has been given this year’s Australasian Institute of Chartered Loss Adjusters lifetime achievement award.

Mr Richards was honoured at an institute board meeting in Melbourne on October 24.

“With over 60 years in loss adjusting, Bob has built an extraordinary legacy across Australia, Asia and the Pacific,” AICLA said.

“Known for his commitment to mentoring and training, Bob has guided countless individuals into leadership roles worldwide. Congratulations on this well-deserved award.”

Melbourne-based Mr Richards was instrumental in bringing together three professional bodies to form AICLA, and in 1997 was its inaugural president. In 2015, he received an Order of Australia Medal for four decades of community service.  

He started his insurance career in 1962 and in 1972 won $20 from the Loss Adjusters Institute of Victoria for the highest mark in document drafting. He was national director of the Australian Insurance Law Association in the 1980s and has addressed industry functions in the UK and Asia.

AICLA is now taking applications for this year’s Carey Bird Scholarship, established in memory of an institute member who died in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

Applications close on Wednesday. Find out more here.