CILA Elects Steven Wallace as President

Wallace forms part of newly appointed leadership team which includes Deputy President Adam Humphrey and Executive Director John Bissell

Loss adjusters have “never been more relevant” according to new President

The Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters (CILA) has elected McLarens UK & EMEA Managing Director Steven Wallace as President, following its Annual General Meeting (AGM). Wallace was voted in by members, replacing Dr Marc Sweeney, of Davies, who steps down after the customary period of one year in office. He will be supported in his role at the institute by newly elected Vice President Adam Humphrey, CEO of GRS International, a subsidiary of the GRS Group.

Wallace will work with newly appointed Executive Director John Bissell, who joined earlier this month. He will also work alongside CILA’s Executive Committee and the CILA Council, which comprises Chartered Loss Adjusters elected to represent 18 focus areas and special interest groups. His remit will stretch from CILA’s work around qualifications, professional standards, and technical knowledge; and its special interest areas; to increasing industry engagement and awareness with key stakeholders, including government and policymakers.

The new President will also focus on expanding CILA’s membership and voice both internationally and within specialist areas of the profession including aviation, natural resources and marine.

With more than 30 years’ experience, Wallace is a practitioner loss adjuster first and foremost. He has held various senior management roles at international adjusting firms. He is also a Past President of the Insurance Institute of Northern Ireland.

He has been actively involved with CILA throughout his career, having first qualified as an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters (ACILA) in 1997. He was elected as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Loss Adjusters (FCILA) in 2002, served as CILA Northern Ireland Representative from 2009 to 2019, and served on the Council of CILA from 2009 to 2019.

CILA’s annual conference was held on 14 September 2023 and was attended by more than 200 loss adjusters. It included discussions on cyber claims, business Interruption, lithium battery fires and aviation claims, alongside a session on the FCA’s Consumer Duty.

Steven Wallace, CILA President, commented:

“It’s an honour to be elected to become the CILA President for the current term. CILA is hugely important in maintaining and reinforcing the standards of the profession and in delivering a world-class qualification framework.

The nature of risk is ever evolving, from climate change and cyber, to geo-political tensions and social unrest. As adjusters, we have a crucial role to play in supporting both insurers and policy holders in managing these issues and the claims that emerge from them.

Loss adjusters have demonstrated time and again their ability to step up and find solutions, combining multi-skilled, multi-lingual global resources with a ‘can-do’ mindset. With the Consumer Duty now in force, the profession has never been more relevant.”

John Bissell, Executive Director, commented:

“Steven is a highly respected loss adjusting professional and is a long-standing CILA advocate. He’s well placed to support the organisation in his role as President and will do so at an important time for CILA and the broader profession. Having worked on some of the highest profile losses in the UK, he’s a great example of the benefit and technical expertise that chartered loss adjusters bring both to the insurers and policy holders.

“I would like to thank Marc for his hard work over the past year and look forward to working closely with Steven as we review of our strategic objectives and development plan, to ensure that we are aligned to the needs of our membership.”