RBS insurance parts ways with two senior managers:

RBS insurance parts ways with two senior managers

by Richard Kilner

Story link: RBS insurance parts ways with two senior managers

RBS has undergone serious restructuring to tie together its various brands, resulting in two senior managers parting ways with the firm.

Last week both the managing director of motor, Chris Moat, and the chief risk officer, Robin Webster resigned.

Chris Sullivan, chief executive, let staff know about the situation on Thursday.

Moat’s position remains vacant, but Webster’s has been taken on by Mark Hesketh who also has responsibility for finance.

Despite the circumstances an RBS spokesman has stated that the firm wishes both departing men every success with the future.

The resignations come amid the second phase of restructuring at the firm, a phase which sees Andy Cornish become the new managing director of both commercial and brokers, areas previously led by two different managing directors.

The change comes as the firm believes pooling commercial expertise will prove beneficial, regardless of distribution channel.

It is now several months since Sullivan declared the plans for more closely integrating the firm’s various brands, such as Direct Line, NIG and Churchill.

He has been vocal about the necessity of promoting closer collaboration between the brands, some of which are in competition with one another. An early move in his tenure as chief executive was to replace the brand bosses with product line and distribution managers.

Moat had his role as managing director of Direct Line changed to head of RBS motor.

The purpose of the restructuring was to try and corner the largest possible share of the market, and, to a lesser degree, prevent the brands from undercutting one another.

There has been some surprise at Moat’s departure. He has spent a long time with the firm and been described by one insider as ‘very good with organisation and people management’.