"His expertise, passion and knowledge of the business will help us to deliver on our ambitious plans to grow our schemes business."
- Adrian Saunders, commercial director at Ecclesiastical
Prior to this appointment, Chris Withers has held various roles across the industry, including broker distribution director at Ecclesiastical, schemes manager and head of distribution at Covea, and several business development and leadership roles at RSA.
Withers’ latest appointment marks the retirement of Tony Fletcher, following a multi-decade career. Fletcher began his journey at Norwich Union (now Aviva) in 1988, holding various roles in both underwriting and business development before his appointment as schemes and facilities director at Ecclesiastical.
Geoff Turner will replace Withers as broker distribution director as part of the insurer’s expansion strategy which will see the insurer continue to prioritise its scheme division, having already increased its schemes book by 50% since 2020.
This year, Ecclesiastical plans to onboard several new schemes, support existing broker partners, diversify its distribution methods and explore new areas of expertise such as the leisure market.
Commenting on these appointments, Adrian Saunders, commercial director at Ecclesiastical, has said:
“I’m delighted Chris has taken on the role. His expertise, passion and knowledge of the business will help us to deliver on our ambitious plans to grow our schemes business. Similarly, Geoff has helped us to develop positive relationships with broker partners and will build on that further still in his new role.”
Saunders continued: “I’d like to thank Tony and wish him all the best in his retirement,” said Saunders. “Under his guidance, we’ve grown our schemes book and built new relationships with brokers and MGAs, as well as building on existing partnerships.
“He will be missed by peers, colleagues, and his team as well as the brokers he has worked so closely with in his time with us.”
