Aviva appoints Amanda Blanc after sudden Zurich exit last July

Aviva has appointed Amanda Blanc as independent non-executive director (INED) starting from January 2, 2020. She will also be the new chair of the firm’s Governance Committee.

Blanc resigned as CEO EMEA of Zurich and chair of ABI in July after joining the firm as recently as October 2018.

Aviva said Blanc would brings extensive knowledge and experience of the insurance industry to her new role.

Prior to her CEO EMEA post at Zurich, she had been CEO at AXA UK & Ireland. She has also held senior management positions at Towergate Insurance Brokers, Groupama Insurance Company and Commercial Union. In 2018, Blanc was the first woman to be appointed as chair of the Association of British Insurers and was also chair of the Insurance Fraud Bureau and president of the Chartered Insurance Institute.

The company confirmed the retirement of Glyn Barker, who served as an INED for nearly eight years and Claudia Arney who was an INED at the firm for almost four years. They will both retire December 31, 2019.

Barker has held the role of chair of the Audit Committee and the senior independent director in addition to serving on the Audit, Governance, Nomination, Remuneration and Risk Committees. While Arney is chair of the Governance Committee and is a member of the Nomination, Remuneration and Risk Committees. Amanda Blanc will succeed Claudia as Chair of the Governance Committee* and will become a member of the Nomination and Risk Committees upon appointment to the Board.

Chairman Adrian Montague said: “We are delighted to welcome Amanda Blanc as an independent non-executive director and as the new chair of the Governance Committee. Amanda’s breadth and depth of experience of the UK and European insurance industry, and her detailed understanding of business and customers, make her an excellent addition to our board.”