All Together Better People - Gareth Roberts
In the latest of our series "All Together Better People", we meet Gareth Roberts of Sutton Winson.
Gareth has recently taken over the role of MD and also now stepped onto the UNA Board.
Gareth, tell us a bit about your career to date and how the world of insurance has altered since you started out?
I was very lucky to join Commercial Union Management Training Programme straight from school. I hung onto the coat tails of the graduate cohort and benefited from incredible training which included regular courses hosted around the UK. By 24, I had moved from Cardiff to Bristol and landed in Maidstone as Senior Fleet and Accident U/W. After a very enjoyable couple of years, I then moved into broking, attracted by providing advice to clients.
In my 37 years (ouch), the fundamentals of insurance have not changed. As experts we use our knowledge to build trust and respect between the insurer, broker and client. The broker expertise allows them to understand and assist the client to manage and mitigate their risks which are transposed into words, which an underwriter trusts to assess the correct premium and provide the appropriate cover. The biggest changes since I started are technology and geographical reach making it far easier to service clients out of your local area. The speed of communication is now immediate and whilst digital interaction works, the relationships are strengthened by personal interaction and spoken words!! AI will enhance our access to data and increase speed and efficiency but without knowledge and expertise the end customer will not receive advice to make the right decisions.