CLS Strengthens Business Development Team with Two New Appointments

CLS Risk Solutions, a leading MGA for legal indemnity and transactional property risk solutions, has announced the appointments of a new Business Development Director and Business Development Manager.

Amanda Armitage has been appointed Business Development Director. She joins from the broker Light & Legal Indemnity Solutions, where she was an Associate Director. Before that, she was a Business Development Manager for the UK and Europe at Stewart Title. She has 17 years of sales and business development experience, specialising in the complex legal indemnities market for the past 10 years. She joins CLS with a deep knowledge of the products and risks involved and an outstanding network of broker relationships.

Amanda comments: “Having previously been a CLS customer, I can testify to the expertise of its underwriters and the robustness of the products; my goal is to provide brokers with a level of service that is consummate with that expertise. All of our brokers need to be made aware and kept informed of the diverse products that we are able to provide to support the full life cycle of a property transaction, and how we can help them to diversify, maximise their income potential and stand out to their clients in an ever competitive environment.”

Michael Grimwood, Cert CII, has been appointed Business Development Manager. He joins from Zurich where he had various roles across business development and underwriting. His 10 year career to date includes broking, underwriting and business development roles for both large brokers and insurers including AXA, LV= and Towergate. Michael is a well-known and well respected Business Development Manager in the London and Regional markets.

Michael comments: “Having seen the Real Estate market through different lenses for many years, I believe CLS offers something unique to the market with untapped opportunity for brokers. The potential of our complex market has been ignored for too long by brokers who haven’t been exposed to these products. CLS has innovation, expertise and entrepreneurialism in buckets; combined with the experience and knowledge I’ve gained from my career to date I’m looking forward to working more collaboratively with brokers and putting our customers at the heart of everything we do.”

CLS RS removes uncertainty from property transactions and development projects by combining data, legal knowledge, technology and insurance capacity to create products and solutions for the UK and European property markets. It is a line of insurance with typically attractive broker commission rates. Interest has exploded in it in recent years with both the retail and commercial property market booms and a heightened awareness of the product capabilities.

Most of the top brokers work with CLS RS and have specialist divisions offering these lines of insurance, including Marsh, AON, and Willis Towers Watson. The business development team will work to develop a much better understanding amongst brokers of the capability and types of insurance products available across the whole property and real estate development lifecycle. The MGA is on target for 40% GWP growth in the UK by 2021.

These latest appointments follow the announcement last month of Tom O’Connor’s appointment as CEO of CLS.

Tom O’Connor, CEO of CLS Risk Solutions, comments: “I’m delighted to welcome Amanda and Michael on board. As well as helping us to achieve our ambitious growth targets, the Business Development team will ensure all of our existing clients receive first class service levels. We are the leaders in the market for complex property risk solutions, but products including Environmental Indemnities, Legal & Structural Indemnities, Public Law and Rights of Light, to name a few, are areas of insurance that are little known and even less understood in the wider market.

“We have first rate capacity, innovation and expertise at our fingertips, and brokers have the client relationships and distribution capability. Our Business Development team will work with brokers to ensure we have the right collaborative approach, to make the most of these exciting opportunities together.”

CLS RS will be exhibiting at BIBA for the first time this year. Michael and Amanda will both be on stand G50 to meet brokers and talk about the potential in property transaction risks and indemnities.

For further information please contact: SJ Wrigley at Spotlight Consulting on 07909546104 or at sj@spotlightconsulting.co.uk

About CLS Risk Solutions

CLS Risk Solutions is a Top 5* leading MGA creating and providing risk solutions for real estate development projects and transactions. Established in 2010, it is part of the successful CLS group with a turnover of circa £40m, employing 110 staff, with 7 businesses in 5 offices.

Its products include Legal Indemnities, Structural indemnities, Rights of Light Indemnities, Environmental Indemnities and Judicial Review/Planning Law Indemnities. Each product enables the client to define, quantify and transfer risk that is otherwise capable of frustrating the acquisition, funding, development or disposal of a real estate asset. CLS RS has an established reputation for innovation, expertise and service.

The CLS group includes seven interdependent businesses working in close collaboration:

– CLS Property Insight: a leading supplier of searches, insurance and data services to the UK property legal market

– CLS Data: Innovative solutions and products for the lender and surveying market

– Future Climate Info: Environmental Information market leader through progressive environmental data aggregation and supply

– Conveychoice: a legal services panel manager

– CLS Risk Solutions UK: a leading MGA for bespoke legal indemnity and transactional property risk solutions

– CLS Risk Solutions Europe: legal indemnities for renewable energy projects and real estate transactions in Europe

– CLS Group Services: One-stop service company for the CLS group companies and their commercial partners

*Intelligent Insurer MGA League Table 2017 (£20-50m bracket)

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