TAL appoints claims chief

Former Westpac and BT executive Georgina Croft has been appointed TAL’s next chief claims officer (CCO), filling a more than three-month vacancy.

Commenting on its latest senior appointment, TAL recognised Croft’s extensive experience leading large operational teams, with “accountability for front-line customer service functions as well as broader experience across mergers and acquisitions, transformational change, risk and compliance, and corporate governance”.

Croft makes the jump from Westpac subsidiary BT Financial Group, after a nearly two-year stint as chief customer services officer at the wealth management firm (which followed an earlier, five-year tenure as BT’s chief operating officer for insurance between 2015 and 2020).

Across a more than 13-year career at the Westpac Group, and prior to her most recent role at BT, Croft served as Westpac’s executive director – transformation and specialist businesses, overseeing a number of key M&A transactions and separation programs for the big four bank, including the 2021 sale of Westpac’s life insurance business to TAL Dai-ichi Life Australia.

TAL’s former CCO, Jenny Oliver, who had served in the role since 2019, was last October appointed to a new chief executive – group life & retirement role at the lift insurer.

Oliver was praised for leading the transformation of the life insurer’s claims capabilities, “building a strong claims leadership team, investing in the broader claims team skills and capabilities, amplifying strong risk and governance practices, and delivering an ambitious technology transformation program”.

While the role was vacant, Oliver continued to provide executive oversight for TAL’s claims function.

TAL group chief executive and managing director Brett Clark recognised Croft’s “extensive leadership experience and customer focus”, noting the life insurer’s “continued investment in digital-first claims services and our people” and efforts to make its end-to-end claims experience “better, faster and simpler for our customers.”

“TAL remains focused on delivering industry-leading claims experience and claims outcomes for our customers and partners, supported by a committed investment program in technology and digital capabilities.

Croft said she looked forward to working with TAL’s claims team “to deliver even more for our customers and partners, to ensure that TAL leads in the industry in claims experience and claims outcomes, and that all TAL customers feel confident we will be there to help if the unexpected happens.”