Members of the Equity Release Council have voted for its expansion through reappointing three directors to its main board and widening its standards board membership.
Members of the Equity Release Council have voted for its expansion through reappointing three directors to its main board and widening its standards board membership.
Will Hale, chief executive of Key, Paul Turner, managing director of retail at Just Group and Dan Baines, managing director of Equity Release Associates, have all been re-elected to serve an additional two years on the council’s 16-strong executive board.
Stuart Wilson, chief executive of Answers in Retirement and James Ginley, who will join e.surv as technical director in May, have been elected to join the council’s standards board, expanding its membership to nine.
The standards board combines technical expertise with independent input from regulatory and consumer experts to oversee the development and implementation of consumer-focused standards.
David Burrowes, chairman of the Equity Release Council, said: “The council has worked hard with members over the last year to progress important initiatives to support robust and consistent standards in the market, including launching a new Competency Framework to support adviser development.
“The ability to bring together perspectives from across the sector has been vital to maintaining consumer safeguards in an unprecedented operating environment.
“I look forward to working with our returning directors and the wider board to champion the role of property wealth and flexible home finance as a mainstay of later life planning.
“The expansion of the standards board will help to ensure our consumer-focused standards continue to evolve and set out best practice across all participants in the equity release process.
“We are passionate about broadening sector representation as we strive to provide the highest level of consumer protection for any property-based loan in later life.”
