Tony Steele

The Regional Broking Manager at Oval knows how to play fair as a championship speedway-race referee

How did you come to work in insurance?
I had been to a few job interviews while waiting for my A-Level results and I went off on holiday to the South of France, and came back to find a job offer from what was the P & G Bland Partnership. So I thought: I’ll do that for a bit while I think about what to do with the rest of my life – and I’ve been here since September 1974!

What made you stay?
The company was very small when I started, it grew from a partnership to a limited company, which then grew and grew. Because I got in early and the company was growing and always changing, there was always an opportunity for me to do new things and develop.

What does your job entail on a day-to-day basis?
My responsibility is largely overseeing any broker problems and troubleshooting when required – for example, when we have a risk that is a bit out of the ordinary that needs placing. I negotiate with insurers when we’ve had a difficult claims experience but I also work on new business propositions; we are currently looking at how to drive our SME business forward.

How did you get to become a speedway-racing referee?
At one time, speedway racing was the second biggest spectator sport in the country, and I first got involved as a boy in 1969. I worked on the tracks doing all sorts of jobs and kept my hand in ever since. There was a shortage of referees in the early 1990s, so I decided to have a go at that and did the necessary training and got a licence for it. I’ve been lucky enough to officiate at all sorts of events internationally, including the World Championships in Australia.

What does being a referee entail?
During the race, I sit in a control tower overlooking the race circuit and have a control panel for starting and stopping the race and signal any disqualifications through a system of lights. It’s also my responsibility to make sure that the machinery of the bikes are inspected and make sure all the regulations are being adhered to before the meeting starts. I administer the races and make decisions as to who is at fault if there is a crash. At the end of the meeting, I have to fill in all the relevant paper work and send it with the result to the relevant authority. The key elements are safety and fairness.

How does refereeing help you in your day job?
There is a fair amount of crossover. From what you actually see at these events, you can apply the actual practical side of it when you are explaining something to underwriters or using examples of how things can and do go wrong. It is also an excellent way of improving your needed communication skills under pressure.

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The CV

The CV
1974–1978: Household, motor and commercial departments, P & G Bland Ltd
1978–1990: Servicing Team general insurance, P & G Bland Ltd/Bland Bankart Ltd
1990-1999: Broker for new business team, Bland Bankart Ltd
2000–present: Regional Broking Manager for Leicester and latterly Nottingham, Bland Bankart Ltd/The Oval Group