Obituary: Iain Winfield

Iain joined what was Incisive Media in 2008 as a sub-editor on Accountancy Age before moving into the insurance division in 2011 as production editor on Insurance Age.

Although he was a quiet and unassuming member of staff, for those who ever spent some time with him would attest, he had a dry sense of humour and was great company.

Iain was also much more than a production editor. A keen amateur photographer, he was often called upon to lend a hand at photo shoots across Insurance Age and Insurance Post. Even if it meant stopping what he was doing and stepping in at the last minute.

He also taught himself video editing skills, and thus became a fixture at insurance events like the British Insurance Brokers’ Association conference where he would lock himself in a hotel room while reporters would come back and forth with footage that he would skilfully knit together as a series of episodes of the popular Biba Fever show. Pumping out content as quickly as his portable editing suite would allow, he never moaned about the ropey quality of some of the material he had to work with but got on with the job at hand.

This is a trait that really characterised Iain as such a valuable member of staff, given that the Covid-19 lockdown and move to video-conferencing meant that his skills and ‘can-do’ attitude became even more valuable.

He was instrumental in the Insurance division launching its Covid-Cast video series that racked up over 30 episodes; and helped save the day when the British Insurance Awards shortlist video footage got locked in 133 Houndsditch when staff were sent home in March 2020.

Working with content director Jonathan Swift, he produced a new shortlist video from scratch to meet the deadline for the announcement without missing a beat.

A dedicated, multi-talented and resourceful colleague, he will be sorely missed.