Ian Roger Heap, the first chairman and chief executive officer of XL Insurance Company Ltd., has died at the age of 81, following a short illness. Brian O?Hara, CEO of what is now known as the XL Capital group of companies, has expressed his profound sorrow at the loss of Mr. Heap, who until April of this year continued to serve as a member of the XL Capital Advisory Council.

Mr. Heap and Mr. O?Hara started with the excess insurance company within a few months of each other, and have worked closely together over the past 20 years. When he retired from the Board in 2001, Mr. Heap was acknowledged by fellow Board members as having played an instrumental role in the establishment of the company?s operating principles structure, and making significant contributions to its success.

He was president and CEO from 1987 to 1988, and served as chairman of the board of the holding company EXEL Limited from 1988 to 1992. For the ensuing two years, he was president and CEO of Mid Ocean Reinsurance Ltd., a company which in 1998 merged with XL Capital Ltd. That same year, he headed the formation of XL America Inc. and the XL Insurance Company of New York. He was a director of EXEL Limited, which later became XL Capital Ltd, from 1987 to 2001.

Brian O?Hara described Mr. Heap as a direct and honest person ?who was essentially dedicated to doing the right thing and making the right decisions?. Referring to Mr. Heap as his most trusted advisor and foremost mentor, Mr. O?Hara said: ?He set the original tone for XL, which we have maintained. He was conservative, believed in strong underwriting fundamentals, had no ambition to chase market share and wanted us to deliver top value. Ian was so proud of the company that we had created.?

Mr. Heap was born in 1925 in industrial Manchester, England, where he was raised by his widowed mother. He attended Bury Grammar School, and in spite of not being extensively educated went on to become a successful captain of industry. In 1944, during the Second World War, he also served in the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy as a Sub Lieutenant (A) Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve pilot trained by the US Navy, until 1947.

His civilian career focused on property/casualty commercial insurance company management. From 1947 through 1963 he worked in Canada for Commercial Union. In 1964 he moved to the US, later becoming a citizen. Over the years he also lived in the United Kingdom and Bermuda.

Mr. Heap is survived by his wife May Wager Heap, their four children ? Lesley Eyre, Daintry Cleary, Diane Davey, and Ian R. Heap, Jr ? and eight grandchildren.

The funeral service will be held on today at the church he and his wife helped to found, Saint Peter?s Episcopal Church in Savannah, Georgia. A memorial service will take place in late January in Bermuda.