Insurance underwriter

Insurance underwriters decide if applications for insurance cover should be accepted and, if so, what the terms and conditions of that acceptance are

As an insurance underwriter, you'll assess the risk of insuring a person or company according to the likelihood of a claim being made.

Working closely with actuaries, brokers, and risk and claims managers, you'll strike and maintain a balance between attracting and retaining customers through competitive insurance premiums and being able to cover any potential losses from claims.

Types of insurance

Most underwriters specialise in one type of insurance. The main types of insurance are:

• general insurance - household, pet, motor, travel
• life insurance/assurance - illness, injury, death
• commercial insurance - covers companies
• reinsurance - where part of the risk is placed with another insurer.

Responsibilities

As an insurance underwriter, you'll need to:

• study insurance proposals
• gather and assess background information, including reports and medical records from specialists where appropriate, in order to effectively assess the risk involved
• analyse statistical information using specialist programmes
• calculate possible risk and decide on the premium - how much individuals or organisations should pay for insurance
• decide whether the risk should be shared with a reinsurer
• visit brokers or potential customers and prepare quotes
• liaise with specialists, such as surveyors or doctors, for risk assessment, and develop good working relationships with brokers
• negotiate terms with policyholders or their brokers and draw up contracts
• ensure that premiums are competitive and that accounts remain profitable
• specify conditions to be imposed on different types of policies, for example, asking that a property owner install a security alarm
• write policies and help with policy wording
• keep detailed and accurate records of policies underwritten and decisions made.

Salary

• Starting salaries for underwriting assistants typically range from £18,000 to £25,000. Trainee underwriters on graduate schemes may earn from around £24,000 to £30,000. The salary on the two-year Lloyd's Insurance Graduate Scheme, for example, is £32,000 per year.
• Qualified underwriters can earn between £25,000 and £45,000 per year.
• Salaries for senior/lead underwriters start at around £45,000 and can rise to £100,00 for some underwriting manager roles. Heads of underwriting may earn in excess of £100,000.

Salaries vary considerably depending on your location. Salaries in the City of London, for example, can be significantly higher and may be in excess of £200,000 at the most senior levels.

Other factors that affect salaries include the type of employer you work for, your skills and experience, as well as your area of insurance (salaries for commercial risk and liability insurance, for example, are usually higher).

Your financial package may include a range of additional benefits such as discounted insurance, share and pension schemes, and bonuses.

Salary surveys providing up-to-date information on current salary levels in the UK insurance and reinsurance sector are provided by a range of recruitment companies, such as:

• HAYS
• Heat Recruitment
• IDEX Consulting
• IPS Group

Income figures are intended as a guide only.

Working hours

You'll typically work Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, with extra hours at busy times. There may be opportunities for hybrid working.

What to expect

• The work is mainly office based, with some visits to insurance brokers and/or client premises.
• London is the UK's major insurance centre and therefore many jobs are available in London and the surrounding areas. However, opportunities exist in cities and large towns throughout the UK.
• You'll need to feel comfortable making decisions about risks and working under pressure to meet deadlines.
• If you work for a commercial firm with business overseas, you may have the opportunity to travel or work abroad.

Qualifications

Although you don't need a specific degree subject to become an insurance underwriter, some employers may prefer a degree in business, finance or management, economics, law or mathematics. For some posts, a degree in a science or engineering subject may be useful.

Some of the larger insurance companies offer structured graduate training schemes in underwriting. These are competitive and usually require a 2:1 or above, although some schemes, such as the Lloyd's Graduate Programme, will accept a 2:2.

Entry without a degree is possible in an assistant underwriter role, working as a junior underwriter assistant or insurance technician in an underwriting team. You can progress to the role of underwriter after gaining experience and insurance industry qualifications through, for example, the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII).

It's also possible to gain entry via a Level 3 Insurance Practitioner or Level 4 Insurance Professional apprenticeship (specialising in underwriting), which combines paid work with part-time study for an insurance qualification. For current opportunities, see find an apprenticeship. Lloyd's also offers an insurance apprenticeship programme.

Although employers usually provide training in insurance-related legal issues, you'll need to develop a good understanding of the insurance industry and the terminology used. This can be done by reading the specialist press, for example. You will also need to research the company you're interested in working for thoroughly.

If you're interested in a particular company, it's a good idea to visit one of their recruitment events to speak to employees and find out about what they do and what they're looking for. You can also use professional networking sites such as LinkedIn to contact employers you're interested in and graduates on insurance training schemes.

It's also possible to move into underwriting following a role in actuarial, claims management or risk management.

Skills

You'll need to have:

• effective analytical skills
• excellent written and verbal communication skills
• interpersonal and relationship management skills
• negotiation skills and the ability to influence others
• the ability to absorb and understand technical information quickly
• confident decision-making skills
• a good level of numeracy and statistical skills
• problem-solving skills and a logical approach to work
• resilience and self-motivation
• sound judgement in order to determine the risk involved in insuring a person or company
• attention to detail
• the ability to work to tight deadlines
• the ability to plan, prioritise and manage your time and to work on a number of projects concurrently
• a proactive and forward thinking approach to work
• teamworking skills but also a willingness to use your own initiative and work independently
• customer service skills
• general administrative and IT skills
• a commitment to continuous learning and development.

Work experience

Although pre-entry experience is not essential, relevant work experience with an insurance company can improve your chances of finding employment. Many of the major insurance companies offer work placement or summer internship programmes. Competition for places is strong and employers often ask for a predicted 2:1 or above.

Some smaller firms offer work experience, but you may need to approach them direct to find out about opportunities.

Find out more about the different kinds of work experience and internships that are available.

Employers

You can work within any of the following types of insurance organisations:

• large companies - offering a range of general insurance cover
• smaller companies - specialising in one type of insurance, e.g. motor
• life assurance companies
• Lloyd's, the world's specialist insurance and reinsurance market - typically specialising in large-scale risk assessments
• reinsurance companies
• health insurance companies
• banks
• credit agencies.

Many insurance companies have call centre facilities, where staff deal with enquiries relating to low risk or the most common types of assessments. Unusual or higher-level risks are then referred to underwriters as required.

• CityJobs
• FutureMe Insurance Jobs - official jobs site of the CII.
• Lloyd's Insurance Graduate Programme

Specialist recruitment agencies such as HAYS, Heat Recruitment, IDEX Consulting and the IPS Group also handle vacancies. Look for advertisements in the national press and specialist journals.

The large insurance companies advertise vacancies on their websites. Jobs are also advertised on LinkedIn.

Professional development

Initial graduate training schemes may last for up to two years. This is usually followed by another two to three years' training in your chosen specialist area of risk. Training tends to be on the job, working with more experienced colleagues, and is consolidated through taking professional examinations such as the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) Advanced Diploma in Insurance and in-house courses and workshops. As part of your training, you may get experience in other areas of insurance, such as claims and broking, to help build up your skills and knowledge.

The Advanced Diploma in Insurance is a professional qualification providing an enhanced understanding of insurance practice and is the starting point for many graduate underwriters. Employers will usually encourage you to follow professional qualifications, choosing modules relevant to the area you work in.

Once you hold the Advanced Diploma, you can use the designation ACII and can apply for Chartered Insurer or Chartered Insurance Underwriting Agent status (subject to having five years' experience, not necessarily post-qualification) with the CII.

If you've got a place on the two-year Lloyd's Insurance Graduate Scheme, you'll get experience of the range of roles within insurance. You'll do four placements of six months duration - two within the Lloyd's Corporation and two within the Lloyd's market. You will also receive support towards achieving the Advanced Diploma in Insurance as well as completing the Level 6 Senior Insurance Professional apprenticeship standard.

Career prospects

Once qualified, you can work your way up to the position of senior underwriter or team leader/manager. As you gain experience you'll usually take responsibility for junior members of staff who will refer their underwriting decisions to you. You may also have the opportunity to deliver training to new or less experienced employees and undertake coaching and mentoring.

As your career develops, accepting more responsibility and dealing with complex or greater risks will increase your opportunities to progress and to move to different posts and companies.

Moving into other core areas of insurance - for example risk management, loss adjusting or claims management - is possible for experienced underwriters, whose broad experience gives them scope for general management roles. Alternatively, you could choose to move into reinsurance to deal with complex cases and high levels of risk, or progress into a specialist field, such as marine or aviation insurance.

It's also possible to move into the sales field, developing your relationship-building skills to meet sales targets for specific types of insurance.