A career as an insurance underwriter involves reviewing the individual or business’s level of risk, reviewing various insurance policies and coverage amounts to determine if the policyholder has the appropriate amount of insurance coverage, or perhaps whether the person can even be insured with the company at all. Sometimes individuals or businesses are simply too “risky” to insure and must be turned down, and it is partly up to the insurance underwriter to make those decisions regarding risk by analyzing the individual or business and the item or situation they’re looking to insure.

People with backgrounds in engineering, economics, math and/or physics often find insurance underwriting jobs to be a good match for their knowledge and personalities, although somewhat surprising! The reason for this is because an insurance underwriter must be detail oriented and analytical. People who enjoy putting pieces together to finish a puzzle often enjoy the tasks of an underwriting job.

Job Requirements for Insurance Underwriters

Not everyone meets the requirements for becoming an insurance underwriter. Previously, having a college degree would often be all a person needed to become an underwriter – now, managers look for college graduates who had studied quantitative studies and a number of mathematical courses. If you want to be an insurance underwriter, you must have a good personality for dealing with other people as you will often have to deliver bad news.

It’s also necessary for an insurance underwriter to have a solid understanding of insurance in general, the insurance offered at the company they work with, and how claims are submitted. Underwriters are the “go-to” person in the insurance industry, with everyone from customer service representatives to insurance agents and claims adjusters contacting them for information. Even insurance policyholders will contact the underwriters with questions and concerns. If you’re looking for a career as an underwriter, you’ll have to be dedicated to learning the ins and outs of the industry.

Insurance Underwriting Job Salaries

A new insurance underwriter might expect to earn between $35,000 and $40,000, while a more experienced underwriter with knowledge in multiple types of insurance might expect to earn between $60,000 and $70,000 per year. The industry outlook for insurance underwriters is good, as there is always a need for insurance. There is great opportunity for career advancement and lifelong learning – but you may need to be willing to transfer from one insurance company to another throughout the course of your career to continue moving up the ladder.

Business owners have a lot of things on their plate to keep their business growing. Property, liability, workers comprehension and other forms of insurance are needed which can get costly and confusing if you try to navigate the sometimes murky waters of business insurance on your own. It helps to have a trusted insurance broker who can assist in making the right choices and act as a middle man when purchasing and maintaining important insurance policies for your business.

Insurance agent or broker?

There are differences between agents and brokers. The main thing that separates the two are the fact that agents work for a specific insurance company while a broker generally works independently with no specific insurance company that they are required to do business with. The difference gets harder to determine when people act as both an agent and a broker which can occur based on your needs and the insurance companies that are involved.

There are pros and cons of working with either an independent broker or an insurance agent. An independent broker may not have the same access to certain information as an insurance agent however in most cases the broker is working to find you the most competitive rate. That being said an insurance agent will only be able to offer information about the specific company that he/she represents but will have total access and possibly better information about the insurance company and policies, including pricing information.

Agent experience is important.

When it comes to selecting an insurance agent or broker- experience and expertise is important. While it is possible for a laymen to get a solid understanding of insurance policies, having an experienced representative working for you should make decisions much easier. Insurance requirements and policy information can quickly get confusing. The goal is to make sure you are adequately covered without paying too much money. When selecting an agent or broker make sure they have the knowledge to act on your behalf.

Making the decision.

If a candidate is interested in providing agent or broker services for your company they should be willing to make a presentation explaining their services and qualifications. You should be looking for the following:

• Compatibility of the business

• Level of commitment

• How the agent or broker will solve your insurance problems

• Why they are the right person for you and your company (why are they better than the competition?)

You may want to establish a review period when working with a new agent or broker to ensure the relationship is working out as anticipated.