Head of Underwriting

Job Advert

Join our dynamic and rapidly growing team at Barbon, where innovation meets integrity. As a leader in tenant referencing and specialist lettings insurance, we thrive on energy, creativity, and a passion for excellence.

We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced Head of Underwriting to lead and direct underwriting strategy, operations, and policy development across product lines. This role is pivotal in ensuring that our business operations maintain the highest levels of integrity and ethics in a fast-paced environment.

The Head of Underwriting’s prime responsibilities will be the general management, support and development of the Product Governance and Underwriting Team’s. Assist in the monitoring and reporting of the performance and profitability of our products to our insurers and key stakeholders. Review and implementation of any changes to be made to our current product set, as well as the introduction of any new products, with the assistance of the Underwriting Technical Analyst and other key members of the underwriting and product team. Maintaining of product stability, oversight of product performance. Taking responsibility for the adherence to insurer’s delegated authority and maintaining insurer relationships.

Key Responsibilities:

- Lead, manage, coach and support the Team Leaders for the Underwriting, Product Governance Teams, ensuring that SLA’s are adhered to and improve business efficiencies through controlled empowerment roll-outs to the Sales Teams.
- Monitor and report on performance and suitability of each product against set parameters throughout their lifecycle.
- Ensure that all activities undertaken by the Underwriting Team are within agreed Insurer scope and permissions and reinforce underwriting integrity across the Group.
- Drive any product rationalisation projects across the Groups brands and review rationalisation opportunities.
- Chair the Product Governance Committee and maintain and develop the product governance framework itself ensuring the group’s processes incorporate the latest legislative and regulatory requirements.
- Oversee the Team Leaders within the Underwriting, Product function to ensure all HR responsibilities for the department including holiday and sickness monitoring, quarterly reviews, team meetings, are met.
- Maintain, with the support of the Underwriting Technical Analyst, a specific product based management information reporting suite and issue a “Product Performance Dashboard” at agreed intervals to the PGC and other key stakeholders which should include but not be restricted to Consumer Duty performance, new business and retention levels, complaints, cancellations, margin levels, underwriting loss ratios, claim frequencies and repudiations & risk level set against the groups tolerance / risk appetite.
- Be the point of contact for insurer relationships and manage these effectively. This includes, but is not limited to, taking ownership for the group’s delegated authority with insurers to ensure full compliance as well as improvements where necessary, attend all insurer review meetings, undertake any remedial action requested by insurers and support them with referrals where necessary.
- Manage the relationship with insurers. Overseeing regular underwriting meetings and QBR’s as well as demonstrating a strong understanding of the contractual arrangements and profit share scheme.
- Contribute and ensure smooth implementation of strategic business objectives and product development.

SMCR Regulatory Responsibility
- Under the FCA’s Senior Manager & Certification Regime (SMCR) this role is deemed to be responsible for the following certification function:

- Significant Management Function - this role has significant responsibility, including key decision making for insurance sales
- The job holder will be required to meet the requirements of the Certification Regime, including but not limited to:

- Fitness & Propriety assessments
- Completion of 15 hours of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) on an annual basis
- Adherence to Conduct Rules

Person specification

**Essential**

**Desirable**

**Education/ Qualifications**

At least 4 GCSE’s/O Levels (grade c or above) including Maths and English

Cert CII, progression towards or at the very least a commitment to enrol for these Insurance qualifications upon appointment

Dip CII / ACII or progress towards (or comparable in other financial services sectors)

**Experience**

**and knowledge**

At least 3 years general insurance / financial services experience working with insurance products

At least 5 years general insurance experience with involvement in project management

**Skills/ Aptitude**

Collaborative Working
- Encourages Co-Operative Working

Communicating Clearly
- Promotes Two-Way Communication

Leading & Developing
- Enables the Performance of Others

Thinking Customer
- Strives to Deliver Excellence

Commercial Mind-set
- Identifies opportuniti