Underwriting is the foundation of the insurance process. Company profitability depends upon selecting and pricing business properly so that losses and expenses do not exceed premium income. Clearly, underwriters play a vital role in Federated's success.
In addition to evaluating risk, underwriters work with the pricing of insurance coverage to determine appropriate premium rates. They also work closely with the marketing, claims, and field services (loss prevention) areas that have a role in the underwriters’ efforts to make sound business decisions.
The key elements of underwriting include:
Risk Assessment – reviewing all applications from prospective clients and periodically re-evaluating current clients' accounts to determine acceptability
Premium for Exposure – applying appropriate rating and classification plans based on the business practices and operations
Risk Management – evaluating business operations and practices, then recommending risk management steps to better manage exposures
Coverage Programming – examining clients' and prospects' business operations and recommending insurance coverage or changes to protect the business, its owners, and its employees
Successful underwriters possess:
Strong analytical and decision-making skills
Excellent communication and relationship building skills
Strong administrative and multi-tasking skills
Skills in negotiating and influencing others
An understanding of the business exposures of our clients in selected industries and how insurance products and risk management practices address these exposures
To help new underwriters achieve a high level of professionalism
Federated provides a combination of classroom and field training experiences for new underwriters. As a new Federated underwriter, you would:
Become familiar with basic underwriting concepts and Federated's specialized insurance coverages
Observe and work with claims, marketing, and field services staff to gain understanding of other Company functions
Receive regular on-the-job training
Gain actual work experience and learn about our clients' businesses through planned field trips
Once you've mastered the basics, Federated encourages continued development by working toward nationally recognized professional insurance designations such as the Associate in Underwriting (AU) and Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) designation. Other in-house training courses are also available. Federated pays exam fees and awards cash bonuses for completion of most insurance-related courses. Federated employees also have Company support for individual self-development activities. See Training/Development to learn more about Federated's extensive training programs.
