Underwriter is ... Underwriting. Underwriter: history of the profession

On the territory of the Russian Federation, there is a "Unified Tariff and Qualification Handbook", which includes more than 7 thousand diverse types of professional activities. It's only for this country. In the world of various professions much more. And in Russia there are many more specialties that are not included in this directory, which are quite rare. At the present time, the profession is starting to gain popularity, which few people have heard of before. Its name is underwriter. The specialty is quite in demand on the modern labor market.

An underwriter is ...

The name of the profession is unusual for most and incomprehensible. For this reason, people often ask when they hear the word "underwriter": "Who is this?" Meanwhile, this intricate word is called one of the main specialties in the field of insurance. If you translate the name of the profession, it means "signature under risk." This clearly defines the underwriter's occupation. The person of this specialization is busy evaluating, describing and assigning qualifications to the existing risks for the formation of the insurance portfolio.

An important factor in this, as in any other profession is the earnings based on the results of work. He reaches a fairly high level. But big money is associated with a wide range of responsibilities. For this reason, the question "Who is the underwriter?" Can be answered simply by listing all the functions that it performs: working with insurance contracts and policies, analyzing possible risks, advising agents and managers and developing methods, etc.

Underwriter in banking

This profession exists not only in insurance. Often there is an underwriter in the bank. After all, it is difficult to imagine a credit activity without assessing the risks of non-payment of a debt. Institutions where the underwriter works are "Sberbank" or similar joint-stock companies that provide various loans to the population. These organizations are required to have such a specialist in their state. The bank underwriter is a qualified staff engaged in valuation activities to determine the risks of non-repayment of a loan. This procedure must necessarily be carried out by each financial institution.

Set the level of solvency of the borrower even at the stage of deciding whether to refuse or issue a loan allows the work of a person of this profession. The methods of definition can be completely different, so the employee of Gazprombank can analyze differently than the underwriter in Sberbank, whose borrowers' reviews are positive. But the responses of banks on the work of such professionals are able to qualitatively affect the amount of wages.

In addition to refusing a person who wants to take a loan, an alternative option of cooperation can be provided. It is drawn up on different terms for the borrower and can offer him another amount. This option is selected in accordance with what the conclusion was made by the underwriter. For this reason, failure can not always be based on a low level of solvency.

Underwriter in insurance business

In this area, the professional is engaged in the analysis of possible risks. An underwriter is a person authorized to form an insurance portfolio, he has all the rights to make decisions.

It is not easy to take this position. Insurance companies put forward a whole list of requirements, consisting in possession of a lot of technical and practical knowledge that a candidate must possess. This knowledge includes those that will allow to correctly analyze and make an opinion about the level of possible risks, conditions for registration of insurance and the amount of rates.

An underwriter in insurance must perform the main task - this is the achievement of a positive financial result without risks. This happens by observing a number of rules and algorithms of the specialist's actions in the formation of the portfolio.

As a result, the work of the underwriter is directly proportional to whether the company will receive a good profit, or, conversely, to suffer losses.

Risk assessment under insurance contracts

An underwriter is a person who must make sightings of documents for concluding a risk contract and assigning them appropriate qualifications for a particular facility or individual. Also, a person of this profession determines the tariff rates and conditions under which an insurance contract will be concluded, makes a conclusion about the possibility of such transactions.

The underwriter assesses all possible risks for personal and property insurance. He has all the necessary information about the budget, the formation of reserves, as well as reinsurance and how to settle the losses. In general, this is the person whose one signature can cost thousands or even millions.

Official duties

The duties of this specialist include:

1. Carrying out the following actions:
   • Sighting of documents on behalf of the company;
   • Taking risks for insurance or reinsurance;
   • Qualification of risks;
   • Determination of rates by tariffs and terms of the transaction;
   • Drawing up a conclusion on the possibility of signing a contract;
   • Formation of the portfolio.
2. Consultation in such areas as the right of sighting of documents and responsibility for the signed signature.
   • Risk assessment.
   • Principles of constructing an insurance portfolio.
   • Legal aspects of activity.
   • Financial stability of the enterprise.
   • Budget control.
   • Settlement of losses.

Main functions

The work of the underwriter is an activity performed within the framework of the following algorithm of actions:

1. Identification for the object to be insured. Verification of documents confirming the rights to property participating in the contract.
2. Assessment of the level of risk. Determination of the reasons for the possible rejection of the object, if the client is suspected of providing untrue information.
3. Decision on the possibility of concluding a contract. The object underwriting can be either medical, financial, or professional. In this case, an important role is played by the analyst of the expert who gives the conclusion, as well as his professionalism in predicting the possible development of the situation.
4. Determination of the list of contract terms - both basic and additional. The underwriter is empowered to decide which group of risks to include the proposed case. On this basis, he has the right to introduce into the insurance contract those additional conditions that he deems necessary and determine the further course of the transaction. An example of such additions may be the amount or duration of the transaction.
5. Establishment of tariffs, calculation of premiums. The underwriter conducts his own analysis and establishes the amounts of compensation in accordance with the rules of insurance law and benefits already accepted by the company. If the degree of transaction risk is high, the coefficients are increased accordingly.
6. Signing of the insurance contract.

Skills and prospects

The presence of an analytical mindset is the most important feature of a person who dreams of carrying out his activities, such as an underwriter. The history of the profession says that the employer draws attention to this. The specialist should quickly and easily navigate the trends accompanying the insurance business and know the principles of the formation of his products. Well, of course, a professional in his field should know foreign languages, usually English.

The insurance business in Russia has still great potential for development, so the prospects for underwriters are quite extensive. In addition, risk assessors will be in demand in other areas. In addition, experienced employees with experience of 2-3 years can count on the position of the head of the department.

Education

Within the Russian Federation, the largest educational institution that educates its students on insurance programs is the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. It is this institution that is engaged in the preparation of underwriters. Also there are courses for advanced training. Getting an underwriter's profession can be accompanied by further employment, if you become a student of the Institute of Management and Entrepreneurship under the GUU.

Faculties, the training on which is associated with insurance, is in many universities with an economic bias. Regional universities are places where future successful underwriters can also receive diplomas.

Pros and cons of the profession

In the underwriter's work, shortcomings can be considered continuations of merit. A person of this specialty, unlike an insurance agent, has a stable salary, because he works on a salary. Of course, the underwriter can not count on big bonuses, but as a counterbalance to this we can say that he has a fixed monthly income. These specialists, as a rule, are enlisted in the staff of the employees, which means that they are socially protected. The profession "underwriter" means working according to a fixed schedule - with weekends and holidays.

By cons of the profession can be attributed the fact that a person accustomed to working with figures and papers, also need to be able to talk with customers. Well, the biggest disadvantage of the profession is, of course, the responsibility imposed by the company.

Selecting a Lead Underwriter

The selection of these specialists should be made according to the following criteria.

• Analysis of the track record. First, you need to find out the qualification level of the candidate.
• Reliable reputation. In order to carry out large and profitable transactions, the underwriter should be respected by professionals and partners engaged in this field.
• Financial conditions of the candidate. It should also be borne in mind that the costs of paying for the underwriter's services can be a significant amount.