Hastings Direct
Automation Engineer
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Automation Engineer
We’re a digital insurance provider with ambitious plans to become The Best and Biggest in the UK market.
Over the past few years, we’ve made significant investments in our data and tech capabilities, particularly within our CIO function. Our CIO team is at the forefront of driving innovation and ensuring our technology infrastructure supports our ambitious goals.
We’ve nurtured our 4Cs culture, fostering collaboration, creativity, and continuous improvement.
We’re proud of the journey we’re on as a company and know that our continued success will rely on the contribution of our talented colleagues.
The CIO team plays a crucial role in this journey, working on cutting-edge projects that enhance our digital presence and improve customer engagement. We provide insurance to nearly four million customers, but we know there’s even bigger opportunity out there.
The fact you’re now reading this job advert means we’ve tempted you to find out more about #lifeatHD – we really hope you like what you see, and you’ll join us to share in the success of the exciting chapter that lies ahead.
We understand some people may not apply for jobs unless they feel they tick every box. If you are excited about joining us and think you have some of what we are looking for, even if you’re not 100% sure, we would love to hear from you.
Our CIO team is always looking for passionate individuals who are eager to make a difference and contribute to our success.
Job Details
You will be working as an individual collaborator on one of many sprint teams, alongside colleagues that cross multiple disciplines:
- Actively participate in sprint ceremonies.
- Share updates and blockers in daily standups, estimate/commit in sprint planning, or provide input in sprint retrospectives.
- Ensure user stories meet the team’s definition of ready.
- Ensure work items meet the team’s definition of done, and call it out when they do not.
- Collaborate with colleagues to write Acceptance Criteria describing business rules for both functional and non-functional behaviors – the bedrock of quality test scenarios.
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Skills We Would Love You to Have
- Comfortable collaborating on an Agile sprint team (e.g., Scrum, Kanban, or SAFe).
- Confident and vocal in sprint ceremonies: stand-ups, planning, retrospectives, 3-amigos, and backlog elaboration.
- Familiarity with backlog management in Jira or Octane, including defining work items and tracking tasks.
- Knowledge of test case management (e.g., Octane, X-Ray) with traceability to work items.
- Experienced writing acceptance criteria in declarative Gherkin for both functional and non-functional tests run via Cucumber.
- Strong coding skills, with experience implementing automated tests in:
- Java
- JavaScript
- TypeScript
- C#
- Comfortable with source control (GitHub) and code collaboration.
- Skilled in user interface automation using:
- Selenium & Selenium Grid
- Playwright
- Cypress
- Ability to test APIs via SoapUI, Postman, or coding.
Unfortunately, sponsorship is currently unavailable for any candidates we consider.
What We Offer
Join us for a different way of doing things—our 4Cs: Colleagues, Customers, Company, and Community.
As a colleague, you’ll drive growth, supported by:
- Training & Development
- Recognition & Rewards
- Ability to voice ideas and implement them.
Reward Package
- Salary: Attractive, experience-based with annual pay reviews.
- Flexible Working: Hybrid model; discuss office details with your recruiter.
- Bonus Scheme: Annual 4Cs Performance Bonus (typically paid March).
- Healthcare Plan: Cash plan for everyday healthcare.
- Financial Support:
- £4x salary in life assurance and income protection (no extra cost).
- Pension match up to 10%.
- Award-winning benefits:
- Discounts & cashback at retailers and our own products.
- Fee-free mortgage advice.
- Financial wellbeing support (free).
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Wellbeing Programs
-
Mental Health Support:
- The Thrive app.
- 24/7 Colleague Assistance Programme.
- In-house mental health first aiders.
- Support groups & dedicated team.
-
Physical & Holistic Wellbeing:
- Additional benefits include:
- 25 days annual leave + bank holidays.
- Option to buy/sell weeks.
- Private & dental healthcare.
- Cycle to work & tech schemes.
- Social events & free/discounted onsite facilities.
- Additional benefits include:
Some benefits start immediately, while probationary-based benefits (e.g., financial incentives) require a 12-month commitment.
Commitment to Inclusivity
The Hastings Group is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds: gender, age, race, disability, ethnic origin, religion/belief, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, or marital/family status.
- Notes:
- Criminal/credit checks are part of the referencing process.
- Reasonable adjustments encouraged if needed during recruitment.
If you’d like to explore our diversity, inclusion, community engagement, or benefits package further, visit [learning resources link].
About Us
- Fast-growing, agile, and digitally focused — serving +4 million UK customers.
- 125+ team members, and expanding.
- Our aim? To be the best and biggest digital insurance provider in the market.
Environment
A dynamic, flexible, fun, and evolving workplace where you can:
- Impact customers’ lives.
- Influence the company’s direction.
- Help communities.
- Enjoy a fun, rewarding experience.
Visit [Colleague Stories link] to learn more about #lifeatHD.
*Job posting validity: Ends 31/07/2026.
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