Markel International
Technical Underwriter - Care
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Technical Underwriter - Care
Technical Underwriter – Care
Location: Leeds, Manchester or Birmingham Work Arrangement: Hybrid (3 days in-office, 2 days remote)
About the Role
At Markel, we’re not just underwriting risks—we’re shaping them. We’re looking for a Technical Underwriter – Care who wants to influence portfolio performance, challenge traditional thinking, and become a trusted technical leader within one of our most critical business areas.
This newly created role offers:
- Senior technical expertise and portfolio oversight
- Underwriting leadership with clear progression opportunities
- Influence over portfolio performance, profitability and strategy
- A pathway towards future product leadership positions, such as becoming a Product Head
Ideal for a commercial underwriter ready to move beyond day-to-day underwriting tasks or build on existing experience in complex referrals, liability insurance or portfolio management.
What Our Success Looks Like
This isn’t a typical underwriting-only role. Your impact will ripple across the business:
Technical Leadership & Decisions
- Become the senior technical authority for the Care portfolio
- Provide expert guidance on the most complex and high-value underwriting referrals
- Shape underwriting strategy and decision-making processes
- Support delegated underwriting governance activities
Portfolio Performance & Growth
- Drive data-driven decisions to optimise portfolio performance
- Identify opportunities for profitable growth and risk mitigation
- Contribute to new product developments and enhancements
Collaboration & Stakeholder Engagement
- Build influential relationships across Underwriting, Claims, Actuarial and Distribution teams
- Coach underwriters on technical best practices
- Work with external partners to improve business outcomes
- Advocate for technical excellence across the organisation
Innovation & Continuous Improvement
- Challenge outdated processes and propose improvements
- Support innovation initiatives that enhance efficiency and discipline
- Help evolve our Care proposition while maintaining rigorous underwriting standards
Responsibilities
Working closely with the Head of Care and senior underwriting teams, you’ll focus on three key areas:
1. Technical Underwriting and Referral Authority
- Manage and finalise high-value underwriting referrals
- Act as senior technical contact for all Care portfolio decisions
- Provide principled advice on complex risks
- Support delegated authority framework governance
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2. Portfolio Oversight & Performance
- Monitor overall portfolio trends and KPIs
- Analyse risks and capital utilisation to support growth strategies
- Collaborate on underwriting and trading strategies
- Lead initiatives to identify economies of scale and future-fit solutions
3. Stakeholder Influence
- Foster cross-functional relationships to align technical standards
- Support and mentor technical teams both within and outside underwriting
- Work internally and with external partners to refine best practices
- Champion change and innovation from a knowledgeable technical perspective
Requirements
Essential Criteria
Experience or skills in the following will be key to success:
- Substantial commercial underwriting experience (5+ years ideal)
- Strong technical underwriting capability, especially around complex referrals and large risks
- Hands-on knowledge of commercial liability insurance or related areas, such as property insurance
- Excellent stakeholder engagement and communication with senior teams and experts
- Proven ability to analyse risks, trends and data and propose actionable improvements
- Seniority and confidence in challenging decisions safely and influencing wider strategy
- Long-term commitment to continuous improvement and building strategic capability
Highly Desirable
Experience or expertise could include:
- Underwriting or managing Care or health-related lines (ageing, nursing or social care)
- Knowledge of commercial combined insurance, including both property and liability risks
- Experience managing authority to redelegate risk within managed delegated books
- Professional qualifications such as CII diploma or equivalent, or a readiness to pursue them
- Familiarity with book development and portfolio-specific decisions and growth strategies
Who This Role Suits You Best
This opportunity is perfect if you’re currently a:
- Senior Underwriter
- Technical Underwriter
- Development Underwriter
- Portfolio Underwriter
- Commercial Combined Underwriter
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- LDLI: Training and development → Looking to transition from operational underwriting to strategic work → Maximise impact across the underwriting function
Why Markel Stands Out
At Markel, we recognize that business is best supported by the people supporting it. Look beyond the insurance industry norms:
- A purpose-driven culture that aligns with making a meaningful difference
- Flexibility (with the option to request adjustments to working patterns)
- Diversity and inclusion at our core—we celebrate a richer range of perspectives
- Healthy work-life balance with a 25-day holiday (term-friendly) and a world-class pension plan
Employee Perks
Feel supported throughout your career with:
- Other benefits include:
- Paternity/Adoption leave options
- Flexible holiday, bank holidays, and the ability to buy and sell paid days off
- Comprehensive private healthcare, life cover, and income protection plans
- Travel protection for family members
- CII qualification support through Markel’s internal training scheme
- Career growth into specialisms in leadership, product management or strategy
Why You’ll Want to Apply
Are you a strategic and forward-thinking commercial underwriter, ready to shape the future of one of Markel’s most important programmes?
- You’re eager to make a visible difference in underwriting best practise
- Portfolio management and process improvement highlight your motivations
- You appreciate mentorship while also having leadership ambitions
- You can articulate technical complexities clearly to colleagues and stakeholders
- The role sounds less like process and more like leadership
If so, we’d love to hear from you. Apply today and help develop a core area of Markel Insurance.
Commitment to Inclusivity
We strive to ensure roles fit workers from all walks of life. If you identify with underrepresented groups or live in a variety of circumstances, your application will be seriously considered whatever your background. Markel ensures accommodations are available to make applying and working here fully accessible to all applicants, including printed material and both online and offline options.
Email: rec@markel.com
Phone: 0161 507 5827 (UK)
Diversity and Equal Opportunity—that’s who you are too.
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