Senior Underwriter - War, Terrorism and Political Violence

Job Type:

Build a brilliant future with Hiscox

About Us

Hiscox London Market is one of the oldest and most successful Lloyd's syndicates. Our leadership and underwriting expertise make us the leading insurer of global risks. We offer a range of products and services, including property, marine, energy, specialty, casualty, and crisis management. We are committed to embracing risk in an evolving world, designing insurance solutions to meet our clients' ever-changing needs. The Hiscox cyber team is made up of four underwriters working hand in hand with a well-integrated support team of pricing actuaries, claims, and wording resources. Hiscox also benefits from central training and expertise at a group level as well as exposure management support.

The Team

Our War, Terrorism and Political Violence team forms part of Hiscox London Market’s Crisis Management business. The team provides specialist insurance solutions for clients facing complex and evolving global risks, including war, terrorism, sabotage and political violence.

Operating in a dynamic international market, the team combines specialist underwriting expertise with strong broker relationships and a disciplined approach to risk selection and portfolio management. The Senior Underwriter will play a key role in supporting the continued development of the portfolio, strengthening our market relationships and developing underwriting talent within the team.

The Role

As a Senior Underwriter within London Markets, you will be instrumental in driving profitable growth by assessing and underwriting highly complex and specialist risks across the Lloyd’s and international marketplace. This role demands deep market insight to balance bespoke underwriting with critical global broker relationships, ensuring our portfolio remains robust and innovative. You will act as an expert contributor, managing junior underwriters and guiding colleagues in resolving complex issues, thereby enhancing team capability and ensuring underwriting practices align with Hiscox's strategic goals. Operating with high autonomy within established policies, you will address broad, multi-dimensional problems with significant operational impact, contributing tactical and strategic recommendations that shape the functional strategy for London Markets Underwriting.

Role Focus & Decision Making

• Lead the assessment, pricing, and negotiation of terms for highly complex and specialist risks within the London Markets portfolio.
• Drive profitable growth through astute risk selection, disciplined portfolio management, and the development of innovative product solutions.
• Act as a key decision-maker, applying expert judgment to balance commercial opportunity with Hiscox's risk appetite and governance standards.
• Contribute significantly to the development and execution of functional strategy for London Markets Underwriting.
• Manage and guide junior underwriters, fostering their development and ensuring adherence to best practices and Hiscox standards.
• Proactively engage with global brokers and key clients to cultivate strong relationships and identify new business opportunities.
• Develop and implement tactical recommendations that enhance underwriting efficiency, quality, and market responsiveness.

Role Scope

• Operate as a senior specialist, providing expert underwriting guidance and leadership within the London Markets team.
• Accountable for the performance and results of a complex book of business, influencing underwriting strategy and outcomes.
• Lead specific workstreams, projects, or initiatives, ensuring high-quality delivery and effective local decision-making.
• Act as a key contributor to the overall capability and development of the underwriting team through mentorship and knowledge sharing.
• Influence and guide internal and external stakeholders on complex underwriting matters, representing Hiscox's expertise.

Reporting relationships / leadership

• Reports to the War Terrorism and Political Violence Line Underwriter
• Regularly influences and collaborates with a wide range of internal stakeholders, including claims, actuarial, finance, and operations teams.
• Builds and maintains strong relationships with key global brokers and clients, acting as a senior point of contact.
• Mentors and provides technical guidance to junior underwriters and colleagues, enhancing team expertise and performance.
• May lead project teams or specialist workgroups, driving specific initiatives to successful completion.

Complexity & Problem Solving

• Addresses broad, multi-dimensional underwriting problems with significant operational and financial impact, requiring sophisticated analytical and strategic thinking.
• Exercises high autonomy and expert judgment when evaluating unique, complex risks, often without clear precedents.
• Navigates intricate market dynamics, regulatory frameworks, and competitive pressures to formulate optimal underwriting solutions.
• Guides colleagues in resolving highly specialised and challenging underwriting issues, acting as a technical authority.
• Balances competing priorities of risk, quality, commercial pace, and stakeholder expectations in a dynamic London Market environment.
• Proactively identifies, assesses, and resolves complex issues, escalating only when necessary due to strategic impact or governance requirements.

Candidate Profile

• Strong proven underwriting experience within the Lloyd’s/London Political Violence market, with substantial insurance experience and a strong technical grounding in Political Violence.
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• Strong understanding of the Political Violence market and wider geopolitical environment, with the ability to anticipate market developments and identify new opportunities.
• Proven experience operating with significant underwriting authority, demonstrating strong technical judgement across risk selection, rating, coverage and portfolio management.
• Experience of developing, motivating and managing junior underwriters within a high-performing underwriting team.
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• A strong market profile with established broker relationships and a track record of trading effectively, developing opportunities and delivering profitable business growth.
• Demonstrable expertise in risk selection within a specialist insurance class.
• Strong commercial acumen, with the ability to balance growth, profitability and risk management objectives.
• Digital agility and drive, embracing augmented underwriting, data analytics and emerging technologies to improve underwriting performance and efficiency.
• Experience influencing internal and external senior stakeholders and driving strategic outcomes across a complex organisation.
• Strong analytical capabilities, sound judgement and the ability to make high-quality decisions in a dynamic environment.
• Adaptable and forward-thinking, with a willingness to challenge conventional approaches and identify new opportunities.
• A team player who fosters collaboration, innovation and an inclusive culture.

Diversity and flexible working at Hiscox:

At Hiscox we care about our people. We hire the best people for the job and we’re committed to diversity and creating a truly inclusive culture, which we believe drives success. We also understand that working life doesn’t always have to be ‘nine to five’ and we support flexible working wherever we can. No promises, but please chat to our resourcing team about the flexibility we could offer for this role.

Work with amazing people and be part of a unique culture

Why work here?

If you want to help build a brilliant future; work with amazing people; be part of a unique company culture; and, of course, enjoy great employee benefits that take care of your mental and physical wellbeing, come and join us.

About us

We’re a global, specialist insurer headquartered in Bermuda and listed on the London Stock Exchange. With 3,000 employees and 32 offices in 12 countries we’re a business with lots of opportunity for people with talent, spark and lots of ambition. If you want to build a great career with a company that prioritises strong values – such as integrity and courage – where our people always pull together to do the right thing for each other and our customers, then we’d love to hear from you.