What does a personal lines underwriter do?
A personal lines underwriter works at insurance companies to ensure that clients are eligible to receive insurance services. Their responsibilities include gathering and analyzing insurance applications, verifying client information, studying financial histories and occupational risks, and conducting interviews. They may also perform clerical support tasks such as preparing and processing documents, handling calls and correspondence, and updating databases. Moreover, a personal lines underwriter typically works in a team setting, which requires an active communication line for a smooth and efficient workflow.
Personal lines underwriter responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real personal lines underwriter resumes:
- Review individual mortgage origination/post origination documentation and perform database research.
- Review individual mortgage origination/post origination documentation and perform database research.
Personal lines underwriter skills and personality traits
We calculated that 12% of Personal Lines Underwriters are proficient in Insurance Policies, Underwriting Decisions, and Loss Ratio. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Detail oriented, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Personal Lines Underwriters that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Insurance Policies, 12%
Managed assigned underwriting territory for Pennsylvania personal lines insurance policies for exclusive Nationwide agencies and independent agencies.
- Underwriting Decisions, 9%
Explained underwriting decisions to agents and customers that helped diffuse potentially volatile situations.
- Loss Ratio, 9%
Trained underwriters on auto/property selection and loss ratio management.
- Strong Analytical, 6%
Possess excellent time and desk management skills, including organizing, multi-tasking and use strong analytical skills to make sound decisions.
- Inspection Reports, 5%
Review all correspondence, daily reports, endorsements and inspection reports, and publications pertaining to responsibility.
- Renewal Retention, 5%
Presented quarterly underwriter performance, new policy acceptance and renewal retention data.
Common skills that a personal lines underwriter uses to do their job include "insurance policies," "underwriting decisions," and "loss ratio." You can find details on the most important personal lines underwriter responsibilities below.
Analytical skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a personal lines underwriter to have is analytical skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "underwriters must evaluate information from a variety of sources to balance risk against caution." Personal lines underwriters often use analytical skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "analyzed regional loss ratio reports and developed strategic plans to help agents increase their profitability for themselves and for the company. "
Detail oriented. Many personal lines underwriter duties rely on detail oriented. "underwriters must stay focused when reviewing insurance applications because each item may affect the coverage decision.," so a personal lines underwriter will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways personal lines underwriter responsibilities rely on detail oriented: "used detailed risk management analysis to accept, reject, or modify automobile and property insurance policies. "
Interpersonal skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of personal lines underwriters is interpersonal skills. This skill is critical to many everyday personal lines underwriter duties, as "underwriters need to communicate and relate well with people because much of their work involves dealing with clients or others, such as insurance sales agents." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "cited for excellence in interpersonal communications, teamwork, qc review, flexibility and reliability. "
Math skills. For certain personal lines underwriter responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "math skills." The day-to-day duties of a personal lines underwriter rely on this skill, as "underwriters need math knowledge to ensure accuracy in determining the probability of losses and calculating appropriate premiums on an insurance policy." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what personal lines underwriters do: "mortgage due diligence, quantitative analysis and risk analysis. "
The three companies that hire the most personal lines underwriters are:
- Work At Home Vintage Experts40 personal lines underwriters jobs
- Ledcor6 personal lines underwriters jobs
- H. W. Kaufman5 personal lines underwriters jobs
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Compare different personal lines underwriters
Personal lines underwriter vs. Mortgage banker
A Mortgage Banker is specialized in offering financing to buy homes or refinance previous mortgages. They work as part of a banks loan department.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, personal lines underwriter responsibilities require skills like "dexterity," "insurance policies," "underwriting decisions," and "loss ratio." Meanwhile a typical mortgage banker has skills in areas such as "customer service," "nmls," "federal regulations," and "bank products." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
The education levels that mortgage bankers earn slightly differ from personal lines underwriters. In particular, mortgage bankers are 2.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a personal lines underwriter. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Personal lines underwriter vs. Credit officer
A credit officer is responsible for evaluating financial documents and account statements to determine the eligibility of an applicant for a loan option. Credit officers communicate with the applicant to discuss the loan process, explain the terms of service, and provide them alternative options that would fit their payment ability and loan needs. They create financial reports and recommend the qualified applicant to the manager for approval. A credit officer should have excellent communication and analytical skills, ensuring that the loan policies adhere to the federal and state regulations.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real personal lines underwriter resumes. While personal lines underwriter responsibilities can utilize skills like "dexterity," "insurance policies," "underwriting decisions," and "loss ratio," credit officers use skills like "credit risk," "credit analysis," "real estate," and "credit approval."
Credit officers may earn a higher salary than personal lines underwriters, but credit officers earn the most pay in the finance industry with an average salary of $120,621. On the other hand, personal lines underwriters receive higher pay in the insurance industry, where they earn an average salary of $81,104.credit officers earn higher levels of education than personal lines underwriters in general. They're 13.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Personal lines underwriter vs. Loan officer
Loan officers are responsible for assisting borrowers on the best type of loans to avail and guiding the clients throughout the application process. A loan officer must be highly knowledgeable about different lending products, payment plans, loan regulations, and essential files for fast loan approval. Loan officers also act as the first point of contact, conducting an initial screening of the customers, process loan contracts and appropriate documentation, update account records, and respond to customer's inquiries. A loan officer also has the right to reject loan applicants who do not meet loan qualifications.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a personal lines underwriter is likely to be skilled in "dexterity," "insurance policies," "underwriting decisions," and "loss ratio," while a typical loan officer is skilled in "customer service," "origination," "loan origination," and "fha."
Loan officers earn the highest salary when working in the finance industry, where they receive an average salary of $42,046. Comparatively, personal lines underwriters have the highest earning potential in the insurance industry, with an average salary of $81,104.When it comes to education, loan officers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to personal lines underwriters. In fact, they're 0.8% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Personal lines underwriter vs. Bank officer
A bank officer is in charge of overseeing the daily operations at banking establishments, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. Their responsibilities include gathering and analyzing requests, approving and denying loan applications, providing consultations, processing client requests, and producing progress reports. There are also instances where they sign important documents, delegate tasks, and resolve issues and concerns. Moreover, as a bank officer, it is essential to lead and encourage staff to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between personal lines underwriters and bank officers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a personal lines underwriter might have more use for skills like "dexterity," "insurance policies," "underwriting decisions," and "loss ratio." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of bank officers require skills like "customer service," "real estate," "business development," and "bank products. "
Bank officers enjoy the best pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $69,266. For comparison, personal lines underwriters earn the highest salary in the insurance industry.The average resume of bank officers showed that they earn higher levels of education compared to personal lines underwriters. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 7.3% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.1%.Types of personal lines underwriter
Updated January 8, 2025
